Casting lead bullets or “Boolits”, is nothing new. It’s been around pretty much as long as projectiles have been made. Lead’s ductility, density, abundance and low melting temp make its the ideal element for bullets. Lead used to be found in all sorts of industries used in Wheel Weights, Plumbing and Type Setting. Now it is less abundant, but can still be had for relatively cheap (sometimes Free) if someone is willing to do a bit of searching.
This write up isn’t so much a “How to” but just an overview on some of the stuff I use and what I do, when I cast bullets. I am not after perfection, and am not looking to shoot 600+ yards with paper patched bullets in a black powder rifle. Rather I am after range fodder that keeps me shooting. Cast bullets are perfect for most pistol rounds and some rifle loads.
I’ve been casting bullets for a little over ten years. I do not consider myself an expert, but I’m not new to the scene either. What attracted me to casting was the ability to make my own bullets for relatively cheap. Lee Precision offers some fairly inexpensive equipment to get started. I know many people look down on Lee Products, but I have found them to be suitable for getting people into the hobby at a price that doesn’t break the bank. I have Lee Molds that I bought 10 years ago and I and still use.
Words on Safety
I have done a lot of casting. I will fully admit that some of my casting sessions have been lacking OSHA approve safety garb. Working around a hot pot of lead in the desert is unpleasant in the summer, and thus a long sleeve shirt, or long pants, may or may not have been worn. I also may or may not have been burned once or twice…
At a minimum I highly encourage the wearing of safety glasses, and to make sure this activity is either done out doors or next to an open garage door where there is plenty of ventilation.
I nearly always drop my bullets directly into a bucket of water as this helps to harden them. However working with water next to a molten lead presents it’s own safety hazards. If buy chance water gets introduced into the pot of lead, it may result in a steam explosion. If it is a particularly bad one, you will need at a minimum, a change of pants.
At a minumum I reccomend you do the following:
- Wear closed toe shoes, pants, and a long sleeve shirt.
- Wear leather gloves (fabric gloves can melt), or at lease have a pair handy.
- Wear Safety Glasses (This is the one rule I will not break)
- Don’t cast in the rain, or where moisture may enter the pot.
- Make sure you have good ventilation.
Do what you will. I’ve had a steam explosion, and I was sure glad I had safety glasses on. I have grabbed a hot sprue, and I wished I had a leather glove on. I have also had splatter hit my leg from the “Lee Drip” and I wished I had pants on. Besides momentary pain, and very small burns, I have been fortunate. Others have not.
My Set Up
When I purchased the Lee Production pot circa 2010, it was around 70 dollars. The price has gone up some, and they can be had for around ~$90-100 dollars today. This pots have a “Dumb” rheostat. The numbers do not correspond to any sort of temperature. 10 is always on, while 1 is hardly ever on. Thus it is necessary to purchase some sort of thermometer to keep an eye on the temp. You will be adjusting it as the level in the pot begins to drop.
I would like to build, or purchase, a PID temperature controller for the pot at some point in time. However it hasn’t been high on my “ToDo” list as casting is an activity I only do three or four times a year at most. I am able to manage the pot temperature well enough without it.
Nearly every casting session I use two molds. This paces me. I am able to fill one mold up, set it aside, allowing it to cool, while I open up the second mold, knock the bullets out and refill it. Alternating molds like this usually prevents the molds from getting too hot. It’s a rhythm that works for me.
In order to knock the sprue plate open you need to have some type of mallet. I have long used a rubber mallet and found it to work just fine. However due to the way the NOE mold was hinged, it was too clumsy, and I switched to a small plastic/rubber head mallet. Never use metal on a hot mold. Aluminum gets very soft when hot, and it’s easy to damage the mold.
I usually like to have a flat head screw driver on the bench and the right size tools to adjust the molds. The screws on the molds will loosen over time. This is due to the heat and the repeated opening an closing of the mold. Quick little adjustments to the mold, can make a big difference in your casting experience.
The Lee Pot is infamous for the “Lee Drip”. The valve is pretty simple consisting of a tapered pin that sits on an opening in the bottom of the pot. It will work, most of the time. However sometimes some grit or grim will interfere with the seating of the valve. I find spinning the pin with a screw driver will clear the grit from the valve and allow it to seat, stopping the leak.
The last thing to have on the bench is something to set the molds on. Molds like to be at a certain temperature to cast well. Setting a mold on a cold metal surface will cool the mold too much, and you may struggle keeping the mold at it’s ideal temp. I like to use a scrap piece of wood like a 2X4 as it is generally insulates the mold. The wood will blacked from the heat but I have yet to have one smoke or catch fire.
Taking a Closer Look at the Molds
Today we used a 5 cavity aluminum NOE 454-155-SWC mold. This was suppose to drop .454 (45) cal bullets weighing ~155gr and have a semi-wad cutter profile. However when doing QC for these bullets the average was 170gr. Looking at NOE’s website it looks like they no longer offer this mold, or if they do, it is listed as a 454-167-SWC-AC2. They specify wheel weights as being the alloy the weight is based on.
We are also using a Lee 2 Cavity .309 caliber 230gr mold. This mold was specifically designed for 300 Blackout producing a bullet that is the right profile and weight for a subsonic load to feed in an AR-15.
I have used many Lee Molds, but this was the first time using an NOE Mold. I liked the fit and finish of the mold. It is a top quality aluminum mold. They are a small business located in Provo, Utah. Since it is a business local to me, I wanted to support them. Besides the weight being off the only functional complaint with this mold is how the sprue plate opens.
The Lee 6 Cavity Molds have mechanism that allows you to cut the sprue and open by hand. I find that method preferable to the knock open with a mallet. I used the NOE mold for well over 5 hours, casting 1500+ bullets and had very little issues. I would buy another NOE mold in the future, and have my eye on a five cavity 338 cal 315gr mold for use with my 338 Specter.
I used to pay a lot of attention to seasoning the molds. I’d use matches too soot up the inside of the cavities, spray them down with break clean to remove oils, and who knows what else. I have honestly found with the aluminum molds, just using them is about as good as it gets. It’s not to say that seasoning doesn’t make a difference, it’s just I haven’t found the difference it makes to be worth while to stress over.
Some thoughts on Ergonomics
When setting things up, part attention to the ergonomics of your set up. When you are young you can get away with awkward set ups. When you are older, things start to become uncomfortable and down right painful after awhile. If you’re like me, you like to have long casting sessions of 3-4hrs minimum. It takes a bit to set up and you want to get as much done as time will allow.
I had a set up up, pictured above, but when I set down to use it, I realized the pot was too high, and I would need to turn to drop the bullets into the buckets. While these seem like minor complaints, they can lead to a cast experience that is less then fun.
If I had a permanent set up, that I could leave a casting pot set up, I would custom design a work space. As it is, I try to make do with what ever work space is available to me at the time.
Casting
It usually takes a few casts per mold to get the mold up to temperature and begin casting good bullets. This first few casts will open result in partially filled cavities or wrinkled bullets. I always look at this as the mold “Speaking to me” for example wrinkled bullets result from molds that are either too cold, or from the pot being too cold. I like to run my pot somewhere between 700 to 800 degrees F.
Once the mold are up to temp, casting is much like reloading in the sense it is all about repetition. You get into a rhythm and just go for it. I will cast until my pot is about 1/3 full and then stop and add more lead. This gives about a 10 to 15 minute break. I get up, stretch out and check my phone. During this pause I leave the molds full of lead. This helps keep the heat within the mold and prevents them from cooling down too much.
Molds can get too hot, and the obvious sign the mold is getting hot is when the lead “flattens” out on the sprue plate and acts like water. This can result in frosted bullets, and is really hard on a aluminum mold. NOE recommend that their mold doesn’t exceed 600 degrees. Temp of the mold is not something I can readily check. When I think the mold is getting too warm, I will usually set it aside on a cool steel plate.
It only takes a moment or too to cool the mold. I’ll also check the melt temperature and adjust if needed. The melt temperature creeps up on you if you’re not careful, and a periodic check is good. Once you hit 800 degrees it’s good to back of the thermostat and try to keep it there.
I will usually flux the pot at the beginning of the session, but I usually don’t flux it a lot. I bought a container of Frankford Arsenal Casting Flux ten years ago, and I’ve hardly made a dent in it’s contents.
The results for casting are always fun. You have bullets that you made yourself, and will shoot just as good as some commercially made jacket bullets. Cost wise they are far cheaper. If you find a free source of lead, the bullets are about as “Free” as you can get.
The Results
I spent about six hours casting. In all I was able to cast 1519 of the NOE 45 Cal SWC, and 632 of the Lee 230gr 30 Cal bullets. I didn’t hand count them, I used a scale that had a count function. These are the results prior to any QC so the total yield from the casting session will drop. We’ll go over that in a separate write up.
The yield from this casting session alone will provide enough bullets for ammunition for probably six months to a year at a minimum. We’ll be expoy coating these bullets, which is something that is completely new to me, and we’ll be doing a write up on the process we used.
There are many sources for good articles on How to Cast Bullets, and the internet is full of forums and examples of both what to do, and what not to do. It has been my experience that you will find a method that works best for you, and it is likely going to be unique to you. It is easy to over complicate what is otherwise a fairly simple process. You may find that your first few casting sessions are a little more stressful then relaxing, but the trick is to keep at it and find what works for you.
Stay tuned as we the next write up we’ll cover Quality Control and see how many bullets I actually end up with.