.380 spruless ball?

[Capt. Thomas]

Well I bought a ton of them years ago but I am starting to get low and having problems finding any. Use to be several companies that had them, Buffalo Bullet Company, RV Marketing, Warren Muzzle Loading etc. but they all look to gone now. Any one have a lead?

Capt. Thomas

 

[TNGhost]

By sprueless, I am guessing you mean swaged?

Don't see where either Speer or Hornady make that diameter any longer.

Dixie has cast ones but they're going to have the sprue nib:
http://www.dixiegunworks.com/default.php?cPath=22_99_311_312&sort=2a&&page=1

TOW has them too.

https://www.trackofthewolf.com/list/Item.aspx/127/1

 

[zimmerstutzen]

If the mould block is machined just right, and the sprue cutter matches, a hand cast ball can be sprueless. Had an acquaintance years ago, that would "re-condition" moulds for that. He is long gone. (RIP Jake) It comes from the tolerance between the body space of the mould and the sprue cutter being much closer. It leaves a very slight flat spot that is virtually undetectable.

 

[Capt. Thomas]

There are all kinds of hand cast ball available, I have moulds and can drop those. But the swaged is what I am referring to.

Capt. Thomas

 

[TNGhost]

I seem to remember at one point someone was selling a round ball swager that could be used with a mallet. It was a simple affair, two round flat chunks of steel with a cavity cut out and lined up with pins. Probably could come up with one in a machine shop in short order.



What are you using them in?

 

[nhmoose]

http://www.ballisticproducts.com/Super-Buck-Lead-0000-8-lb_jar-380/productinfo/SBK40/

It's not that hard I use it in my Lyman .36 1858

 

[Scota4570]

To remove the sprue from cast balls tumble them. Add some graphite and put a bunch of them in a rock polisher or case tumbler. IT will not take much time to flatten out the sprues. The balls will have a multitude of tiny marks, like a golf ball but less, like buckshot. They end up looking very nice. They shoot well.

 

[Jim C]

There are all kinds of hand cast ball available, I have moulds and can drop those. But the swaged is what I am referring to.

Capt. Thomas

TOW and The Log Cabin Shop are the only two sources I've been able to find that offers a cast .380 ball and I have searched for them elsewhere to absolutely no end. Neither can I find a steel .380 mold. DGW has them listed. I ordered one and they were out of stock. I put it on back order and have not recieved it yet, that was a month ago or so.

 

[Jim C]

http://www.ballisticproducts.com/Super-Buck-Lead-0000-8-lb_jar-380/productinfo/SBK40/

It's not that hard I use it in my Lyman .36 1858

Not too rough at all on the loading lever huh? Thanks for the tip/link. Your source is a helluva lot cheaper than TOW, or The Log Cabin Shop. Roughly half the price. They get $10+ per hundred.

 

[smoothshooter]

Why not just get a mold and make your own.
That way you are not dependent on an outside supplier, and you save a lot of money.

If the mold leaves a little bit of a sprue bump, fumble them in a can or plastic bowl with a lid on it for a few minutes.

Lee molds do not leave a sprue bump.

 

[smoothshooter]

Just out of curiosity, why do you have to have " swaged " balls ".

 

[Jim C]

OOPS! Sorry for the mis- post. :grin:

 

[TNGhost]

There are all kinds of hand cast ball available, I have moulds and can drop those. But the swaged is what I am referring to.

Capt. Thomas

TOW and The Log Cabin Shop are the only two sources I've been able to find that offers a cast .380 ball and I have searched for them elsewhere to absolutely no end. Neither can I find a steel .380 mold. DGW has them listed. I ordered one and they were out of stock. I put it on back order and have not recieved it yet, that was a month ago or so.

mtmanjim
You're going to need to cut the sprue with these, but the ones I ordered a couple of weeks ago were in like new shape, with the exception of the red paint flaking off the handles. I got a .65 and a .58. They do appear to have .38. Shipping was quick, got them within a week.
http://www.lodgewood.com/Dixie-Round-Ball-Mold-30-cal--70-cal_p_2393.html

Capt. Thomas, a little judicious filing may get you close to what you want. :idunno:

 

[George]

I don't have a source for sprueless .380s. I bought a Lee .380" two-ball mold a couple of years ago, and it throws balls as nearly sprueless as can be. These are as they came out of the mold.





Spence

 

[nhmoose]

http://www.ballisticproducts.com/Super-Buck-Lead-0000-8-lb_jar-380/productinfo/SBK40/

It's not that hard I use it in my Lyman .36 1858

Not too rough at all on the loading lever huh? Thanks for the tip/link. Your source is a helluva lot cheaper than TOW, or The Log Cabin Shop. Roughly half the price. They get $10+ per hundred.

I have not had problems at all.

 

[Albanyco]

I also use a lee mold, and all though you can where the sprue was my balls are nice and smooth.

 

[Eterry]

My recent Lee molds are pretty much sprue-less. The older ones not so much. I wish all my molds were Lee sprue-less.

 

[Wes/Tex]

We've been fighting this fight for many years. Speer and Hornady haven't made any swaged balls between .375" and .395" for many years now. TOTW and Dixie, to my knowledge, are about the only ones even offering cast balls in .380". About the only thing I could offer for now is either buy or cast yoiur own adn roll them in a rock tumbler for several hours to roll off the sprue and lightly compres up the surface. There was one provat swged ball maker at one time but can't recall their name...they were like finding hen's teeth even when still being made. This is one reason I've stayed with older made replica revolvers whose bores were just a touch undersized. Made it a hell of a lot easier to find ammo! :wink:

 

[Billnpatti]

You can cast your own using Lee molds. They leave no significant sprue, just a little flat spot. Then just hit the local garage sales and watch for a rock tumbler. Tumble your newly cast balls in the tumbler (no tumbling or polishing media in it). I have found that about 45 minutes of tumbling and the balls will look like little ball bearings. Been doing it for several years now. :thumbsup:

 

[George]

I did a test to see if sprues really would disappear if you tumbled balls, and they do. I don't have a rock polisher or other tumbler, so I just put some .600" balls in a plastic bottle and shook them vigorously for about an hour. Here are the results, tumbled on the left, as out of the mold on the right.





I've never found that sprues cause me problems sith accuracy, so I don't bother with tumbling, but it works very well.

Spence