Is buckshot pure lead?

[pepperbelly]

Dad found a 5# bag of buckshot in his garage. We measured them at .451". Is buckshot, or shot in general, pure enough lead to melt into balls, or is it too hard/alloyed?

We also ahve some lead from the early '70s that we had melted into weights for our SCUBA weight belts. I am going to see if it scratches with a fingernail.
If so, I need to buy a mold and roll my own!

Jim

 

[longfowler]

.451's are pistol balls for .44 cap & ball revolvers. see if they're soft enough you can scratch one with your fingernail, if so, it's almost pure lead - and if you can't find a use for them, I'll send you my adress and I can dispose of the free of charge by feeding them to my colts

 

[pepperbelly]

I thought about buying a pistol to use them in. I have done something similar before- I don't remember why!
These are in a cloth/canvas bag printed "buckshot". It is an old bag, probably from the '60s at least.

Jim

 

[Sherlock]

Used to be all buckshot was "common" lead buckshot, then they began to alloy, then to copperplate,then to buffer. There is a good chance your old bag is lead buckshot, perhaps graphite coated to prevent oxidation. If its for c & B or a patch gun and seems soft, shoot it. BTW Hornady's new 5 pound bags are alloyed and hard, and at least in "0" , oversized. I just got a mould for my 32 as for the first time ever I can't get lead buck and am tired of fighting that oversized Hornady. Wonky

 

[nchawkeye]

.451 balls are not considered buckshot...You don't want to toss 9 of them in your 12 gauge and touch her off...Buckshot runs about .33-.28 caliber...They might have been in a bag marked buckshot, but that's not what they were...

Anyway, if you can mark it with your fingernail, you can melt it down and shoot in a rifle...

 

[pepperbelly]

I know #00 buckshot is about .32 caliber, but there are #000 and #0000 buckshot also.
This is an old bag that was still sewn at the top. We ripped it open enough to remove a ball to measure.
The writing on the bag- stencil, stamp, whatever, is faded and I don't remember seeing a brand name.

Jim

 

[BrownBear]

Things could have changed since I bought any long ago, but at that time buckshot was typically alloyed with 3% antimony to help limit distortion on firing and produce better patterns. Still not real hard, but noticeably harder than the balls I cast from pure lead.

 

[pepperbelly]

I wonder if they would make good rb's for my smoothbore musket?
I don't have a mold and have never cast my own roundballs, but these aren't going anywhere.

How many .69 caliber balls can be cast from 5# of shot?

Jim

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Fifty years ago Dixie Gunworks used to sell five pound bags of "buckshot" in a wide variety of sizes up to at least .45 caliber. I suspect that may be what was found. If so it would be soft lead, at least nearly pure lead, because it was intended for revolvers and patched ball rifles. As a teenager I shot Dixie's buckshot out of my .36 caliber heavy barreled Ohio rifle. Back then Dixie was about the only source for muzzleloading stuff. I had Turner Kirkland's first catalog, a little shirt pocket size booklet of about 24 pages. Wish I still had that but when I went into the army my parents moved and mom threw away lots of old magazines and stuff, including that catalog and the first issue of "Guns&Ammo" magazine. Thankfully she did keep my cap pistols and I still have those.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Lead shot today is almost never pure lead. It usually has both tin and antimony in it to harden it. Chilled shot is the softest lead you will find, but even it is not pure.

 

[jdstrang]

How many .69 caliber balls can be cast from 5# of shot?

Jim

74 & change, discounting slag, waste, etc.

My Lyman 678 rb mold throws a 468-grain ball: 35,000 grains (five pounds) divided by 468 = 74.7863 (and on and on and on). A nice afternoon's shooting... :grin:

 

[Sherlock]

I still have half a 5 pound bag of original common lead "0000", 4 ought buckshot I used with my old .36 rifle. It measured .360/.363. Sample ball 12.99 + S&H(each). BTW, three in a 38 special case works pretty dang good. Antique, no FFL needed, however please send a copy of your colliefornia lead license signed in pencil when ordering. LOL. Wonky

 

[buttonbuck]

great info I have more or less a 25 lb bag of chilled lead shot #8 so what you are saying is I can cast decient lead balls from it for the 32 and 62 cal. I would get other shot for the smoothbore.

 

[roundball]

a 25 lb bag of chilled lead shot #8

To be sure you're aware, that 25 lb bag of shot you're thinking of melting is now selling for up around $40 or more...