most accurate ball?

[olskool]

I have been a handloader of rifle and handgun starting in 1967, I started casting boolits in 1982 I cast my own RB, I have piles of lead. but today I just ordered some Hornaday .535 RB for my 54 southern rifle just to give them a try. who has done a test to see if there home cast balls were more or as accurate as the factory ones?

 

[SDSmlf]

Dutch (you can PM him @Dr5x on this forum) has written about and made weight variation, particularly with purchased swaged round balls, one of the accuracy factors in his ‘system’. Some will claim it plays little if any roll in accuracy. I agree with Dutch. Guess it comes down to what you consider acceptable accuracy.

Below is something I have previously posted.

Here are photographs of the weigh in of two different balls from a single box of purchased balls. Found nearly 10 grains of weigh variation, less than .0005” in diameter variation. Have seen worse, but don’t have photographic evidence. Personally have found that when everything is perfect and using weighed balls will have groups in the one inch range at 100 yards. Mix in the known goofballs from the same box and in the 3-4” range.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Are cast balls more accurate than swaged balls? I have heard that question for as long as I have been shooting and has probably been asked as long as swaged balls have been available.

As has been observed and in Dutch Schoultz's treatise on accuracy, you have the best accuracy through consistency. Go to http://blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com/ to purchase the full scoop on accuracy.

In a nutshell, the balls must be weighed and the extra light balls saved for plinking exercises or for use during the initial familiarity shooting period. If the balls weigh the same, the performance difference between cast or swaged should be very much the same.

Ultimately, @olskool, you will have to tell us what you find out.