preference -cast or swaged

[doulos]

I have never used cast roundballs so I really cant compare them to the Hornady swaged I usually buy. What are your prefence and why?

 

[roundball]

IMO, commercially swaged balls from the big boys like Hornady and Speer are awfully hard to beat for quality, what with swaged balls supposedly not having any voids/cavities in them that can occur when casting a lead ball...pretty darn uniform sizes and weights, etc...and they're usually priced accordingly for that quality.

On the other hand, commercially cast balls from a good quality source can also be very good, and are less expensive...one excellent source being Eddie May's Cast balls in Georgia.

Casting your own might be even less expensive in the long run, but has it's own related demands and issues like many 'reloading' type hobbies.

I've begun using more and more cast balls from Eddie May for weekend shooting but always hunt with Hornady...not saying Eddie May's cast balls aren't good enough to hunt with, it's just that I've accumulated a lot of Hornady's over the years at close out prices, etc.

 

[Le Grand]

I prefer to cast my own. First, I just enjoy doing it. Next, I do a lot of shooting with ball sizes that are not available swaged. And, having your own moulds means you've always got round balls available. Le Grand

 

[jtmattison]

I prefer to cast my own. First, I just enjoy doing it. Next, I do a lot of shooting with ball sizes that are not available swaged. And, having your own moulds means you've always got round balls available. Le Grand

Same here. I get accuracy equal to swaged balls and I get the satisfaction of doing it myself. Initial startup can cost a bit for moulds and such but if you get your lead free or cheap it eventually pays for itself.
I have a 600 pound supply of free lead so my cost is pretty much zero at this time. I have already cast and shot enough ball to pay for my equipment investment.

HD

 

[bwhoffman]

I typicly purchase a firearm so I can reload or cast for it, plain and simple. That said, I cast for all my BP guns. I have shot both speer and hornady swagged balls and cant really notice any difference in those versus my home cast balls.

I would gander that it comes down to the value of your time, your knowledge and confidence in yourself and what you have for equipment.

I have been out-shot in both instances and conversly have out done others!

....dang I love this stuff!

 

[sniper68]

I guess we're even, cause I ain't never shot any swagged balls, although I have Remington, Speer and Hornady's laying around. I've got absolutely nothing bad to say about them. To me castin and cleanin is just part of shootin prb's. :hmm: Kinda like makin everything whole. I look forward to each, almost equally... :grin:

 

[doulos]

I should pick up a mould because I am set up to cast. I have been casting for my BPCR.

 

[Croppy Boy]

Lads, please pardon my ignorance but what's a swaged ball? How do you swag it and what's the point?
Would there be anyone out there with a photo?

 

[jtmattison]

Lads, please pardon my ignorance but what's a swaged ball? How do you swag it and what's the point?
Would there be anyone out there with a photo?

A swaged ball is formed by putting a lead slug into a die and pressure forming it into a ball. No melting occurs.
Casting is melted lead poured into a mould to form the ball.

HD

 

[E Poffinbarger]

Maybe its a little of the "this is the way they must of done it" nostalgic thing. Or maybe its just another one of those things that I enjoy trying to do in a near perfect manner.

I too have shot both but I prefer the homemade casted projectiles. One rifle uses a .535 round ball, the other uses a pointed .542, 425gr hollow based minie.

Over the years, aside from those never recovered during hunting, most of my lead has been fired down range into my bullet trap several times, then recycled into new projectiles.

Osage

 

[Croppy Boy]

Thanks HD, I looked up swag in the dictionary, it said it some kind of a tramp in Australia!

 

[roundball]

Needs an "e" on the end of the word:

Swage - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Swaging (pronunciation note below) is a metal-forming technique in which the metal is plastically deformed to its final shape using high pressures, either by pressing or hammering, or by forcing through a die.

Swaging differs from forging in that the swaged metal is cold worked, and the output of the swaging operation is usually the finished shape.

The term swage can apply to the process of swaging (verb to swage), a die used for swaging (noun swage), or a tool used to swage (noun).

 

[TxRambler]

I like to cast my own. With my 'Bess "Silverfoot", I could never afford the postage on those .735 RBs. Took $16 in cans to the recycler and spent that and another $14 on 90# of sheet lead rolled up, so soft and thin you can cut it with a razor knife. Very sweet. Should keep me in lead a few months at least.

I cast out in the garage (doors opened) on weekend afternoons that I can't go shooting.

 

[arquebus]

Though there is at least one company out there selling swaging dies to make roundballs[url] http://www.corbins.com/bsk-1.htm[/url] the cost is quite prohibitive ($498 to $598 per set/caliber), especially as you have to buy a special press to use them in. As a result swaged roundballs are pretty much only available from the larger bullet makers (Hornady & Speer).
I used to have a swaging press to make smaller caliber conicals, but a larger press is required to make RBs for some reason, & the ones I've seen sell for $398 to $798.
Though I own moulds for all the RB calibers I shoot (.330", .350", .375", .433", .445, & .535") I pretty much shoot swaged balls exclusively & cast for my conicals as most of them are not available off the shelf anyway. Plus, if I cast for everything I'd never spend any time at the range shooting them!

By the way CroppyBoy, a Swag is a bedroll that a Swagman, or Swaggie, (Australian word for Hobo or Tramp)carries.

 

[Croppy Boy]

Thanks lads, it's a poor day that you don't learn something. :thumbsup:

 

[xxgrampa]

an even poorer day if you don't have fun..

tt.g :thumbsup:

 

[Kentuckywindage]

I find swaged balls to be a lot more accurate in my rifles. Cast is good enough for having fun and plinking but i prefer to shoot the most accurate ball when im target shooting or hunting.