Round Balls

[dikman]

Wheel weight boolits are fine for patched ML rifles, just don't use them in revolvers (too hard!!).

 

[cynthialee]

Wheel weight boolits are fine for patched ML rifles, just don't use them in revolvers (too hard!!).

and if you use them in a smoothbore you have to go with a slightly smaller ball as they don't have any give to them like a lead ball does

 

[jamesthomas]

I sorta do the same thing, except I throw the manager a $20.00 bill and he lets me go through the discarded wheel weight buckets, I get at least 20lbs. sometimes 30lbs. every time I go. A lead melting pot, and a cast iron cornbread mold for ingots, and a Lee Magnum Melter a dipper and either a .490 or .395 mold for RBs and I'm good to go.

 

[Col. Batguano]

IF...(and I only say "if" because this potential issue might be of no consequence to you)
If it matters to you....it's been my experience as a diver since the 1960's, that a lot of "Dive weights" are made from scrap wheel weights, not straight lead.

I make all my dive weights from reclaimed wheel weights. I must have over 400 pounds of them by now.

 

[Don Steele]

That's been my observation as well. Wheel weights used to be essentially free for the asking. A LOT of them became dive weights.
Some here have no issues shooting patched roundball wheel weights. Others don't want to go there.
Not trying to stir the pot, just wanted to share an observation.
My ingot piles are separated: straight lead, wheel weights, and 30:1 alloy... and they'll stay that way. :wink:

 

[hanshi]

Casting your own is the only way to go, IMHO. Ever since I fired my very first bp gun I've cast my own balls and minies. In fact the only bought ball I've ever shot was when a friend gave me a box of Hornady .54s and I still half of them left.

I normally shoot soft lead balls in my rifles and WW balls in my smoothbore. But just recently I've been shooting WW ball in my .36 with the same patch and everything and they shot absolutely fine. WW is my preference in a smoothbore especially for bare ball loads.

 

[MSW]

welcome to the wonderful world of 'runnin' ball...' you should do some work before you get started casting your own:

get a copy of Dutch Schoultz' method (here)
http://www.blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com/

and go through it a few times. Then get your rifle 'dialed in,' and you'll probably have to purchase some different diameters of sized cast or swaged ball. don't worry- the investment will be worth it! ...

then, when you're sure you know which ball/patch/lube/charge combination works in your particular rifle, go ahead and get a mold and a melting pot and a dipper ...

by way of 'warning' ... wear good leather gloves, long pants and closed toes shoes when you cast. don't eat or drink anything when you cast (it interrupts your rhythm anyway). if it's hot and you sweat, wear a headscarf or a cap or something ... even a small drop of sweat dropped in the molten lead will cause a mini explosion which will splash lead all over ... you want to be out of town if that happens! be up wind of the whole process (the fumes can mess you up if you breathe enough of them), and of course, wash your hands thoroughly when you're done. don't let children in the area (another distraction, and lead is very bad for children) ... it's a good idea to be outside when you cast.

this sounds like a whole lot of nanny- state b.s., but once you set up casting for the first time, it will be part of the routine and you'll barely notice it (the video looks pretty good to me, by the way) ... I forgot- use a wood dowel, not a small hammer, to strike the sprue plate, and have something soft for the ball to fall onto when they come out of the mold.

what you spend on casting equipment will more than amortize in a few months of shooting; when last I did the arithmetic, it was about five hundred or a thousand rounds and then you've paid for the mold and the melter. you're going to fire more than that over the ownership of the rifle, so if you run your own ball, you're ahead of the game.

cast ball does not (in my experience) produce any better or worse product that swaged lead (this is what you get commercially from Hornady and the other major ball makers) ... your mileage may vary ... many shooters actually prefer cast lead as more consistent ... if it's that big a deal, you can weigh your balls and remelt the ones that are too light or too heavy.

if the purity of the lead is an issue to you, you can buy a Brindel hardness tester, but I use my thumbnail: if I can easily dent the surface, i'll call it soft enough.

happy casting!

 

[necchi]

I do have one regret about casting my own ball,
I didn't start sooner!!

 

[Col. Batguano]

Most divers seem to have gotten away from hard block raw lead weights these days. They've gone to soft shot in pockets (more comfortable if they wear a belt), or, weight integrated BCD's. I bought all my equipment for my students on the cheap off of e-bay, and needed so much weight, I just couldn't bring myself to pay the going rate for dive weights when it was essentially available for free. 400 pounds at $3-5.00 per pound can run in to money. :shocked2: And for that purpose, the hardness and alloy ratio is largely immaterial.

 

[Don Steele]

I've seen those "soft-pocket" dive weights around, in the shops and on dive boats. Sometimes in hot pastel colors and everything...!! :grin:
Very Stylish.
I took my first SCUBA training when Kennedy was President and still have a couple of the weights I used back then tucked into my BC.
Guess I'm kinda "old school" in more than just my shooting choices. :wink:

 

[Pierre du Plessis]

Just a question (which might be sorta stupid, but whatever :grin: ):

What are the health risks involved in "runnin' ball"? People have warned me that it could result in severe lead poisoning - is it true, or is it just modern medical hype (I mean, people have been casting their own round balls for ever so long).

Thanks!

 

[Zonie]

There is no more danger of lead poisoning from casting lead than there is from handling already cast lead balls or bullets.

A very small amount of lead might rub off on your fingers from the cool castings but it is only harmful if you lick your fingers or handle food without washing the lead off first.

Lead doesn't boil or vaporize until it reaches a temperature well over 3000 degrees F.
That temperature is almost impossible for the average melting pot or pan on a stove to ever reach.

The fumes from "fluxing" the lead might contain a small quantity of lead but I really doubt it.
If it is a concern, do as most of us do and stay upwind from the pot while fluxing.

Speaking of fluxing, don't do it indoors.

The knot on the top of your head that forms after your wife hits you with a skillet for doing such a stupid thing, takes a long time to go down.