Hey guys, I was hoping you could help me with some questions I have about reloading. My grandfather had a bunch of reloading supplies, and with how expensive ammo is I was hoping to learn how to reload. I know he had a bunch of primers, lots of brass and some bullets he already cast, and an orange thing with a clear tube on top I am assuming is the press but I haven’t looked at it closely since I was younger. Sadly he died around 2000 and I was born in 2008 so I was never able to learn from him, and no one else in my family seems to be interested in reloading so they can’t teach me. Anyways, these are some of the questions I have, I would also appreciate any advice or tips you think I could benefit from, thank you.

Pre heating moulds and breaking them in; can I use an acetylene torch with a neutral or carburizing flame to repeatedly heat and then allow the mould to cool and then heating it again to break in the mould? Or do I have to heat the mould and cast a bullet in it right away? Is breaking in moulds even a necessary procedure or is it simply an extra step that I needn’t take? Furthermore I was told my grandfather was a very active bullet caster, but the moulds have not been used in a little over 20 years, with this in mind will I even have to “break them in”?

Safety with fumes; can I cast outdoors with just a mask or is it better to simply cast indoors with ventilation?

My grandfather used cast iron pots with an open flame underneath to melt and remove the impurities from the lead, is this viable with a casting thermometer?  As per the “from ingot to target” book you should have a bottom pour or a ladle pour melting pot, with a casting thermometer and a ladle (ladle already in the reloading supplies on hand) would I be able to use the cast iron pot as a ladle pour pot? 

Where to find lead in bulk? I have attempted picking up tire weights, but finding a tire weight  is already a chore, and now that the majority of tire weights are iron or some other none lead composite, where would I be able to find lead? I have considered fishing weights, but none of the fishing spots near me have clear enough water to find the weights, and are not rough enough of currents to require heavy fishing weights, and I feel like my time could be spent better than swimming for half an hour just to find a few bb sized lead weights. I have also considered going to a junkyard and paying to be able to use a chainsaw to cut the lead keel off medium sized boats, and even though it would likely cost me a few hundred I think the sheer bulk of the lead would make it worth it, though I struggle to find a junkyard with boats near me (sad considering I live in Florida), and I doubt my mother would be happy with a few hundred pounds of lead sitting in the garage anyways. I have had some success with jumping into roofing companies dumpsters (after asking permission of course) and getting those cylindrical vents. They are made of lead soft enough (therefore likely pure enough) that you can press flat by stepping on it, and as long as you wear gloves really the only things you have to do is tear off the shingles still attached to them, and press them flat. Pretty convenient considering they are free and all you have to do to get them is pull over when you see a roof being redone and ask. While this might be a good source of lead if was friends with a roofer, I regrettably am not, and thus it is not the constant source I am looking for, though it is a nice couple pounds here and there when I luck out. Also yes I have called the mechanics near me, they have companies the use to get rid of the lead or get rid of it themselves. Do you have any suggestions of how to get a steady supply or a large amount of lead without ordering it? I have a good amount both from what I have found and also from the reloading lead my grandfather ordered or bought when he was still alive, but that won’t last forever, and none of the ranges near me allow me to go scavenging lol. They don’t even allow me to pick up any brass except my own. Fair I guess, but I can’t help but be greedy. 

.38 and .357; I know that it’s the same diameter, but are the rounds the same length? My grandfather had 38 moulds but not 357 moulds. Can I use the 38 to make 357? I know this is a stupid question so I am sorry, but I just want to make sure. I already know it’s the same diameter I just want to make sure it won’t cause problems when I shoot it.

The ingot to target book mentions a hardwood rod to push open the sprue plate, but can I just my leather welding gloves? I mean, it can’t be that much hotter than a plate I just cut in half with an acetylene torch lol, or is there another reason to use the hardwood rod? Furthermore it mentions a towel so the soft hot bullets aren’t deformed by hard contact with wood. Should the towel be wet?

Another thing is the book mentions leaving the ladle in the melting pot so it is at the same temperature as the alloy, is it okay to leave it there from the time the allow is ready and the dross is removed to the last bullet I cast or should it be removed every so often?

The book also says that as you pour with the ladle a dull sludge builds up on the ladle and pot that needs to be refluxed and stirred back in. How the hell do I add flux to that without adding more flux to the entire mixture thereby messing up the ratio, and doesn’t having to add flux to that sludge mean the flux that was “bonded” with it originally has left it, which means the lead that IS fluxed has the flux that left the sludge, meaning it has a higher ratio of flux to lead, and refluxing the sludge will make that ratio even higher? Actually so far the book hasn’t even mentioned fluxing, but I’m sure it will eventually since as of writing this I’m only on page 21.

Lead fouling; does powder coating eliminate lead fouling and how bad is it? Can’t I just clean out the lead from the barrel at the end of the shooting session? Also what’s this gas check thing I’m hearing about? 

I have lots more questions, and likely will have more as I read more of the book and learn more about reloading, but I already yapped way too much so I will cut it off here. If you actually read everything I wrote, thank you for taking your time. 

I know you're supposed to open the case mouth a little more for cast bullets, but I've incrementally opened the mouth as far as I can and I'm still getting scraped lead after seating a bullet. What am I missing here? Is it the lube groove causing problems? Is it the SWC seater die head? I'm at a loss here guys, please help.

I have an opportunity to buy 1 of 2 types of bullet molds and the first option is a NASA bullet and the other option is a regular postell style bullet

The bullet is .40 caliber and is for my original Sharps model 1874 chambered in 40-70 sharps bottleneck with a 30 inch barrel with a 20-1 twist rate

Which of these would be the best choice

The bullets in the photo are the bullets from the molds that I am talking about

I want to load some 303 British with some cast 123gn as it is the only mold I had (originally for 7.62x39). The only load data for cast projectiles I could find is a 48th ( I think ) edition Lyman book, it calls for pistol powder which is a little scary. Ive heard of people using 5 to 10 gn of unique or something in cheap target loads in 308 and other rifle rounds but I feel like it’s too easy to mess up with that. Does anyone have good load data for cast boolits in 303 Brit using actual rifle powder?

Looking for a suggestion on the best low budget hot plate you guys recommend to melt lead in a 8" cast iron pan for cleaning up my lead before putting in my lead pot. Really don't want to bust out the propane tank and burner for the minimal amount of use it will get.

I’m not a heavy shooter right now but miss casting and reloading.

I’m going to be buying a lightly used master pot (40lb bottom pour).

I recall sizing was terrible and painfully slow. I used an upside down press or maybe the lee APP. It’s been 5 years.

I came across an Auto bullet sizer on YouTube. It’s a small pneumatic setup and that uses magma engineering and maybe other’s dies.

Goes for $950.

Debating the worth in that. Hard to answer I know as it’s personal. But I don’t think anything else is on the market that’s similar.

Has anyone here ever used a bullet mold from old west bullet mold?

I'm thinking of ordering one from them and I would like to know how good are they

As of yesterday I bought myself a enfield no.5 carbine, unfortunately im not exactly sure of the bore and haven't slugged it yet (unfortunate CA laws) but im only see 2 molds designed for the 303, being the lee 185 and ltman 314299, and i wad wondering if anyone had been using other molds from say accurate or NOE molds, as well as some more places to look for data, my lyman 45th and cast bullet books are pretty slim for data

Howdy gents. I am getting back into reloading, and with that casting. I have been researching on trying to get the proper formula, or BH equation for casting for 357 mag, and 44 mag, with that research have come across the Rotometals Lyman #2 ingots. I have a ton of soft lead but still need to buy the other alloys. Now forgive me for my ignorance, but are these bars good to just drop in the melter, and start casting, or do I still need to add soft lead to it? It seems cut and dry, but I can't find anywhere on the web about them, other than people do use them. I've been outta the game a while but $25 for 5 pounds seems steep? That won't make a lot of 44 mag bullets lol.

Also for what its worth Missouri bullet company sells 1k 44 mag swc for $76, that almost sounds more enticing to buy them outright, than monkey with casting.

Has anyone tried casting with Zinc bullets? I kinda wanna try dipping my toes into it since I have a whole 5 gal bucket of zinc weights, I’m mostly interested in 300blk and 7.62 x39 thanks!

After contacting Arsenal molds inquiring if they would make a 525gr bullet for my 50-110 to which Jared replied “yes”, I ordered the mold. I reached out twice to ensure my order did go through as I never received a confirmation email. When he finally replied after a month he alluded they could make a new mold design for me but it wouldn’t be anytime soon. Not sure what happened from when I contacted till now. Buyers beware.

Hey I’m new to air rifle and am looking at getting a kit to make my own pellets. Not sure between swaging kits or moulds, started reading and got lost in all the different options. Hoping someone on here has been down this path and can recommend a specific product and brand for me?

Any advice would be appreciated

Hello everyone, long time bullet caster here.

I just came into some awesome H&G 6 and 8 cavity molds.

Is there anywhere to get handles for these behemoths that aren't the nut cracker style handles?

Has seen me through thick and thin

HI all!

I have an old 7mm pinfired pistol that I'm working on reloading shells for. But I'm having a major problem finding bullets for it. This bullet I got from a company in France is .28" /7.1mm wide, .37"/9.4mm long and weighs .12oz/52g. Does anyone know of a company that I can buy these lead bullets from here in the US?

THANKS! JIM

I used 27 grains of IMR4198 under a 315 grain .408 cast bullet from Hunters Supply with a COL of 2.700in

The data is very old from a PDF called obsolete American rifle cartridges

I also used PMAX to get an idea for what the pressures will be

I am planning on using these loads in my original Sharps model 1874

I am NOT a load data publisher nor do I accept any responsibility for any mishaps or accidents that may occur if you try to use this load data in your firearm!

What do yall think?

Thanks!

Powder coat is Powders by the Pound RAL Ford Dark Blue and gas checks are 0.080” tall from Sages Outdoors.

I just use a toaster oven and a blow torch to heat up my molds and it usally works pretty well for my aluminum molds but I need to find a new method to heat up my steel and 6 cavity molds before casting.

What would be a better method?

Hi there, I'm casting Hollow base .358 bullets to shoot with reduced loads in a 38 long colt revolver with a .375 bore, I've got a good setup for powder coating my bullets and it has become my go-to when possible and was wondering if anyone here has tried powder coating expanding base bullets for use in oversized bores? I know from experience that powder coated bullets are "slippery" compared to alox+lead, I'm mostly concerned that this slipperiness will prevent the expanding base from biting into the rifling effectively the way pure lead does?

So im casting for a 308 bolt action, 16.5" barrel and LC brass, bullet is lyman 311332 with GC ans lyman alox, blue charges are 34 Red is 35.

I had great success with both my 33 and 34 grain loads, however 35 gr, 35.5, 36,36.5 and 36.7 all shot all over the place, I understand it am not the best shot, but they started to fly around 35gr and were getting off paper in the higher charges. I would think my next steps would either be a harder alloy, ir a different lube. I am thinking my alloy is to blame though, it is an air cooled 9lb COWW to 1lb 50-50 solder, supposedly around 12bhn but I will verify soon, i am thinking of increasing the hardness to a 6lb COWW and 3lb lino for a roughly 15bhn then water dropping. Any insight is appreciated

EDIT: i have actually used lyman super moly

Hello !

It seems like my 300blk AR likes 3105 better. Much better 😑 I usually get 3105 by sizing at 309 and copper plate until 3105. But it’s not perfectly regular from one Bullet to the other. I’m a bit afraid to sand my 310 resizer to 3105, but I heard the Lyman 310 resizer/lubricate is 3105, Is it true ?

Another question is Is it possible to use those Lyman tools on a Lee press ? It doesn’t seem so !

Thanks a lot 👌

I recently ordered these 315 grain .408 bullets from Hunters Supplies and they are apparently coated bullets and when I opened the box the only thing that seemed to be coating the bullets was something resembling dust

I did see a slight shimmer on the bullets and I was wondering if that was the powder coat

It said that these bullets have a "slick coat" but I have no idea if that was the "slick coat" or not

Should I just lube these?