Cast bullets

[AkMike]

Hi Guys.
There's actually alot of good commercial caster outfits already out there if you want to buy them. If you want to "Roll Your Own" there's several good forums to get you started.
I shoot my own hardened WW bullets in my DR's and several bolt guns. They work quite well.

 

[Aliyah]

I was wondering if any of you people whom reload out there cast your own bullets & hunt with them. I have done so in the U.S sucessfully for White tail deer & varmints. I took some reduced loads with cast bullets to Africa on my last safari hoping for some small cats & or Duiker & Steenbuck but no opportunities came up.
I know most people don't cast them much alone use them, but having shot Metallic silhouette for 19 years and the amount of shooting I've done over the years I would have been broke along time ago. Just wondering if anyone wants to chat about cast bullets or wants to learn more about them as I'm quite knowledgeable in the subject!

Hi Calhoun.I was starting to wonder if i was the only bullet caster in SA.I shoot cast exclusively..22 Hornet,303,308 and 375.For me casting and shooting cast is the ultimate thing for me.I probably have more than a 1000 different gr and makes of copper jacket bullets somewhere in a safe here.
I have 5 different 30 cal molds,3 .22 molds,2 303 molds and 2 375 molds.I also cast for 38 and 357 for my Rossi carbine.I also have 2 molds for my 9mm.Thank GOD i have a M80 Luger that loves cast bullets.I don''t know if i will ever shoot copper again.I have shot plenty warthog,bushpig,Bush buck,duiker,nyala,jackals and a few kudu cows

 

[edward]

in revolvers im strictly a punch bullet guy,jacketed in everything else.this is a subject that has been beat to death,no body will ever win.should of kept my mouth shut.will in the future.

 

[ChrisG]

The only thing I shoot in my pistols and revolvers is cast. 125gr. 9mm, 90 gr. .380, 310GCFN in .44 magnum. I have literally shot tens of thousands of them, cast myself and bought from places like Missouri Hard Cast Bullets. I have shot plain based lead up to 1600fps with no leading. That being said, the only cast I've ever shot out of a rifle were .45-70 and 6.5x55. Reduced loads in the 6.5 for about 1900fps and Varget in the .45-70 for about 1300fps. Those uninitiated with cast bullets, or newbies think you need HARD, pure linotype bullets for rifle. At 2600fps that is true but the most important thing with cast is that your bullets are sized .001 over your groove diameter. Do that and make sure your bullet is soft enough to obturate (there are charts for this) and you can easily push them to 2000 to 2100fps without leading. shooting bullets that are too hard will not obturate and actually cause MORE leading than had the shooter just used a softer alloy. Best of luck!

 

[MS Hitman]

There is a dying art to properly shooting cast bullets. I lost them in handguns and for plinking rounds in the big bore stuff. Lots of fun to take game with bullets you made yourself.

 

[RichardMei]

Hi Calhoun.I was starting to wonder if i was the only bullet caster in SA.I shoot cast exclusively..22 Hornet,303,308 and 375.For me casting and shooting cast is the ultimate thing for me.I probably have more than a 1000 different gr and makes of copper jacket bullets somewhere in a safe here.
I have 5 different 30 cal molds,3 .22 molds,2 303 molds and 2 375 molds.I also cast for 38 and 357 for my Rossi carbine.I also have 2 molds for my 9mm.Thank GOD i have a M80 Luger that loves cast bullets.I don''t know if i will ever shoot copper again.I have shot plenty warthog,bushpig,Bush buck,duiker,nyala,jackals and a few kudu cows

Hi Aliyah, I was wondering if you be so kind as to share some of those load recipes? I shoot .22 Hornet and 303 British. For the .22 Hornet, I cast the NOE 22548SP and the Lyman 225436 and for the 303 British the NOE 314198SP and the Lyman 314299. I saw somewhere else that you powder coat your bullets. Could you also please share your recipes for these?

 

[larry4831]

Hi Calhoun, I have a question for you. I want to load some cast bullets for a 416 Ruger and I don't have an M die, can I load these with just a bullet seating die?

 

[MS Hitman]

Larry,

You can most likely use the expander die from a straight wall cartridge set. A little goes a long way, so be careful.

Having said that, I don't use one loading cast bullets in my .416 Rigby.

 

[ChrisG]

Hi Calhoun, I have a question for you. I want to load some cast bullets for a 416 Ruger and I don't have an M die, can I load these with just a bullet seating die?

I have loaded the beartooth 375 grain .416 into a .416 Ruger case with a load of trailboss for about 1000fps. What I had to do was to bevel the inside of the cas mouths and then I ran them up into a set of 10mm handgun dies that i already had to bell the mouth just slightly. It worked ok although I think I would have been fine with just the bevel on the mouth. Without the bevel it shears off a bunch of lead when you seat the bullet. Also, Make sure you get cast bullets that have a .416 remington length nose (approximately .6 inches or longer). The Ruger Hawkeye will not feed them properly and it will be a single shot. Ask me how I know.

 

[larry4831]

Thank you guys, I have an M die for my other calibers but I can't find one for 416 . I don't shoot a lot of cast bullets anyway but I just had a total shoulder replacement back in May and the doctor cleared me to shoot but I just don't have the confidence shooting hard recoiling rifles just yet.

 

[MS Hitman]

30 grains of Trail Boss behind the RCBS 350 grain .417" bullet is an easy shooting load in my Ruger RSM.

 

[GuttormG]

Thank you guys, I have an M die for my other calibers but I can't find one for 416 .

Lee universal expanding die

 

[John J]

As far as accuracy is concerned for cast bullets slug your barrel to determine what size you need. Cast is not a generic like jacketed .458 for example. In my 45-70 I size to .459 from a .460 mould. .460 gets me 5/16" more accurate but at the cost of 160 fps. If you are ever looking for a custom design, accurate moulds makes quality moulds, and a brass mould is a joy to work with. There is alot of info if you start researching cast. A web site I learned a ton on is cast boolits, I suggest looking them up. I make my own bullet lube as well. I have taken two elk and three deer with cast out of my accurate mould. If you hunt with them I suggest testing your alloy. 405 gr at 1735 fps nothing went far but I stiffened up my lead after the first elk to get an exit hole.

 

[Marcos Rodriguez]

Hi guys!
Here, in my country, we are very short in reloading suplies
We litterally have to make miracles with thath we can get
Troubles with bad goverment administrations, bad economy.... ufffffffffffff
So, there are very few options! And lack of everything in reloading suplies
Bullets? very few and very expensive!
So, ages ago, I start with the cast bullets, more than a necessity than pleassure, and I can get so good shots, so good accuracy, that I don't currently see the need to go back to using copper bullets
In fact, the wild boars fall down like struck by lightning
I use a lymann cast mould of 190 gn, RCBS lube sizer, and "made myself" gaschecks, of alluminium, and a duplex charge (the powders I use are made in my coutry, sorry) 4 gns of "A2" powder (similar to the w231, a sligther more rapid) in the base, and 45 gn of "A19", a magnum powder a bit slower than the Reloader 25
Why I use this components? Because I try many powders, many charges, and NO ONE works like this development...
I can make consistents submoa groups, at 2400 fps in my .308 18" barrel

No leading, no overload syntoms, and an incredible terminal effect in the game
I have more of 20 big boars shot down with this bullets.... MY BULLETS, hahaha... "marquete bullets" as says my fellows here hahaha
I guess I'll never shoot with purchased bullets again.... unless I do not get more supplies for the lead ones, which in my country is possible since EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE HERE