found its way into my reloading shed a couple of months back, courtesy of an acquaintance who had such a great time [along with his son] at a recent guest day, and donated it to me as a thank-you. And before anybody takes to task about how a weight-belt filled with lead shot can wear out, it appears that constant immersion in salt water over a period of years play gip with the stitching.
Anyhow, half an hour work with mrs tac's unpicking device and I was the proud owner of about 45 pounds of mixed-grade/size lead shot. Melting it down resulted in some pretty gruesome and plentiful dross, but once that was skimmed off, what beautiful shiny lead was there for the casting!
The bullets - 535gr Miniés for my Musketoon and 450gr FNL .45-70 Govt for my Winchester High Wall - came out sharply filling the moulds and of very uniform shininess. Even chilling the 405s straight from the mould into a pail of water didn't change the colour, just seemed to make them very smooth and professional-looking.
My experience has pointed me at any dive shop where old gear might be found - in particular weight-belts with shot, rather than the clip-on lumps of lead one often sees.
tac
Anyhow, half an hour work with mrs tac's unpicking device and I was the proud owner of about 45 pounds of mixed-grade/size lead shot. Melting it down resulted in some pretty gruesome and plentiful dross, but once that was skimmed off, what beautiful shiny lead was there for the casting!
The bullets - 535gr Miniés for my Musketoon and 450gr FNL .45-70 Govt for my Winchester High Wall - came out sharply filling the moulds and of very uniform shininess. Even chilling the 405s straight from the mould into a pail of water didn't change the colour, just seemed to make them very smooth and professional-looking.
My experience has pointed me at any dive shop where old gear might be found - in particular weight-belts with shot, rather than the clip-on lumps of lead one often sees.
tac
