Bullet casting, steel vs aluminum molds, lead sourcing.

vinver

vinver

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I am about to embark into the black art (?) of bullet casting. What seemed simple at first has proven to be a bit of a challenge to get started.
Last winter I bought a Parker-Hale "Musketoon" Artillery Carbine, in .577" caliber. After scouring the 'net about mold and bullet options I began the search for the Parker-Hale 58560 but came up empty. Apparently they were made of rocking horse poo, very rare stuff. Next up was a Lee 575-500 that fell into a deal for a lead melter. And another very used Lee wadcutter type mold. But by chance I came across an old Ohaus mold, 58-500 which apparently was taken over by RCBS.
This is a steel mold, vs the two Lees that are aluminum.

Still unsatisfied, my search for the Parker Hale mold finally resulted in success, with a mold and handles arriving last week from Australia. The bottom plug is flat and shallower than the Ohaus, and the mold block is much larger.

Off I went to the iron monger who told me they can't sell lead to the general public, unless I had a special permit. I have a box of Hornady 440 lead balls that will be re-purposed and melted down, but will need a renewable supply of lead.

So looking for suggestions here on lead supply, molding tips, any general advice willingly accepted. I'll post some pics of the molds shortly.
Thanks.
 
stick on wheel weights should work for muzzle loaders so will lead flashing. also the lead that is used in jacketed bullets is fairly soft so range scrap is a good source
 
All of my casting experience has been with round ball. Aluminium molds are cheaper and heat up/cool down faster but can be damaged easily. Steel ones are more expensive but will last a lifetime. Best of luck
 
antiqueguy said:
stick on wheel weights should work for muzzle loaders so will lead flashing. also the lead that is used in jacketed bullets is fairly soft so range scrap is a good source
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I have some feelers out for stick-on wheel weights, I've read they are mostly 99.5% lead, I don't expect my needs to be huge but the hoarder in me wants to make sure I have enough...
 
^ Sweet Jeebus!b:f:P: Your chemist friend ought to understand how sulfuric acid will react with rifled steel!?

@OP...steel molds are better because you will get a better product. The steel die once warmed will maintain that heat necessary for a good casting. Aluminium dies are ok, but steel is better and carbide is best (durability).

Your Parker Hale will use a lot of lead and powder if you're going to shoot it even moderately. Your quest for a reliable lead source is a necessity (Don't use lead/acid battery plates btw...It's a toss up as to whether it would destroy your gun first or your health.). Large metal recyclers will be able to supply your needs for around $1 per lbs...purity can be hit and miss, you must learn to identify what your after, the guys at the recyclers may not be able to help you.
 
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My vote goes for old roof flashing and vent pipes which are as close to pure as you will find. I lucked into some from a recycled X-ray machine that was being dismantled but that is a rare find. Roofing supply people or re-roofers might be of use here. Wheel weights are a crap shoot as newer stuff seems a lot harder than years ago.
 
Wheel weights here in Yoorup are made of some kind of zinc alloy with very little, if any' lead in them at all. It's a bit like California, where their surgeon general has determined that eating wheel weights may cause harm to your unborn child.
wrsainsbury above has it correct - OLD roof flashing, preferably pre-WW2, IS the real deal, as is OLD plumbing piping. This stuff really was lead as we understand it, Jim.

As for the Ohaus mould, be advised that the P-H musketoon prefers a deep hollow base. I've had mine since 1974, and another pal has had his since 1980, and that is, IOO, the way to go. Also, don't go futzing about with anything less than as near 100% lead as you can find - lead flashing these days has all kinds of carp in it. Start your loads at 45gr, shoot in fives, with 5gr increments, until it groups. Mine likes 65gr of FFg, BTW - yours will be different, no doubt.

I use a Lyman mould with a deep cavity - bought on the advice of Roger Hale of Parker-Hale. Never regretted it.

tac
 
Sulfuric acid is bad, but does it not float out of molten lead like other impurities?
Barring that, pour a bottle of Club Soda into a pail with as much ' Arm & Hammer ' as will be soluable, soak the lead pile til the bubbles stop and have at it...in an outside structure preferably...fumes are very bad.
Just what I'd do, others will disagree I'm sure.
Oh, and I've a mold that may prove redundant to my needs...but may be invaluable to you Musket folks. It's in the shop; but it's a Lyman .577 530 gr with a deep HB.
And in AB you can just buy lead ' Chains ' np. I'd try another source before giving up on PL.
 
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That chemist friend knows that the acid won't be an issue after the lead is melted and cast. Also, all the cool kids now coat their cast bullets in polymer.

I'm a little surprised the local guy would not sell lead. You can even buy lead blocks on amazon. (too expensive to be practical, but available nonetheless)
 
unless I am mistaken, battery lead contains cadmium, the vapours of which you very much do not want to breathe. You don't want to breathe lead vapours but the cadmium vapours are much worse.

cheers mooncoon
 
What is cadmium is the correct answer. Definitely would want to do all melting outside.

In retrospect, I personally won't bother with car batteries or even wheel weights unless they are super cheap or free. It's easy enough to buy lead in the US on a trip and bring it back. Even if flying - luggage handlers love it :)
 
Agreed on the car batteries - most people who scrap them don't care about their health or don't know. Basically not worth it.

Local scrapper should sell to you - sounds like they don't want to for some reason. Scrapyards here will sell it - comes out of boat keels, roof flashing, you name it. Put up some want-to-buy ads and stuff will show up.

Now, since you are using scrap lead, I'd strongly suggest pre-melting it in a separate junk pot - some of the stuff I got was full of crap that I really didn't want to risk getting into my castings or contaminating my pot, and stuff always sneaks through. Roofing lead came in big sheets and was full of gravel, dirt and god knows what. Ended up just bulk processing it in a big pot to get most of the crud out of it, casting, then refining it in smaller batches and casting ingots. Ended up with good stuff, and it was free, so it was worth it, but would have been terrible to deal with it constantly in my casting pot. Also, when dealing with scrap lead - always bake it a bit first and drive the moisture out, lest you get a steam explosion and a visit from the tinsel fairy.
 
^ Excellent advise! I actually cut larger pieces of lead with a chisel and melt in an open pot (outside) and make smaller and pure-er :)p) ingots. I'd never contemplated a steam explosion (sounds terrifying) so I for one will be baking any moisture out ahead of time. I had the large pot spill over once and that was bad enough never mind it going kaboom!

For gawd's sake leave the lead acid battery's alone...lead is bad enough to be playing around with...a very well respected firearms enthusiast from around here, and an individual who I'm proud to say gave me my initial firearms training, died from complications attributed to long term lead exposure (for the smart a$$es; no, he wasn't shot:p) It's really no joke and ought to be respected and all proper precautions taken when handling lead.
If one were to come into contact with lead only occasionally, I see the cause for jokes; but for many of us the exposure isn't occasional, it's more like regular. :( It can and will make you sick guys.
 
I mine range lead, clean it and caste round balls for my muzzle loader. I have shot balls made from pure lead and balls from range lead, and didn't notice any difference in accuracy or ease of loading.
 
gab said:
I mine range lead, clean it and caste round balls for my muzzle loader. I have shot balls made from pure lead and balls from range lead, and didn't notice any difference in accuracy or ease of loading.
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Range lead, I have found is 21/2 to 3 times harder that pure lead.

Have you weighed them? What do range balls weigh compared to that of pure lead?
 
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