Bullets for 38/357
- Thread starter johnnyjr
- Start date
Winelover
North Central Arkansas
True dat. However, it's important number when you're trying for the softest (hunting) alloy that will shoot in your particular firearm, with little or no leading. Gas check or not.
Over the years, I've come to the conclusion that pure lead normally yields the shortest tracking distances. I want my hunting bullets soft. Whether they be solids or HP's. Pure lead is too soft for centerfire firearms............running the risk of leading.
Since I have my own range, I recover almost all of my spent bullets, every year or so. Now, it will be a combination of the preceding years Air cooled Recovered Bullet Alloy (RBA), pure (from muzzle loaders), linotype (mixed with pure) & 20-1 alloy. BHN will vary from year to year, depending on how much of the different alloys are shot. BHN will range from 13-15, depending on how much pure is deposited in the berm. Personally, I like to know the current BHN.
Air cooled RBA alloy (13-15) is used for carbine, revolver or pistol practice/plinking. Never for hunting. IME, it just acts as a FMJ, poking a caliber size hole, resulting in extended tracking. With a BHN tester, I can cut the RBA with pure to the point that might meet my criteria for a relatively soft hunting alloy, that can be duplicated.
Occasionally, I will heat treat my RBA for use in my AR-10 carbine.................so I find BHN a most useful tool. YMMV
CWLONGSHOT
Well-Known Member
If you do some expermentation. I think you will find same as I have.
Range scrap that happens ta be 12 bhn did NOT compair to my mix of PURE & TIN to 12 bhn in my expansion testing.
NOT same in water or wet news print or even wet sand!
I prefer 20:1 my mix no antimony. For hp wanting expansion.
CW
Range scrap that happens ta be 12 bhn did NOT compair to my mix of PURE & TIN to 12 bhn in my expansion testing.
NOT same in water or wet news print or even wet sand!
I prefer 20:1 my mix no antimony. For hp wanting expansion.
CW
358156 hp
At large, whereabouts unknown.
You can tune bhn numbers at will. The challenge is to get the alloy to perform to your needs, and that performance is your only goal. Depending on who you ask 10:1 alloy is very close to Lymans #2. I threw the disclaimer in because the old Ideal manuals state that they test to the same hardness, but my early version of the lead alloy calculator shows 10:1 at 12 bhn, and #2 alloy at 15 bhn.
fiver
Well-Known Member
the swag method works pretty good for bullet alloy.
if you been using 'around' 3% antimony before and you think your close with this batch.
your swag is good enough.
you'll not know the difference, the deer won't know the difference, your gun won't know the difference.
most of us over estimate what's in our found by the roadside alloy anyway.
if you been using 'around' 3% antimony before and you think your close with this batch.
your swag is good enough.
you'll not know the difference, the deer won't know the difference, your gun won't know the difference.
most of us over estimate what's in our found by the roadside alloy anyway.
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
And my tester says older (80's-90's) wheel weights are 13-15 Bhn. How useful is that? Must be it's exactly the same as 10-1 or maybe #2!!!
Agree, don't get wrapped up with the BHN. Get an alloy that casts good and is accurate and the BHN will take care of itself. I see guys go to extreme lengths to attain a specific hardness. Feller, we're shooting one deer a year here for the most part. A softer bullet will kill a deer just as good as a hard one.
My old shooting partner use to go to all lengths to attain hardness. Use magnum #9 shot, heat treated, faced Mecca and prayed. His bullets started off accurate but leaded and I was puttering on the berm one day and picked up some of his .32-40s. Broken in half with a crystalline break structure. Too hard and too much antimony.
He studied this and dropped his BHN and accuracy was consistent, leading stopped and things went back to normal.
My first cast bullets were 311291s made from toy lead soldiers, battery terminals and cable sheathing. Shot as well for me as I could hope.
Do not get wrapped around the axle over bullet hardness. Life's too short./beagle
My old shooting partner use to go to all lengths to attain hardness. Use magnum #9 shot, heat treated, faced Mecca and prayed. His bullets started off accurate but leaded and I was puttering on the berm one day and picked up some of his .32-40s. Broken in half with a crystalline break structure. Too hard and too much antimony.
He studied this and dropped his BHN and accuracy was consistent, leading stopped and things went back to normal.
My first cast bullets were 311291s made from toy lead soldiers, battery terminals and cable sheathing. Shot as well for me as I could hope.
Do not get wrapped around the axle over bullet hardness. Life's too short./beagle
CZ93X62
Official forum enigma
I do likewise, Johnny. My 'default' alloy for many years has been 92/6/2 Pb/Sb/Sn. That supposedly scores in the 14-15 BHN range. About 5 years ago I began adding 2% more tin to get to 90/6/4 alloy, which does a MUCH better job of filling out Loverin design multi-groove bullets--esp. #225438 and #245496.
RicinYakima
High Steppes of Eastern Washington
I have been casting bullets since 1961. One of the things I have learned is that the minimum is one part tin to three parts antimony. You can go up to equal parts tin and antimony but not over 5% and 5% (Lyman #2). If you have more tin than antimony, you can't ladle pour it without strings of alloy hanging off the ladle. FWIW
CZ93X62
Official forum enigma
I got a gift of 20# of Lyman #2 alloy to cast with about 15 years ago from a friend I have known since 7th grade. It was WONDERFUL to cast with, and provided the impetus for me to enrich my 92/6/2 with 10 oz. of pure tin from Rotometals in my 10 kilo RCBS melter. "Enrich" is the right word, too--tin is mondo pricey.
For plinking or practice loads brittleness is not a big deal. However when it comes to hunting bullets, foundry produced alloy is worth every penny due to its repeatable performance.
In most magnum handgun rounds I have found that 96/2/2 powder coated gives excellent performance on deer. In the higher pressure/velocity rounds, such as 454, 475L, or 357max, I go to a 94/2/4 alloy.
Since I have started using pc for softer alloy hp bullets, I have been able to run much softer bullets without the need for gas checks.
For more standard Ruger only pressure 45C, it's hard to beat 20:1. 30:1 is great in the 23,000 psi 45C and 44sp ranges.
In most magnum handgun rounds I have found that 96/2/2 powder coated gives excellent performance on deer. In the higher pressure/velocity rounds, such as 454, 475L, or 357max, I go to a 94/2/4 alloy.
Since I have started using pc for softer alloy hp bullets, I have been able to run much softer bullets without the need for gas checks.
For more standard Ruger only pressure 45C, it's hard to beat 20:1. 30:1 is great in the 23,000 psi 45C and 44sp ranges.