Casting Maxi Ball bullets.

CWLONGSHOT

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
Anyone using them anymore?

I kinda forgot I had the mold. I hadent thought to try them past few years. Got away from BP Season and started again as my buddys boys wanted to hunt with them.

Anyhow pulled out the mold and cast up some and used them to test a couple
New powder coat colors. Figured it wouldn't hurt anything and realize it has almost no benefit.

Had to dig for couple hours thru old notes a d paperwork to find my lube recipe but I found it. Mink oil, beeswax, paraffin, EVOO and a couple crayons.
I mixed it up making about 12oz and pan lubed the bullets. My cutter is misplaced so I used a copper pipe. Its a bit large, but should be useable. (But messy)

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These are 50's and the alloy should be a lil softer then factory. But harder then pure. Green should be about 10 bhn and the purple closer to 8. Just tin added to pure.

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Next is to find containers. Lube is pretty good meaning in warm temps it stays put on bullets. I did remove most from purple noses. (Smushed "up" as I pushed the tube over them.
My Renegade shoots these very well but my two H&R's I hunt with, have never fired them.

CW
 
Matt

Matt

Active Member
Yup still using them, you make me feel like an under achiever. I cast them out of “soft” lead so they load real easy and lube with Crisco with my fingers at the time of loading…
 
fiver

fiver

Well-Known Member
I think I have that mold rolling around in one of the drawers.
AIRC I bought it because the round balls shoot about 16"s away from where I'm pointing the sights [at 50yds] even though I have a 22 case jammed under the front sight.
they dropped the B.P season in my area the year I bought the rifle [you know because of a lack of deer] so that's as far as things ever got.
 
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Winelover

Winelover

North Central Arkansas
Have the 54 caliber single cavity TC mold. Cast a lifetime supply up for my Renegade............a whole bunch of years ago.
The were cast and stored in a Tupperware like container, in my Michigan basement. Never had an oxidation problem, there or here in Arkansas. Don't use them any more. RB kills bambi, just fine, without the recoil. I don't lube them till I load them.
 
CWLONGSHOT

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
Oxidation is real for many of us. So the PC will stop that for sure. I didnt apply for that purpose. But its my story and Im stickin to it! :rofl: :p :)

I have looked and looked and cannot find documentation that the maxi BALLS where cast harder. I know I didnt make it up and remember reading. Also makes perfect
Sence as they are billed MAXIMUM
PENETATION. while the maxi HUNTER was billed as MAXIMUM EXPANSION.

I have both in factory boxes. So Ill test hardness and probably make it a video.

I also thought of my "speed loaders" they might remove excess lube for me!

CW
 
Winelover

Winelover

North Central Arkansas
The loader I use is the TC one that screws on to their tube of Bore Butter. I then load the pre-lubed patched balls or Maxis in a bullet loading block. I carry couple of premeasured powder charges in spent 12 gauge plastic hulls capped with those plastic plugs that come in some pipe fittings.
 
Winelover

Winelover

North Central Arkansas
The shotshells were chosen because that are flexible enough to pour directly into the barrel, without spilling. Most states require Hunter Orange ............I always wore a small game vest with the built in shell holders.
 
J

John

Active Member
I have shot more than a few and killed some deer with them. I haven't hunted with BP in 15 + years so take it for what it's worth. I used a TC Hawken, pure lead and filled one lube groove. That was plenty of lube, prevented over lubing inaccuracy, and worked for me. I started in 79, graduated from Crisco to TC's lube and the tube still hasn't gone solid on me. Accuracy fell off after 125 yards.
 
CZ93X62

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
I didn't spend much time on Minie or Maxi slugs in my rifles, patched roundball is so much more accurate at 50 and 100 yards that I shoved the moulds in a drawer and forgot about them.
 
Tomme boy

Tomme boy

Well-Known Member
My 2 TC NewEnglander .50cal. Really like the maxiballs. I only lube the bottom groove in mine. I also use a 54cal lubes felt wad under it. That felt wad made both rifles go from 12" open site groups at 100yds to 4" at 100yds. 50 yards the hole just keeps getting bigger so I figure that is good enough. The wad works well unde r a patched round ball too.

Try it, it works.
 
todd

todd

Well-Known Member
i used maxi balls in my lyman fl deerhunter for years. now i have a cva fl hawkens and the maxi ball will not shoot. a 4" group at 50 yards(3 shots) is the smallest. (i went from 50-100gr of ffg) the patched round ball with 70gr of ffg at 50 yards goes 3/4 - 1 1/2" at 50 yards(3 shots). in a moment of blindness, the shooting gods let me have a 3 shot group was 1/2" at 50 yards(3 shots). the rifle shoots much better than me. i "think" the pillow ticking is around .015"? the .020" was too big to even put a ball down the rifling. i use lanolin or mink oil to do my patches.


i think the maxi ball lube was beeswax, paraffin, crisco and lanolin? but not too sure
 
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M

Mowgli Terry

Active Member
I have all sorts of Maxi ball molds from my big buy from an estate. Also, my old original T/C mold from the 1990's. I have taken my low end T/C Thunderhawk inline to a traditional regional match. The state association was working to get the inline folks involved. Talk about feeling out of place! The old gun shot very well. I don't recall the exact charge but it was with real BP. I had cast the Maxi Ball's from unalloyed lead with Bore Butter as the lube. Bullets were cast in a T/C mold.

I still have the old guns plus two of the Knight LK-93's. I got plenty of percussion caps and powder. Figured I'd get the guns out if this famine continues on modern stuff. One other guy showed up with an inline. I was the state inline champ. :) There were no more inline matches until several years ago.

Added: Those Renegades and New Englander's were no slouch with round balls. Tough to load but accurate. Yep, round balls, pillow ticking and real black powder. If you could put with the fouling and hard loading those guns were a winner.
 
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