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I am a new member and also new to reloading. I have been a machinist for 35 years. I would like to dabble in casting some bullets. Most bullet molds seem to sold out right now. I have a cnc mill and also a tool and cutter grinder to make the tooling. I would like to make the tool and use circular interpolation to machine the mold. I would also like to ad a 5 sided pin to make hollow point bullets. my question is how much oversize does the mold need to be to make the bullet the proper size? I assume the bullet will shrink a slight amount after casting when it cools. I would also like to powder coat the bullets.

 

[KimberLover]

About molding bullets......
My friend owned a service station.
He gave me the lead weights from tire changing.
I really thought I had hit the jackpot.
Well I melted all of them down in bulk and poured the lead into a biscuit pan for molds.
Everything was going great.
I made hundreds of bullets.
Some perfect an others not so perfect.
It was a great past time.
I was shooting the reloads in a 686 S&W revolver.
I cleaned it often.
Then one day I inspected it thoroughly.
The forcing cone in the barrel was really scratched.
That gave me a scare.
How could it have happened?
Well all of the time I never gave a thought to grit in the lead from the tire weights.
I gave all of the lead to a guy that shoots muskets and never went back.
So to the molding, think twice!

 

[JamesCC]

Dang. Do you still make them or find any other places to get supplies?

 

[Terry_P]

Lead wheel weights have been banned in several states so tougher to find them. Some states have banned lead bullets so casting isn't what it once was.

 

[Warren]

I have been using wheel weights for 50+ years.....No problems. One has to be thorough when "skimming" the impurities off the top after the lead melts before you flux. These bullets work best with lower velocity loads. With medium velocity loads its best to use gas checks. I reload 30-06, .38/.357, 10mm & .44.

 

[tonyjr]

maybe 40 years ago i did the casting with lead weights . melting , shimming and bollets that sucked - that lead went into fishing weights . [ I got a washer hot and burned into a 4X 4 . also just drilled into it for party boat fishing . ]
I tried store bought lead . leaded up barrels . ended up taking molds to Mexico . That was before I could get bullets there . Now almost anyone can buy bullets there , so not as many people asking for reloads .

 

[KimberLover]

@ Warren: My problem was not top removal of slag, but with a bottom pour that allowed the grit to settle in the bottom of the pot.
Then once poured into the mold the grit went to the bottom of the mold leaving grit to scratch the forcing cone and barrel.

 

[Mowgli Terry]

This is what works here. I use scrap lead to make bullets. Cleaning the grit and grime starts when melting the lead down is done by fluxing. This is done by putting a little bullet lube or candle wax into the melted lead and stirring. This keeps the tin in the alloy. Also, the dirt and grit will come to the surface. Flux your melted lead several times before you make ingots. You can spoon off the dirt and grime. I continue to flux my lead all along I shoot many thousands of bullets made this way. I have not found any damage from my lead alloy in any firearms. I have to keep fluxing to keep tin mixed in.

Also, make sure not to get zinc wheel weights mixed. The zinc will ruin you lead. Old time wheel weights made good bullets in the day. See the picture of bullets made from contaminated lead.

thiw