Bullet mold mixture...............

[ETipp]

Guys, I have a bunch of Maxi Balls that I casted out of wheel weights. Obviously they are hard cast, which does not expand. They are accurate and I have never lost a critter to one, but I am entertaining the idea of finding some pure lead, melting down the hard cast, and mixing the lead together. So my question is, would a 50/50 mixture work and provide some bullet expansion properties? I would also mix in a little tin.

 

[xdmalder]

Why would you add tin when you just thinned it out to make it softer?

 

[HC]

It’s lots easier to harden soft lead than it is to soften hard lead. Maxiballs are designed to preform at or very near pure lead. I add 1 oz of tin per 20 lbs of pure lead to aid in casting. Only wheel weight metal I use goes into making center fire pistol bullets.

 

[ETipp]

Why would you add tin when you just thinned it out to make it softer?

I have seen where people that hard cast pistol bullets (smokeless) out of wheel weights suggesting adding tin. Its only a small amount.

 

[xdmalder]

I have seen where people that hard cast pistol bullets (smokeless) out of wheel weights suggesting adding tin. Its only a small amount.

Tin is used to harden alloy and help fill out molds. Wheel weights already have a small amount of tin in it. Along with antimony and arsenic

 

[ETipp]

Tin is used to harden alloy and help fill out molds. Wheel weights already have a small amount of tin in it. Along with antimony and arsenic

Thank you for that information.

 

[ETipp]

It’s lots easier to harden soft lead than it is to soften hard lead. Maxiballs are designed to preform at or very near pure lead. I add 1 oz of tin per 20 lbs of pure lead to aid in casting. Only wheel weight metal I use goes into making center fire pistol bullets.

But it can be done, correct? So what would be a mixture to soften up the hard cast with pure lead to obtain some expansion.

The hard cast Maxi Balls I make are pretty darn accurate overall. But the do not expand.

 

[HC]

It can be done, a bunch of fluxing and stirring.

 

[HC]

But it can be done, correct? So what would be a mixture to soften up the hard cast with pure lead to obtain some

That’s away out of the ballpark for me, a WAG would be 10% WW, 90% lead. Maybe someone else who has experimented with the alloying will chime in.

 

[xdmalder]

For hunting bullets skip the WW if you want expansion. Go to a known source like rotometals. Lead is cheap

 

[idahoron]

When I harden to about 7 bhn I start off with 1000 grains in 10 pounds. Then I add a few grains as I test.
What I'm saying is, it is impossible to soften lead for all practical purposes unless you have tons of lead.
It is physically impossible to skim off the hardness. Google it, this is not possible.
A guy can skim off a whole pot of lead and it will never soften.

 

[Shorty]

Where is the best place to get tin?

 

[xdmalder]

Solder, rotometals.com, or pewter

 

[snapbang]

They are accurate and I have never lost a critter to one,

My vote is don't fix what isn't broke.

 

[GUN NUT]

My vote is don't fix what isn't broke.

I agree it will not expand much if any at all even if pure lead

 

[ETipp]

My vote is don't fix what isn't broke.

That's been my policy with those and so far, so good. Even an elk shot at ~150 + only took a very few steps. However, my new happy hunting grounds surrounds a huge thicket at the bottom, and I do mean thick. Mostly black berry briars and saw briars mixed in the thick brush. So thick that during the gun season I shot a buck and when I slid down the steep ridge to the bottom on my butt, I actually walked right by that buck twice and it was only a few feet away. I can see where more blood on the ground might make a big difference on recovery.

Time will tell I reckon. Going off of what Ron stated, I won't be melting the hard cast Maxi Balls down so I may as well keep on hunting with them. Either that or melt them down and cast some fishing sinkers out of them. There's pure lead I can get to cast some more, or, I can always buy other good hunting bullets that do expand.

 

[451whitworth]

I agree it will not expand much if any at all even if pure lead

Agreed. Back when I started ML'er hunting in '87 I used Maxi Balls in my T/C side hammer rifle. They never seemed to expand as far as I could tell. The hole in and out was the same size. Shot quite a few deer through the rib cage without much of a blood trail.

 

[Decay]

When you really want to learn about cast bullets and casting bullets get onto the “cast bullet society “ website. There is so much info here it can’t all be read in a month. This is truly expert advice based on 150 years of using and casting bullets.

Buy and use a lead hardness tester.
Quit using generic terms like hard and soft. Put a number from the Brunel hardness scale on your bullets. There’s no guessing.

Mine is from LBT, I don’t know if they’re still available. SAECO makes one also. There another company that uses graphite pencils of different hardness to scratch the lead to test hardness on the Brinell hardness scale. A friend of mine has this set and really likes it, and he casts thousands more bullets than I do.

 

[Shorty]

Thanks Decay for the information on a place to learn about casting bullets.

 

[Greg_E]

Get a set of pencils, a "good enough" hardness test. You can find the BHN approximation for each online, if the pencil scratches, then the lead is softer. 6b for pure lead. https://www.hobbylobby.com/Art-Supp...aph-Drawing-Pencils---12-Piece-Set/p/80834260

I'm told you can add 1% tin to help break the surface tension for better mold fill without really changing the hardness. I have not verified this so do your own research.

To help prevent lead build up in the barrel, powder coat your ammo.

A very good book on casting is here, read online or download the PDF, download in left side middle of the page. From Ingot to Target: A Cast Bullet Guide For Handgunners, Table of Contents - Fryxell/Applegate