Casting Lead Bullets

Pictures of items will be here as soon as I get them scanned...

CAUTION!!!  You get get VERY seriously burned doing this if you are not careful and safety procedures are not followed to the letter!!!

**SAFETY PRECAUTIONS**:When melting lead, ALWAYS wear long pants, and good thick mocs to protect your legs and feet.  I personally add a thick elk hide apron on top of that for more protection. A nice heavy pair of hide gloves is good to use too if they are not too cumbersome.  Believe me, I doubt anything hurts worse than getting melted lead on your skin.  Been there... done that... you can keep the damn T-shirt!!!  Do not do this when you can not concentrate fully on what you are doing.  Ladies, if you are pregnant or planning on having children, DO NOT stick around when this is being done.  Lead vapors are poisonous and can affect the female reproductive system, and an unborn child.  Also, DO NOT pick up a newly cast ball to admire it.  Lead melts at about 400+ degrees F, and even when formed out of the mold, it is still hot enough to cause second degree burns. This is also something you do NOT want to do at home on the stove.

Ok, not  that the safety and legal stuff is out of the way, on to the actual casting...

ITEMS NEEDED:  One fairly good sized fire with a nice bed of coals, a small cast iron pot (NOT used for cooking... the wife will get a tad upset when she sees what you did to her pot... it don't come out!!), 2 to 3 pounds of lead, lead ladle, flux (I use bees wax), a good sized piece of leather about 9 inches square, a heavy leather glove, a tripod and chain (or suspend over the fire with your cooking irons), a bullet mold in the caliber of the bullet you wish to make, a small axe or 'hawk handle, and a hooked poker or a sturdy notched stick.

CASTING PROCESS:  Place the bar lead in the melting pot., then put the pot directly on (or just over) the coals (this is where you use the poker or stick...keeps the hands from getting scorched).  If you have one, a trivet works good to keep the post stable so it won't tip over. You can also use a couple of bricks, rocks, or whatever you have handy.  Leave the pot there until the lead melts.  Once it is molten lead, add the flux. This helps to cleanse the lead of impurities. I use a piece of bees wax about twice the size of a pea for 3 pounds of lead. Stir this with a stick and as the slag and impurities come to the surface, skim them off.  Now, place the ladle and the mold in the lead. Actually, just the corner of the mold... this heats the mold and gives you better performance when pouring the ball.  If you use a cold mold, the bullets will be irregular and sometimes will have air pockets in them. This is not a good way to make meat...

When the ladle and the mold are hot, hold the mold away from you, and pour the molten lean into the mold.  Fill the mold, and when it overflows slightly.. stop pouring.  Put the ladle back in the lead to keep it hot.  When the sprue hardens (it only takes a couple of seconds), take your 'hawk handle and cut the sprue off.  Open the mold and let the ball drop onto the leather pad.  REMEMBER, this is still at well over 300 degrees, so DO NOT PICK IT UP until it has cooled. If you do forget and pick it up, you'll only do it once.  Pain is a great way of teaching the brain that you have erred.  Keep repeating this process until you have cast all the balls you will need.

NOTE:  If the bullets are "wrinkled" when you take them out of the mold, that is a sure sign the mold was not hot enough.  Let it heat in the lead for a bit, or just keep casting... the mold will heat up to the right temperature eventually.  If your bullet sort of "runs" out of the mold, or falls apart, you haven't let the lead cool long enough before opening the mold.  Not to worry... just keep at it.  It does take a while to get the procedure down pat, and turn out perfect balls.

I have been doing this for several years... both the modern way with an electric lead pot at home, and the old way at Ronnyvous.  Took me many tries to get this down pat, and to get it right.  Oh... if you are doing this at home with an electric pot, be sure the smoke detector in the garage (or wherever you are doing it) is unplugged. When you add the flux (beeswax), you are going to get one heck of a smoke screen out of that pot.  No one told me this, and the first time I did it, my ex-wife thought the house was on fire.  Fire alarms went off and I had to run to the phone and call the security company and tell them not to send the fire department. Made for an interesting few minutes....

If I have forgotten anything, or you want to add something, EMAIL me and I'll put it in.  Mine is not the only way to do things... **grin**..