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Posted: 10/16/2013 1:12:14 PM EDT
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So I had my first experience with cast lead bullets this week. I have been loading 9mm for about two years now and have stuck with FMJ, JHP, and some plated bullets. I decided to try some lead because it was what was available. I loaded some 9mm 115 LRN on top of 4.5 gr of HP-38, OAL was 1.1”. Went to the range today and noticed a few things that I’m trying to interpret and wanted to get opinions from the collective.
1. I noticed some leading of the barrel after 15 rounds. The leading was much worse after 50 at which point I could see long strands of lead coming out of the rifling at the end of the barrel. 2. No malfunctions occurred, but the gun, Sig 226, would not go to slide lock at the end of the magazine. This had not been an issue in the past or since running some factory ammo through it. 3. Each shot produced a lot of smoke out of the end of the barrel, more than I’m used to and it caught me off guard. I also shot some factory loads afterwards and although not a totally fair comparison, the felt recoil was much lighter in my reloads. I was pleased with the accuracy I got at 15 yds as these will be for plinking and maybe some IDPA/USPSA. My load data says I still have some wiggle room and can work up to 4.8 gr of HP-38. What I’m thinking is that I just loaded these guys too light which resulted in the leading, failure at slide lock, and smoke. Am I totally off base with this or will increasing my powder solve these issues? |
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Quoted:
.356 Diameter. I ordered them from Missouri Bullet Company. Leading ocours often in commercial cast bullets because they are too small, too hard and the lube isnt that good especially in 9mm. You really need to be .001 or .002 over grove diameter. I load my own cast 9mm as cast at .3575-.358 and they lead very little. I can shoot a few plated bullets and the bore is spotless. I think I will start doing that in higher round count matches, load a mag full of plated every couple stages. |
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all of the above. word of advice, if you have lead strands in your barrel please clean the bore before firing jacketed ammo...you really don't want to be 'that' guy.
the properly sized lead bullet will normally have minimal to no leading with the proper hardness and proper velocity for said bullet. Harder is normally not the norm for a good pistol bullet. if you feel that your load may be too hot then chances are it may be. Do NOT use the same load info for jacketed ammo with your lead bullets. Normally speaking lead bullets get the same velocity from a lighter load. ALWAYS use load data for cast lead bullets... and ALWAYS check your depth for proper sizing by loading a dummy round and running it through your gun. If your bullet chambers but you cant pull the slide back then it is too long. Size until it chambers and ejects without interference...note the depth is normally a shorter round than a jacketed bullet. There is more to be written...but I am not a writer or an author. Lyman makes a decent cast bullet reloaders guide...as do some others... be safe and good luck welcome to the wonderful world of lead bullets...they are actually quite nice when you start casting your own and you would be surprised at just how good some of them are... 
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You have been given great advice above especially this one.
. word of advice, if you have lead strands in your barrel please clean the bore before firing jacketed ammo...you really don't want to be 'that' guy.
It is a bad idea to shoot jacketed bullets over lead, especially in a barrel that was as badly leaded as yours. Some will say that shooting jacketed after lead helps remove the leading and cleans the bore. Others say that the jacketed bullet just smooths out the lead deposits and masks them making it harder to clean. Many say that shooting jacketed over lead can cause a High Pressure situation and maybe even a KB. I err on the side of caution and shoot only lead or jacketed, never both without cleaning. The same can be said about shooting lead after jacketed. If there is copper fouling left in the barrel your chances of leading can be increased. What it boils down to is Start with a squeaky clean bore before switching from one to the other. |
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My experience shows some barrels are more likely to lead than some others . Barrel finish maybe?
A barrel that has been shot with jacketed and plated bullets will have some copper based bullet jacket fouling in it and this small film of copper will rip a lead bullet to shreds . Give a heavy cleaning with a stiff brush to get the lead out and then a copper solvent to get the copper out . Hoppes # 9 will take some of it but you really need something harsh like Sweets 7.62 or Butches Bore Scrub to clean it down to the barrel steel. If it doesn't stink it isn't getting the copper out After you get the gun clean try the cast bullets again. I am a lazy guy when it comes to cleaning so my guns more or less get set into the ones that only get feed lead or they don't |
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I'm surprised you are having leading problems with Missouri Bullets, I have used them with no problems at all. Shooting jacketed bullets after lead tends to push the leading deeper into the pores of the metal, making more difficult to remove later, clean the lead out first. |
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I too am relatively new to lead bullets. My first batch of 45 acp 230g LRN also produced a few strands of lead but I relized that when I seated the bullets there was the occasional hair size piece of lead shaved off of some of the bullets that I had neglected to remove. After noticing that, I just peel that tiny shaving off with a finger nail before boxing and no more lead in my barrel. Just a thought.
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Quoted:
I relized that when I seated the bullets there was the occasional hair size piece of lead shaved off of some of the bullets that I had neglected to remove. After noticing that, I just peel that tiny shaving off with a finger nail before boxing and no more lead in my barrel. Just a thought. Sounds like you aren't flaring the case enough to accept the bullet. I don't think it should be shaving the bullet when seating. |
| Yes you need to be aware of shaving lead off when seating the bullets, you need to really flare them good I've found in 9mm. I had to turn my Lee flaring die in like 4-5x turns to get it to not shave them. I found if I left it set where I do my Plated/FMJ's it would swage down the bullet to .356 from .358 in 9mm at the base. |
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Quoted:
Sounds like you aren't flaring the case enough to accept the bullet. I don't think it should be shaving the bullet when seating. Quoted:
Quoted:
I relized that when I seated the bullets there was the occasional hair size piece of lead shaved off of some of the bullets that I had neglected to remove. After noticing that, I just peel that tiny shaving off with a finger nail before boxing and no more lead in my barrel. Just a thought. Sounds like you aren't flaring the case enough to accept the bullet. I don't think it should be shaving the bullet when seating. ^^^^This^^^^ By shaving the bullet you are reducing it's diameter. Lead bullets should be a Min of .001 over bore diameter for proper fit and to eliminate leading. Open the case mouth up by increasing the flare to eliminate the shaving, then remove the flare with your crimp die, do not crimp the case mouth into the bullet, just remove the fare. |
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Quoted:
1. I noticed some leading of the barrel after 15 rounds. The leading was much worse after 50 at which point I could see long strands of lead coming out of the rifling at the end of the barrel. Clean your barrel. And I mean *clean* it. After getting the carbon out, get out your copper solvent, and get ALL of the copper out. Then try shooting lead. 
Quoted:
2. No malfunctions occurred, but the gun, Sig 226, would not go to slide lock at the end of the magazine. This had not been an issue in the past or since running some factory ammo through it. Not locking back the slide at the end of the mag can simply be because of a lighter load. Sigs are sprung to take full-power loads. Quoted:
3. Each shot produced a lot of smoke out of the end of the barrel, more than I’m used to and it caught me off guard. That happens, the lube will burn and smoke. As to shaving lead when seating, flare your cases a touch more, and make sure that you're seating and crimping in two separate steps. |
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Quoted:
So I had my first experience with cast lead bullets this week. I have been loading 9mm for about two years now and have stuck with FMJ, JHP, and some plated bullets. I decided to try some lead because it was what was available. I loaded some 9mm 115 LRN on top of 4.5 gr of HP-38, OAL was 1.1”. Went to the range today and noticed a few things that I’m trying to interpret and wanted to get opinions from the collective. 1. I noticed some leading of the barrel after 15 rounds. The leading was much worse after 50 at which point I could see long strands of lead coming out of the rifling at the end of the barrel. 2. No malfunctions occurred, but the gun, Sig 226, would not go to slide lock at the end of the magazine. This had not been an issue in the past or since running some factory ammo through it. 3. Each shot produced a lot of smoke out of the end of the barrel, more than I’m used to and it caught me off guard. I also shot some factory loads afterwards and although not a totally fair comparison, the felt recoil was much lighter in my reloads. I was pleased with the accuracy I got at 15 yds as these will be for plinking and maybe some IDPA/USPSA. My load data says I still have some wiggle room and can work up to 4.8 gr of HP-38. What I’m thinking is that I just loaded these guys too light which resulted in the leading, failure at slide lock, and smoke. Am I totally off base with this or will increasing my powder solve these issues? 1. Switch to the lee tumble bullet lube (and lee tumble lube style boolits), my gun hardly ever leads now (maybe after 500 or so rounds). Also make sure the bullet is sized appropriately 2. Make sure you're loading with enough powder. I had the same problem and increasing the load fixed cycle reliability and slide lock. 3. Smoke is the lube, no way around it. I would make sure you get a lead test every year or so just to make sure your gtg; it's such an easy test and kinda stupid not to do IMHO, especially if you shoot indoors! |
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