Casting your own bullets with tips?

Reloading equipment, methods, load data, powder and projectile information.

Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by nords » 03 Dec 2013, 12:56 pm

G'day all,

I know a few of you guys cast your own bullets here...

My question is, can you DIY Ballistic Tips and other such projectiles?

Cast your bullet around, or slip in the tip while the leads still liquid or some process like that?

I have NFI what temperatures this these are done at so not sure if this is possible or if it would just turn your plastic tip into slag?
Norica Spider GRS Camo .22
Browning BLR Lightweight 81 .243
Browning A-Bolt Medallion 300 Win Mag. Weaver V-Series 3-15 x 42.
User avatar
nords
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 191
Western Australia

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Deco » 03 Dec 2013, 2:21 pm

I don't cast my own bullets, but a Google shows the melting point of lead is 327.5 °C

I think we can both guess what happens if you drop a plastic tip into that...
Browning X-Bolt Hunter in .270 Winchester
User avatar
Deco
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 113
South Australia

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Guliver » 03 Dec 2013, 3:57 pm

Have adequate ventilation don't breath the lead fumes, one of the easiest ways of getting lead poisoning.
User avatar
Guliver
Corporal
Corporal
 
Posts: 313
Victoria

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by AusC » 03 Dec 2013, 8:04 pm

Guliver wrote:Have adequate ventilation don't breath the lead fumes, one of the easiest ways of getting lead poisoning.


Isn't that the 'mad as a hatter' expression?

Fumes from lead making them go crazy?
300 Win Mag Tikka T3 Lite.
4-12x42 Zeiss Terra.
User avatar
AusC
Sergeant
Sergeant
 
Posts: 526
Victoria

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Guliver » 04 Dec 2013, 5:39 am

AusC wrote:
Guliver wrote:Have adequate ventilation don't breath the lead fumes, one of the easiest ways of getting lead poisoning.


Isn't that the 'mad as a hatter' expression?

Fumes from lead making them go crazy?


That was mercury.
User avatar
Guliver
Corporal
Corporal
 
Posts: 313
Victoria

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Atter » 04 Dec 2013, 7:45 am

Yeah, Mercury.

They used it to shape the brims of the hats and inhaling the fumes made them go loopy.
Tikka T3 Hunter .260 Remington
Tikka T3 Sporter 6.5x55 SE
CZ 513 .22LR
User avatar
Atter
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 107
Victoria

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by sha » 04 Dec 2013, 10:13 am

Atter wrote:They used it to shape the brims of the hats and inhaling the fumes made them go loopy.


Reminds of me the good old days at school when kids could just pour mercury into their hands and have a play.
Savage Axis The Definition of Accuracy

Savage 93 .22 WMR
Savage 93R17 .17 HMR
Savage 110FP .308 WIN
User avatar
sha
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 160
Tasmania

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Broom » 04 Dec 2013, 12:01 pm

sha wrote:Reminds of me the good old days at school when kids could just pour mercury into their hands and have a play.


The care free days before OH&S.

Good times :D
Ruger Gunsite Scout in three oh eight. Oh yeah!
User avatar
Broom
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 110
Tasmania

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Davies » 04 Dec 2013, 12:21 pm

Broom wrote:The care free days before OH&S.

Good times :D


Not if you're one of the poor sods who got asbestosis or something 20 years later when they learnt that all this kind of stuff was seriously bad for you.
User avatar
Davies
Private
Private
 
Posts: 77
Queensland

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Press » 04 Dec 2013, 1:15 pm

A las I used to work with got diagnosed with one of those lung fibre type things recently and got given 3 months to live.

Bad road to go...
Howa 'bout it?

Howa Hunter 308
Marlin 444
Howa Talon 25-06
Winchester 1900 22LR
User avatar
Press
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 105
Victoria

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Guliver » 04 Dec 2013, 1:17 pm

sha wrote:
Atter wrote:They used it to shape the brims of the hats and inhaling the fumes made them go loopy.


Reminds of me the good old days at school when kids could just pour mercury into their hands and have a play.

We use to rub it on a penny so it looked like 2 bob.

Press wrote:A las I used to work with got diagnosed with one of those lung fibre type things recently and got given 3 months to live.

Bad road to go...

Sorry to hear that Press.
User avatar
Guliver
Corporal
Corporal
 
Posts: 313
Victoria

Re: Casting your own bullets with tips?

Post by Press » 04 Dec 2013, 2:09 pm

Guliver wrote:Sorry to hear that Press.


Yeah, it's messed up.

She went in thinking she couldn't shake the flu or something like that and would just need a box of pills :?
Howa 'bout it?

Howa Hunter 308
Marlin 444
Howa Talon 25-06
Winchester 1900 22LR
User avatar
Press
Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal
 
Posts: 105
Victoria


Back to top
 
Return to Reloading ammunition