Balls smaller than quoted on mould.

[bigfathairybiker]

When I got my Ruger Old Army I purchased a box of Hornady .457 balls as recommended by the Ruger manual.

Having used up the box very quickly I purchased a Lee .457 mould.

I measured the Hornady ones at .456-.457

I made a load of balls with the Lee mould and these all measure .453-.454

So... I have a question...

Do Lee do a mould that will make .457 balls or will I be ok with the ones I am getting from the current Lee mould... OR Am I doing something wrong when moulding them?

Mark

[Alpha1]

Are you using pure lead.

[FredB]

I have had the same problem---I am definitely using pure lead. I purchased a Lee 454" mould which casts bullets of .452" diameter. I E-Mailed Lee to ask if this was normal and the reply said that if I wanted .454" balls I should buy a .457" mould.
Fred

[Alpha1]

FredB you could all ways buy the .457 mould of bigfathairybiker if its to small for his needs.

[dromia]

Well it is a Lee mould so one shouldn't really expect it to cast as speck.

Lee's mould specification is -0.000", +0.003" quiet generous.

Also Lee refer dimensionally to the mould size not the ball dropped size so any ball from a mould will always be smaller than its cavity size, your chosen alloy and casting process will influence final diameter.

Worst of all though regardless of there being + only tolerances Lee moulds are notorious for dropping undersize balls/bullets.

Soft lead will fill out a lot less than wheel weights or a tin/antimony bearing alloy, running the mould and alloy very hot say up to 750 degrees, pressure pouring and adding a smidgen of tin, if it is pure lead, could help in getting an extra thou or so in diameter.

Have you slugged your barrel/forcing cone and measured your cylinder mouths? As that will tell what size ball your revolver needs.

It is interesting when looking at ball and boolits the skewing of information or lack of information that mould and ball makers give to enhance people buying their products. Lee talks about mould size not dropped ball size, so consequently all bullets from Lee moulds are likely to be under the stated mould size. Hornady for example who sell swaged ball make a strength out of the uniformity of their ball size however the do not mention that the weight of their swaged balls are all over the place, I wouldn't use an Hornady ball at more than 12 yrds.

The best dimensionally sound ball moulds are supplied by Jeff Tanner and he will supply you a ball mould of any dimension you want up to 0.600" for 20 quid.

His moulds are from brass stock, are single cavity and do not have sprue plates so the sprue needs to be clipped of after casting, slow but when running hot the reject rate from these moulds is zero if you pay attention with the ladle.

Obviously when casting the consistency of your alloy will help with consistent balls/boolits, also if you go to a decent mould maker and tell them what alloy you will be using then they will cut you a mould that will drop to your desired diameter with that alloy, unlike Lee that only given you the diameter of the mould and even then it is usually out with their own specification.

[bigfathairybiker]

Hmmm...

I am using soft lead and casting at 750.

I haven't slugged the barrel or measured the chambers yet.. I've just been enjoying firing it.

I know that I will get round to it eventually....

Adam, you are an amazing wealth of information.

Thank you all.

I will push one of the Hornady balls through the barrel and see what it measures.

Mark

[dromia]

When slugging big is better to give you a measurable bearing surface.. I'd go for at least a 0.475" ball.

[Dave 101]

Jeff Tanner details http://www.jt-bullet-moulds.co.uk/ I will be putting in an order soon as I have just purchased a smooth bore M/L .

Dave

[bigfathairybiker]

When slugging big is better to give you a measurable bearing surface.. I'd go for at least a 0.475" ball.

Would a .488-.490 ball be ok?

Also you mention the forcing cone, how would this be done?
I understand the pushing the slug from the muzzle and through, but there isn't much room in the frame from the cone end.

Mark

[Triffid]

I think I'm using the same combination - Lee Mould 90444 in a ROA.
My mould drops pure lead (roofing flashing) balls at .456 and I was thinking of trying a larger ball if I could get some. But I think the balls I'm using are pretty much OK - a little sliver of lead is shaved off each one when I seat it in the cylinder and they'll shoot a 2" 25m group (rested!) using 17gr of 777. I've also found it worthwhile experimenting with the powder charge as the group size opens up either side of 17 grains.

I've also tried the Lee conical bullet mould (90384) without a great deal of success. I'd be very happy to send you a few of each if you want.

Triffid