.25 mold and equipment

[pewpewfever]

I want to buy a mold and whatever other equipment I need to cast .25 pellets or slugs of grain 33 or higher.  I found a slug mold on Amazon that casts 70 ish grain slugs.  I’m not sure if that’s too heavy for a Sumatra and I don’t know what else to buy as I’ve never made pellets or slugs before.

[Insanity]

NOE has some molds but they are out of stock for now. I have been keeping a eye on them to come in stock.

[Hobbyman2007]

The Sumatra is a .25 caliber . The molds you’re seeing online are most likely .257” caliber . It doesn’t sound like a lot of difference but it sure is . The Sumatra in stock form is 100fpe on a good day . I would stick with 50 grain or less that way you can get them up to speed. Another thing tolook at is length of magazine , the 2500 Sumatra takes up to .550” after working on the mags at the very most .  You can always resort to buying bullets from NSA or varmint knockers to test and see what weight your gun likes .

[pewpewfever]

Thanks all.

I think I should add that as far as other equipment goes, I am looking for a casting pot that can be heated over open flame.  Assuming none of those are bottom flow, I guess ai will need an apparatus that can hold the mold still while I pour the lead in by tilting the casting pot.  This is for a long term survival scenario, so no electricity.

What kind of gloves, tongs, hammer, spoon, etc?  Anything else?

I expect that a major source of lead may be pulling projectiles from expired bullet rounds or recovering projectiles fired from firearms.  Any major issues using copper jacketed lead as a source?  Does such lead already have tin content?  How many different kinds of bullet pullers are likely needed?  Thanks.

[Hobbyman2007]

The pot itself is easy , if melting over an open fire . Good old cast iron from a yard sale . The ladle , here’s a good selection . https://www.rotometals.com/ladles-furnaces-for-casting/
You’re going to want to wear some thick leather gloves, safety glasses , full sleeve shirt and long pants . Pulling lead from a range works but , often the lead is too hard for airgun use . Pure lead from sewer pipes , roofing or even from your dentists x ray jacket are better sources . Never use lead from a battery . A real good source of information on casting can be found https://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/

For starters maybe get yourself the http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/product_info.php?cPath=554_483&products_id=3758&osCsid=9kia8de5g1c5u4lo5a9pum6u93
They are out of stock right now but Al will probably make another batch sooner than later .

[KnifeMaker]

Recovered bullets from a range may be more trouble than they're worth. Most cast bullets, or factory for that matter with have some antimony in them, and will cast far too hard for airgun use. You want pure, or at the very most 20-1 lead/tin. I try to cast at 40/1 for good accuracy and expansion.


Knife

[KnifeMaker]

 Do slug your barrel and order some bullets to test from NSA and Varmint Knockers. Very good quality! 


Best advice I can give, Spend some time on CastBoolits.com. A wealth of info there!

[pewpewfever]

That’s a bummer about pulled bullets being too alloyed for use as pellets.  And my 5 minutes of research indicates that it’s almost impossible to purify lead absent expensive chemical processes, with pure lead sources becoming more and more scarce due to health concerns.  So, with scavenging pure lead being very difficult, maybe the way to go is to stockpile a large number of pellets, and then use recovered pellets as a primary source of lead for moulding new pellets?

[Wayne52]

I recommend pure lead myself, I started out with lead that I found with my metal detector (lead pipe and ingots) that I'd found and originally saved for casting for my muzzle loaders however using it for pellets soon depleted the supply so I started buying pure lead from Rotometals which is about the best deal.  I got the split pig ingot which in my case was 58lbs deleivered USPS.  Right now it's getting to the point where I need to buy another one and they're actually cheaper now than what they were when I ordered my first one a year ago in July.  They're 99.9% pure.

[pewpewfever]

I recommend pure lead myself, I started out with lead that I found with my metal detector (lead pipe and ingots) that I'd found and originally saved for casting for my muzzle loaders however using it for pellets soon depleted the supply so I started buying pure lead from Rotometals which is about the best deal.  I got the split pig ingot which in my case was 58lbs deleivered USPS.  Right now it's getting to the point where I need to buy another one and they're actually cheaper now than what they were when I ordered my first one a year ago in July.  They're 99.9% pure.

I didn’t realize that modern metal detectors can detect lead.  I haven’t used one in a long time.  But in a long term survival scenario, with no electricity and no source of new batteries, I don’t think a metal detector is a viable option.

I think it’s a cost issue. I can stockpile 10,000 34 grain pellets for $700 USD.  How many pellets that size can I get out of a lead bar, and how much does that bar cost?

[pewpewfever]

After a little math, it seems that, assuming no waste, a 60 lb lead ingot can produce about 12,000 35 grain pellets.  I don’t know how long it takes to produce that many pellets, but right now I think it makes more sense for me to spend that time taking on more legal work and buy pellets. It’s the same reason I don’t reload fir firearm competitions at the moment.  But I think it makes sense to have pellet making equipment for moulding reclaimed pellets if it ever comes to that. 

[Nvreloader]

PPF

There is 7000 grains in a pound, divide the pellet weight into the pound,
and that answer will be the number of pellets, 7000-35 = 200 pellets with no waste.......

HTH,

Tia,
Don