Cast or plated?

[Striker Fired]

I personally don't believe that you can honestly shoot lead and get "no" leading(oh ya I'll take heat for that one).I have slugged my barrels and shoot cast that is .001 to .002 over,I have polished my bores,I have tried six different companies bullets ranging from 12bhn to 22bhn and run the velocities from not cycling the gun to as hot as jacketed.While I have been able to get rid of the vast majority(costly aftermarket barrels are the best),I have yet to completely eliminate it.I may get 150 to 200 shots before it is getting bad,but it is happening.Some factory barrels I don't think nothing can be done, they are just too rough.I have even run some of the exact loads that others say they don't get any from(same bullet as long as it is .001 over my bore,same hardness,same powder,same charge)and I still get some.I know it is all my fault bla,bla,bla.but the fact is you get leading issues with lead,not plated.
But with all this said I do enjoy shooting the stuff,I tend to get better groupings(SWC the favorite)with it and there is something about the bare lead that makes it more enjoyable to load my own.

 

[LiveLife]

I personally don't believe that you can honestly shoot lead and get "no" leading(oh ya I'll take heat for that one)

I am with you. I started out shooting 45ACP in 1911/Glock and got leading. Since I befriended a local bullet caster who supplied match shooters for several counties, we tried different bullets (he casted at 21-24 BHN) and even went to Moly coated to see if I could decrease the leading. I managed with certain powders/charges/OALs combinations that minimized/eliminated leading, but felt limited in what I wanted to do.

When the local bullet caster retired, I tried Missouri Bullet's softer 12/18 BHN and as expressed by various articles of Glen Fryxell, I got the full spectrum of load usage from light recoil plinking loads (200 gr SWC with 4.0 gr Promo/Red Dot) to moderate recoil target loads (200 gr SWC with 5.0 gr W231/HP-38) without leading and very good accuracy.

When I got full-length leading in my oversized PT145 barrel (can you say .455"+ groove diameter? ) and erratic shot groups even at close 7 yards with 18 BHN bullets, softer 12 BHN bullet was the solution. Even with extremely oversized PT145 barrel, the softer 12 BHN bullet base deformed/expanded enough with light 4.0 gr Promo charge to obturate to the barrel. Many would have suggested I go with larger sized bullets but where can I get 200 gr SWC bullets sized to .457"?

If you are fortunate enough to shoot pistols with polished/coated barrels like Glocks/M&Ps and 1911s/aftermarket barrels with polished barrels, you may not experience leading but some rough finished barrels will. For this reason, I typically shoot several hundred rounds of jacketed factory ammo to "burnish" the barrel surface before I start shooting lead reloads.

YMMV

 

[res45]

Striker Fired sorry your having problems shooting lead it can be a frustrating issue to deal with because there are so many variables that can cause it. I count myself blessed as I only have one new handgun out of all my rifles and handguns that I shoot plain base cast lead in the even gets a trace of lead in it and I know the problem is the forcing cone is cut a little rough and that's were the leading is.

Hopefully if I can shoot a couple hundred rds. of jacketed ammo through it it will polish it up a bit but the leading is so insignificant that it only take about 5 min. to clean it out, I probably want even bother shooting J bullets in it. I need to put a few of my gas check bullets through it to see if that changes things. That's something I haven't gotten around to trying yet. You probably already know about many of the causes of leading and where it can occur in the bore but for anyone else this might be of use http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Chapter_7_Leading.htm


I shoot quiet a few plated bullets in my 9mm,shooting lead in a 9mm can be tricky sometimes. Unfortunately for me my 9 Mil has very shallow rifling a 147 gr. FN cast bullet shoots just as well as any other bullet but anything smaller weight wise with less bearing surface want stabilize well and keyholes at times,I have more experimentation to do but I may end up just sticking with the 147's as there a soft shooting load and used for plinking only. Plate bullets and FMJ bullet shoot just fine and I can buy them in bulk locally cheaper than I can order them online.

 

[Walkalong]

I personally don't believe that you can honestly shoot lead and get "no" leading

Actually, yes you can, seriously. I shot my two 1911 .45's with nothing but lead for years with never any leading. I only occasionally wiped out the powder fouling. Zero lead. Same with my Model 14 .38 Spl.

These were my main three guns for many years. Too many other expenses back then.

 

[Striker Fired]

Tell me your load ,the exact bullet used,the exact powder,charge,primer,BHn of bullet,and what fps your load was going and I will duplicate it(with normal workup to that point).I will be shocked if I don't get leading in either of my 45's.The vast majority of my "leading problems are coming from my 40's and 9mm.The other thing is my Beretta barrels need .358 bullets,my storm lake barrel needs.356 for 9mm.
The 40 I need Berettas= .403(Ijust found a bullet maker that actually makes 40cal bullets other than .401,which is one part of the problem here),my XDM needs .401 bullets but its throat doesn't except any bullet that isn't absolutly PERFECT straight/centered.
The 45's I need .454/.4505/,and .452,again XDM45 and Kart barrel needs to be absolutly straight/centered or they cut lead when chambering.
All this is just to try to keep my bullets .001 to .0015 bigger than my bores.
Plated and jacketed is the way to go ,Just load and shoot/have fun.

 

[LiveLife]

So many won't believe me when I tell them many factory barrels are oversized ... and will experience leading with typical lead bullet diameters (.356" for 9mm, .401" for 40S&W and .452" for 45ACP, etc.) as the bullets won't deform/expand enough to obturate the barrel.

Since my overly large PT145 barrel sized at .455"+ worked well with .452" sized bullet in 12 BHN to obturate the barrel, I wonder if the same could work for oversized 9mm/40S&W barrels with 15 BHN and .356"/.401" sizing?

Striker Fired, have you tried 12 BHN bullet in your XDM45?

 

[35 Whelen]

I may get 150 to 200 shots before it is getting bad,but it is happening.

I guess I've never fired THAT many consecutive shots shots without cleaning. I bet you do get leading. But there are levels of leading to consider. A hazy, very light smearing, who cares. So much that it obscures the rifling, you have a problem.

I have on many, many occassions fired around 90 consecutive shots, plain-base bullets at around 1050 fps from my K-31 (in High Power matches) with NO leading...as in shiny bore at the end of the match. My latest load uses a gas check (home-made aluminum checks) bullet at around 1400 fps. Again NO leading, shiny bore after around 90 consecutive shots.

Hang in there Striker. I'm sure there's a solution.

35W

 

[Walkalong]

I may get 150 to 200 shots before it is getting bad,but it is happening

I would go 500 to 1000 plus before casually cleaning the barrel. No need really. A reasonable BHN for the velocity/pressure, a good fit, and you will not have leading unless you have a bad barrel, undersized throats, etc, etc.

 

[Striker Fired]

I have tried 12bhn bullets once near the begining,I got a hold of about 50 for the 45.They were tried in my 1911 with the.453 barrel.I think I pushed them to fast.I will tell you what kind of leading I'm getting,lets see what some of you guys come up with.First remember Missouri bullets in all right now(18 BHN).All my barrels are hand polished some I did even twice.Most of my leading is starting about 3/4inch from the start(thats were it gets clumpy in certain barrels),Gas cutting right?It then smears out most of the way to the muzzle.AA#5 ,WSF,HP-38 started lower charges,leading,moved up charge tried more,ect... to full power,which is where I'm getting the least.Now in 45 I probably should be running 14bhn(they lead the least exspecialy the XDM)
As far as the amount of leading it isn't filling the grooves bad,just light smearing that slowly builds up with more shots.

 

[atonguis]

Check out Bayou Bullets, the best of both worlds, cheap like lead and coated so no leading problems. I load to fmj specs with no issues in any of the calibers I load them in.

 

[GLOOB]

Unique seems to be less smoky with cast bullets, compared to W231.

 

[rodinal220]

Most of my handgun bullets are lead,I cast them myself.I do use plated bullets for certain guns like Glocks and HK P7.