I’ve been toying with the option of casting or swaging my own projectiles. I’d like to hear about others first hand experience with casting or swaging. I’ve researched the offerings of Lee Precision and Corbin. Roughly the initial cost of Lee setup would run approximately $5-600 with additional molds being in the $60 range. The process has a few more steps and there’s the (electricity) cost of running the pot to melt the lead. Conversely the Corbin investment is in the @!2k range with additional dies @$200. My main concern is wasting money. I’m a cop going through a divorce (5 kids too) and believe it or not we (LEO’s) don’t make a ton of money unless we sacrifice a sh!t ton of time to work excruciating road jobs. I work the 4p-midnight shift and have all day to shoot on my property (50-100 yd setup now, up to 200 planned) and go through a ton of projectiles. So basically I’d like to inquire as if these home projectile setups are worth the investment or does it seem like a novel way to waste money and time?
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Swage or cast?
- Thread starter Fasyankee
- Start date
I have 2 stories to share here. I spent thousands on reloading equipment for swagin slugs years ago and it was a waste of time and money based on my own experience with equipment purchased from europe and nothing would shoot straight no matter what head and tail and weight combination I tried so I sold everything at a major loss but was forthcoming to the buyer that I couldn't get any accuracy out of it. Then not too long ago bought an h-and-hem from China and it produces JSB like pellets with match grade accuracy and IMHO worth the price and am not going to have to pray I don't get another bad tin of JSB again YO!
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I haven't given any thought on casting or shooting cast slugs in fear of potentially ruining my accurate airgun barrels which I heard are made with softer metals than powder burners YO!
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A few questions. Where'd you buy the H an Hem? Where do you get your lead? Where do you get does for it?
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Not sure how you’d figure that cast slugs would damage a barrel? It’s the same lead, and pretty sure that air Venturi and a few other manufacturers cast their ammo. Curious as to who made your swaging setup, the one you sold? And also would like information on the supplier of the h&m henn
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Toying with the idea. For a pellet gun, or a modified gun? There's so many things that go into making a slug shoot enough better than a pellet for most people to probably want to bother with it. Just have to want to spend the time to learn what it really takes for your gun/barrel etc.....
I have way too much experience in the past casting bullets from pure lead for muzzle loader slugs to high Antimony content Heat Treated 9mm bullets.
If you cast them you'll obviously have to size them too. Another step, more time for sure. Not what I do anymore.
Swagging is a finished round with ea. crank of the handle. I use Corbin equipment in .25 cal. exclusively. Extremely flexible platform.
But large cal's. like .35 or above, or a .257 would be a different story. Casting may be better suited for them.
I have way too much experience in the past casting bullets from pure lead for muzzle loader slugs to high Antimony content Heat Treated 9mm bullets.
If you cast them you'll obviously have to size them too. Another step, more time for sure. Not what I do anymore.
Swagging is a finished round with ea. crank of the handle. I use Corbin equipment in .25 cal. exclusively. Extremely flexible platform.
But large cal's. like .35 or above, or a .257 would be a different story. Casting may be better suited for them.
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I use mostly NSA slugs for my bulldog, which is heavily modified. But I’ve gotten A/V slugs (cast) that prior to drilling my TP they were incredibly inaccurate. Now they’re pretty dead on. After With the NSA 105gr they were slug on slug at 100yds. 110gr similar, 142gr BT were inaccurate prior to the TP & Pitbull barrel supports but are now tightening up. I did also find a slug the rifle likes on eBay which were cast and I’m pretty certain I know which Lee mold they were cast with. My other rifles are the same, like some slugs and not others like most air rifles do. I really don’t mind the time as I mostly have daytime to myself, but I do like the ease of the Corbin setup.
I use the bulldog for hunting and had some issues with lighter pellets (JSB & Polymag 81gr) not getting the job done with perfect shot placement at @900fps. I know the shots were perfect because the gun has an ATN X-sight 4K pro and review of the shots video clearly shows a vitals bullseye. (Whitetail). With the 110 & 105’s going similar speeds I had complete passthrough & me and my boys were able to harvest a few this past season, so I’ve become a firm believer of the slug movement
I use the bulldog for hunting and had some issues with lighter pellets (JSB & Polymag 81gr) not getting the job done with perfect shot placement at @900fps. I know the shots were perfect because the gun has an ATN X-sight 4K pro and review of the shots video clearly shows a vitals bullseye. (Whitetail). With the 110 & 105’s going similar speeds I had complete passthrough & me and my boys were able to harvest a few this past season, so I’ve become a firm believer of the slug movement
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With the 110 & 105’s going similar speeds I had complete passthrough & me and my boys were able to harvest a few this past season, so I’ve become a firm believer of the slug movement
You might be able to control the pass through with the right HP design for those slugs.
You might be able to control the pass through with the right HP design for those slugs.
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I'll be following this thread. I cast my own bullets for powder burners and then swage and lube them. The bullet swager is a Lyman that sizes the round and forces lube into the bullet grooves. I've seen video of pellet presses using lead wire forced into a mold that forges a pellet. I think that is called swageing in this instance. Either way: casting or swaging I think accuracy would be influenced by swaging a cast bullet (without the lube) or simply swaging pellets from wire for use in pcps. I have alot of wheel weights to cast turn into pellets and slugs if an acceptably accurate means of processing the lead into pellets comes into existence.
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Wheel weights are WAY too hard for airguns. Pure lead with maybe a little tin is a better path to take...
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