Pennsylvania Game News - April 2013 - 59
outdoor emporium, or even a catalog to call in an order. If you didn’t cast ’em, you couldn’t shoot ’em. Why cast lead bullets? Isn’t lead dangerous? Aren’t the sabot and copper-jacketed bullets better and easier to hunt with? Won’t a hunter spend more money on equipment than they would if they purchased a couple of boxes of bullets? Who shoots cast lead bullets? While all of these are commonly asked questions, they need to be addressed so that an entire generation of muzzleloading hunters aren’t left out of a satisfying facet of the sport. Why cast lead bullets? Perhaps the easiest answer is because we can. This commonly available element is used in plumbing, electrical, radiological, metallurgical, boat building, fishing and hunting applications, to name a few. With a very low melting point, 621 degrees Fahrenheit, lead can change its solid shape to a liquid with the simplest of heat sources. A rendezvous campfire, Coleman gas stove, propane torch, and yes, modern electrical furnace and melting pots, make short work for changing the state of this elemental metal. The second reason to cast lead bullets is economics. A cast lead bullet takes about three cents (or less if you got the lead for free) worth of lead to make a 50-caliber roundball; maybe a nickel for a larger conical. Buy that same bullet as a jacketed sabot, and you can multiply the price by 20 to 30 times. If you do any amount of target shooting, are involved in black powder competition, or if you are into the Cowboy shooting sports, you really can’t afford to ignore the savings. While there are other personal reasons for casting lead bullets, like APRIL 2013 the profound connection to American history, I believe the most appealing reason for melting lead is the visual satisfaction of watching the liquid solidify into a shiny orb, or even the more defined shape as a spire-pointed, gas-sealing, bearing-ribbed, greasegrooved conoidal bullet (such as a T/C Maxi-Ball). This vision becomes even more appealing when you picture yourself harvesting that big buck with a bullet made by your own hand. There are thousands of shooters who enjoy the process of casting bullets from lead. Many of these hobbyists are organized into the Cast Bullet Association (www.castbulletassoc.org.) But, is this facet of the muzzleloading sports dangerous? The answer needs to be a qualified, albeit ambiguous, “yes and no!” The “yes, lead is dangerous” response relates to the possibility of burns, vapors and ingestion. Obviously, home casting situations require safety equipment to create the “no, lead is not dangerous” response. With temperatures ranging from the melting point of 621 degrees Fahrenheit for pure lead, to lead alloy temperatures ranging more than 800 degrees F. It is important that you wear gloves, safety glasses, long pants/apron and shoes to prevent accidental splash-burns. Lead does not vaporize until it reaches 1,100 degrees F. This is not a danger for electric home production pots. If one is using a hotter propane or acetylene burner, then a high temperature thermometer is necessary to prevent excessive heat. In reality, lead at this extreme temperature, even with higher temperature alloys, doesn’t cast well and amateur bullet casters rarely, if ever, encounter this problem. In fact, many amateur casters have had their 59