Water quench when casting?

[Bill in Oregon]

I've never seriously messed with dropping my cast bullets right out of the mold into a bucket of water. Does this really harden them as opposed to air-cooling?

[Bill in Oregon]

Hey, Bill, let's find out. Why don't you cast some bullets from your swell new Accurate 45-290K mold, air cooling a couple for control, and quenching the rest.
OK. I'll try it.
These babies are coming out real close to 296 grains in range scrap alloy. Now to let them sit a while and fully harden ...

[Bill in Oregon]

Dang, Bill, that'a handseme Keith-class bullet you have there. Bet it would sail right through an elk at 1,000 fps.
You gonna powder coat some?

[Bill in Oregon]

Sure will. Now I have to decide whether to size to .452 then powder coat, or powder coat first.

[JimT]

They have to have a good percentage of antimony. They will get really hard when water quenched. All the tests were done years ago and were in the NRA Cast Bullet Handbook I think it was called. I used to do it until I found out I didn't need to.

[Bill in Oregon]

Good to know Jim. Not much antimony in this scrap alloy, so I am guessing hardness should be similar if not identical.

This was interesting using wheel-weight alloy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3k63cUxb6c

[GunnyMack]

I was told that 25-20 needs HARD so I use grungy old shot and water quench.
I have quenched 41s and 44s but not 38s.
Im trying to remember if I quenched the 20ga Lyman pellet slugs I've been messing with ...

[samsi]

Sure will. Now I have to decide whether to size to .452 then powder coat, or powder coat first.

Coat first then size. Ideally you don't want anything but a fresh from the pot bullet prior to coating.

[Walt]

Over the past few years I have bought about 500 lbs of foundry lead from Hunter's Supply through a friend of the owner. It makes some beautiful bullets; it shows to be about 18 - 20 BnH and I use those bullets for a variety of calibers and velocities. That all seems well and good but shooting those loads in a 38 spl, a .44 special or a .45 Colt, for instance, results in traces of lead in the barrels because there's insufficient pressure to obturate the bullets. For those low velocity bullets a softer bullet composition seals the grooves much better so I frequently add pure lead to the pot.

I have water-quenched my cast bullets for years but for those bullets used in low-velocity loads I no longer do that.

For full-power loads in .357 mag I normally use gas checks. However in.41 mag and .44 mag full-power loads I use plain base bullets and leading does not occur. For whatever reason it seems that as bore diameter increases, leading decreases or is totally eliminated.

I have read that water-quenching hardens only the first couple of thousandths of an inch of a bullet and that in many cases bullet sizing actually removes that hardened surface.

[Bill in Oregon]

Got it, Samsi. Thanks.
Walt, it does seem counterintuitive that harder bullets can lead a barrel where a soft one won't, but your analysis makes sense.
I've pretty much quit messing with gas checks after I started powder coating.

[Walt]

Bill, my shooting buddy and I shoot early every Monday morning. We both are happy when we each shoot up a box or two of loaded rounds. That way there will be some reloading time during the week which is always welcome. Reloading is less a chore than a welcome pasttime; a part of the entire shooting experience. Therefor casting and putting on gas checks is less a bother; even case trimming isn't considered just a necessary chore.

BTW, well-made molds that allow gas checks to be pushed on by hand rather than requiring tools are appreciated. Accurate Molds makes consistently good molds in my experience.

[Bill in Oregon]

Walt, I have been reloading since 1970 and still love it --even more than tying flies. But applying gas checks and trimming cases are at the bottom of my "fun list."

[Bill in Oregon]

Well, here are the results of my crude hardness test. I placed each bullet nose-first on an anvil and then punched them five times each with a spring-loaded center punch. It sure looks to me like the air-cooled bullet on the right is softer than the water-quenched bullet on the left. Of course I have no idea how much if any antimony is in the range scrap, nor have I a clue about BHn.

[JimT]

Well, here are the results of my crude hardness test. I placed each bullet nose-first on an anvil and then punched them five times each with a spring-loaded center punch. It sure looks to me like the air-cooled bullet on the right is softer than the water-quenched bullet on the left. Of course I have no idea how much if any antimony is in the range scrap, nor have I a clue about BHn.

Send me a couple of each and I will check the BHN for you.

[JimT]

Bill .. I used to test the hardness of bullets by putting them in a vise, nose to nose, and squeezing them. It shows pretty clearly which is harder.

[Bill in Oregon]

I'll get a sample out to you Jim. Thanks for the offer.