Favorite cast bullet mould for hunting with 10mm?

[BillinOregon]

Wondering what those of you who cast your have settled on for a hunting bullet. Thinking 200-220 grains, gas-checked.

[sqlbullet]

There is a bunch of different opinions and debate about the need for a gas check on a 10mm bullet.  Some guys swear by them, others view them as an un-needed expense.

MY choice from my current selection of molds is this guy:



Comes in at 205 grains from isotope lead alloy.  Shoots good from my guns.

[The_Shadow]

Here are my SHTF 10mm castings...My incorporate the Shake-n-bake Powdered paint process with these some day.

[BillinOregon]

Nice, fellas. I just got Accurate Moulds no. 400-190C for my .38-40, and figure it will serve at mid-power levels in the Glock. Wonder if the 200- and 220-grain bullets in the Underwood hunting loads are gas-checked.

[sqlbullet]

http://10mm-firearms.com/factory-10mm-ammo-pull-downs/200gr-hard-cast-(ic-342015)-pull-down/msg41170/#msg41170

http://10mm-firearms.com/factory-10mm-ammo-pull-downs/underwood-220gr-cast-wfn-1230-fps-pull-down/msg22985/#msg22985


According to our pull-downs, neither one is gas checked.

[Benchrst]

My heaviest cast-myself is 176gr.



Been meaning to have Lee make a 200gr version.

[sqlbullet]

NOE catalogs a 200 grain WFN that is similar:

http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/product_info.php?cPath=39&products_id=436&osCsid=fnftr1b0lucreekkq0ae5gs1n5

[BillinOregon]

I already have this mold for my other "10 mm,"  a Uberti Model 1873 Winchester in .38-40.

http://www.accuratemolds.com/bullet_detail.php?bullet=40-190C-D.png

[sqlbullet]

In theory that bullet nose is too long for 10mm if you crimp at the groove.  .990 + .285 = 1.275

But, all my brass is more like .870-.900, so it would be fine.  Generally I like fewer lube grooves, but still a solid WFN design.

--Edit 2015-12-22@ 10:14 PM:  I guess I shouldn't read calipers so early in the morning.  That should be .987"-.990", and that then makes the bullet nose on the long side.

[BillinOregon]

Sql, I got this mold because it holds a decent among of SPG lube to soften the black powder fouling. I will probably pick a 215 or 220 as a hunting bullet for the Glock.

[DizzyDean]

I wouldn't mind a gas checked bullet for the mechtech carbine. Anybody know of one?

[sqlbullet]

NOE Molds has them all both ways.

[sqlbullet]

DizzyDean, one additional comment.

Pressure is the enemy of lead bullets.  All else being equal, more pressure = more velocity, which is why so many people will tell you that lead won't handle velocity.  But that isn't true.  It is pressure that is the problem.

So, you won't need a gas check in  the carbine any more than you would in a handgun assuming the same load.  A carbine makes more velocity by applying the same pressure curve for more time, so the bullet base doesn't experience more pressure.

I would run plain base if that was the mold I had until I experienced an issue that I identified as pressure related.  Then I would look to a gas check to correct the issue.

[DizzyDean]

I did not know that, I always assumed it was velocity, good to know! Still Id want a fairly hard bullet correct? Would water quenched lead from wheel weights be sufficient? What about quenched Lyman #2?

[sqlbullet]

I personally see very little value to rock hard bullets.  I like them to meet the traditional criteria for hard cast, which is BHN 12-16.  That can be achieved with air-cooled WW.

Really hard bullets won't deform elastically and fully seal the bore.  This results in jets of plasma escaping around the sides of the bullet.  These high pressure/temperature jets will melt little channels in the sides of the bullet, and leave leading.

This is the reason you will hear folks say their gun "won't shoot lead without leading".  They don't slug the bore, buy bullets that are not groove diameter + .001" and a little leading.  Then they go harder, and get a lot of leading, because the bullet base can't obturate.

If I am going to water drop, I will mix isotope lead 50/50 with pure, and then add a bit of tin to bring it up to 2%.  This gives me a bullet that is about 16-18, but is a lot more malleable than straight WW water dropped.