shooting lead vs jacketed

[Bill Steele]

oh then my last question it is ok to shoot jacketed after lead?

Lots of people shoot a cylinder/magazine to clean their bore at the end of a range session, lots of people say this is a very dangerous practice. You may want to do some google searches and make up your own mind. Copper Chore Boy will likely fix anything you get.

[GeoffLinder]

Running some jacketed through after shooting lead is safe PROVIDED the bore is not "heavily" fouled with lead.

I have been doing this with revolvers and semi-autos for years to ease lead cleaning chores. It is a very valid methodology if practiced safely.

[Cowboy T]

I cast my own "boolits" and shoot them almost exclusively. My bores remain shiny and free of lead-fouling. Here are the things I've found to prevent this fouling.

1.) Proper sizing for your chamber and bore.
2.) Sufficient lube and the right type.
3.) Avoiding "hard cast" lead.

The first two are the most important. The third matters, but not quite as much as 1.) and 2.). Proper sizing prevents something called "gas cutting". Slightly too large is better than slightly too small, as long as the round chambers easily.

Now, let's talk lube. First, the type. This hard-wax lube you see on many store-bought cast bullets? It's not optimal for handgun applications--far too hard. The hardest you want is ye olde standby NRA 50/50 formula. Another fine choice is liquid Alox. You want it soft enough to have time to melt and coat the bore during the short time the bullet's traveling down it. I use liquid Alox exclusively with excellent results.

So how much lube is enough? If you're using NRA 50/50 or similar, fill those grease grooves! In my experience, it's like flux when soldering copper pipe; t'ain't no such thing as too much. With liquid Alox, I now use a medium-heavy coat for everything. My cast boolits are well ambered. This is after an experience with properly sized boolits shot in some .44 Special rounds. The 6" barrel got coated with lead-fouling starting from the muzzle to about three inches down the bore. This is typically indicative of insufficient lube. I doubled the amount of liquid Alox, and the lead-fouling went bye-bye. Same experience with the Super Redhawk when shooting .45 Colt out of it. Lesson learned, and it hasn't happened again.

Now, for hardness of the lead, for most handgun applications, the softer, the better. This is especially true for lower-pressure rounds like .45 Colt, .38 Special, and even .45 ACP. The reason is something called bullet obturation. The *HARDEST* that you want to go--and this is at .357 Magnum and .44 Magnum pressures--is BHN 15. I typically use straight wheel weight alloy in my Magnum rounds with excellent results. With .38 Special, I prefer BHN 8 or so. Now, you can get away with harder alloy if your sizing and lubing are in order, but I prefer to get all three right.

Here's a link to some excellent information on cast bullets and their usage.

http://www.lasc.us/FryxellCBAlloyObturation.htm

http://www.lasc.us/FryxellLubeCastBullets.htm

[GREASY357]

is magtech .38 special LRN ammunition lubed?

[cjskalka]

I call most gun cleaner products snake oil, because it is.

If you want ease and have cash on hand, you can take the technological solution..

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/243419/outers-foul-out-3-bore-cleaning-system

It is $$ but it works.

I made my own using a wall wart, rubber stopper, some o-rings, and a piece of stainless steel rod. Using the same solution that outers sells it works wonders on my pistol barrels and only cost about $5. -Chris

[meaty-btz]

I made my own using a wall wart, rubber stopper, some o-rings, and a piece of stainless steel rod. Using the same solution that outers sells it works wonders on my pistol barrels and only cost about $5. -Chris

What are you using as a power supply?

[JagerDog]

I have a easy and effective way to remove lead. I have a both a rifle and pistol in 38/357 I shoot tons of lead though both. The pistol doesn't lead up much at all. But my rifle seems to lead up pretty good no matter what I do. So every 50 or so shots of lead I run 5 plated bullets though it and end the day with 5 plated for good measure. When I get home there is hardly any lead in the barrel.

^^^^^^^This

So no...you don't have to get the lead out before shooting jacketed.

[EmmaGoldman]

I almost never shoot jacketed bullets and I rarely see any lead in my bores. When I do, a patch wet with Kroil and ten minutes to let it creep under the lead will get the lead to flake out on the next couple of patches.

Yes, those Magtech bullets are lubed.