onondaga wrote: Your alloy of 50% pure and 50% Linotype is an extreme one. Lyman specifies the alloy their molds are to be cast from for the weight to be close to the listed weight.
If you use an alloy with more tin and antimony than the specified alloy, your bullets will be proportionally lighter. Your bullet weight is not in the least surprising at all with the alloy you listed. Your alloy is likely BHN18-20+.
If you cast pure lead into that mold, bullets will be heavier than the specified weight.
I actually question what in the world you would want bullets that hard for. Alloys harder than Lyman #2 at BHN 15 start to get brittle and definitely fragment on contact with game with the percentages of tin and antimony like the 50% lead and 50% Linotype you have.
If you are inexperienced on of how to select an alloy based on the load pressure and use for the bullets, I suggest Lee 2nd Edition Modern Reloading.The book completely explains the relation and is a great help in selecting alloy.
If your loads are for typical SWC target loads for a .38 or .357 Mag your alloy should be about BHN 10, Hot loads for hunting/defense should be about BHN 15 or standard Lyman #2 Alloy (90% lead, 5% tin, 5% Antimony)
Work with what you have and Pure lead : Lino at 8:2 will yield a bullet alloy about BHN 14-15 and cast a lot closer in weight to the 162 gr you expected.
Gary
Your alloy of 50% pure and 50% Linotype is an extreme one. Lyman specifies the alloy their molds are to be cast from for the weight to be close to the listed weight.
How do you define extreme, and why do you use the word in this context? This makes no sense to me.
If you use an alloy with more tin and antimony than the specified alloy, your bullets will be proportionally lighter. Your bullet weight is not in the least surprising at all with the alloy you listed. Your alloy is likely BHN18-20+
My bullets are not lighter. They're pretty much on target, Lyman “proofs” this particular mould with linotype. My weights and dimensions are dead on for my purposes.
I actually question what in the world you would want bullets that hard for. Alloys harder than Lyman #2 at BHN 15 start to get brittle and definitely fragment on contact with game with the percentages of tin and antimony like the 50% lead and 50% Linotype you have.
Who are you to question my decisions? I have specific purposes in mind when I develop my data. My alloy decision suits my purposes. My bullets have not proven to be brittle, or I would have adjusted them accordingly. You are not the only person here who can develop a load.
If you are inexperienced on of how to select an alloy based on the load pressure and use for the bullets, I suggest Lee 2nd Edition Modern Reloading.The book completely explains the relation and is a great help in selecting alloy.
If you are inexperienced in the dynamics of interpersonal communication, and how to communicate with people without pissing them off, I can suggest a few books for you too.
If your loads are for typical SWC target loads for a .38 or .357 Mag your alloy should be about BHN 10, Hot loads for hunting/defense should be about BHN 15 or standard Lyman #2 Alloy (90% lead, 5% tin, 5% Antimony)
And if they're not for “typical” uses, what then? Define “typical".You're lecturing me when you don't have any of the facts. You're just spouting numbers from a book. The book doesn't know what, or how I use the bullets either.
Work with what you have and Pure lead : Lino at 8:2 will yield a bullet alloy about BHN 14-15 and cast a lot closer in weight to the 162 gr you expected.
Once again, Lymans data shows this bullet “proofed” at 162 gr with linotype. Do you own any newer Lyman manuals? They can be fascinating reading. They're filled with facts, not innuendo.