@babaganoush I’m not surprised. Do you have a link to a reputable source?
edit: They do look very similar
The only difference I can see is the Bayou bullets have a beveled base for easier case loading.
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Just Seeing These Slugs Benjamin .357, 147 Grain
- Thread starter Ezana4CE
- Start date
The only difference I can see is the Bayou bullets have a beveled base for easier case loading.
What alloy are those bullets made from? Really need softer than most bullet companies will provide. I have read that GT will make them in pure lead if you ask, but I have not bought from them to verify.
And again, this is why casting your own can pay off in a short time. Look at the Umarex 50 cal rounds, $30 usd for only 20 rounds. Benjamin Nosler, also running around $30 for 25 rounds. Alco Bullets is around $30 for 50 rounds, but shipping is not great.
You can get around 15 to 16 450gr bullets out of a pound of lead at roughly $3 per pound. Molds can be between $40 and $180 each. Lead pot another $80 for a bottom pour. Sizing dies and press another $60. It doesn't take long to break even, I did that a while ago with my 357, add 50 cal into the mix and you really need to be casting your own. Unless you only use you big bore to hunt, once sighted in you only shoot a few rounds per year.
And again, this is why casting your own can pay off in a short time. Look at the Umarex 50 cal rounds, $30 usd for only 20 rounds. Benjamin Nosler, also running around $30 for 25 rounds. Alco Bullets is around $30 for 50 rounds, but shipping is not great.
You can get around 15 to 16 450gr bullets out of a pound of lead at roughly $3 per pound. Molds can be between $40 and $180 each. Lead pot another $80 for a bottom pour. Sizing dies and press another $60. It doesn't take long to break even, I did that a while ago with my 357, add 50 cal into the mix and you really need to be casting your own. Unless you only use you big bore to hunt, once sighted in you only shoot a few rounds per year.
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Also, that Bayou looks like a modified Lyman 356637 which I have a mold for, it is definitely not cast in pure lead. Those bullets in pure lead come out to 155 grains.
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It looks like Bayou uses a 92-6-2 for their bullets with a BHN 16.
I can confirm that GT makes a solid product. I have ordered thousands of bullets from him in his standard pistol alloy which is 96-2-2 that has a BHN of around 11.
I also load 357 brass so I haven't asked about doing a softer lead/tin alloy just for my Texan. I just shoot the same bullets. His hollowpoints expand well in 900fps range.
Is there any real reason why you would need soft lead for a solid bullet? Is a BHN 12 sofcast bullet really going to burn out machine steel barrel with a BHN of 145-165 that much faster than a 6-7 BHN airgun slug?
This is just a speculation, lets say you burn out a barrel in 20,000 shots with normal pistol ammo, but you could get 25,000 if you used airgun slugs. This seems like a good trade if you save a few grand in ammo if the only downside is you need to change out a $250 barrel a bit earlier.
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The only reason for the softer alloy is ability to engrave the rifling easily. We don't have the pressures behind the round like any powder burner. I had some trouble with BHN12 ammo that I cast, but some of it could have been the unknown alloy.
I need to fiddle with mixing an alloy myself so I know what's going on, it would be so much easier to but coated bullets than cast, powder coat, and size myself. Once it gets down to 10 cents or less per bullet, casting stops making sense unless you want a specific design or you just like the process of casting.
I need to fiddle with mixing an alloy myself so I know what's going on, it would be so much easier to but coated bullets than cast, powder coat, and size myself. Once it gets down to 10 cents or less per bullet, casting stops making sense unless you want a specific design or you just like the process of casting.
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if you like the meplat on that truncated cone - try shooting it as a boat tailed wad cutter!
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Bore butter would work great ! maybe a bit messy but a roll thru your fingers ,,, like lubing cases for sizing,,, would give the bearing surface a coatand i bet 10 or 15 would season the barrel just like a smokepole - lately I have been using a pinch of Hexagonal Boron Nitrite in the tin and it has been working great and is hydrophobic-- Moly dust will work as well but it will draw some moisture so i added a couple of drops of whatever light oil you like ....but moly is dark like dirt. HBN is white and it works fine without any oil, paraffin, wax, bear grease or chicken fat
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i would think it more a matter of bore seal -- bhn 11 is around what the Black Powder guys make to use for 1000 yd matches and i think bhn 11 upsets around 2700 psi and can hold the rifling to about 14000psi. so for an airgun that will never see 10000psi (where pure lead fails) pure lead would be fine with a swaged bullet but i would add 1% tin so that it will cast about a million times better than pure lead. too hard a bullet will fail to seal the bore and velocity deviations will manifest as vertical stringing
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