Post by Bullshop on Mar 18, 2019 9:20:06 GMT -7
This Gentleman is shooting his own 22 cal cast indoors at 10 yards. His goal is sub MOA groups or less than .1 at 10 yards. I tried to offer a helpful reply and thought that it may also be helpful to other casters because the advice is not limited to 22 cal cast bullets but quality casting in general.
my reply,
G’Day Sir
If I am reading you right you want sub moa at 10 yards? Should be doable. I shoot a lot of 22 cal cast bullets from several different cartridges and not always but often get sub moa at 100 yards.
The bullets need to be good quality but so also does every other part of the equation, rifle, scope, load etc.
In casting good quality especially small caliber light weight bullets I feel the single most important factor is mold temp. Other things are critical as well such as alloy, alloy temp, mold venting and mold free of contaminants.
With all these things present if the mold temp is too low or the temp variations too wide bullets will be inconsistent. To properly maintain mold temp requires a very steady cadence. I use a large clock with a sweeping second hand at eye level to maintain the cadence required to maintain the mold temp that gives good quality bullets . With most 22 cal molds depending on the number of cavities the cadence is between 4 and 6 casts per minute. Think of it as pouring heat. The temp of the mold is more critical than the temp of the alloy. That is the best advice I can give for casting quality bullets in any caliber.
Something you may find interesting, I once held a postal match for 22 cal only cast bullets. I shot a 221 FB with 17” 1/14” twist heavy barrel but I did not win the match. The match that I supplied the targets for was for a five shot group for group on one side and the other side a single shot for closest to center. These were fired at 100 yards. The winner shot a Saeco 222. The interesting thing was that the combined group size for all contestants about 12 was .77” or just a smidge over ¾ moa. I found that very interesting. So you see what you are attempting is far from impossible!
my reply,
G’Day Sir
If I am reading you right you want sub moa at 10 yards? Should be doable. I shoot a lot of 22 cal cast bullets from several different cartridges and not always but often get sub moa at 100 yards.
The bullets need to be good quality but so also does every other part of the equation, rifle, scope, load etc.
In casting good quality especially small caliber light weight bullets I feel the single most important factor is mold temp. Other things are critical as well such as alloy, alloy temp, mold venting and mold free of contaminants.
With all these things present if the mold temp is too low or the temp variations too wide bullets will be inconsistent. To properly maintain mold temp requires a very steady cadence. I use a large clock with a sweeping second hand at eye level to maintain the cadence required to maintain the mold temp that gives good quality bullets . With most 22 cal molds depending on the number of cavities the cadence is between 4 and 6 casts per minute. Think of it as pouring heat. The temp of the mold is more critical than the temp of the alloy. That is the best advice I can give for casting quality bullets in any caliber.
Something you may find interesting, I once held a postal match for 22 cal only cast bullets. I shot a 221 FB with 17” 1/14” twist heavy barrel but I did not win the match. The match that I supplied the targets for was for a five shot group for group on one side and the other side a single shot for closest to center. These were fired at 100 yards. The winner shot a Saeco 222. The interesting thing was that the combined group size for all contestants about 12 was .77” or just a smidge over ¾ moa. I found that very interesting. So you see what you are attempting is far from impossible!
