Bullet casting is an activity for the competent only.  Although I see myself as generally competent, I am not familiar with all the aspects of bullet casting.  That implies a, "learning curve" is needed.  I know we can learn from our mistakes but the consequence of making a mistake can vary widely. And of course, even among the competent, accidents can happen.

I appreciate the comments from those who cast their own and report a good level of satisfied derived from the activity.  Becoming competent at something is a good path to satisfaction.

Reading the forum a bit, I hear that there are good and trustworthy collectors at the coming Tulsa show. I would love to get some PM's recommending who to see. I have a basic understanding of firearms, but I am not an expert on Winchesters...yet. Thanks

slk said
I have been casting for these old calibers for years and it is pure enjoyment. 
I too have casted straight wheel weights for the most part and have had great results. 
Now when i do mix alloys and have to use tin for some extra hardness I no longer buy tin as it has gotten way over priced. What I do is go to garage and estate sales an buy old pewter cups and such for like a buck. Tin is $30 bucks a lb and a half pound pewter cup is like 50 cents to a dollar. Just melt the pewter into your mix and you are good to go. Pewter is 98% tin. 
I agree that you can have a lot of stuff tied up in casting. Ya have the mold, sizing dies,and lubing. Top punches that fit the bullet you cast,etc. But it sure is rewarding. 
  

SLK, if you're having issues with the melt not filling out the mold fully, with crisp, sharp edges, a little tin will lower the surface tension of the melt and help provide fully formed (and bright, shiny) bullets.  Antimony is also an effective hardening agent, but wheel weights already contain about 5% antimony, which is close to ideal. I think wheel weights have essentially no tin, unless it's there as an impurity from some previous source.

I don't even remember where or how I came across a supply of linotype, but I have about 25 pounds, which serves as my source of tin when needed.

Paul

I too have casted straight wheel weights for the most part and have had great results. 

Now when i do mix alloys and have to use tin for some extra hardness I no longer buy tin as it has gotten way over priced. What I do is go to garage and estate sales an buy old pewter cups and such for like a buck. Tin is $30 bucks a lb and a half pound pewter cup is like 50 cents to a dollar. Just melt the pewter into your mix and you are good to go. Pewter is 98% tin. 

I agree that you can have a lot of stuff tied up in casting. Ya have the mold, sizing dies,and lubing. Top punches that fit the bullet you cast,etc. But it sure is rewarding. 

steve004 said
I've enjoyed the information and discussion in this thread.  It is relevant to me as I load for many .44-40's rifles (i.e Winchester 73's, 92's and "M.....n" 94's.).  All of these are vintage/antique rifles.  I also load for rifle shooting in the .45 Colt chambering.  However, again not a reproduction, but in a Whitney-Kennedy rebored to .45 Colt.
I mainly shoot cast bullets in all of the above.  I've often been on the cusp of getting set-up casting my own bullets but (to my surprise), restraint and rationality have held me back from adding what would surely turn into many hundreds of pounds of surely what would turn into an endless amount of moulds, sizing dies and on and on.  
I discovered years ago you don't have to cast your own bullets to shoot cast bullets.  There's a multitude of manufacturers who will happily provide them - for prices that are reasonable enough.  For the .44-40, I have on hand .427 (both JSP and lead), .428, .429, .430 and .431 lead bullets.  This affords much opportunity for experimentation.  As was mentioned above, bullet hardness is an important factor. Many of smaller bullet casting companies provide the buyer with varying hardness options.  Not to get bogged down here, but when it comes to experimentation the interplay between bullet hardness and type of powder and amount of powder that will lead to the optimal bumping of the bullet.  And then of course, say you find the optimal bullet for the bore, will the round fit the chamber?  Maybe a change to thinner brass will resolve that, some special dies... There's much to keep the mind active and experiences to share.
  

Many, many years ago, I sat out to obtain suitable molds for each caliber pistol cartridge I owned, and a few of the rifle. I also bought a ton, (literally 2000 pounds) of wheel weights from a Big O tire store and eventually melted them down, cleaned up all the slag and steel clips, and poured several lifetime supplies of 1 pound ingots into RCBS molds.

Along the way, I picked up a good supply of linotype and some pure tin for practicing my chemistry/metallurgy. But for 98% of my casting, it's been straight wheel weights.  I've had good success with all calibers I've tried. And casting can be a relaxing and rewarding experience. I usually do it in the winter, when I can open the garage door for ventilation and keep a reasonable temperature. I rotate molds so none overheat, but try to cast no more than 2 or 3 calibers at a time.  You can size and lube them at your leisure some time later.  I have a storage shed full of 3 pound coffee cans full of cast bullets, one size per can.

But Steve is correct, I also discovered that I can buy, at reasonable prices, cast bullets, already sized and lubed, in just about any diameter and weight I'd ever choose.  

So if I were starting out fresh, would I still go down the casting road?  Probably, because it gave me a sense of being 'self sufficient', and it provided a learning experience (what diameter bullet works best in this caliber, etc.)  If you have time, it is a very enjoyable exercise. And standing back and looking a a large pile of perfectly formed bullets, sized and lubed, that you created yourself is very rewarding.  

My home-cast bullets are certainly less costly than any you can buy. But if you factor your time into the mix, and put a dollar value on your time, it would be difficult to justify on cost alone.

Paul

I mainly shoot cast bullets in all of the above.  I've often been on the cusp of getting set-up casting my own bullets but (to my surprise), restraint and rationality have held me back from adding what would surely turn into many hundreds of pounds of surely what would turn into an endless amount of moulds, sizing dies and on and on.  

I discovered years ago you don't have to cast your own bullets to shoot cast bullets.  There's a multitude of manufacturers who will happily provide them - for prices that are reasonable enough.  For the .44-40, I have on hand .427 (both JSP and lead), .428, .429, .430 and .431 lead bullets.  This affords much opportunity for experimentation.  As was mentioned above, bullet hardness is an important factor. Many of smaller bullet casting companies provide the buyer with varying hardness options.  Not to get bogged down here, but when it comes to experimentation the interplay between bullet hardness and type of powder and amount of powder that will lead to the optimal bumping of the bullet.  And then of course, say you find the optimal bullet for the bore, will the round fit the chamber?  Maybe a change to thinner brass will resolve that, some special dies... There's much to keep the mind active and experiences to share.

slk said
I can slug my barrel and see. My normal rule of thumb has usually been 2 thousandths over for casting which is what I would be doing and then running them through my lyman sizer and lubing. If there is a better size let me know. 
  

I'm not currently a bullet caster although I aspire to be. I load small quantities of cast rifle bullet  ammunition for quite a few calibers and haven't settled on one I want to buy a mold for, yet.  If you've had good experience with 2 thousandths over groove diameter with your alloy, I can't imagine the 44 Winchester would behave differently than the others you load for, unless you were given to starting off with a published maximum load - something I doubt you would do. 

As I understand the craft, for the velocities we want to achieve - less than 2000 fs and probably much less than that -- we want to seal the bore to prevent gas cutting and blowby, which cause leading. To ensure obturation of the bore, we want an alloy soft enough to bump up and a bullet diameter .001 to .002 over groove diameter to help the sealing. A too-hard alloy can actually cause leading, I'm told. Whether .001 is better than .002, I don't know but would guess the hardness of the alloy and how deep or shallow the grooves are relative to the lands would affect the answer. Trying both sizes at velocities on the lower end of the scale should provide an answer.  I haven't heard of sizing bullets more than .002 over groove diameter but i'm not the person to ask. 

Jeremy P said
https://www.winchesterguns.com/news/articles/132-year-old-model-1873.html
I always thought this was a spooky story...specifically because there's NO story...👹
  

You’re correct, there is no story.  I could leave this right here and in 130 years people will ask, what happened.  The guy that left it there either died suddenly, or had so much gold to carry he couldn’t pack the rifle.  

I always thought this was a spooky story...specifically because there's NO story...👹

Then there’s the Winchester House.  I assume everyone here knows that story.  I don’t believe Winchesters widow was haunted by anything other than unlimited money and free time.  

Happy Halloween