Cast Bullets or Boolits are manually made by melting metal and casting it into a mold. Most of these bullets are made of lead, but some are made of zinc alloy.
There are certain advantages of using cast boolits over jacketed bullets. And in this article, we will highlight these advantages and the reasons for using cast boolits.
Advantages of Cast Boolits
Cast boolits are far much cheaper than jacketed bullets. Of course, this is because they can be made of scrap lead, which you can find and buy cheap at auto service shops or scrap metal yards.
With 5 pounds of scrap lead, you can cast more than two hundred 150-grain bullets or one hundred 240-grain bullets. If you were to buy two hundred 150-grain jacketed bullets, they would cost a whole lot more than DIY or commercially made cast boolits.
So if you are a newbie shooter, it would be economical to use cast boolits because they are cheap to make and buy.
Besides being cheap, cast bullets that are well made are highly accurate. There is a misconception that these bullets are not accurate and neither do they perform well.
The fact is, if the bullets are not properly made, they are not likely to perform well. They can also cause lead fouling – a condition where a gun’s barrel is smudged with lead residue. Therefore, the accuracy and performance of a cast boolit depend on how its made.
You don’t necessarily need to make your own; you can buy already made cast bullets. They come in varying sizes and shapes, so you can find one that fits your firearm. However, if you don’t like what you find, you can always make your own, which is not difficult.
And that’s the other advantage of these bullets.
You can learn how to cast your own bullets.
You don’t need high-tech tools to do it or any bullet-making expertise. You need a step-to-step guide on how it’s done, and you can easily find that information online.
What you need to focus on is finding a good bullet mold. There is a wide variety of bullet molds available, and most of them are relatively affordable. Also, it would be best if you used an alloying element to make the bullets stronger.
Cast boolits made entirely out of lead are soft and don’t have much penetrating power. So when casting your bullets, make sure to combine the lead metal with an alloy metal like tin to make the bullets stronger.
Most importantly, never cast bullets in an enclosed area or an area that doesn’t have good ventilation.
Molten lead produces strong fumes, and it can cause severe burns.
So when casting bullets, make sure that children are absent and that you wear protective eyewear and clothing for safety.
Reasons to use Cast Boolits
There are certain reasons to use cast boolits. These reasons may vary from shooter to shooter, but here are some basic ones:
- Cast boolits are cheaper than jacketed bullets, and therefore, economical when it comes to target shooting practice.
- Cast bullets are easy to make. All the tools and materials you need to make them are readily available and inexpensive.
- You can custom make your own bullets based on the specifications of your firearm. This can help you cut your bullet costs.
- If you own different types of firearms, you can make cast bullets for each of them since you can find bullet molds of different shapes and sizes.
- Cast boolits unlike jacketed bullets don’t fragment when they hit a target.
- Strong cast boolits have higher velocities than jacketed bullets, which makes them a good option for hunting large game
Wrapping Up
Cast boolits are inexpensive to buy, unlike jacketed bullets, and they are also simple to make. You don’t need expensive equipment to cast them, and they come in handy when shooting targets or when you want to familiarize yourself with how to shoot a firearm.
If you are not up to making your own bullets, you can buy commercially made cast boolits. They are inexpensive; however, make sure to buy from a reputable company to ensure you are getting quality. Poor quality cast boolits are not accurate, and they perform poorly.
