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Harcourt Essen Case Study

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and heavy bullets, there were three favorite choices. The first was a Winchester offering, WW296, a ball powder with a good burning rate and characteristics tailored for big revolver cartridges. The shape of the powder granules determines how well they pass through a given powder measure. The ball-shaped powders worked well through most powder measures, eliminating the need to weigh each and every charge, a time consuming step that anyone loading hundreds of rounds of ammunition per week would be glad to give up. Weighing charges could only be eliminated if it was proven that there was no variance from charge to charge, but the prudent loader would still measure one out of each 5 or 10 just to make sure that nothing “moved” out of adjustment …show more content…

Dennis had a gas stove in his basement; on it, a huge cast iron pot that held about 80 pounds of lead. Large batches could more accurately be controlled for temperature and alloy. He had installed a range hood, ductwork, and an exhaust fan above the stove to remove toxic fumes. This safety precaution cannot be overemphasized as lead has been proven to be very harmful to humans if ingested. He turned on the gas and within about 20 minutes, the lead was at the proper temperature to begin casting. Dennis used a bottom pour ladle to fill a cast iron four cavity mold. A moment later, as the lead began to cool, he opened the sprue plate with a sharp blow from a wooden mallet. Another sharp rap on the hinge of the mold handles caused the bullets to drop gently out of the mold onto a cloth on the bench beside the stove. He closed the mold, returned the sprue plate to its battery position, and filled the mold to repeat the process. Dennis handed me the mold, teaching me the proper sequence and timing. I caught on quickly and with a few repetitions my bullets looked as good as his. He turned off the gas and we moved to the sizing press. Dennis explained how critical this step was, starting with proper sizing die diameter and continuing with the characteristics of the bullet lube that was injected into the grooves in the bullet while it was being …show more content…

As previously stated, it is not pure lead. The lead mixture used for making cast pistol bullets is usually an alloy combination of lead, tin and antimony in varying amounts. The most popular recipe was known as the Lyman #2 mix, comprised of 90% lead, 5% tin, and 5% antimony. Pure lead, tin and especially pure antimony, were difficult to find and sometimes expensive. Linotype was a good source of an antimony rich alloy, but type presses (those used to print newspapers) were being displaced by modern printers. The computer age had begun to impact our source of antimony. Initially, there was a surplus. Soon, with no market no more type metal was being produced. Dennis had a stockpile, but I had to turn to alternate sources. The most abundant source of lead in the salvage yards now came in the form of wheel weights. Clip on wheel weights used to balance car tires were made from an alloy that was actually legislated to be consistent. It was held to precise standards and governed by the department of transportation. It made sense when you think about what could happen to a chunk of lead thrown from a spinning wheel because it was too soft to stay put or too brittle and broke off. Wheel weight alloy typically consisted of 97% lead, 2% antimony, and a little less than 1% tin. This was not the ideal mix for making bullets. However, by adapting the process, bullets made entirely from wheel weights could be hardened to

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