Bullet recommendation for .45 rifle

[tacfoley]

Tac, thanks for very detailed response.

Seems no one here in Finland has any 45cal bullet casting molds for sale.
Guy who sold me this rifle said he has a mold for some long bullet, but he didn´t want to give it to me with the rifle. Will try to contact him.

Lyman molds are quite pricey, so I tend to look at LEE.
Would http://leeprecision.com/mold-dc-459-500-3r.html or http://leeprecision.com/mold-sc-459-405hb.html be worth trying?

Hyvää päivää maaseudun Itä Englannista!

I'm sorry to say that the Lyman bullet is the best there is for this rifle - it is the bullet that we all use in the Muzzle Loading Association of Great Britain - MLAGB - and also in the long-range BP rifle shooting association of USA and Canada, Australia, Germany and so on. We shoot this bullet out to 1200 yards/1000m with great success.

The bullet you showed me is the actual one that I use in my Winchester High-Wall - it IS the correct diameter for a .45-70 calibre CARTRIDGE-firing rifle but the pointy-nose design is NOT suitable for a muzzle-loader like yours. Sorry.

If you can't get the mould from your guy - look up the old English aphorism/saying 'dog in a manger' - then let me know and I'll put you in touch with my pal Joe in Oregon. We've been dealing BP stuff for many years and his prices are the best I've ever seen.

Best graders

tac

[tacfoley]

Jiri - please read your email.

Best

tac

PS - these people are my good friends. Their store is the 'Best in the West'!

[JiriK]

Tac, thanks again.

I haven´t been able to reach the seller, so no molds found so far.
That $75 doesn´t sound too bad, will definately consider it.

I have only Swiss no2 powder. Too fast for rifle with heavy bullet?

[tacfoley]

Tac, thanks again.

I haven´t been able to reach the seller, so no molds found so far. That $75 doesn´t sound too bad, will definately consider it. I have only Swiss no2 powder. Too fast for rifle with heavy bullet?

Not at all. Reduce the load to 65 - 70gr for the short distance that you shoot - it's fine. If you can find Wonder Wads in Finland, they seem to work quite well with the lesser charges of powder. One of the economies I practice is making my own cardboard wads from beer mats like we have here in UK. They are a mite thicker than Euro-Scando beermats, and soak up the laardi pretty well. You'll need to use two at a time.

If and when you make contact with the dealer I told you about, please mention me by name, 'kay!

Best wishes from a one-time frequent visitor to Finland.

tac

[JiriK]

Ok, thanks again Tac.

I forwarded that email you sent to the store. Asked for estimation on shipping charges.

Finally got response from seller of the rifle. He has a mold for .45 long bullet and bullet calibrating tool. He is busy but will try to locate those today or soon.

[tacfoley]

Ok, thanks again Tac.

I forwarded that email you sent to the store. Asked for estimation on shipping charges.

Finally got response from seller of the rifle. He has a mold for .45 long bullet and bullet calibrating tool. He is busy but will try to locate those today or soon.

If you can wait for the mould until next May/June - I'll bring it back for you - prolly be less costy shipping from UK than from the Pacific USA - let me know, eh? We might be over in Tampere next year anyhow.

tac

[JiriK]

Just came home from meeting the seller of the rifle.
Now I have
- Lyman 457125AW, single cavity steel mold
- Lee 90392, double cavity REAL mold
- Calibrating die.. dia not marked. I´ll measure.

I´ll go casting tomorrow, test shootin maybe saturday.