Editing Handloading (section)

== Bullets ==
[[File:Bullets 270 Sierra.jpg|thumb|right|27-Caliber Sierra Bullets]]
While the case is usually the most expensive component of a cartridge, the bullet is usually the most expensive part of the ''reloaded'' round, especially with handgun ammunition. It is also the best place to save money with handgun ammunition. This is because the bullets are used one time, and the case lasts for many reloadings.

Other advantages of casting or swaging bullets from lead wire (which is pricier but avoids many quality-control issues of casting) is the ability to precisely control many attributes of the resulting bullet.  Custom bullet molds are available from a number of sources, allowing the handloader to pick the exact weight, shape, and diameter of the bullet to fit the cartridge, firearm, and intended use.  A good example of where this is useful is for shooters of older military surplus firearms, which often exhibit widely varying bore and groove diameters; by making bullets specifically intended for the firearm in question, the accuracy of the resulting cartridges can be significantly increased.<ref name=nonte_8 />

=== Casting ===
[[File:3CastBullets.png|thumb|right|[[Cast bullet]]s as cast (left), with gas check (center) and lubricated (right).]]
{{main|Cast bullet}}
For the truly frugal, the cheapest method of obtaining bullets, [[Shotgun shell#Buckshot|buckshot]], and [[Shotgun slug|slug]]s intended for reloading use at low to moderate velocities is [[casting]] them.

This requires a set of bullet, buckshot, or slug molds, which are available from a number of sources, and a source of known quality lead. [[Linotype (alloy)|Linotype]] and automotive wheelweights are often used as sources of lead that are blended together in a molten state to achieve the desired [[Brinell hardness test|Brinell hardness]]. Other sources of scrap lead, such as recovered bullets, lead cable sheathing, lead pipe, or even [[lead–acid battery]] plates (EXTREME caution should be used as modern battery components, when melted, can yield hazardous, even deadly gases), can yield usable lead with some degree of effort, including purification and measuring of hardness.<ref name=nonte_8>Nonte, chapter 8, "Casting and Swaging Bullets"</ref>

Cast bullets are also the cheapest bullets to buy, though generally only handgun bullets are available in this form. Some firearms manufacturers, such as those using polygonal rifling like [[Glock]] and [[Heckler & Koch|H&K]], advise against the use of cast bullets. For shooters who would like to shoot cast bullets, aftermarket barrels are generally available for these models with conventional rifling, and the cost of the barrel can generally be recouped in ammunition savings after a few thousand rounds.

Soft lead bullets are generally used in handguns with velocities of 1000&nbsp;ft/s (300&nbsp;m/s) or lower, while harder cast bullets may be used, with careful powder selection, in rifles with velocities of 2000&nbsp;ft/s (600&nbsp;m/s) or slightly more. A modern solution to velocity limitations of cast projectiles is to powder coat the projectile, encasing it in a protective skin allowing higher velocities to be achieved with softer lead alloys with no lead build up in the firearm.<ref>[http://www.jesseshunting.com/articles/guns/category16/9.html Low Pressure & High Velocity with Cast Bullets] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060220090210/http://www.jesseshunting.com/articles/guns/category16/9.html |date=2006-02-20 }}, from Jesse's Hunting and Outdoors</ref>  The limit is the point at which the powder gas temperature and pressure starts to melt the base of the bullet, and leave a thin coating of molten and re-solidified lead in the bore of the gun&mdash;a process called leading the bore. Cast lead bullets may also be fired in full power magnum handgun rounds like the [[44 Magnum]] with the addition of a gas check, which is a thin aluminum, [[zinc]] or [[copper]] washer or cup that is crimped over a tiny heel on the base of appropriate cast bullets. This provides protection for the base of the bullet, and allows velocities of over 1500&nbsp;ft/s (450&nbsp;m/s) in handguns, with little or no leading of the bore.<ref name=nonte_8 /><ref name=nonte_10>Nonte, chapter 10, "Lead Bullet Loads for Rifles"</ref>

Such cast lead bullets, intended for use with a gas check, will have a reduced diameter at the rear of the cast lead bullet, onto which the gas check can be swaged using a lubricating/resizing press.  All cast lead bullets, whether with or without a gas check, must still be lubricated, to prevent leading of the rifling of the barrel.  A lubricating/resizing press, which is a special purpose bullet processing press, can be either a standalone press dedicated to lubricating and resizing bullets, or can be an add-on to a reloading press, at the option of the handloader.  Not all handloaders resize cast lead bullets, although all handloaders do lubricate cast lead bullets.  An option to using a lubricating press is simply to coat the bullets with bullet lube, which can be done either with a spray, in a tumbler, in a plastic bowel with a liquid lube, in a tray with melted bullet lube, or even with a manual lubricating process.

Slugs for shotgun shells are also commonly cast from pure lead by handloaders, for subsequent reloading into shotgun shells.  Although roll crimps of shotgun hull cases are commonly used for handloading these cast lead slugs, in place of the fold crimps that are used when reloading shot into shotgun shells, some published recipes specifically do include fold crimps.   For published recipes using fold crimps and shot wads used as sabots, slugs can be easily reloaded using standard shotshell presses and techniques, without requiring any roll crimp tools.  Whether roll crimps or fold crimps are used, cast lead slugs are commonly used in jurisdictions where rifles are banned for hunting, under the reasoning that fired slugs will not travel but over short distances, unlike rifle bullets which can travel up to several miles when fired.  Use of cast lead slugs is therefore very common when hunting large game near populated areas.

Similarly, cast lead buckshot is often cast by handloaders, for reloading into shotgun shells for hunting larger game animals. Such buckshot is then placed by hand into shotgun shells when handloaded, due to the necessity of having to stack the buckshot balls into specific configurations depending on the gauge of shotgun shell being reloaded, the choice of wad, the volume of powder, and the size of the buckshot (e.g., 00, 000, 0000 buckshot).  Such cast lead buckshot is never simply dropped from a shotshell press charge bar into a shotgun shell when reloading.

=== Swaging ===

Most shooters prefer jacketed bullets, especially in rifles and pistols. The hard jacket material, generally copper or [[brass]], resists deformation and handles far higher pressures and temperatures than lead. Several companies offer [[swage|swaging]] presses (both manual and hydraulic) that will manufacture on a small scale jacketed bullets that can rival or surpass the quality of commercial jacketed bullets. Two swaging equipment manufacturers offer equipment and dies designed to turn [[22 Long Rifle]] cases into brass jackets for 22 caliber (5.56&nbsp;mm) bullets.<ref name=nonte_8 />

Example variants of swage dies include:{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}

* ''R dies'', used for bullet swaging in the reloading press. No expensive special press is needed; however, the reloading press cannot swage all calibers and variants of bullets.
* ''S dies'', steel dies for a manual press. They have a maximum caliber of {{convert|.458|in|mm}} and a maximum jacket length of {{convert|1.3|in|mm}}.
* ''H dies'', dies designed for [[hydraulic]] presses and are offered in calibers up to {{convert|25|mm|in}} and jacket lengths of more than 1.3". In a hydraulic press, bullets from [[powdered metal]] can be swaged.

Every bullet diameter, and most of the bullet types, need special dies, making swaging a rather investment-intensive enterprise.

===Purchased Bullets===
Handloaders have the choice to swage but most choose to purchase pre-made jacketed bullets, due to the obscure nature of swaging and the specialized, expensive equipment. The process of manufacturing a jacketed bullet is far more complex than for a cast bullet; first, the jacket must be punched from a metal sheet of precise thickness, filled with a premeasured lead core, and then swaged into shape with a high pressure press in multiple steps. This involved process makes jacketed bullets far more expensive on average than cast bullets. Further complicating this are the requirements for controlled expansion bullets (see [[terminal ballistics]]), which require a tight bond between the jacket and the core. Premium expanding bullets are, with match grade bullets, at the top tier in expense.

=== Plated Bullets ===
{{main|Total metal jacket}}
A more economical alternative was made available to the handloader in the 1980s, the copper-plated bullet.<ref>[http://www.rainierballistics.com/cohistory.htm Ranier Ballistics] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928013832/http://www.rainierballistics.com/cohistory.htm |date=2007-09-28 }} has been making plated bullets since 1983.</ref> Copper-plated bullets are lead bullets that are [[electroplate]]d with a copper jacket. While thinner than a swaged bullet jacket, the plated jacket is far thicker than normal electroplate, and provides significant structural integrity to the bullet. Since the jacket provides the strength, soft lead can be used, which allows bullets to be swaged or cast into shape before plating. While not strong enough for most rifle cartridges, plated bullets work well in many handgun rounds, with a recommended maximum velocity of 1250&nbsp;ft/s (375&nbsp;m/s).<ref>[http://www.rainierballistics.com/faq.htm Ranier Ballistics] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928013826/http://www.rainierballistics.com/faq.htm |date=2007-09-28 }} plated bullet FAQ, listing maximum recommended velocity</ref> Plated bullets fall between cast and traditional jacketed bullets in price.

While originally sold only to handloaders as an inexpensive substitute for jacketed bullets, the plated bullet has come far. The ammunition manufacturer [[CCI Ammunition|Speer]] now offers the Gold Dot line, commercially loaded premium handgun ammunition using copper-plated [[hollow point bullet]]s.<ref>[http://www.speer-bullets.com/html/products/ProdDesc.asp?prod=bullet_hand_GoldDot Speer Gold Dot description] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090203042104/http://www.speer-bullets.com/html/products/ProdDesc.asp?prod=bullet_hand_GoldDot |date=2009-02-03 }} and patent number</ref><ref>[http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=19&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PTXT&s1=5,079,814&OS=5,079,814&RS=5,079,814 Patent 5,079,814] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160124030337/http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=19&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PTXT&s1=5,079,814&OS=5,079,814&RS=5,079,814 |date=2016-01-24 }}, for an electroplated hollow point bullet (the Speer Gold Dot)</ref> The strong bond between jacket and core created by the electroplating process makes expanding bullets hold together very well, and the Gold Dot line is now in use by many police departments.<ref>[http://www.firearmstactical.com/ammo_data/9mm.htm Comparison] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130123054658/http://www.firearmstactical.com/ammo_data/9mm.htm |date=2013-01-23 }} of various 9×19mm expanding bullet loads, including the Speer Gold Dot plated bullet</ref>