I am new to shooting lead. I have only shot a few hard and soft cast bullets. I will be shooting jacketed bullets. Recommended procedures? How clean does it need to be before I can shoot jacketed bullets?

Just shoot a jacketed bullet and it will clean the lead out!

ddun, Savage 99's recommendation works in many cases. Sometimes, depending on how much a particular barrel leads (or doesn't), dimensions of barrel and bullets, etc. you can wind up with a layered fouling that is difficult to clean. Best to follow the old time reccomendation of completely cleaning before changing from lead to jacketed, and vice-versa. Cleaning after firing cast bullets is usually very easy, unless you have a bad case of leading. Generally, if bulets are sized correctly for the barrel and lube is up to the velocity of the load, leading is not much of a problem. Standard cleaning procedure (brass brush, solvent patches, dry patches) generally works very well. I use Hoppe's #9 or homemade Ed's Red for cleaning after firing cast bullets. Sometimes, if there is a stubborn stain I will remove it with a more powerful solvent, such as
Butch's Bore shine, my favorite solvent for jacketed bullets. Hope this helps, curmudgeon

D Dunn,

You didn't say if you had leaded up a rifle or exactly what the problem (if any) existed.

Generally, if a fellow shoots conventional lead loads, that is medium to low velocity combinations with a gas check bullet, very little to NO cleaning at all is necessary.

In fact, I see it the other way around: Shooting lead bullets after a barrel has accumlated some guilding metal wash from shooting jacketed is more of a problem than changing from lead back to jacketed.

Shooting lead after jacketed always means the barrel should be cleaned of ALL metal fouling. This can be done either by shooting a good reliable lead load until the bore is wiped clean by bullets and gas checks or clean it out with the various cleaners, rods, brushes and wipes.

Good morning,
Forrest

FAmus, I agree with most that you said but I thought that you had to scrub out copper fouling because lead would stick to it and smear off from the bullet not that the a cast bullet could ever pull jacket fouling from the barrel. JB

D Dunn, Aladin, et all;

Yup, the gliding metal is a trouble when returning to cast lead bullet shooting.

In my expiereince, shooting mainly slow stuff, the metal fouling will be removed by continuing to shoot. My qualifier is that the load be no more than the regular conventional 1500 - 1700 ft/sec level. More, like I think Aladin shoots in his 30'06, where the limits of cast bullet shooting are approched anyway and all bets are off; You gotta clean it right down to bare steel.

Good evening,
Forrest

Forrest your right about down to the bare metal. And that in itself is a problem, for your about removing the seasoning/lube in the pores of the bore doing such. Sorta has to resettle in for top shooten then.

Of recent by 600 yd plinkin' has been at 2000 fps using the LBT and around 1740's using 308329. On calmer days those numbers are quite accurate. Trip before last had only two clay pigeons whole and those didn't last too many shots. Was relegated to shooten at the chads [pieces of claybird].. This isn't no great shooten, just letting them fly from a bench and watching the impacts in the backstop, which I get a kick otta.

Aladin,

you say:

Of recent by 600 yd plinkin' has been at 2000 fps using the LBT and around 1740's using 308329. On calmer days those numbers are quite accurate. Trip before last had only two clay pigeons whole and those didn't last too many shots..

me:

Say what? Clay birds at 600 yards? .. Off the bench I bet.

We shoot at the bull, life-size scrotum hanging between his legs at 606 yards off the sticks for tie-breakers: MUCH more fun than clay birds!

Good evening,
Forrest

Aladin,

Ah yes, I neglected to say as much as needed to about the Bull: Full life-size at 606 wouldn't be much of a job for almost any rifle at all, so, we reduced him overall to 33% full-size. Now, I haven't measured either clay birds or his privates but at 600+ yards an inch one way or another isn't all that much: They're pretty close.

So,life-size to scale? OK.

Sure. Sticks are fairly stable but as we DO know, a fellow can see his heart beat any time he looks for it.

The scrotum is visable through the iron sights as a white spot, the rest of him is painted black and used for the main sight picture: No scopes are used due to their general inability to compensate for long ranges or the large "condition" that comes along now and then.

When a hit is made on the iron nuts they flicker out of sight momentarily as they are hung on their own strap between the legs. Childish perhaps, but fun.

Good morning,
Forrest