40 deg, rainy, perfect afternoon with RV garage door open, heater and fan behind me.

I'll let the video explain my discoveries.

https://vimeo.com/202479103


Edit:
Here is the more "serious" language final cut-->

Looks like you did an awesome job for your first time!

I didn't know Yanni did the theme music for the three bears?!?

Nice castings!!

LOL! :)

Next time take an old pan and fill it with water but with a rag in the bottom and drop your bullets into it instead of just on the rag.

Good job! Thanks for the simple documentation of your results.

I don't want to harden them up quickly and change the BHN. I am told they're harden up naturally over time?
I'm already pushing 18 BHN with this lead.

Hmmm... I've heard something like "hardens over time too" but always thought that was metallurgically incorrect. I'm going to look that up.

I've always cast into a bucket of water with a hand towel folded at the bottom with the thinking that I can't make #2 alloy too hard no matter what I do to quench it.

ETA: Glad you mentioned the hardening/softening over time thing. There is a lot of good info over at castboolits. Time to pull out the Lyman book.

Nice!!

I've never done any casting, but I have a friend who has offered to teach me and I have a gun that I think I'm going to need to cast for . . . so I may be entering the game soon.

It's pretty easy to figure out with the Lyman casting manual, youtube, research.

Today I casted up 405 gr 45-70 bullets.

So are you going to lube and shoot? Or powder coat?

Powder coat for the .357 mag/45 Colt and some of the 45-405 gr bullets.

I have used powder coated 405 gr .45-70 from missouri bullet (they use Hi-Tek powder coating) with great success in front of a low pressure smokeless load of 26 gr of AA5744. Believe it or not, my most accurate load is this load. Followed closely by 500 gr bullet (SPG lubed) with 70 gr of black powder.

That's the next phase, I got my 16" wide convection oven today, waiting on two powder types in the mail (Harbor Freight red and "Powder by the Pound" blue)

First powder coating.

Test batches of 148 gr SWC for 357 mag, 225 gr RN for 45 Colt and 405 gr RN for 45-70.
I was really impressed with the "Powder by the Pound" blue.

Prep in tubs, tumbler, with pre-heated bullets *by place them on top of the oven.

Man, that looks good. I'm very impressed with powder coating.
Yours look "clean"... The 3 times that I have powder coated bullets in the past all left marks in the finished product where the bullets had either touched each other or touched the rack on the toaster oven.

THanks Mike. 1 coat!

Some have minor chips from the rack, most do not. I tried "stacking" (Bullets on top of bullets with PC) and had a lot of chipping from bullets touching.
You don't need to put them "on end" (unless you're OCD) but single layer is highly suggested! Break them loose from the rack right out of the oven and then either air cool or drop in water (I chose air cooled as I do not want to harden them beyond 18 BHN)

Powder by The Pound is the cat's meow. Prices vary from $12 lb to 25 a lb, depending on color.

https://www.powderbuythepound.com/ral-colors/