Round ball moulding question

I'd like to cast some of my own round balls when I can find some pure lead locally. One thing I'm wondering though is how do you manage the sprue on a ball that should be relatively spherical?

In Ned Roberts book he says to locate the sprue either at top or bottom center when loading.    The sprue can be nearly eliminated by running the cast balls in a vibratory or rotary tumbler.   I think that procedure may have another positive effect which is in dimpling the surface of the balls much like on a golf ball.

bullshop wrote:In Ned Roberts book he says to locate the sprue either at top or bottom center when loading.    The sprue can be nearly eliminated by running the cast balls in a vibratory or rotary tumbler.   I think that procedure may have another positive effect which is in dimpling the surface of the balls much like on a golf ball

OH NO - You mean if I tumble my round balls they will hook or slice?  Geez I have enough trouble hitting my target without this problem too!  LOL

No actually from what I have read the dimpling is supposed to benefit by reducing drag or in a way raising the BC so the ball is less effected by atmospheric conditions. In golf the dimples are there for the same reason, to allow not only for the ball to travel farther by reducing its atmospheric drag but also to have less wind drift so if a golf ball at its velocity range can benefit from dimples it then stands to reason that a lead round ball at its velocity range would likewise benefit from the same treatment.

I was just being funny Bullshop because for a long time I couldn't hit a golf ball straight to save my life!

I get that and that is OK but for the sake of the folks that are here to learn I wanted to set the record straight. From what I have read and test results it would indicate that dimpled balls have a ballistic advantage over smooth balls. Needing every advantage just to be an average shooter I tend to investigate such matters.

bullshop wrote:No actually from what I have read the dimpling is supposed to benefit by reducing drag or in a way raising the BC so the ball is less effected by atmospheric conditions.  In golf the dimples are there for the same reason, to allow  not only for the ball to travel farther by reducing its atmospheric drag but also to have less wind drift so if a golf ball at its velocity range can benefit from dimples it then stands to reason that a lead round ball at its velocity range would likewise benefit from the same treatment.

Dan, I have read this exact same thing. Here are a few videos of a Guy and a Contraption he built for Dimpling his Cast Round balls

and all those pretty dimples go away when shoved down a barrel and smushed by the patch/rifling.
this has been resurrected in all of the last 5 generations of muzzleloaders and has never caught on.
in my case a plain old properly patched RB is more accurate than i can shoot it.
and if a golf ball and myself are involved, those behind me are in mortal danger!

But in addressing the original question in this thread tumbling lead round balls does eliminate or very nearly eliminate depending on how long they are tumbled the sprue protrusion. The dimples are a bonus.

Today I cast some .495" RB with a new mold .   After this thread brought back to mind my tumbling RB's in the past I thought I would try again.  I put 100 balls in a rotary tumbler for 30 minutes and the results are interesting.  The initial striking difference between the tumbled and un-tumbled balls is color.   The un-tumbled balls are shiny silver color cast in pure lead and the same balls tumbled are a dark grey/black color.
Also interesting is that the sprue is no longer detectable.  I spun several balls in my fingers looking for but not finding any trace of a sprue.
The surface of the balls I will call micro dimpled as there is nothing to call a dent anywhere but the surface is not smooth like as cast so the best description I can apply is micro dimpled.
I dont know how to post pictures but when my family returns home from shopping in Butte I will ask them for help because you know the picture and 1000 words thingy.

What do you 7se as a tumbling media? I currently use crushed walnut shells.

No media just the balls.

Sorry to say my wife tried but failed to post the pictures

Bull its easy once you do it a time or two. When you reply to a post there are 6 panels of icons right above where you're typing the reply?  Click on the left icon in the upper right panel that says "host an image"  then click select file, find the file you want and add or open it. When done, send file.

Dimpling the balls above is for smoothbore muzzleloaders, loaded without a patch. A golf ball isnt doing 1800+ fps. 

As for tumbling balls, think about how inconsistent the overall diameter would vary from one to the next.

Keep it simple, as it was intended. Load the ball sprue up.

I miced some before and after and found no change in diameter consistency.

Ok and doing all that makes them no more accurate than as if they dropped. 

Actually we're comparing apples to oranges as 1, hes making buckshot, 2 his mould is defective as its leaving runs between a section of the buckshot. 

I've been shooting patched round balls for well over 20 years now so I can tell you, you're wasting your time trying to reinvent the wheel and really wasting time with the golf ball theory as it's been settled a long time ago.

Did you hear what he said? It made them more round and more smooth. It eliminates the sprue and the seem line. Weather or not they are more accurate is really up to the individual shooter and rifle to decide. If I have learned anything at all about shooting it is that no laws or rules or blanket statements are 100% correct.

Well you seem to have some learning ahead of you, so good luck.

The possibilities are endless too so to settle.

You first should understand golf before applying this theory to a patched round ball, guided by rifling to introduce a spin on the projectile.

I am in the Same boat with Bullshop, I except NOTHING but perfect Bullets or Round Balls, I have always tumbled my Roundballs to remove the Sprue Nub, I also weigh each ball, With Roundball they HAVE to weigh within a 1/2 Grain of eachother, if they are 1/10 off they go back in the Lead Pot as a Cull.

I can’t say that my Perfect Roundballs are more accurate than they would be straight from the Mold as i have never tested this. To me, being a perfectionist, it doesn’t make sense to settle for anything less than Perfect. After all, I expect each and every Bullet or Roundball that i cast to Shoot through the Same Hole as the last one, Making them as PERFECT as i possibly can Takes out that Variable

A few of the Roundballs i Cast, This is after 30-45 Minutes in my Vibratory Tumbler, With a pinch of Graphite added

Buckskins&BlackPowder wrote:

Mike Bellevue is a good guy, i enjoy his Channel  That said, I can’t take this particular one serious, an accuracy test with a Flintlock Smoothbore and No Rear sight? And he is Shooting in a Heavy Wind to boot.

I need to try this same test with my .50 Cal Green Mountain, I can drive Nails with this Rig  This Rifle has a 600 Dollar Sight system on it  I shoot this same Sight setup to 1,200 Yards With 2 of my Bullet Barrels. This will tell me quickly if there is any difference or not?

One thing i love about Muzzleloading is all of the Variables involved, I love the Challenge of working through them. Each of us have our own opinions on a lot of this stuff, and that is good It would be boring if we all thought alike

I get asked quite often if i really feel it is necessary to Weigh EVERY Powder Charge, and EVERY Projectile i shoot? And Swabbing my Bore between Shots? My answer is simply YES, at least for me it is, It takes me the same amount of time to Cast HIGH quality Bullets or Balls as it does a Cull Bullet, Why keep anything less than Perfect when i can Re-Cast and get Perfect  My goal in Muzzleloading is Accuracy, EVERYTHING i do is geared toward getting the absolute best possible Accuracy from my Rifles, I take out EVERY Possible Variable i can. My Powder Charges & Bullets or Balls will ALL weigh IDENTICAL, no exceptions here