Re: Tumbling Minies
I'm not saying those other things can't cause tumbling, but in my experience, the most probable cause is hard lead.
It doesn't have to be wheel weight hard either. One year I cast over a thousand rounds with lead that passed the "thumb nail" test only to find they tumbled. That's the year I bought my LBT lead tester. The lead had a BHN reading of over 5, but less than 7. I had to recast everything. BTW, the colder lead gets, the harder it gets.
I worked in the Fire Direction Control Center of an artillery unit for four years on active duty in the Army. We calculated trajectories for the guns, and compensated for all kinds of things like how much the earth rotated beneath the round while it was in the air, the temperature of the powder, the temperature of the round, the temperature of the fuse, air density, wind direction, wind speed, variances in powder, variances in projectile weight, etc.
If you're trying to put it in a barrel ten miles away, all that stuff matters - but shooting off hand at 50 yards, most of it is academic.
Gary Van Kauwenbergh
Co G, 114th ILL Vol Inf
# 10143
"Alle Kunst ist umsonst Wenn ein Engel in das Zündloch prunst."
(In vain the skill and arts of man, When an angel pisses the priming pan.)
Field Marshal Gebhard L. von Blücher
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