Powder or poly coated lead balls?

Since powder and poly coated lead bullets have started gaining more and more acceptance, is anyone producing coated lead balls for muzzleloading?

I would think the reduced exposure to lead would be a driving factor for anyone that’s either not required by a gaming or re-enacting rule set. Or is there something that fundamentally doesn’t work with loading a coated projectile that way?

In lead ball shooting rifles - you'll patch the lead ball. It is considerably undersized relative to the rifling and the patch acts like a sabot. There would be no benefit of having powder or poly coated lead balls in that instance, except as you note to reduce incidental lead contact. Given that percussion caps and 209 primers are generally not lead or mercury free - it doesn't make that much of a difference (i.e., the lead ball is probably the safest thing you handle).

In lead ball shooting revolvers, the ball is also undersized and expands significantly when fired. Balls are typically .365" in diameter and rifling is ~.375". The powder and poly coated balls don't expand all that much from the act of being fired, like a soft lead round ball does. Hardcast balls have horrible accuracy from cap and ball revolvers for this reason.

Caliber determines ball diameter. Undersized balls pose risk of sparks flying past them and setting off the other charged chambers. Much variation exists among replica manufacturers--even within the same company. Oversized balls take up this slack. Another name for bullets expanding upon firing is obturation. Round balls don't obturate. Further, black powder pressures in revolvers are too low for obturation even if a conical bullet were used. Pure lead is required for black powder shooting as has been said.

Willie makes a good point I hadn't thought much about - when you ram a lead ball into a cylinder of a revolver, it usually shaves a bit of lead off from around it as it is forced into the chamber. You're advised with a percussion revolver to buy/cast projectiles that are slightly oversized for this exact reason, to ensure a tight fit. Coated projectiles would get skinned up as they were seated.

Thanks! I suspected the need to be softer than bullets and sizing might be a problem.

I’m planning ahead for some plinker .38-55 roundball loads and realized I’d never seen any that were coated.

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Originally Posted by RevolverRob

In lead ball shooting rifles - you'll patch the lead ball. It is considerably undersized relative to the rifling and the patch acts like a sabot. There would be no benefit of having powder or poly coated lead balls in that instance, except as you note to reduce incidental lead contact. Given that percussion caps and 209 primers are generally not lead or mercury free - it doesn't make that much of a difference (i.e., the lead ball is probably the safest thing you handle).

In lead ball shooting revolvers, the ball is also undersized and expands significantly when fired. Balls are typically .365" in diameter and rifling is ~.375". The powder and poly coated balls don't expand all that much from the act of being fired, like a soft lead round ball does. Hardcast balls have horrible accuracy from cap and ball revolvers for this reason.

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My cast balls are .375 for a .36 Pietta revolver.
They cut a ring of lead when seated in the cylinder. The balls usually compress and swell on firing to get up to rifling diameter.
I think .36 balls for rifles are smaller but I’m sure others know better then me for BP rifle shooting.