Anyone wanna talk lead ballons? Do you have any in your collection? Any you want for your collection?

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Mtngoat690

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During the off season I'll take some time to listen to some podcasts, watch some YouTube, read some books etc.....

I ran across a podcast where they were showcasing cartridges that for whatever reason never became successful. They labeled these cartridges lead balloons. I realized I have quite a few of these that many would consider lead balloons.

It got me thinking with all these cartridges coming out almost nonstop how many will become additions to the lead balloons.

The ones I have that could be considered as lead balloons are: 243wssm, 25 wssm, 6mm remington, 300 SAUM, 325wsm and a 35 Whelen.

Anyone want to talk about their lead balloons? Do you have any you regret buying? Do you have any you wish you had in your collection? Do you feel like some of these are underrated and should be more popular? Do you see any out there that leave you scratching your head thinking "why is that one so popular?"

What current cartridges out there do you predict will become lead balloons. I'd love to hear others stories and thoughts on this topic.
 
I don’t own any lead balloons currently. My 25 creedmoor is pretty niche…but now headstamped brass is easily available. With ammo/component shortages of late (better now), just about anything could be considered a lead balloon if you don’t have the ammo to feed it.

I don’t really care what ammo is being supported by manufactures because when I get a new rifle/barrel, I buy enough bullets/brass/powder to burn out that barrel or close to it. Before buying a new rifle or barrel I collect all my components so I’ll never have to worry.
 
I don't have any true lead balloons. As an handloader, if you can find brass you can shoot.

I do have a 7 SAUM which was and still is seeing a great resurgence among the reloading community. The 7 PRC is going to hurt that just a bit.

I agree with the list above except perhaps the 300 SAUM since it's actually a good performing round with brass available.

One lead balloon that I wish would have taken off is the Gunwerk's 7 LRM. It takes the best of the 7 RM and SAUM then packages it together and will outperform them both as well as the 7 PRC. IMO, it suffers from being a proprietary GW round with only Hornady brass and dies made for it. They (GW) said shortly after the PRC introduction that they're going to drop the 7LRM line.

From a marketing standpoint the Nosler magnums could be considered a lead balloon but from a brass and performance standpoint they're far from it. Again proprietary marketing and to a lessor extent short throats hurt this exceptional performer. The latter was done to work with all standard factory mags. This has been corrected with custom reamers allowing to properly seat a heavy VLD bullet.
 
A friend has one........I'm worried for him...rimfire when gone IS gone..

It shoots great but.....just slightly better than the HMR...which is well established
 
All I have are Lead Balloons. :ROFLMAO: 7mmSTW, 300 H&H, 257 Roberts, 35 Whelen, and the list goes on and on. Funny how the animals didn't get the memo either and fall over just as dead.

My favorite Lead Balloon of all time is the 7mm Dakota. In my opinion its the best overall high performance 7mm ever made.......including the new stuff. Perfect length, perfect taper, perfect neck, perfect case capacity, great brass. Build a rifle with a fast twist and a long throat and who needs the 7PRC?----SS
 
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Sparks Shooter said:
All I have are Lead Balloons. :ROFLMAO: 7mmSTW, 300 H&H, 257 Roberts, 35 Whelen, and the list goes on and on. Funny how the animals didn't get the memo either and fall over just as dead.----SS
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Wtf?….I have a 300h&h and a 257 roberts…NOT lead balloons…..lol
 
I have an old Winchester 1886 chambered in 40-82 WCF. I don't know when they stopped making ammo for it. Up until a few years ago you could still get brass for it, but now its totally obsolete. Brass can be formed from 45-90 which is attainable. Fortunately I have 100 pieces of brass and reloading dies. I understand there was a variant of the 40-82 called the 40-70. It was the same case but used a faster twist and heavier bullets, giving it the reduced powder capacity. Very few rifles were chambered for the 40-70 as it was a true lead balloon.
 
El_Matador said:
I have an old Winchester 1886 chambered in 40-82 WCF. I don't know when they stopped making ammo for it. Up until a few years ago you could still get brass for it, but now its totally obsolete. Brass can be formed from 45-90 which is attainable. Fortunately I have 100 pieces of brass and reloading dies. I understand there was a variant of the 40-82 called the 40-70. It was the same case but used a faster twist and heavier bullets, giving it the reduced powder capacity. Very few rifles were chambered for the 40-70 as it was a true lead balloon.
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Interesting….I’d like to see a pic
gunsmagazine.com

The .40-82 WCF

Naturally we clearly remember the “firsts” in our lives — first gun, first car, first date, etc.
gunsmagazine.com gunsmagazine.com
 
The one I have is a 32 acp. In all the years I’ve had it, I’ve only seen it in the 1903 hammerless colt. I consider it a lead balloon because I never see any ammo for it. One time my dad purchased several hundred rounds and we only went through about 100 through the years. That’s another thing I think puts it in the lead balloon category. It’s not desirable to even plink with.
 
Captain_coues said:
The one I have is a 32 acp. In all the years I’ve had it, I’ve only seen it in the 1903 hammerless colt. I consider it a lead balloon because I never see any ammo for it. One time my dad purchased several hundred rounds and we only went through about 100 through the years. That’s another thing I think puts it in the lead balloon category. It’s not desirable to even plink with.
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32 Auto ACP Pistols | Sportsman's Warehouse

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Homer said:
A friend has one........I'm worried for him...rimfire when gone IS gone..

It shoots great but.....just slightly better than the HMR...which is well established
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WSM is way more powerful than an HMR. Honestly think the thing that hurt it most was that POS savage Bmag they started it in. I have 3 rugers and love em. They kill stuff like no other rimfire.
 
elkantlers said:
I have a 222 Remington. It's in a Browning A-bolt. You would be hard pressed to find a better rifle to start a young shooter on.
I have enough reloading components to last through all my grandchildren and probably great grands.
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I don’t think I agree with the 222 being on this list. I find all of the components relatively easy to find. The only reason it might be on the list is because I’m not sure any of the big guys chamber their factory rifles in it anymore.

The 222 mag is another story.

My 700v 222 is my all-time favorite rifle. One of my bucket list goals is to burn the barrel out of it. :)
 
elkantlers said:
I have a 222 Remington. It's in a Browning A-bolt. You would be hard pressed to find a better rifle to start a young shooter on.
I have enough reloading components to last through all my grandchildren and probably great grands.
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I watched an A-bolt in a pawn shop that hung out for years there in a 222rem. It was a good looking rifle, and the price tag got pretty low . Probably should have snagged that one.

That is how I acquired my 35 Whelen. It just kept showing up on a local page and the price just kept going down. Very nice rifle, just couldn't sell it because of the cartridge it was chambered in. I didn't need it, but I couldn't pass it up for the price. It absolutely hammers the elk in the dark timber so I'm glad I bought it.
 
Bluehair said:
I don’t think I agree with the 222 being on this list. I find all of the components relatively easy to find. The only reason it might be on the list is because I’m not sure any of the big guys chamber their factory rifles in it anymore.

The 222 mag is another story.

My 700v 222 is my all-time favorite rifle. One of my bucket list goals is to burn the barrel out of it. :)
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I have a 788 in .222 Remington. Hands down my favorite rifle. I know a guy with two 700 BDL's of early manufacture chambered in the .222. Won't sell either one to me. The .222 isn't a lead balloon. mtmuley
 
Homer said:
Interesting….I’d like to see a pic
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Here you go, Homer. It shoots a 295 grain bullet at 1470 fps. 280 Remington cartridge shown for comparison.
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Several rifles in the safe here that would probably be considered that. 22 Remington Jet, 22 hornet, 32 win special, 17 Remington. One that I never could understand why it never took off was the 7mm WSM.
 
Chesterwyo said:
Several rifles in the safe here that would probably be considered that. 22 Remington Jet, 22 hornet, 32 win special, 17 Remington. One that I never could understand why it never took off was the 7mm WSM.
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7mm WSM is great!!
I really like mine.
 
mtmuley said:
I have a 788 in .222 Remington. Hands down my favorite rifle. I know a guy with two 700 BDL's of early manufacture chambered in the .222. Won't sell either one to me. The .222 isn't a lead balloon. mtmuley
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I have my grandpas M722 chambered in .222 fantastic shooter….
 
littlebighorn said:
Being able to reload will inflate any lead balloon!
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Agreed!

I love all my lead balloons, but if I didn't reload, I would think differently I suppose.

My 25wssm is easy to carry and exceptionally accurate. Performance is quite well on deer and antelope. I can't remember the last time I ran across factory ammo on the shelf.
 
El Matador, That Winchester sure is Sweet!! Thanks for sharing! For me it would be 35 Remington and 32 Winchester Special, for starters. ce61
 
I have an 8mm Rem Mag. The cartridge never took off popularity-wise, but it flat out hammers, elk, bear, deer, and coyotes.
 
Mine’s a 450 marlin, and I decided to double down for the long haul by buying another. I have ample components to keep it going probably for my lifetime, though always looking for more if they turn up.

I just sold a 444 marlin, which wasn’t as bad but is going that way.

My 35 Rem is definitely getting there.

My 35 Whelen is practically mainstream!

8mm mauser will probably be the next to turn to
lead.
 
My tumbler broke a year ago and I have been sitting on a bunch of brass to reload. I got a new tumbler last week and tumbled it all last week and got most of it primed yesterday.

I fully reloaded 200 rounds of .22 hornet yesterday. 50 grain sitting on top of 10 grains of H110.

I decided it makes a great gun for woodchucks, raccoons, and foxes and that's about it. It's a bit light for coyotes. I have shot a pile of coyotes with it and all but 4 have run a long way before dying. If I hadn't had snow, I never would have found half of them.
 
It would be a long short list.

I'd start with 90% of the cartridges introduced in the last 20 years. they're a solution in search of a problem that accomplishes nothing the old tried and true rounds don't. what does a 300 short mag do the 300 win mag doesn't do better? a shorter action ? big deal. I could go on for hours but it's the same thing.
 
Togwotee said:
It would be a long short list.

I'd start with 90% of the cartridges introduced in the last 20 years. they're a solution in search of a problem that accomplishes nothing the old tried and true rounds don't. what does a 300 short mag do the 300 win mag doesn't do better? a shorter action ? big deal. I could go on for hours but it's the same thing.
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Wait for it......

.....yeah but...yeah but.....yeah but barrel twist.....
 
Homer said:
Wait for it......

.....yeah but...yeah but.....yeah but barrel twist.....
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Can you imagine how popular the .243 would be if they had fast twists and long bullets back then? There doesn’t seem to be much else new.
 
The 264 Westerner came out in 1960. I have one of the first ones made and it still shoots sub-moa groups with a 140. now there's a hundred 6.5 you name it's that don't do anything the 264 didn't do better 54 years ago, and guys are wetting their pants over them.

If you want to shoot heavier bullets, and in a 6.5 I don't see the point, just put a faster twist barrel on and go. hooray for you, now you can shoot a 160 gr bullet that won't kill anything any better than the faster 140 .
 
.300 Apollo on a bet.
13mm gyrojet.

My brother left the gyrojet in his will. I think he got it in the late 60s.

The Apollo was a poker hand win.
 
LIK2HNT said:
7mm WSM is great!!
I really like mine.
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I have one in a Browning A-Bolt. My dad won it in a raffle several years ago and he then gave it to me. I took it as a back-up gun on a Henry's Bison hunt. It is a good thing I did as I slipped and fell with my .300 Win and did some severe damage to it (scope mounts).
The 7mm WSM worked out great on that hunt. I have bought ammo over the years and saved some brass for when I start reloading. It is scarce.
There is a pawn shop in Beaver Utah that I stopped in at, a few years back. It was when the ammo prices (around the time of the Covid crap). Ammo was high priced (I know it still is) and scarce. They had 5 or 6 boxes of it at the store. The Staff was great there and the guy said he would sell it to me for "pre-covid" pricing. I think I got for $40-45 a box. I told him I would take all that he would sell me. I think I ended up with 6 boxes..
I just checked ammoseek and there was 1 vendor selling it. Federal VITAL-Shok for $195 a box!:rolleyes:
 
woodruffhunter said:
I have one in a Browning A-Bolt. My dad won it in a raffle several years ago and he then gave it to me. I took it as a back-up gun on a Henry's Bison hunt. It is a good thing I did as I slipped and fell with my .300 Win and did some severe damage to it (scope mounts).
The 7mm WSM worked out great on that hunt. I have bought ammo over the years and saved some brass for when I start reloading. It is scarce.
There is a pawn shop in Beaver Utah that I stopped in at, a few years back. It was when the ammo prices (around the time of the Covid crap). Ammo was high priced (I know it still is) and scarce. They had 5 or 6 boxes of it at the store. The Staff was great there and the guy said he would sell it to me for "pre-covid" pricing. I think I got for $40-45 a box. I told him I would take all that he would sell me. I think I ended up with 6 boxes..
I just checked ammoseek and there was 1 vendor selling it. Federal VITAL-Shok for $195 a box!:rolleyes:
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Hand load
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I have a Winchester 25-20. Grandpa swore the barrel was bent when he was a kid. He tried and tried to kill a deer with it back in the 30s. I have a box of shells for it and I have never fired it. Has the flip up rear sight and everything. Would probably run out of gas at 100 yards tho lol.
 
Some random info -- 35 whelen is an example of something that was on life support until a season/weapon type law changed. In MS a single shot of 35 caliber or greater is considered a "primitive weapon". So everyone started buying the longest range 35 they could find. This is why you can find 35 whelen ammo now.
 
My least available cartridge is the 405wcf…..a .411 diameter bullet makes choices for reloading slim…Barnes and Hornady are available.
 
I got a .22 Hornet in my safe.....I enjoy shooting it still. Killed a lot of coyotes with it and had to track about all but 5 or 6 of them.

Not a very forgiving caliber on coyote sized animals, especially when you make a marginal hit.

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The only affordable way to shoot the gun is to reload for it.
 
Homer said:
My least available cartridge is the 405wcf…..a .411 diameter bullet makes choices for reloading slim…Barnes and Hornady are available.
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That rifle is still in production from time to time by Browning. The 1895 winchester, Teddy Roosevelts Big Medicine.
 
You can shoot 300 win mag in your 300 Apollo. Most of the chamberings listed so far all have a following so I think "lead ballon" needs a better definition. Do we consider something that was only developed as a experimental cartridge and less than 100 ever came to market. Are we looking at a lot of Remington introduced more than a few that they would drop a couple years later?

What about once mainstream cartridges that are not chambered at all anymore or only by one or two manufacturers.

I have a 14 gauge aluminum gauge shotgun shell that Winchester made back in the 50's or 60's but they supposedly only made 28 shotguns for it.

I used to have a NAA single action revolver that had two cylinders one of which is pretty rare the "450 mag express" and the other a 45 win mag which isn't rare by comparison. This handgun was the predecessor to the .454 Casull by Freedom Arms.

I don't think anyone manufactures the 8mm remington mag any more but I've shot those and they are similar to a .338 winchester magnum with slightly better ballistics.

many of the cartridges previously listed in this thread were popular at one time but were slowly killed off by newer cartridges: .222rem( killed off by the similar .223 remington); 32 acp(I've owned several and they aren't rare, several models of it are still in production; the 40-82 was common long ago(1800's) the 25-20 was once popular and so was the .32winchester.
 

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