Carved lead?... what do you think

[GatorBoy]

I was so happy about the Minie ball I just put this in my pouch without really looking at it. do any of you see what I'm seeing? please let me know your thoughts







if I wasn't the 1 who found it I would have probably thought that 3 ringer was made last week. no oxidation at all. gotta love mud.

 

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[RCarson]

Sure it wasn't dropped during deer season?

 

[GatorBoy]

im not going to entertain that.

 

[RCarson]

I was just messing w you. It's in great shape. Great find

 

[GatorBoy]

thanks....good one

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

I think there's no need to worry that you found a modern Blackpowder deerhunter's Repro minie-ball. The modern ones are nose-cast, and yours isn't nose-cast.

Regarding the lack of oxidation/patina... civil war bullets found in "wet ground" (and underwater) often show no oxidation, because the water prevents oxygen from reaching the lead. During the past 30-something years, I've found a good number like yours in creeks and swamps.

 

[Thommy]

Nose castings are more common, but that Minie appears to have been Swaged. Swaging is the process used in large arsenals where molten lead is injected into a die/mold. We found a crate of them on the Maple Leaf shipwreck. They came out of the river dark, just like yours. Often the base of swaged bullets have a "chuck" mark similar to a star incised into it.