First bullet

[Red Dirt Digger]

I was super excited to dig my first bullet. I know nothing about bullets so when I saw the white patina I was sure it was old. But...I think it's actually modern. Oh well.

 

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[Cletus]

cool find.

 

[firemac]

Sweet find!

 

[CTwoods]

Your enthusiasm is great to see. IMO

you will do well

 

[gunsil]

It is a modern muzzle loader bullet. The white patina on lead forms at different rates in different soils and cannot be accurately used to date any lead objects. I throw all my old bullets into the melting pot to make fishing sinkers, there are millions of them in the ground and they are basically worthless.

 

[trapperart]

Nice find

 

[Trezurehunter]

Congrats on your first bullet.

 

[jaystuw]

I am really scratching my head on this one. Is it a modern T/C "maxi ball" or not?

The Thompson/Center "maxi ball" was developed a few decades ago. It is a very popular muzzle loading bullet that has a somewhat unusual shape that allows it to be rammed down a rifle barrel easily, yet still expands upon firing to fill the rifling grooves . T/C makes and sells them in packs of 50 or a 100 in calibers 32,36,45,50,54,and 58. Or you can even make them yourself with a Lyman bullet mold, but are limited to only two calibers, Lyman mold #454616, a 245 grain, 45 cal. Or Lyman mold #504617, a 370 grain, 50 cal.

So, I want to say the featured bullet is nothing more than a T/C maxi ball. one of untold millions made and used in the last 20 years. But what bewilders me is the deep white patina on this particular bullet. is it possible such a patina can form in a relatively short time? Or, is this a much older bullet? A reference I used in researching this says the maxi ball is a modern resurrection of a bullet used in the muzzle loading era to solve the above mentioned need to fill the rifling for accuracy.

Could this be a rare precursor to the maxi ball or is it a modern bullet exposed to very unusual soil conditions? Either way its interesting. I wonder if other lead found in the area shows the same level of oxidation?

 

[Red Dirt Digger]

Those are all excellent questions that I'd love some others to weigh in on! I'm not sure if other lead in the area (near Tulsa, Oklahoma) shows this patina in short amounts of time.

Also, I'm interested in where you saw the reference to the "modern resurrection" statement.

BTW, I found this in a yard in a small town north of Tulsa. Homes in the neighborhood date to the early 1900s.

 

[parsonwalker]

Remember the sound you got on this find, you'll need it for October. We're going to get you into the Civil War Bullet club . . . (You need to get here Thursday night, so we can hunt Friday and Saturday - especially if it rains Friday) Congrats on the first bullet. How deep was it?