Lead-free Bullet Casting Alloy

January 18, 2018

Question: My question is regarding casting your own lead-free bullets. There is a company in California called ROTOMETALS that sells a lead-free bullet casting alloy that is 88 percent bismuth and 12 percent tin. Does this lead-free bullet alloy have to be certified by the state of California to be used for hunting? (Ron K.)

Answer: If you are making your own projectiles or ammunition and intend to hunt with those projectiles or that ammunition in a location where the hunting regulations require the use of nonlead projectiles or ammunition, you must follow the process set out in CCR Title 14, section 250.1(f), to get those projectiles or ammunition certified as nonlead by CDFW. A projectile is “any bullet, ball, sabot, slug, buckshot, shot, pellet or other device that is expelled from a firearm through a barrel by force.” (CCR Title 14, section 250.1(b)(1)). CDFW has tried to make the nonlead certification process as easy as possible. More information on the certification process, including a list of ammunition already certified as nonlead, is available on CDFW’s website.