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How about a part of the forum that is only accessible to certain people? Like you have to be invited or you have to show that you have proven you know what you are doing.

That sounds elitist to me. "You're not good enough to sit and talk with us.". Not a good way to encourage folks or make them feel welcome, is it?

How about a "New Guy Question" forum with the basics covered there and if some new guy bothers you with a question you can tell them to go there.

After all, the old guys with all the experience and knowledge can't be bothered with mentoring new casters as folks did with them.

Don't like answering questions or helping folks? Don't respond to the question.

Sarcastic rant off.

As a new caster, I am extremely greatful for the experience and willingness to share that experience with a rookie.
As a person who trains other adults for a living, I recognize the benefits of having a place for complete rookies and another for "The Old Guys", but not forbidding the rookies from the other area, just self-policing the conversations there.
As a little kid, I remember what it was like to go with my Dad and hang out while he visited with his adult friends, soaking in every word. That is what the rookies are doing, hanging out with folks such as gnoaah, blammer, anachronism, creeker, and many others I haven't mentioned.
There are many, many questions that I have regarding casting, most I probably haven't thought of yet, and hope that there will be a knowledgeable, willing "Master Caster" to help me on my journey.

Ed

^^^^^^^ +1

I am very thankful for all the help I have received from the
'fire in my late in life shooting sport journey.

Lead prep and casting is next on the journey.

Sure hope folks here don't ever tire of teaching / mentoring newbies.

I blush to be included with the likes of Creeker, Blammer, et al but I see what you mean. It is a bit tiresome to wade through the newbie questions. I respond to them cheerfully but there are times when I have to take a deep breath first. Let's face it, in this digital age, fewer people can be bothered with reading basic reference works (loading manuals, old books, etc.) and go straight to the forum for an answer. I fear it is something we need to resign ourselves to.

That said, I was a newbie once myself and I would rather spare a current newbie the horrid mistakes I made early on.

A beginners Q&A forum is a great idea, as well as a forum for the technical minded folks. For example, I sure would like to learn how to lathe bore some new moulds with some plain base target bullet designs I have in mind, but I know enough about metal lathes to get by only and would need tutoring.

As an aside, for anyone wanting to read the collected columns of Frank Marshall, who wrote in the early issues of the Cast Bullet Association newsletter, they are available in CD form for around $10 on the CBA website. He was a friendly curmudgeon whose columns addressed many newbie questions, contained much practical technical info, and a lot of sage hunting advice and humor from his life of cast bullet shooting. He would be 100 years old were he alive today. I met him 30 years ago and wished I had known him longer. If I taught a college level class in bullet casting (ha!!) this CD would be on the required reading list.

I recently found the CBA website and have not fully explored it yet. Thanks for the tip on the CD. That's the kind of material I look for.

I know what you mean about the newer folks, they are part of the "now" generation. They CAN be taught by peer pressure, for that is something they thrive on.

Patience is the key. Yes, the questions get asked over and over, but hopefully not by the same person.
When training someone, I have all the patience in the world for someone who is willing to put in the time, but I don't suffer fools nor those who would take shortcuts, for the world of firearms, explosives, molten metal, and moving machinery has no mercy.

They didn't pop into this world knowing how to walk, talk, and dress themselves, so they should be reminded that there are steps to take before they blast off.(pun intended).

A "rookie" forum would be a great place for FAQ's. It also never hurts to go back over the basics for those who step away from the game for a while.

The "expert" forum would be where the Masters could share their projects, advanced techniques, and sort out the big questions with folks who are on the same level, but not make it like the "Ask The Gunwriters" forum here. That's what the "rookie" forum is for.
For us rookies, that place would be like hanging out with my Dad again. Shut up, keep your eyes and ears open and learn something.

Ed

I think all parts of a forum should be accessible, but I do like the idea of an area for those who are just starting out, mainly so the flow of ideas from the guys who discuss things like throat angle and meplat design aren't bogged down. Also, a beginners area would encourage them to chat among themselves, even though some of the more advanced guys would be more than happy to help them with their questions. But it would need to be a classless society.

Some folks say I have no class, so I guess I'd fit right in.

Ed

If there is something you guys want done here, let me know. I can put out the welcome mat and ust things off if you guys need a place.

Indeed. Having a Bullet Casting 101 forum has merit as a learning center for newcomers. Trouble is, who would want to devote their time to being the proctor for said forum? Old hands would tend to stay away and mind their own business or converse with like minded fellows, leaving the newbies to fend for themselves and swap erroneous info and perpetuate old wive's tales. It's an age old problem.

I guess we have to be gracious enough to share our knowledge with all comers. Thinking about this since this morning, I reminded myself of the thrill I experienced when the Cast Bullet Association started up and I immediately jumped on the wagon- thus gaining access to minds that had wrestled with and solved the problems I had struggled with for the 15 years or so I had been casting solo beforehand. I was fortunate in having copies of (or access to) the old classics by Mann, Sharpe, Naramore, etc. and those books were (and remain) my primers- but it took real conversations with real "experts" like Ed Harris, Sid Musselman, and all the rest, to set my course.

What I really miss is having bullet casting compadres who live close by with whom I could chat with, have friendly shooting matches with, and (gasp!) enjoy a cold adult beverage while telling stories/lies/tales of derring-do after a casting session or after a match. Lacking that, the internet forums will have to do, as I soldier on solitarily enjoying this fascinating hobby.

In all my years of hunting in this state I have never met one guy amongst that countless number I met in the woods who was hunting with cast bullets. Rather, I got some pretty strange looks from seemingly knowledgable hunters when I showed them what I was using. That's illustrative of the general lack of knowledge/interest in this, in this neck of the woods. Good or bad? Who can say. But it does get lonely at times! (And may be why I sometimes run on at the mouth here!)

Truly a kind offer, Rick. Perhaps we should kick this around and try to achieve a consensus- a stated purpose/table of contents that we agree would benefit we cast shooters (and by extension, the whole 24HR. Campfire- not to mention being able to attract advertisers from the bullet casting industry). Keep the discussion rolling!

I agree, the offer from Rick is indeed gracious but I wonder if further dilineation of the casting sub-forum here is justified. The majority of the traffic on this site is really focused elsewhere...be it the campfire, optics, rifles, handguns and other such sub-forums.

I just took a quick count of the topics in this casting sub-forum to get an idea of the traffic here...we have had only 50 topics since sometime in January. While a few of those have had some good discussion I don't think we would see a lot of benefit here to sub-forums for noobs, experienced, rifle, handgun etc. And as one poster already mentioned, I like the little forum here. I have occasionally posted some minor questions here as well as some so-so technical meplat queries. My questions got answered and if I felt I needed more info I went searching through the myriad other specialized sites.

Cast-boolits is a great resource and I think they tried to address all the "noob" questions with the sometimes seemingly endless stickies at the top of each sub-forum...the problem with that though is the people that needed those stickies eventually get tired of seeing those stickies or having to scroll past them...so they start whining about the stickies or want them removed, sorted to other areas, etc.

Do I have a solution to propose, no. The biggest concern I believe we would have on this site is traffic to this specific sub-forum. The mention of getting more attention and possibly casting related sponsors would be a huge bonus but I wonder if it would be noticed on the Fire when the roar seems to always be arguing about B.C. of the newest wonder bullet or the virtues of .270 vs .30-06. I won't even delve into the constant viciousness of the optics crowd...those dudes are a whole other class.

I have been casting bullets for over 35 years but I am still a new guy when reading what was on the CastBullet forum.

My question is, how would the forum be structured?

In order to keep things straight, a mod would have to move questions around to ensure they were in the right area. That would be necessary because of perception. What one person thought was an intermediate or advanced question may be something a newbie would ask.

It would be interesting to see how everything is laid out.

I wonder if the casting section here has enough traffic to warrant expansion. Maybe start with a few stickies and see if the number of people reading them increases.

It's very easy to learn new things there.

Yep.

I think this forum is fine the way it is. Do a few stickies & let her ride for now. Guess I'm going against the grain but I for one don't care for sub-forums. I like everything concerning casting on the same page.

Maybe a sticky that's a basic equipment list including safety reminders ( #1 would be to show up with brain engaged) with the most common accessories and supplies. Another primer that walks the rookie through the process of raw materials through the finished bullet with words on the difference between fluxing and reducing, common alloys used in the different disciplines, basic lubes, gas checks-why & how, and sizer diameter choices.
After that, the rest can just be conversations, even musings by some of the Masters on specific issues that have come up in their journeys and how they addressed them.

Just my $0.02

Ed

Tip number 1: I do my casting outside. I find it best to cast when it is not raining.

Some things work better in the dry.

Aw, where's your sense of adventure?!