Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

As soon as I looked at them after finishing my routine, they were speechless. Rin looked like she was duped while Ibarra was checking Rin and Cynthia if he was getting punk'd. However, Cynthia was looking a bit uneasy so I addressed it.

"Problem?" I asked.

"W-Well… didn't he flip the chair on the other side before sitting on it? You k-kinda did it wrong..." Cynthia fidgeted.

'Fuck. I got too excited wearing the costume...' I cursed myself.

"Shit, you're actually right. Let me do it again..." I replied as I copied the same exact movements according to the movie. I even made them vacate the workshop because I wanted to reenact the same thing I did earlier with the correct movements.

"So, you want to learn about casting?" I said as if the thing I did earlier didn't happen.

Rin and Ibarra were still speechless but Cynthia gave me a thumbs up.

"Anyway, since you two need a brief lesson on cartridges, I would like Rin to present what she knows first because she's my only student in this type of class. There were a few sit-ins but they all left, leaving it to the OCD Gang. Rin, can you explain to them what a 'bullet' actually is?" I started.

"O-OCD Gang? Sure..." Rin was apprehensive but she knew I was just joking

Rin stood up and explained to the two the correct terminologies for a few minutes. Everyone still refers to the 'cartridges' or 'rounds' as 'bullets' but it was good to at least let them know the proper term for it even if we usually call them 'bullets' most times than the right term. It became the common lingo for most people but in this class, we try to call it the right term as much as possible.

"...that's why this is actually called a cartridge and this one is supposed to be called the bullet or the projectile… a cartridge without a bullet is commonly known as a blank and we almost never make them because it was better to train with real ones. There's also the issue of carbon build-up and..." Rin continued as she added more details too much or the two to process at once.

"O-Okay Rin, that's enough. The main point of our class today is this." I said as I showed them a lead bullet that was copper-jacketed and a hand-cast, powdered, lead bullet that was made by me.

The three were staring at it though Rin was already familiar with them. Ibarra was in the same spot as Cynthia because they mostly just use them instead of actually trying to know how it was made in the first place, leading to misinformation about the whole process.

"I still have a fuck ton of copper-jacketed bullets and other types that I bought from the store before because they're fine if you're training normally but if you wanted to really hit where you aim for, making your own is the answer." I started.

"Can I ask a question? I remember my brother saying that they're kinda bad, right?" Cynthia said, raising her hand.

"I heard that too but I shot a few from the ones you gave me. They kinda feel better though… better than normal." Ibarra added.

"It's because it was made by OCD Gang, heh." Rin chuckled.

"Heh, awooh! Actually, like everything that people make, if you took the time and make them correctly and precisely, it would be better than the jacketed ones. Yes, there are a few issues surrounding hand-cast bullets but there are already ways to prevent them. Oscar introduced me to a hardcore gunner before that always joins competition shootings and he never uses cartridges that he didn't make himself." I explained.

"Then why do we still use the jacketed ones?" Ibarra asked.

"As I said, it takes a bit of time especially if you're like me or Rin. Everything needs to be perfect so I mostly run through the standard ones first and only use the high-quality ones for competition and such. In any case, as long as we send it through their heads, it's enough, right? We could also achieve the same result with the standard ones but if I really want to fucking nail someone, I'd trust on my handloads." I added.

"Is the round you used to 'nail' the father made by you?" Rin asked, excited.

"Sorry, but it's not. A different skill was used to achieve that and it's called training. But yeah, if I had to choose one between the two, I'd use my handloads. It's just more fucking intricate to make one of those fuckers." I replied.

"But why didn't you use them?" Ibarra asked.

"I just didn't need to at the time and a normal one was already enough." I gave a light chuckle.

"If Kaley was here, we'd hear the magic words~" Cynthia said as she chuckled with Rin.

"S-So, where do we start? This information is getting a little too much for me..." Ibarra said, confused about what the magic words were.

"Okay, since we'll be only casting bullets today, we're gonna use the lead ingots that Unc Zeidrick made by melting a lot of lead scrap from before. They are several pounds already and we could make a few hundred bullets just by using a few ingots. Well, we'll start with these lead cupcakes first because they're harder to store than the ingots and they look ugly. We're gonna re-melt them inside an electric casting furnace. We don't need to worry about fluxing or cleaning them with Marvelux or something similar because Unc Zeidrick already did. We'll just do that in another lesson when we have extra time. Even if we do, we'll try and cast a few more bullets for different calibers. For now, we'll make a few 9mm bullets because that's the round we use the most. Take a look at the equipment here." I said as I showed them the materials and equipment we would be using.

I showed them an electric casting furnace, bullet molds for a 147-grain 9mm bullet, a lead ladle, a wooden mallet, a bullet sizer, bullet lube, powder coating, thermometers, and etc.

The furnace I had could hold 20 pounds at a time and the temperatures could be controlled precisely. One of the problems of casting bullets like the end product having a 'frosty' appearance was due to the mold being too hot. To resolve that, lowering the temperature or using a few extra molds would solve the problem.

Aside from the temperature adjustment, the furnace I had came with a bottom dripper where I could simply pull a lever to pour molten lead onto my molds. It also had a stopper for the lever so I wouldn't accidentally pour more than necessary.

"We'll just chuck them in?" Ibarra asked.

"Yeah, but wear protection first." I replied as I adjusted the bars and the stoppers of the furnace to the right position.

I also showed them how to prepare the area so we would be working in so there would be no hiccups. We essentially made a little assembly line as I gave each one of them a task. It took us a few minutes but after wearing protective gear, making sure the workshop is well ventilated, and the children out of sight, I turned the furnace on and I let them place the lead cupcakes.

While we were waiting for them to melt, we prepared the molds for use. Preparing it meant making sure that it was completely clean and any sort of oil, water, or any other liquid wouldn't be present. The reaction made when molten lead met with water was something worse than a few firecrackers exploding in front of someone.

After making sure that it was clean, the next thing to do was preheat or 'smoke' them by using a candle and placing it over the grooves the molds that I have on. Doing that could ensure that the bullet would drop after the pour or if all else fails, the wooden mallet was the fucking solution.

"All done." Rin checked it one final time before we continued.

"Then we'll start pouring them. Watch me first then you'll follow me, okay?" I replied as I readied my 6-cavity bullet mold.

I was holding the mold on the handle with my left hand, placing it under the furnace when I pulled the lever with my right hand. I made sure to leave a little extra of the melted lead right above the sprue plate which was used to cut the base of the casted bullet so it could remain flat. Before I placed my left hand holding the molds right above the soft towel we prepared, I placed a small spoon under the dripper so it could catch the overflow and I could place it back in the pot at the top.

I waited for a few seconds before I pulled the third handle to cut the sprues off the bullet bases. After that, I opened the mold to reveal the bullets. It showed 6-perfectly shaped bullets and I gently dropped them on a towel. Dropping it on a hard surface could cause some dents or malformation. All we needed to do was wait for them to cool then we could either lubricate them or powder coat them so we would be able to use them for reloading in the future.

"That's it. We could use them after powder coating them later when it cools completely. You guys could try now and don't worry about making a few mistakes, we could always chuck them back in the pot and make another pour, okay?" I reminded them.

"Can I ask why do we powder them?" Cynthia raised her hand.

"It's to avoid an occurrence called 'leading', it was when the bullet we made leaves traces of it inside the barrel, causing more problems than necessary. Leading could also occur when the bullet itself is too soft but another method is used to prevent that." I replied.

"And that is?" Rin asked.

"Instead of using just pure lead, we'd make an alloy out of it and add a few parts of tin and antimony. We could also drop them into cold water instead to increase the bullet hardness by a few levels." I explained another topic.

I continued with a few more precautions, tips, and lessons but as they were first-time casters, the bullets they made weren't as perfect as I wanted them to be. Cynthia and Ibarra were happy to create a few passable ones for training but Rin kept on chucking the imperfect and malformed ones she made back inside the pot. They could be resized manually but she wanted to achieve the degree of perfection I have by doing it the first time I showed them. The equipment we were using could be the difference but nothing could beat experience on this type of thing.

"Can I use the same mold you are using?" Rin put down the single-cavity mold that she was using earlier.

"Go ahead." I smiled but it ticked her off. Her expression was turning a little different because the ones she made this time were a little 'wrinkly' and she immediately chucked them back on the pot.

I couldn't relate so hard but after hours and hours of preparing everything and making sure that everything was perfect before, I finally made something I could trust myself with.

While I was letting them practice, I brought out another furnace I have in storage to increase the degree of competition. I casually dropped a few ingots in the pot and I started to make bullets after bullets, faster than the three of them combined.

As expected, Rin was having the most trouble even if she managed to produce the quality Ibarra and Cynthia did. Sometimes, she would even chuck back the ones the two made and even try to convert them to OCD Gang. She even started to record me while I was whistling away to learn some sort of secret to making perfectly cast bullets.

'You only have to do it once, Rin.' I thought to myself.