Personally, I think 12:1 is too far, but whatever. Better to make some bullets and get them airborne than beat the issue to death without ever launching one.

I've cast many a nose pour. Why are you finding it intimidating? In so far as casting goes, it is all pretty much the same to me. I have two nose pours that I use. One I use a lot. It's as easy as any. More important will be bullet diameter, paper thickness, and bullet seating depth. And what did you find between the bullet and the powder? That will be more important than alloy.

I would love to see photos of the original cartridges you have and some dimensions for them. I've spent 25+ yrs shooting paper patches with blackpowder for hunting and competition. It's the only rifle shooting that is very interesting to me.

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BrentD, (Professor - just for Stan)

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