Good 40 S & W Bullet???

[shotstring]

Since most of the members here seem to favor flat base rather than bevel base bullets, the only current manufacture of a non-bevel-based 401 diameter bullet appears to be Lee or RCBS. For me, all my handles and such are set up for RCBS, Lyman, H & G and Saeco so I only go that route for my molds. It would appear the RCBS is then the only option. Anyone have any experience with RCBS in 40 S & W? Anyone tried any of the BB molds for 40 cal molds?

[Bret4207]

Haven't tried any 40 designs yet, but the Lee 2 bangers come WITH handles so thats a non issue. The 6 bangers need the hadles bought seperate.

I have to get a 40 mould for the wifes Witness, and figure I'll try both the Lee designs. They're cheap enough and I can get the 6 cav later.

[BigSlick]

I shoot a lot of the Lee 401-175-TC

Feeds great, shoots great and accuracy is excellent. Drops with straight ww's at 178-179gr consistently.

Lee 6 banger handles run less than $11 right now at Midway.

Might be worth a look.

The SWC Lee bullet of the same weight doesn't feed as well in my guns.
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[johnho]

I'm using the Seaco 40 tc 4 cav. I believe it is a 170. I love the bullet but it drops out exactly at my bore diameter as I suspect most do. My first shooting with this resulted in lead from one end to the other. Beagled the mold as suggested by others here and greatly improved the leading but still get some at the throat. Now drops at 403 and 174 grains. Selected the tc as many on another site recommended it over other designs for the 40 and it was at the weight I was needed for matches. Feeds good too.

[Petander]

I shoot a lot of the Lee 401-175-TC

Feeds great, shoots great and accuracy is excellent. Drops with straight ww's at 178-179gr consistently.




Good results here as well. I used to shoot that boolit in a Glock 22 and still shoot it in 10 mm, S&W 1006.

[shotstring]

My Midway sale flyer was just delivered 10 minutes ago...and low and behold they had the Lee 6 cavity molds for the 40 S & W that you suggested on sale, as well as the handles.:drinks:

Done deal. Will give them a try. Noticed they also have Saeco Handles and Lyman 1 or 2 cavity handles on sale as well. Could have used that last month.

[Bret4207]

I better find the MIdway flyer. HAven't ordered in awhile and they probably quit sending them.

[sundog]

Bret, sign up rof the e-flyer. They've done a nice job on it, and you don't get paper in the mailbox.

[9.3X62AL]

Another late pile-on for the Lee 175 TC/conventional lube groove. It does fine work in the 40 S&W, and did well in the 10mm. I use the RCBS 200 grain TC in the 10 now, but not because the Lee didn't work well--the change was more about hunting usage and sectional density.

[Bob Jones]

Just another happy camper using the 175 grain Lee tumble lube. Shot lots of 1000's of them, never had the urge to try another mold in that caliber. It's one Lee bullet I've never had to size.

[JRR]

I have been shooting the RCBS 180-FP for a couple of years now in a CZ. It casts beautifully (slightly frosty) and is amazingly accurate. It is almost impossible to deep seat this bullet because the nose length is long. My OAL is 1.140 with just a sliver of straight bullet exposed. It probably would be perfect for the 1911 long chambered sport guns.

[Adam10mm]

I use the RCBS 200 grain TC in the 10 now, but not because the Lee didn't work well--the change was more about hunting usage and sectional density.
Was thinking if that would be better for hunting. Right now I drop with the 6x Lee TC.

[Sundogg1911]

I like the Lee as well. I have the 175 non TL 6 cavity mould, and I also have a 180 grain Magma mould that I get a little better accuracy from. They are a very similar design. I recently picked up a 155 gr TC in .40 S&W too, but I haven't had any range time with it yet

[9.3X62AL]

FS--

The idea was to boost weight and length to gain bC and SD, and run the boolit at 1100 FPS, just sub-sonic to prevent trans-sonic disturbance as the boolit slows through the Mach 1 transition (Chuck Yeager Effect).

The 10mm can safely run 200's to 1200 FPS, but both the Lee 180 and the RCBS 200 shoot better at 1100 than at 1200 FPS. Same thing shows up in Magnum revolvers and the 44-40 rifle to some extent. I plan load dynamics to stay either sub-sonic through their entire intended flight length, or to stay supersonic for the trip. In effect--I substitute boolit weight for velocity in the mass equation, to not get a "penalty" in terminal ballistic potential.

I'm a strong believer in the Hatcher Theory--that velocity and boolit weight are linear equation elements while boolit cross section is the "squared" value in the calculation. Hatcher's formula is the ONLY one in which empirical evidence--i.e., the squared cross-section value corresponding to reality--and formulaic doctrine follow one another. The Hatcher shape factor is another more subjective but demonstably valid variable that I subscribe to.

[Adam10mm]

Thanks. But since I am an idiot in math (taking Intermediate Algebra for the third time) I try to push a heavy bullet as fast as I can, as accurate as possible, with keeping safety parameters in check.

I got some 220's I'm going to load up for the 10mm. I'm hoping to get 900-950fps from a 4" 1911.

[9.3X62AL]

A 220 grainer would be better yet in the 10mm for hunting. I'm guessing that 1000-1050 FPS would be a safe max using AA-9 or similar fuels. My only question would be how the boolits would print relative to the sights in fixed-sight pistols. Both 180's and 200's are pretty close to point-of-aim = point-of-impact in my S&W M-1026.

I'm no math-head, either. Hatcher's Index of Relative Stopping Power is non-algebraic, just straight-up multiplication and division.

[only1asterisk]

Has anybody tried a Saeco #401 in the 10mm or .40? It weighs about 195 grains has a nose that looks something like the BD45. I'd be curious if it would feed. I have plenty should anyone want some to try.

David

[ReAX222]

I haven't fired any yet, but I have cast about 2000 of the lee 401-175-tc boolits.

I got my Midway flyer this morning, the 6 cavity was $32 and change. The amount of .40 I shoot, 6 cavity is the only way to fly (I hope.)

[Sundogg1911]

ReAX222, I have that mould and it works well in my Infinity and my CZ 40 B.
Some of the guys that i shoot IPSC also use 'em and like 'em. I do like my 180 gr. Magma mould a little better. It's a very similar design. I also like casting with the Magma Master Caster a little more than hand moulds, so I tend to cast more of the Magmas, but I think the Lee 6 bangers are one of the best bangs for the buck. If I find a Lee desighn that I like I usually buy 2 of the 6 cavity moulds just to boost production. I can cast more in a day with hand moulds, but more in a week with the Master Caster. It's a lot easier on me and I can sit on my A$$ while I cast. I've never been able to do that with hand moulds. I also like the fact that I can just fire it up and cast for a few hours each evening. When I get out the hand moulds I usually cast for about 6 hours or more, because it takes a while to set up. I really have to invest in a 230 gr. RN for my 1911's for the Master Caster. I think I still shoot my .45's more than my .40's, but that is slowly changing :-?

[Intel6]

I also use the Lee 175 TC regular lube for most of my .40 cast loads, they come out at 183 grs. with WW's. They shoot well in my STI, CZ and Glocks.

I have a pair of lyman 200 gr. TC's that I use for my 10mm's, they come out at 213 grs.

I recently milled off the top of a Lee 175 TC mould that had a bad cavity at the base of the bullet. I milled off the top getting rid of the bad part and now i have a nice 6 cavity that produces a 155 TC bullet that is great for shooting steel and uses a bit less lead.