Bevel base or flat base?

[PB234]

I can understand advantages to each and ask for opinions before I get a new bunch of 9mm boolits going. Would benefit from others experiences and thoughts. Thanks

[dudel]

Both work fine. Bevel base is easier to seat (and needs less case flare); but harder to cast (for me at least); and the opposite for flat base.

For me, base is not a deciding factor.

[Wayne Smith]

Bevel base is harder to lube. Lube tends to get into the bevel and make a mess. I put a piece of a plastic plate or styrofoam cup on the top of the die. This solves the problem but only lasts for a hundred or so and needs to be replaced.

[stubert]

Bevel base is also easier to get gas cutting with. I like flat bases myself.

[6622729]

I'm in the flat base camp. It's easier to cast, they standup for tumble lube drying and accept a gas check to prevent gas cutting.

[runfiverun]

bevel bases were somewhat designed to fall out of the molds easier, they just happened to load easier and so were promoted this way.

now when saying bevel base there is a slightly rounded type of base and then there is a boat tail looking bevel base.
you can put a gas check on many of the latter type.
I don't like those unless shooting at low velocity.

[fecmech]

The most accurate bullet that I shot in a number of 9mm guns was the Lee 121 TC (with lube groove) and it has a small bevel base. I ran that up to 1250 fps out of a Hipower and 25 yd groups in the 2-2.5" range. It is THE most accurate bullet out of my S&W mod 14 staying under 2"@50 yds and both my Rossi .357 rifles will shoot it about 3moa@100yds in the 1200-1300fps range.

[dudel]

The most accurate bullet that I shot in a number of 9mm guns was the Lee 121 TC (with lube groove) and it has a small bevel base. I ran that up to 1250 fps out of a Hipower and 25 yd groups in the 2-2.5" range. It is THE most accurate bullet out of my S&W mod 14 staying under 2"@50 yds and both my Rossi .357 rifles will shoot it about 3moa@100yds in the 1200-1300fps range.

I have that one with the small bevel but with TL grooves, and it shoots great for me as well. Feeds great also. Getting sharp bevels has been my issue. When it's good, it's great; when it's bad, I call it the ex wife.

[MakeMineLead]

I find the quality of the mold, the alloy and casting teqnique determine how well a Boolit turns out.

For the last 10 years, ANY new pistol mold I acquire has been bevel-base. Easy to cast, easy to release, easy to cleanly lube (if lubing device Star, RCBS, Redding or Lyman is adjusted correctly).

Loading is a cinch w/ less working of the brass, and just as accurate as any.

[Outpost75]

Bevel base is less likely to drag a "fin" off the base as a correctingly fitting throat-diameter bullet is extruded into a smaller bore and groove cross-section, thereby reducing risk of leading by eliminating the wire edge which has reduced heat capacity and would melt first, enabling use of a larger bullet which positively seals the throat against the powder gases upon discharge, preventing gas cutting cutting and leading from that cause. Ease of starting the bullet into the case and reduced risk of base damage is another benefit.

[tazman]

I have found no difference in accuracy or leading due to a bevel base boolit. More depends on the rest of the design and the sizing/fit than whether the base is beveled or not.
The base must be even all the way around and the same from boolit to boolit. Changing from flat to bevel "may" change impact point slightly, but I can't prove that.
The bevel base boolits do load easier into the cases. I would tend to use bevel base boolits if accuracy was the same between the two designs.
I don't have problems with lubing the different designs since I tumble lube for all my pistol rounds.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Wayne Gibbs stated in one of his catalogs that there was an ongoing controversy between believers and non believers over the flat base vs the bevel base bullets with proponents of either advancing excellent theories. I have only one BB design and it shoots well enough for me. I did have to have a special made ejector to block the bullet lube from filling the space when in the sizing die of my lubrisizer and that solved the problem. LLS

[PB234]

Thank you to all for the help. I am going to go with bevel base as it takes less expanding of the brass to seat it and is quicker for me.

[MT Chambers]

For accuracy, I would avoid the BB, for convenience of loading the BB is a bonus, the Star luber will not leave any excess lube in the bevel.

[rockshooter]

i used to avoid bevel bases because of the lubing problems but since switching to powder coating I find myself using the BB more because the little bit of PC flashing on the base of the bullet seems to ooze under the bullet and it sizes nicer.
Loren

[Golfswithwolves]

A nice sharp flat base on a bullet tells me that I probably did a good job on the casting. If I do a poor job it turns into a bevel base!

[shoot-n-lead]

I have always preferred the flat bases and I guess this is primarily due to all of the misinformation about the bevel being less accurate. But, I have never been able to produce any evidence, in my shooting of both, to prove that one is more accurate than the other. So, my recommendation is to go with the one that YOU like better.

[Shiloh]

Bevel bases get lube on the bevel.
I have had several molds have to BB removed by machinists.

Shiloh

[mdi]

I have a Lee mold for a 45 cal. 230 gr. TC w/normal lube groove, two cavity. I started to remove the bevel bases by removing metal from the mold, but without a mill, it was really slow, so I cut the bevel out of one cavity. So when I cast bullets with this mold I get one bullet with a flat base and one with a bevel base. For my 1911s and Ruger P90, there is no discernible difference, except it's a real pain to remove the lube from the bevel...

[Valley-Shooter]

I like the bevel base better for progressive reloading. It's just easier and faster when loading batches of 500 rounds.

I get better bases when casting with the bevel base. I think the the smaller diameter is easier for the the sprue plate to do its job.

[shoot-n-lead]

Powder coating solves the lube problem...no issue at all.

[44man]

I found a BB just needs a different velocity then a FB. The BB does no harm but shortens the drive area. You can usually work loads to tune them.
I got better results for hotter loads by cutting the mold for a FB but I can't blame the BB either.
It comes down to what you get at the target.
Once I shot my 30-30 Contender with a GC boolit and could hit pennies and nickels at 100 but ran out of checks so I loaded without and boolits hit sideways at 50. It was not the loss of the check per-say, I was out of line with twist.
I have never believed total OAL of a bullet/boolit should be used for twist estimates.
I am the biggest NAY-SAYER ever and no twist formula ever worked up works. Guys still follow Greenhill that should have been shot out of ML cannons it was worked for.
I don't believe in the "gas cutting" thing either, fit and lack of skid from a too soft boolit will work.

[gwpercle]

If you are looking at the Lee .356-120-TC mould , it appears to have a bevel base. I ordered it and found the base to have a very small bevel , just enough to help slip the boolit into a case but not big enough to get any lube around/under when sized and lubed in my Lyman 450 . I don't know if you should call it a true "bevel base " , the bevel is very small . That small bevel causes no problems and I like it. The Lee .356-125-2R is a true flat base .
Both moulds are the newer 2 cavity designs .
Gary

[GWM]

The Lyman 356637 has rather large bevel. I haven't tried it, but it seems a lot of people like it.
http://www.lymanproducts.com/lyman/bullet-casting/mould-details.php?entryID=6

[tmag97]

I use a lyman 450 and fight the lube ring around the bottom , for that reason the 200 swc is the only 45 mold with a bevel base I have. They seem to shoot as well as the non bevel base boolits for my needs.

[mdi]

Jes a thought; some molds have a slight taper or rounding off of the bullet base. Not a "Bevel Base". A true bevel base has a bevel of around 1/8" to mebbe 3/16"....

[lotech]

There may be a few remote exceptions, but other than a slight ease in placing a bullet in a case prior to seating, the bevel base offers no advantage over a flat base bullet.