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Thread: CH swag-o-matic consumables

  1. #1
    Boolit Man
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    CH swag-o-matic consumables

    Hello All,

    New member, and my first post. I have been reloading my own ammo for a while and am just now getting into bullet making.

    I had originally intended to cast but I just obtained a CH Swag-O-Matic press in a pile of random reloading gear. Of course as is usual with my luck the dies are missing. Now my first thought was to offload it and carry on with my plan to cast hard gas check bullets, but the more I think about it the more I am tempted to use it to make 44 magnum half jacketed bullets. The press also came with about two pounds of wire and a core cutter. Not enough stuff to get started but enough to be tempting.

    My question is where would a fellow go to obtain half jackets these days? Are they even available from a current source? Also where does one obtain the pure lead wire?

    I realize that with some patience the dies are obtainable on ebay. And if that doesn't work out I may just make a set. But my big concern is getting a hold of the consumables. If the consumables (esp. the jackets) turn out to be unavailable or .... GASP .... expensive, I may stick with casting.

    Looking for some thoughts and guidance from those who are walking the same path.

  2. #2
    Boolit Bub Swageocast's Avatar
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    Hello colonelsanders,,,,

    I suspect after you look around especially looking through BT Snipers Stickies and most of his posts YOU will FIND what YOU SEEK !!

    Brian has cleverly mixed alittle casting and a good bit of swaging to help promote a recent phenomenon where you can salvage alot of brass nobody seems to want to reload into usable jackets.

    Jackets being the more expensive consumed item of swaging.

    Not sure about the Swag-o-matic dies ,,,I think they were a two peice design and were slow and somwehat limited in there weight regulation.

    BT SNIPER has some very reasonably priced dies with Truly exceptional Quality.

    Welcome to the Area.

  3. #3
    Boolit Master

    Reload3006's Avatar
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    Finding half jackets is going to prove challenging. You can get them from time to time on Ebay. But to my knowledge no one is making and offering them anymore. But all is not lost. You can cut down and use 40 S&W brass or you have a whole host of other options. Now that I have my 38/9mm/30 cal Tubing jacket dies working I will make a set for 45 and 44 you can go that route. That really is the neat thing about swaging is literally your imagination is your limit.

  4. #4
    In Remembrance

    DukeInFlorida's Avatar
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    I have a swageomatic press, and two sets of dies, and looking for a third.

    • I have a set of 38/357 dies, which produces a SWC nose. I don't have any half jackets for that one. But I do use it to REFORM 147 grain 9mm round nose boolits (pre-lubed) into properly sized 38/357 SWC's. Works great, and eliminated my need to buy a mold for the 357/38 size.
    • I have a set of dies and a bunch of half jackets for producing .308 diameter SWC bullets. Have recently developed a way to make cores for that, but haven't had a lot of time for actual development.
    • I have half jackets for 44 mag, but alas, no dies yet. I'll keep looking for dies


    So, think outside of the box in terms of the dies for this press. You might be able to reform something else that you already cast for, into something that you don't.

    The swageomatic press will NOT do a successful job of using brass cases as jackets. Not enough oomph in the design to do that.


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  5. #5
    Boolit Grand Master

    Wayne Smith's Avatar
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    I have a set of Herter's half jacketed SWC dies for .44 and use my Hollywood Sr press to make them. I am following Bian's ideas in using currently 357SIG brass (same as 40S&W once trimmed) trimmed to the half-jacket length. Actually, you can trim them to any length up to the shoulder of the bullet. You cannot go beyond this with these dies, the shoulder transition is too steep for the brass to flow. I am trimming the brass, annealing it completely, cleaning it in critic acid, and swaging boolits.

    I have found that my Lee mold for the 1895 Steyr boolit is useless in the rifle (.329" in a .330"+ bore) but an ideal size to make a 44 caliber, 294gr bullet half jacketed. I am casting these out of pure lead. Next I may run the trimmed and annealed jackets through the tumbler to shine them up, maybe. I don't really care, once they are loaded all you see is the lead.
    Wayne the Shrink

    There is no 'right' that requires me to work for you or you to work for me!

  6. #6
    In Remembrance

    DukeInFlorida's Avatar
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    Right. BUT... a Hollywood SR press is much more of a press than the swageomatic press is. What I was implying was that you can't use the swageomatic for doing the brass case into jacketed bullets (swaged bullets) trick. The swageomatic press is a simple aluminum casting, with very little leverage. OK for some simple flowing of lead in a copper half jacket, but not much more than that.


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  7. #7
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    I have two Swage-O- Matic presses and two Hollywood Sr. presses, and there is no comparison between them, period. I do my cartridge case jacket bullet swaging on the Hollywood Sr. press and do light half jacket swaging on the Swage-O-Matic presses, which are upstroke swaging presses. I can get much more leverage out of my cast steel Hollywood Sr. on the downstroke, especially when I move the pivots arms to the second hole.

    Hope this helps.

    Fred

  8. #8
    Boolit Man
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    Thanks to all for the advice.

    I am going to stick to my original plan and get casting equipment. The CH Press will be going up on Ebay tonight so as not to tempt me to throw good money at obsolete equipment. Hopefully someone who has dies and a cracked press can make use of it.

    When the day comes and I wish to swage bullets, I will make a proper press and obtain a good set of bullet dies. Until then it will be casting for me.

    Thanks to everyone for their helpful replies.

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master

    Wayne Smith's Avatar
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    Duke and reloader, I am making half jacket bullets, that's all these dies will make. I'm trimming the brass to replace the half jackets, I'm not swaging the brass beyond that. I think the CH press would be up to that.
    Wayne the Shrink

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  10. #10
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    Wayne,

    It might be up to it, but boy, that's sure a lot of trimming! I'm not that ambitious, so I just use full length cases and swage them on the Hollywood Senior. I've got a couple thousand half jackets that I've scrounged, so I confine them to the Swage-O-Matic, where they work pretty good. I consider the Swage-O-Matic as a light duty swager.

    I just wish somebody could make economical half jackets these days...........

    Fred

  11. #11
    In Remembrance

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    Wayne Snith, If you've never owned one, take it from Reloader Fred and I that the swageomatic is a light duty swager. It's a thin walled aluminum frame. If there would be any brass reforming happening at all, the press won't handle it.

    The copper half jackets work fine because they are the exact right size for the die set, and soft enough and thin enough to work with the lead cores without any effort. Most of the actual swaging happens in the nose forming, which is lead only.


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  12. #12
    Boolit Bub threedflyer's Avatar
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    Half Jackets

    I have a fair amount of Half Jackets that I am looking to sell.....
    May take a few photos and post them soon......have mostly Speer and some Hornady, etc.
    Tom

  13. #13
    Boolit Master

    Reload3006's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by threedflyer View Post
    I have a fair amount of Half Jackets that I am looking to sell.....
    May take a few photos and post them soon......have mostly Speer and some Hornady, etc.
    Tom
    what caliber and how much?

  14. #14
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by threedflyer View Post
    I have a fair amount of Half Jackets that I am looking to sell.....
    May take a few photos and post them soon......have mostly Speer and some Hornady, etc.
    Tom
    Tom, you will probably make out like a bandit if you put them on auction down in swapping and selling!
    Wayne the Shrink

    There is no 'right' that requires me to work for you or you to work for me!

  15. #15
    Boolit Bub threedflyer's Avatar
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    Half Jackets

    I have the following:

    2 - 250 count boxes of SPEER 38/357
    3 - 250 count boxes of SPEER 30
    5 - 25 count boxes of SPEER 44
    1 - 500 count box of Hornady 44

    Would want to sell them all in a group and ship in a medium USPS flat rate box.

    They are now posted up for auction and ends on 1/14/12

    Tom
    425-785-0093
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails IMG_6855.jpg   IMG_6856.jpg   IMG_6857.jpg  
    Last edited by threedflyer; 01-10-2012 at 12:19 PM.

  16. #16
    Boolit Bub
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    Quote Originally Posted by threedflyer View Post
    I have the following:

    2 - 250 count boxes of SPEER 38/357
    3 - 250 count boxes of SPEER 30
    5 - 25 count boxes of SPEER 44
    1 - 500 count box of Hornady 44

    Would want to sell them all in a group and ship in a medium USPS flat rate box.

    They are now posted up for auction and ends on 1/14/12

    Tom
    425-785-0093
    What happened with these jackets?Can't find in auctions.

  17. #17
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    They sold, with two guys scrapping over them...........

    Fred

  18. #18
    Boolit Buddy bfuller14's Avatar
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    Who won?

  19. #19
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    I don't remember. I left for the SHOT Show about that time and just got back last weekend.

  20. #20
    Boolit Master



    skeettx's Avatar
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    OLD post,

    New info

    In my shop, I have found a few 38 cal half jackets
    Anyone using them?
    Mike
    Last edited by skeettx; 07-05-2020 at 03:48 PM.
    NRA Benefactor 2004 USAF RET 1971-95

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check