Making Hollow Points With a Case Trimmer

[trapper9260]

Here is a video I think some might like to watch of maken hollow point with the case trimmer. I do not know if it was posted or talk about already. If so sorry.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEsTD8CJzAg

[dale2242]

I tried that with a Wilson case trimmer.
It seemed more work than it was worth.
I`ll stick with HP molds...dale

[OS OK]

Well...that is a method of making a 'HP' cast...but...as you can see with his examples visually, there is little concentricity in it's drilling.
As far as I am concerned, the 'HP cast' is a round that not only requires a hole in the end of the projectile but it requires a Pb blend that will open up to make a wide wound channel and hold it's mushroom diameter at the widest point without fragging. It needs to maintain it's weight in tact.
Next, you need penetration too. That combination, wide mushroom expansion, deep penetration and maintaining it's weight is difficult.

Yes, it does resemble a HP round but the resemblance is all this craftsman has accomplished here. This round is a fragging round.

You will be miles ahead if you use a HP mould designed with a cavity that will expand sufficiently at the velocity you expect to shoot, after that your attempt to 'blend' your Pb and Sn is the key in weight retention and penetration.

What works in low pressure pistols and revolvers, magnum P & R's and rifles and carbines are worlds apart in velocity and Pb blends.

[trapper9260]

I posted this if someone wanted to try it and see from there if they like it or not. I get the hollow point mold myself and go that way. I like the NOE or MIL molds with the pins that you are able to change to flat or hollow or semi hollow.

[Shuz]

A problem I ran into trying to HP boolits with a case trimmer was that the drill blinded up with lead and the flutes had to continually be cleaned out.

[Harry O]

I bought a .38 Special hollow-point tool many years ago. It was a very well made two-piece tool. One piece slipped over the loaded case with a small hole in the front for the drill in the second piece. It was a pain to use for the reasons mentioned above.

Since then, I have found that it is real easy to get a hollow-point mould. Just get a single cavity mould of whatever you want. They are cheap enough. Then send it and about $40 to one of the hollow-pointing businesses to have the mould hollow-pointed. For example, you want a Keith 358439 hollow-point mould, but the $125 to $175 cost puts you off. Get a 358429 SC mould for about $30-$40 and send it to a hollow-pointing business and you have the same thing for less money. I have done that several times for several different moulds.

BTW, now that I have the hollow-pointing tool and the hollow-point mould, I tried them together. The hollow-point tool has a drill just a little bit deeper and larger in diameter than the hollow-point in the mould. The tool cleans up the hollow-point easily now. It sure looks nice, but I really don't know if it is necessary.

[Larry Gibson]

I've used the Forster HP tool with a Forster trimmer for 40+ years with complete success. I've also used and still numerous HP moulds (single & multiple cavity). Both serve their purpose well. The best thing about the Forster tool is I can HP any bullet from old or new moulds w/o the additional expense of a new mould or getting one altered.

Yes the HP process is somewhat slow but then I only use HPs for hunting and that doesn't require a lot of them. I can use the same bullet not HP'd for zero, practice and plinking. The availability of multiple cavity HP moulds these days makes the use of HP bullets for all purposes feasible, especially with handgun bullets. However, I have lots of older moulds I use that are not HP moulds. I do not care to alter or replace them so when I need HP'd bullets from them the Forster tool works very well. Using the Forster HP tool correctly most of the drill chips fall of the drill easily or are readily removed.

Shown is the 45 ACP HP'de initially with the Forster then with the HP enlarged with a counter sink(?).

The RCBS 35-200-FN in the 35 Rem HP'd

The 314299 loaded in the 7.62x54R and HP'd.

The 313631 loaded in 30 Carbine and HP'd

Using the Forster Tool on the Forster trimmer

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[reloader28]

The Forster works great for me. I mainly use it with the Lee 258-125 RF in 9mm. 1/8" hole down to the crimp groove in 50 pure/ 50 COWW /2% tin flattens out almost completely with 100% weight retention. You cant buy that kinda performance.

With a little practice they are very consistant and if the hole is off a touch it dont seem to matter other than looks. A drop of oil helps with the binding up while drilling

[Walkingwolf]

I'm not a hollow point fan, so it would be waste of time for me. I do like target HP though, but they do not expand.

I do think a better job could be done with reloading die. Make a proper threaded bushing for the drill bit, and it would be centered perfect every time.

[BCB]

I think the date on some of these pics is ’07, but I was using the Forster Hollow Pointer long before that…

The one pic shows the 38 Special/357 Magnum Hollow Pointer as it is specific for those 2. The other is a universal holder. I have used it in the drill press, but have mostly forgotten how I did it!!!...

I had pics (can’t seem to find them now) of a couple 311041 that were used to harvest a couple of deer. The boolits expanded fairly well. The boolits passed completely through the deer at a downward angle. I marked the area by tossing a nickel on the ground in the area of the kills and put a ribbon in the tree near there. When the snow was gone in the spring, I took my metal detector and found them…

So, I use the hollow pointer, but only limited for mostly hunting boolits—so, that isn’t very many anymore…

Good-luck…BCB

[BCB]

The pic here is the N.O.E. 311-202-RN (~ 1952 fps) that I hollow pointed with the universal hollow pointer using the drill press...

Distances are shown and it was shot into wet media--Not the best test, but still it shows the home-done hollow pointing works...

Good-luck...BCB