RepackboxRotoMetals2Lee PrecisionInline Fabrication
MidSouth Shooters SupplyReloading EverythingWidenersLoad Data
Titan Reloading
Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12
Results 21 to 32 of 32

Thread: Hollowpoint failure

  1. #21
    Boolit Master


    Walter Laich's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Cypress, Republic of Texas
    Posts
    3,483
    all new to me and good stuff here

    thanks everyone for posting this
    NRA Life
    USPSA L1314
    SASS Life 48747
    RVN/Cambodia War Games, 2nd Place

  2. #22
    Boolit Grand Master fredj338's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    kalif.
    Posts
    7,203
    Alloy & HP shape. I found after testing a bunch of diff HP designs, if you want it to hold together at higher vel, like over 1200fps, you want a shallower cup point to support the mushrooming tip. Deep HP w/ thin nose portions will almost always blow off over 1000fps, IMO.

    EVERY GOOD SHOOTER NEEDS TO BE A HANDLOADER.
    NRA Cert. Inst. Met. Reloading & Basic Pistol

  3. #23
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Posts
    4,900
    Quote Originally Posted by brewer12345 View Post
    Interesting stuff. I am planning on getting a hp version of the rcbs 200 grain 35 mold from the mihec group buy under way. This boolit does 1700 fps or so from my rifle and I would like to experiment with alloys. I think 90/5/5 looks like a good place to start, perhaps with a shallow hp. Is there any reason to think this would be too hard?
    That is an extremely bullet-shaped bullet, but on game probably doesn't tend to go club-headed as one with a wide meplat will do. I don't think Lyman #2 alloy would be bad, but agree that less antimony would be a good idea, and quite harmless with a gas check at that velocity.

    I like the look of their round-nosed 204gr. gas-check mould even more. Sandwiching a cigarette paper in the mould is an old trick to get something like expansion from a bullet that otherwise wouldn't, and nowadays aluminium foil would probably be even better. It can't harbour moisture which, while unlikely to produce a geyser, might produce a bubble. It could either run all the way to the point or be a narrow strip that leaves the point united.

  4. #24
    Boolit Master
    lwknight's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Fort Worth, Texas where the west begins
    Posts
    3,416
    Bottom line here is that if you want HP performance, you will have to spend a little money. The Lyman No.2 alloy is not famous just for nothing.
    The Sn/Sb/Pb ratio of 5-5-90 is great for controlled expansion and weight retention. You get a 15 bh and toughness all in one package.
    At one time antimony was cheap and Taracorp came up with "hardball 2-6-92 which is great and basically equal to the No.2 but not for H.P. terminal ballistic performance.
    If you are serious, quit pinching the pennies and do what is long been proven to work.
    Sent from my PC with a keyboard and camera on it with internet too.
    Melting Stuff is FUN!
    Shooting stuff is even funner

    L W Knight

  5. #25
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    May 2016
    Location
    Denmark (a greasy little spot in Scandinavia)
    Posts
    815
    70% meplat (or better) and 1400-1700fps hit speed, cant do better than that with cast!
    Check: Veral Smith "Jacketed performance with cast bullets", the bible regarding cast bullet shooting.
    That man has forgot more about shooting cast than i have ever learned!

  6. #26
    Boolit Master
    Elkins45's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Location
    Northern KY
    Posts
    2,414
    Quote Originally Posted by jmort View Post
    I have found 94/3/3 to be the perfect balanced alloy
    You can heat treat to 21 BHN plus, but it will settle around 21
    I also like 20 to 1 lead tin alloy
    These are the two alloys I use


    duc·tile
    ˈdəktl,ˈdəkˌtīl/Submit
    adjective
    (of a metal) able to be drawn out into a thin wire.
    able to be deformed without losing toughness; pliable, not brittle.
    synonyms: pliable, pliant, flexible, supple, plastic, tensile
    I bought 1000 pounds of 96-2-2 and have been generally pleased with it, it if (when) I shoot it all up I’m probably going to bump the Sn and Sb by one percent for the next batch. There are probably very few needs a 94-3-3 mix can’t handle for centerfire shooting.
    NRA Endowment Member

    Armed people don't march into gas chambers.

  7. #27
    Boolit Grand Master
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    Northern Michigan
    Posts
    8,899
    Very interesting thread. Thanks to all that contributed!!

    I may never hunt with a cast bullet but I appreciate the experience and knowledge shared. Just for clarification.....

    Adjusting hardness to match terminal velocity for reliable expansion of HP's appears to be important. In practical terms, if expected ranges will be 50-250 yards, do you select an alloy that "works" at 150 yards and deal with too much expansion up close and less expansion at longer ranges?

    I like the idea of a wide meplat as that will do its thing at any range. The trade off of a lower BC may be better than dealing with reliability of HP performance.

    Larry Gibson mentioned in another thread (on the 7x57 for elk) that he had little success with cast on deer with the 7mm. The .30 calibers worked better. Is that due to the smaller meplat of the smaller bore?
    Don Verna


  8. #28
    Boolit Grand Master Outpost75's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    over the hill, out in the woods and far away
    Posts
    10,158
    1:30 or 1:40 tin-lead at 1300 fps in a bullet having a meplat 0.7 of bullet diameter does not need to be hollow-pointed to expand. Original .44-40 black powder loads perform well in soft lead, solid, flat-point.

    If you want bullets to mushroom at subsonic revolver velocities use the above alloy with a shallow cup point, just enough to help initiate expansion, but not having a sharp corner at the bottom of a deep cavity, which functions as a stress riser for the expanded petals to break off.

    Attachment 219316Attachment 219317Attachment 219318Attachment 219319
    The ENEMY is listening.
    HE wants to know what YOU know.
    Keep it to yourself.

  9. #29
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    WV USA
    Posts
    534
    Thanks for all the shared knowledge guys!
    After a quick inventory I’m going to need to acquire some tin. Rotometals has some tin nubbins that are only mildly alarmingly expensive. I figure a couple pounds will make enough alloy to keep me in .44 HP boolits for a while.

  10. #30
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Posts
    4,900
    You don't get the occasional bargains in tin or tin solder that you do in lead or antimony-rich alloys. Still, when I consider the cost of powder to shoot the stuff, I reflect that it isn't only my wife at sales time that understands spending money to save money.

    In the UK we have velocity requirements which come close to ruling out cast bullets on deer, and below them there is a size gap which makes just about any a good replacement for the .22LR hollow-point. But Outpost's results are very much what I would have expected.

    Here, though, is my vice or press operated hollow-pointing device which will press a cavity of the size and shape needed, in a non-brittle alloy. It maintains good concentricity of mass if it is a close fit to bullet diameter. IYou could make the plungers with new ones having shoulders to contact the die though, so that you can just squash as far as it will go, and get consistency from one bullet to the next. I just shortened the plungers so that they came flush with the ends of the die, but that doesn't let you do a heavier bullet with a spacing collar in front of the shoulder.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Hollow pointing die.jpg 
Views:	17 
Size:	13.7 KB 
ID:	219360

  11. #31
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Posts
    249
    lot of good reading ......... gave me a headache, lol. Need to save this as I get further along in casting

  12. #32
    Boolit Buddy KVO's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2017
    Location
    Round Rock, TX
    Posts
    313
    Piggybacking off of Ballistics in Scotland's system, l was able to use a push through sizing die as a drill bushing, in this case the NOE system. The Lee sizers work too, but don't hold the projectile as firmly due to the long taper as compared to the NOE bushings.
    1) Push boolit into the die with an over size push rod or piece of flat stock that sets the boolit flush with the die base.
    2) Find a cheap drill that is a slip fit in the top of the die with minimal wiggle. In this case, I used a "P" letter size drill bit.
    2a) I changed the angle on the bit for a steeper cup point type HP. I free handed the angle on a grinding wheel, the lead is soft enough that it cuts fine even with just one flute in contact.
    3) Use a stop collar on the drill to set your depth. I found a pack of them on Amazon for 8 bucks. I at suspect a piece of drill rod turned to the desired profile and sectioned into a "D" reamer would work great.
    4) Use a hand drill to cut HP to depth, HOLDING THE DIE IN YOUR HAND, allowing it to float. If you try with the die screwed into the press, it will bind and potentially wallow out or damage the ID of the sizer die/ sleeve.
    5) Push boolit out of die with push rod.

    I will add that I prefer to cast HP, but the above makes for easy experimenting without having to buy a new mold. All of the below were cut with the same drill bit in the same die body using different bushings.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	20180427_140355-1.jpg 
Views:	20 
Size:	34.2 KB 
ID:	219397
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	20180427_140446.jpg 
Views:	18 
Size:	18.7 KB 
ID:	219398
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	20180427_140539-1.jpg 
Views:	18 
Size:	21.2 KB 
ID:	219399
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	20180427_140605-1.jpg 
Views:	20 
Size:	21.6 KB 
ID:	219400

Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
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