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Thread: Best way to correct nonconcentric bullets

  1. #1
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Best way to correct nonconcentric bullets

    I was given several thousand 147gr FMJ pills by a friend several years ago. They were pulled using jaws that pulnpukk marks in the bullet and was so violent, many are no longer round but more oval which doesn’t play well with chambering them in my various 300 BLK rifles as they get stuck, then I have to mortar them out and the bullet ends up stuck and case full of powder all in the gun and is a mess. Is there a quick way of running these through a sizer of sorts mounted in a press quickly and easily to resize them xoncentrically to .308”? These are gonna be used for blasting ammo with my 300 BLK.

  2. #2
    Boolit Master


    HangFireW8's Avatar
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    I had some 1,000 5.56's like that. I waited for a political gun control scare, and sold them on an auction site with full disclosure for a profit.

    I imagine the guys in the Swaging sub-forum might have the right stuff. The trick is "quickly and easily", even with the right die and compound leverage, fully jacketed bullets are going to put up a fight, especially if they are that much out of round.
    I give loading advice based on my actual results in factory rifles with standard chambers, twist rates and basic accurizing.
    My goals for using cast boolits are lots of good, cheap, and reasonably accurate shooting, while avoiding overly tedious loading processes.
    The BHN Deformation Formula, and why I don't use it.
    How to find and fix sizing die eccentricity problems.
    Do you trust your casting thermometer?
    A few musings.

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by HangFireW8 View Post
    I had some 1,000 5.56's like that. I waited for a political gun control scare, and sold them on an auction site with full disclosure for a profit.

    I imagine the guys in the Swaging sub-forum might have the right stuff. The trick is "quickly and easily", even with the right die and compound leverage, fully jacketed bullets are going to put up a fight, especially if they are that much out of round.
    The ones I’m having issues with are .311-.312 at their most oblong

  4. #4
    Boolit Buddy billyb's Avatar
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    Try using a 308 lube sizing die as a push thru. I pull a lot of dud rounds that I pick up at the indoor range and I use the lube dies to iron them out.

  5. #5
    Boolit Bub
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    The Lee push through dies are your friend. I've run thousands of 5.56 55 gr. I got from HiTech here in St. Louis over the years. Fine for blasting and they shoot better than one might think.
    Pete

  6. #6
    Boolit Buddy

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    the lee push thru in .308 dia will do the deed, I resized a large number of pulled APs', and use the .510 on the .50 cal for the Ma Deuce. push nose first with a slight film of lube and get a good round projo for not much of an investment..

  7. #7
    Boolit Master


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    SOFMatchStaff, +1 on the 50 cal pulls.

    If your going Lee, take a gander at NOE's push through sizer set up with interchangable dies. That would be my thought.

  8. #8
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    GregLaROCHE's Avatar
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    All of the above comments are good. Otherwise, just melt them down and recast them.

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    JonB_in_Glencoe's Avatar
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    I wonder how much spring-back there is with those FMJ?

    You might want a undersized 30 cal sizer die...maybe .307?

    I'd use a swaging lube, like Lanolin thinned with s bit of neatsfoot oil.
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  10. #10
    Boolit Grand Master

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    The problem may be more the jacket will spring back but the lead core wont leaving it loose in the jacket. We tried sizing down some jacket bullets for an odd bore size once and the jacket sprung back away from the core ruining accuracy. You can try it but you may be surprised at the force it takes and the lee sizer die may not last very long with jacketed. I would recommend lubing the bullets with a lanolin based lube to lower sizing force and help with die life.
    If the pulling left marks in the jacket they will remain after the swaging down.

  11. #11
    Boolit Buddy
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    push them through a sizer die.

    should make them round again.

  12. #12
    Boolit Grand Master

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    I ordered the NOE body sizing die and set up. I’ll let you guys know how it works. The pulls are 147 fmj with max oval diameter of 311-312, most of them not that bad. I’m hoping the sizer will be enough to make them useable for plinkers in my 300 BLK. Don’t have much to lose really.

  13. #13
    In Remembrance

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    Several years back I bought some .311 pulls that were ovaled and bought a LEE .308 push thru sizer, I lubed them and shoved them thru the sizer. I had zero problems shooting them but also wasn't looking for bench rest results thru my CETME rifle.
    My only concern at the time was the actual length of the bullets, they become longer than .308 bullets of the same weight, that extra diameter had to go somewhere I guess.

  14. #14
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Strong press Lee push through sizer and lanolin lube and they will straighten right out.

  15. #15
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by KCSO View Post
    Strong press Lee push through sizer and lanolin lube and they will straighten right out.

    I’ve got my Rock Chucker press. Should be strong enough for this.

  16. #16
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    I would downsize the bullets in as small an increment that I could

  17. #17
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by Conditor22 View Post
    I would downsize the bullets in as small an increment that I could
    I got the 308 body die from NOE. I think it’ll just round them up. If it’s .311” one way it’s .306 the other. Like an egg. So hopefully rounds them up enough to plink with.

  18. #18
    Boolit Grand Master


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    If you push the bullets through a sizer, it will reform the body of the bullet, but not do anything to the ogive. How do you know that the ogive and bullet tip will be concentric with the body?

  19. #19
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by GregLaROCHE View Post
    If you push the bullets through a sizer, it will reform the body of the bullet, but not do anything to the ogive. How do you know that the ogive and bullet tip will be concentric with the body?
    That’s a good question. I’ve got some bullet comparators and a concentricity gauge. I’ll try to look at this scientifically and see what I can report. I’m open to suggestions on what to look for and report.

  20. #20
    Boolit Master RU shooter's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GregLaROCHE View Post
    If you push the bullets through a sizer, it will reform the body of the bullet, but not do anything to the ogive. How do you know that the ogive and bullet tip will be concentric with the body?
    I think the only way you could get everything all straight and true again is to use a swage die in the shape of the bullet, and a good bit of pressure behind it .But just the sizer may get it "good enough" for plinking use
    If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck!

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