Reloading EverythingWidenersRotoMetals2Repackbox
Lee PrecisionMidSouth Shooters SupplyInline FabricationTitan Reloading
Load Data
Results 1 to 10 of 10

Thread: Hollow Point Molds

  1. #1
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Just outside New Orleans
    Posts
    405

    Hollow Point Molds

    I bought some as I thought they were if nothing else cool.
    As a side note: My wife and I only carry factory ammo and got a great deal on Nosler Target 9mm HP. As was my understanding is some slow bullets do not open but are made in HO Form to make them accurate. As it moves the center of gravity back.
    So wonder if that is really the case in cast HP's in 9mm-45acp etc.
    I know that in some factory that they place a plastic filler to aid in expansion.
    I had a few Balls from an AirSoft so put a few in to see sure looked nice if nothing else.
    Disclaimer I am not a great shot so regular round nose or SWC is good enough for me. But wondered what real-life testing you guys have done with cast hollow points
    Oh here's a shot of some unlubed

    I have some Commercial Red Carnuba and Red Balls

  2. #2
    Boolit Master


    Burnt Fingers's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2019
    Location
    Tejas
    Posts
    1,938
    I've cast hollow points with 16:1 alloy. At .45 ACP velocities the expansion is crazy, also you don't lose a lot of weight. I've cast some out of straight wheel weights. Expansion is a bit less and sometimes small pieces will break off.

    It really depends on the boolit. I've got somewhere around 24 hollow point molds right now. The Lyman Devastators were designed with wheel weight alloy in mind. It's really too bad they are such a pain to pour.

    IMHO there's no reason to put those plastic balls into a properly cast hollow point bullet. The reason they use such things on commercial J word hollow points is to make them a bit more barrier blind and not clog up with stuff like sheetrock.
    NRA Benefactor.

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master

    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Location
    NW GA
    Posts
    7,243
    How secure are they? Will them come loose in a magazine while the handgun is being shot?

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Oct 2015
    Location
    Clarkston, Wa.
    Posts
    816
    You can also fill the nose with hot glue.

  5. #5
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Just outside New Orleans
    Posts
    405
    Quote Originally Posted by osteodoc08 View Post
    How secure are they? Will them come loose in a magazine while the handgun is being shot?
    Very much in there.
    The HP holes takes away 20 or so grains. It is a large HP hole.
    I also have one of Al's Gas Check Seaters I was thinking about seating the balls with. They have a disk that sides in where a Shell Holder goes into a Single stage press. And you put His "Die" in the press that holds a Bullet Top Punch. If need be to seat the balls.

  6. #6
    Boolit Grand Master Good Cheer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    the Ark
    Posts
    5,276
    Nice boolits sir.
    To me homemade hollow points really are worth going that tinkering extra mile.

  7. #7
    ADMIN



    HATCH's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Lexington, SC
    Posts
    6,704
    I have a magma mold that Erik modified to do HP.
    10mm/40 cal. Was a 180 grain but now closer to 170 ish.
    I haven't tested expansion because to be honest it didn't matter to me.
    If it expanded then great. If not it no big deal.
    They functioned perfectly in every gun I shot them in.
    They weren't any harder to cast then the regular ones.
    In fact, they were so easy that I didn't even bother to purchase a standard 180 gr replacement mold

    People make a huge deal about expansion but at the end of the day if you are able to get your boolit on target it doesn't matter. A piece of 115 gr to 230 gr lead flying at 700 to 1200 FPS will kill you just the same.

  8. #8
    Boolit Master
    Dragonheart's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Katy, Texas
    Posts
    2,705
    I do cast HP's and have played around with them seeing how they expand, but for my carry guns I use commercial Federal Guard Dog bullets. In a 9mm the Federal run 1200+ fps. Since they are a full metal jacket there are no feeding issues. The soft polymer filled nose crushes and expands on contact. The penetration is more than sufficient and less likely to go completely through.
    Proven in ballistic tests, if a standard HP bullet hits bone the cavity fills with bone on impact and does not expand. In a human body there is an 85% chance a bullet will hit bone before reaching any vital area. I would think filling the cavity would be doing the same thing.

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master
    rintinglen's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Orange, VA NOW
    Posts
    6,492
    I have HP molds ranging from 32 ACP up to 45 ACP, with stops at 380, 9 MM, 38/357, and 44 along the way. I learned my lesson during the second Obama crunch, when there was nothing on the shelves, period. I believe in Hollow points and don't wish to be deprived of them.
    _________________________________________________It's not that I can't spell: it is that I can't type.

  10. #10
    Boolit Master
    Dragonheart's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Katy, Texas
    Posts
    2,705
    I don't use my cast HP's in my carry handgun, but I do cast hollow points and spray powder coat them. I do not powder coat the cavity. to keep the powder out of the cavity I constructed my "Bed of Nails" which makes it easy to PC the bullets then put them directly into the oven to cook. This method leaves the cavity clean.
    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	010_1.jpg 
Views:	12 
Size:	131.8 KB 
ID:	249330Click image for larger version. 

Name:	002_1.jpg 
Views:	14 
Size:	179.8 KB 
ID:	249331Click image for larger version. 

Name:	003_1.jpg 
Views:	11 
Size:	137.3 KB 
ID:	249332Click image for larger version. 

Name:	015_1.jpg 
Views:	15 
Size:	72.8 KB 
ID:	249333

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