45acp from 40-start up help

[arjacobson]

Hello- The dies have been on order-I have a large coffee can of 40 brass-I have a bunch of bullets cast out of pure lead for cores.. What is a good starting point to trim brass to?? As always thanks a bunch guys!!

[7of7]

Decide what weight of bullet you want to make...
Then, you need to know the weight of your cores, and jackets.
You can adjust the weight of either one, or both of the components to come up with your desired weight.

[Jailer]

Your brass length is dependent partially on your core weight. I am using a 145 grain .40 core and I trim my brass to .688. You'll have to experiment a bit once you get your die set to see what works for you.

[arjacobson]

I have cast a bunch of the 40 cal 145 grain bullets. If I trim to .688 will I be in the ball park??. Looking for something 200 to 230 grain.

[bohica2xo]

Buy the notch die, and you don't trim anything.

With the jacket wrapped around at the nose, they feed great in a stock 1911.

B.

[ReloaderFred]

"Buy the notch die, and you don't trim anything."

That's what I've been doing with the .44's from .40 brass. It really speeds up the process and makes a good looking bullet, too.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[arjacobson]

Does BT have these notch dies??

[BT Sniper]

Yep! Plenty of notch dies avialble! Best advise I can offer is stronger components for your dies. The CH dies are great but unfornantly the internial components and design of their use are a bit lacking in my opinion. The 45 takes a bit of pressure to swell that 40 case up to a 45 but can easliy be done. Stronger tools will certainly last you a lot longer and maybe save you a bit of frustration.

Hopefully these 45 cal dies will be avialble soon from CH. As far as the notch die I can send you one anytime you like.

BT

[bohica2xo]

Yes, BT makes the notch dies.

Here is a link to the post with pics:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=1110198&postcount=39

B.

[BT Sniper]

Seating the core will be a challenge with the stock CH punch. If you go with the stock Ch dies I recamend you order a 40 cal swage base punch. This will allow you to seat the cores in the untrimmed 40 S&W jacket. This can't be done with the 45 cal core seat base punch they supply you with unless you want to make lead tip bullets with trimmed jackets.

BT

p.s. Of course I would be happy to supply you with all the essientals to allow you to truly use the CH dies to their full potential and making the whole experience more enjoyable for you. Check into a few of the 45 cal dies I have put together for some of the members here. Maybe send them a PM to get a bit of info.

Good shooting!

[BT Sniper]

I got the perfect solution for us making the 45s from the 40 S&W case. Let me expereiment a bit and then post some pics. I'll keep you posted.

BT

[Jailer]

I have cast a bunch of the 40 cal 145 grain bullets. If I trim to .688 will I be in the ball park??. Looking for something 200 to 230 grain.

Mine that I trim to .688 end up right around 212 grains. I sort cores and trimmed cases by weight to and match them up to keep them consistent and they end up looking like this:

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b180/Jailer/posting%20pics/Firstboolit.jpg

And notched they look like this:

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b180/Jailer/posting%20pics/bullets.jpg

[arjacobson]

fantastic!!!

[BT Sniper]

and they shoot like this: ........ :)

and they blow stuff up like this: ........ :)

Yep. They look great! Can't wait to see the range results.

Nice work Jailer! You got it down pretty good, great actually! These are with the CH dies and my improved internials I set up for Jailer, and of course the universial notching die, hope you don't mind a shameless plug on my part here Jailer :)

Swage On!

BT

[Jailer]

hope you don't mind a shameless plug on my part here Jailer :)

Swage On!

BT

No problem buddy, that's why I post them. Never would have been able to produce this stuff without your help. :drinks: