half jackets

[Benjlan]

Hey guys,
I was wondering if there is a way to make half jackets for 45acp?

[Forrest r]

Absolutely!!!!

I make them out of 40s&w cases. Simply anneal them & cut them to length then run them up into a 44spl/mag case expanding die ( the 1 that bells the case to accept bullets). After that use a core seating die of if the core are a close match to the bullet your forming or just make bullets.

A 225gr bullet made out of 40s&w cases, wanted the hp to frag & leave a huge meplate to keep thumping whatever they get a hold of.

76677

[Lizard333]

Try core bonding. I get 96% weight retention. I anneal and core bond in the same step. Very happy with the results.

[DukeInFlorida]

I have a set of BT Sniper dies which will make both 45 acp (from trimmed down .40 S&W brass, annealed) and 45 long colt from untrimmed .40 brass (both at .452 diameter)..... That's about your best bet. You can also use the old style half jackets, but they are hard to come by, and pricey.

[Twmaster]

I hope this is not too dumb of a question. When using something like a 40 S&W to make a half jacket and you use a core seater what keeps the lead from flowing around the case as you are pressing the core in? Will the belling of the mouth of the jacket alone keep that from flowing? I'm assuming you are using the full sized core then tip forming once the case has been expanded and core seated.

Maybe I'm slow so if any of you have some pics of the process I'd be grateful.

[DukeInFlorida]

I would point you to any of the swaging bullets from other cases threads, perhaps even starting with the 9mm to 40 one step thread.
The concept is the same, and there are lots of pretty pictures which should explain it all to you.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?70121-40-cal-from-9mm-easiest-by-far-and-cheap!

There... but be sure to read the other threads also.

[sprinkintime]

Try core bonding. I get 96% weight retention. I anneal and core bond in the same step. Very happy with the results.

Lizard; have you ever tried to core-bond using a drop of red lock-tite,? I don't know if it would work, just asking.
Sprink

[Twmaster]

Duke,

Those 9 to 40 threads are interesting but it's not the same. Once you've seated the core in those the lead is pretty much all inside the case/jacket. These half jackets still have a lot of lead exposed.

[Lizard333]

Lizard; have you ever tried to core-bond using a drop of red lock-tite,? I don't know if it would work, just asking.
Sprink

That would be interesting. I might try it. First thing that comes to mind is that the only way to get red lock tight to release is heat it up. 1500fps down a barrel tends to get some heat.

See if anyone else has tried it. Maybe they can chime in.

[Forrest r]

I've cor bonded in the past & still do with some of the different bullets that I swage. But I do it the old fashioned way, with heat/flux. I wanted the bullets in the picture above to frag, used a hard alloy as a core so they would.

The 1/2 jackets I use make are actually designed so that the top edge of the jacket actually folds into the lead core. This holds/bonds the 2 together & does extremely well on bullets in the 800fps to 1200fps range. On bullets that I drive faster than that I will also use a cannalure tool on them, the cannalure will help keep the jacket/core together. I've also used 1/2 jakets to make 30cal bullets & have drove them in the 2700fps range with no problem.

When I get some time this winter I want to design/make some different nose profiles much like the xtp style of bullet with the jacket folded over the nose more & a massive hp.

[DukeInFlorida]

OK, I get what you are asking about now.

In the old days, the guys who didn't press hard enough when setting the lead into the half jackets notoriously had some situations where the jackets stayed in the gun, and the lead went down the barrel. The jackets then, obviously, formed a barrel obstruction. I bet it happened much less than the stories would have you believe. However, it was one of the reasons why do it yourself bullets fell by the wayside back in the day (along with the advent of good commercially available bullets).

Some of the Swage-O-Matic tool sets still around (which is a perfect tool for making half jacket bullets), but slightly worn. And, when worn, they could allow the lead to sneak past the copper half jacket, and create the issue that you refer to. No solution that I know of. Bonding the lead to the jacket won't fix the leaky lead sneaking past the jacket issue. Maybe have a new set of swage parts made from your old worn out samples? I've had some of that done in the past.



Duke,

Those 9 to 40 threads are interesting but it's not the same. Once you've seated the core in those the lead is pretty much all inside the case/jacket. These half jackets still have a lot of lead exposed.

[Twmaster]

Who said anything about worn out dies?

[Forrest r]

The guy with the worn out bbl & a smile on his face!!!

[MIBULLETS]

I hope this is not too dumb of a question. When using something like a 40 S&W to make a half jacket and you use a core seater what keeps the lead from flowing around the case as you are pressing the core in? Will the belling of the mouth of the jacket alone keep that from flowing? I'm assuming you are using the full sized core then tip forming once the case has been expanded and core seated.

Maybe I'm slow so if any of you have some pics of the process I'd be grateful.

When seating a core that is longer than the jacket you want the jacket to form to the die wall first before the lead can get past the jacket edge. One way to do that is by having the bell on the jacket mouth so that the jacket mouth is a snug fit as it goes into the die. Jusht snug at the mouth not the rest of the jacket. This will seal off the lead and allow the lead to expand the jacket to full diameter. You may not need to do this at all. I would try it first and if the lead is getting by, try the belling.

[Twmaster]

Thank you. That's a very clear way to explain that.