Possible?

[Jammersix]

Is it possible to cast a hollow point boolit with a hollow base?

If so, how?

[NoZombies]

It would technically be possible, but would require the bullet to be cast 90 degrees off axis from the way we're used to casting. Machining would be more difficult, and the sprue cut would be problematic. The bullet also couldn't have any lube grooves. All in all, a wash at best.

Swaging is a much simpler and more consistent method if one desires to recreate the manstopper bullets, or to make some other configuration of HB/HP design.

[pdawg_shooter]

I guess injection molding, using the lost wax process would work. Very slow and very, very expensive, but it should give you any design bullet you want.

[Larry Gibson]

Cast the HB bullet, load them and then HP them with the Forster HP tool. It is quite simple and any cast bullet may be HP'd.

Larry Gibson

[beagle]

That's the easy and cheapest route to achieve a HB HP bullet.

Another solution would be to cast a HB and lube. Then come back in a swager and using a HB bottom punch and a HP top punch, swage a HP in it.

This would make for a very accurate bullet as HB bullets tend to have base/skirt voids that are not visible to a visual inspection. These would be squeezed out by the swaging operation.

We once made some 358156 bullets without the GC into HPs using a CH Swage-O-Matic. These were very accurate. Of course, the GC shank was swaged into a flat base./beagle


Cast the HB bullet, load them and then HP them with the Forster HP tool. It is quite simple and any cast bullet may be HP'd.

Larry Gibson

[Jammersix]

There are a couple reasons I'm interested in the concept. The first is, well, it's a hollow point. Don't want to give that up. The second is that I've been shooting Precision bullets, and they're quite accurate. They all have a slight hollow base-- more of a concave base than what I think of as a genuine hollow base, and I can't help but think that has a lot to do with how accurate they are.

[NoZombies]

Talk to buckshot about a swage die. I think he still makes the simple ones like this.

I have a set up for .358 bullets that makes hollow base, hollow point wadcutters. Or as I call them, double ended HBWC :)

The dies is simple, just a straight tube. The top and bottom punches do the magic. I cast regular WC's using a 6 or 10 cavity mold, and soft alloy, lube them (just one lube groove normally) and then run them through the die to make a .38 caliber version of the old manstoppers.

I haven't pulled the die set out of storage, I need to do that soon.

[Bigslug]

Take two light ones and J-B Weld the flat ends together.:kidding:

[geargnasher]

Cast the HB bullet, load them and then HP them with the Forster HP tool. It is quite simple and any cast bullet may be HP'd.

Larry Gibson

My first thought as well. I made one using a modified drill bit and a sliding pilot cast of JB Weld molded to fit the boolit's nose. A washer made to fit the drill bit and a coil spring keeps the pilot pushed against the nose so it doesn't take three hands to operate.

Gear