Improved bullet

[303british.com]

When I first made bullets made from 22LR cases about ten or twelve years ago, I did not have a tip forming die. They came out looking like this. These are 60 grain bullets. They weren't pretty, and the tips hung up on my rifle's feed ramps. They shot okay, but just looking at them you can understand that I wasn't happy with them.

http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/rr179/S_Redgwell/Bullet%20Making/WIABDB5_zps190ce124.jpg

After a while I figured that I needed a tip forming die to dress the lead. In the meantime, I experimented with these. They are a standard open tip, weighing 49 grains. I've added a line to the drawing to indicate where the lead stopped. The accuracy was better than the lead tips, but only when I trimmed the meplat with...a meplat trimmer. You can see how squarely the trimmer made the tips. Frankly, I would have stuck with this, but trimming every bullet was a giant pain.

http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/rr179/S_Redgwell/Bullet%20Making/50swithline.jpg

After getting the tip forming die, I started to produce protected point bullets, weighing 59.5 grains. They feed smoothly and shoot as well as the OTs. Look at the noses of the bullets that are on their sides. The lead is rounded over and meets up perfectly with the jacket. These bullets have not been given a final cleaning. They are fresh out of the press. What appears to be dents, scratches or dark spots is just dirt from the production process. You can see a firing pin mark on the one bullet centre right.

The beauty of this tip is that the bullet OAL is the same or shorter than a 55 grain bullet - 0.710 inches. This will do 3000 fps out of a 222 Rem and almost 3100 fps from a 223. Between the thinner jacket and protected point, they stabilize in every 222 I've shot them from.

http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/rr179/S_Redgwell/Bullet%20Making/WIA6A9D_zpsbb80296a.jpg

[supe47]

Nice lookin' bullets.

[newcastter]

Nice lookin' bullets.
I second that, good looking bullets

[anotherred]

Ohhhh I can't wait till someone gets some dies done, especially mine. Is it wrong saying those are beautiful? Its something to make bullets out what was thought as worthless scrap.

[supe47]

What point form die are you using? Also, what meplat trimmer? Please.

[303british.com]

Thanks everyone for the kind words.

I've got a Sinclair 22 cal. meplat trimmer and a corbins.com tip former.

http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/rr179/S_Redgwell/Tactical%20Hornet/WIA2FC_zpscf65421d.jpg

My 43 grainer on left. Win on right. I like the tips this way.

[303british.com]

Here is the last one. My 65 grain bullet beside a 45 gr factory. It's a coyote crusher.

http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/rr179/S_Redgwell/Bullet%20Making/WIAF051_zps85c25282.jpg

[supe47]

Again, nice lookin' bullet.

[303british.com]

Since they are redoing the backstops at the range, I have to wait for a bit to try this one out.

[Prospector Howard]

303british, I like the looks of those. I've been monkeying around with a little heavier bullets myself, 67 gr; and I'm finding that the groups and acuracy are better than the 57 gr that I had been making. I have three .223 rifles (all with different twist barrels) and they all seem to shoot better with the heavier bullets. Also, the impact on the steel targets I shoot at seems to be better (more umph). I'm curious to see your results with your 65 grain bullets when you can test them.

[BLASTER62]

303british, I like the looks of those. I've been monkeying around with a little heavier bullets myself, 67 gr; and I'm finding that the groups and acuracy are better than the 57 gr that I had been making. I have three .223 rifles (all with different twist barrels) and they all seem to shoot better with the heavier bullets. Also, the impact on the steel targets I shoot at seems to be better (more umph). I'm curious to see your results with your 65 grain bullets when you can test them.

Here is a 62 & 68 gr rim fire fmj with a 0.104 Metplat with # 8 shot in the tip, that allows a smaller tip without blowing the tips out.89049

[303british.com]

303british, I like the looks of those. I've been monkeying around with a little heavier bullets myself, 67 gr; and I'm finding that the groups and acuracy are better than the 57 gr that I had been making. I have three .223 rifles (all with different twist barrels) and they all seem to shoot better with the heavier bullets. Also, the impact on the steel targets I shoot at seems to be better (more umph). I'm curious to see your results with your 65 grain bullets when you can test them.

One thing that many shooters have forgotten is, even with improved barrels and bullet construction, you need enough shank to engage the rifling and slide along the bore. Too little, and the bullet yaws going down the barrel if it is not perfectly aligned or the powder isn't optimum for the cartridge.

My experience has been that semi pointed and RNs are more forgiving WRT loads than BT spitzers, or the fairly latest craze, the VLD.

One thing that almost every bullet maker agrees about is that, with homemade 22LR jacketed bullets, long range and extreme accuracy are difficult to achieve. That is why I consider their max range to be around 300 yd. Groups should hold .75 to 1 inch @ 100 yd. Others may use them farther out, but this is my self imposed max. For these reasons, I am more concerned with accuracy than velocity or distance. I don't care about BC anymore. I don't even bother with SD. They are meaningless numbers for me. I sight in 1.5 inches high at 100 yd and they are good to 250 to 300.

WRT more lead in the jacket, there is one benefit: annealing is rarely required. This is case dependent however. SK, E and Win cases rarely crack when I put 55 gr. of lead into them. The mouth is supported by the lead when pointing up, and splits just don't happen much.

One last observation: When I was making my older, more pointy 65 grain bullets, I found it more difficult to adjust the tip forming die for consistent points because of the variations in jacket length. With the PP, the bullets are virtually all the same length. Any variations in the jacket length are eliminated. The mouth of the jacket is rolled slightly inward with a few of the bullets when smoothing the lead over. Everything just works more smoothly.


Here is a 62 & 68 gr rim fire fmj with a 0.104 Metplat with # 8 shot in the tip, that allows a smaller tip without blowing the tips out.89049

Those are nice. They are like my 60s. A small PP tip that opens up well with the exposed lead. Bullets formed with the jacket right to the tip do not hang up on feed ramps.

[Prospector Howard]

Have to agree with you 303. I'm thinking the longer bore riding area (shank) helps the bullet stabilize better. With the tips not having to go to a small point, getting the perfect anneal on them isn't as critical. Also, I tend to shoot my .223's under 300 yds. too. At my shooting spot I have steel targets set up at 130, 150, 200, 250, 300, 400, and 500 yds. Anything past 250 just doesn't give me the target feedback I like, so I just usually move on to something bigger if I want to shoot at longer range targets.