Wondering about swaging .223

[armoredman]

Can it be done cheaply enough to be worth it over buying factory bullets? I only have an old RCBS RS press, (old Jr model), so I think I would have to get a new press too. Would haveuse lead wire, any way to covert ingot lead to leadwire, or would I have to buy some from somewhere? Just curious, no $ to get into it for now, thanks for any replies.

[EMC45]

If he's not I may be.

[pumpguy]

Me too.

[Bent Ramrod]

Bulk factory bullets are awful cheap these days. However, if you shoot enough of them, it may be worth investing in the tooling. When I bought my Corbin set, it was $78 or so, and .22 Hornet bullets (no bulk stuff back then) were $2.80 per hundred. I figured I could shoot 28 boxes of bullets made of cast scrap lead and .22 RF jackets (eventually) and pay for the dies. I hear the Corbin set is over $350 anymore, and bulk bullets are $50-odd bucks for 500. So now the tariff is almost 35 boxes of bullets to the break-even point.

Mostly, though, I got the die set because I wanted to swage bullets. Don't know if I ever made it to 28 boxes, but I figure I have made over 15 anyway. Takes a fair amount of time to make even a couple hundred bullets, too; even though it's a hobby and a joy, you have to have the time.

If you buy lead wire, or jackets, it will cut your savings margin, pretty severely. Jackets are maybe twice as expensive as gas checks, last I checked, and shipping on lead wire is costly. Corbin has, or had, a die that you could put an ingot of lead into and extrude wire from it. I'm pretty sure it needs a hydraulic system to work.

Sport Flite sells a 22RF/cast core bullet swage die set on the type of Corbin's for about a third the price. Never heard any reviews of this company or its products, but it would at least get somebody into the game for less money. But the bottom line is you don't get into swaging to save money.

[454PB]

The last time I checked, the Corbin set I have now sells for $600. That is the jacket maker, core mould, and swaging die set. As was already said, it's a very time consuming process. If you shoot a lot of .22's, plan on several hours of jacket forming and swaging for each 100 bullets. I've mentioned before that I tried casting the cores and finally gave up and bought lead wire which I cut with a home made core cutter. The fired .22 rimfire cases have to be annealed before forming. I always sort them by headstamp for better uniformity.

The results however as excellent. My .222 and 22/250 shoot sub MOA groups when I do my part.

[garandsrus]

454PB,

How do you anneal the rimfire cases? Are you doing a batch at a time or is it one at a time?

Thanks,
John

[454PB]

I dump a big handful into my old Lyman casting pot and put them on a hotplate. Once they discolor evenly, I turn off the heat.

[armoredman]

Something tells me this might not be the route I need to take right now. Maybe next year, but thank you very much for the info, and the offer was quite generous, sir. I think I will try the cast and j-word bullets for now.

[KTN]

Can these bullets with .22RF jackets take .223 velocities with 1-7" to 1-9" twist?


Kaj

[Adam10mm]

Most I've heard say the velocity threshold is 3000fps.

[454PB]

I've chronographed mine at 3550 fps. in my 22/250, and 3/4" groups at 100 yards.

[pjh421]

Because of the initial expense, swaging is probably best done by the excessively curious. However, its a good option when you want a bullet you can't get in a store, as is casting. Otherwise, you're better off buying factory bullets. I still buy them.

Paul

[Four Fingers of Death]

Can these bullets with .22RF jackets take .223 velocities with 1-7" to 1-9" twist?


Kaj

Is that the bullets made from 22LR cases? From what Corbin says in his book, 22 Hornet velocities are about as good as these get. I ain't gonna live long enough to shoot off all of the 22 bulk buy jacketed stuff I have downstairs. I have found the 22 Speer 55Gns bullet a great performer. If you want a cheap hunting bullet Winchester used to sell the 22mag bullets as cheap as. I just bought a thousand Winchester Hornet bullets, 46Gn I think.

I've always like the idea of swaging my own, but the cost is through the roof, if you need enough bullets to justify the cost, you probably won't have time to make them :D

[Adam10mm]

I was thinking of starting on something simple like 223 or 45 Auto to get the basics. I really want to swage my own .375cal bullets for my .375 H&H Magnum.

[Jjed]

I have the Corbin dies for making 22 cal bullets from 22 lr cases and have used them
For quite a while. If you’re looking for something to make lots of bullets at a time this is not for you. For me It is a hobby to see how well I can make my own jacketed boolits
Shoot. As for annealing I find the best way is to swage the cores in the case and heat
Them with a propane torch until the mouth of the case turns color, but when doing
This you must make sure there is no moisture in the case or on the core because when this is done it melts the core making a bonded boolit and you all know what happens when you melt wet lead (boom) lead stuck to the ceiling. After annealing I put a small amount of lube on the boolit and run it thought the point-forming die. I have shot them out of a mini 14 ranch rifle, ar15 and a 700 BDL 22-250. and all have shot very well. The mini 14 shot around 1 and ¼ in-group the 22- 250 a little better ¾ in-group and the ar15 1 ½ to 2 inch.

[toecutter]

Anyone got any contact info for sport flite? Google searches havn't turned up much.

[Bent Ramrod]

Toecutter,

Last address I had (17th Edition Handloader's Digest) is:

Sport Flite Manufacturing Co.
P. O. Box 1082
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303

(810) 647-3747

[Bullshop]

I think our gator check friend Larry Blackman took over sport flight.
Dont get your hopes up though. When we did the very first group buy gas check thingy I orderd three presses and a set of dies for .224" and still dont have them. That was about what like 4 years ago.
The last I heard from him about 1 year after the order was that the presses were being painted and would be ready soon.
If yer lookin at R Corbin he aint much better. Of an order put in about 1 year ago at least I have gotten half of it. If you want the tools and you want them in your life time order from Dave Corbin. Yes his listed prices are higher but in most cases he has what you want ready to go.
I recently had a lengthy chat with dave about why does it seem so impossible to aquire these tools. I actually called him to have him check on his brother who would not respond to calls or emails. I was thinking they would find him dead but then shortly after I got part of my order and nothing since.
Short story if you dont enjoy frustration order from Dave.
BIC/BS

[Bent Ramrod]

Dave himself got into this issue in one of his Corbin Technical Bulletins. After RCBS stopped selling jacketed bullet dies, about the only people who were more or less in the in-stock die business were outfits like C-H, Herter's and to a lesser extent, Ted Smith of SAS. Of those three, only Smith made dies which made real, full-jacketed ogival rifle bullets. For everyone else, it was a semi-hobby, semi-business, semi-labor of love and Corbin found upon canvassing these people that they really didn't want a whole load of work. Just enough to fill the time they'd allocated for making dies in between farming, hunting, other jobs, etc. Generally, these one- or two-man operations ran only as long as the principal remained interested. If he couldn't sell the business, it went poof when he decided to hang it up. There are many good dies that have been made: B&A, LLF, Hemp's, Bahler. etc., that are now orphans and if incomplete or damaged are useless unless you can get Corbin, or a specialty diemaker, to make up copies of the wornout parts for you. Or figure out what's missing and try to do it yourself.

Dave Corbin is really revolutionary in that he had a vision of a full-service, full-time bullet die industrial source, both for hobbyists and for small, specialty manufacturers that can't afford toolmakers to set their lines up. I wouldn't doubt that anybody who is going to do things the old-fashioned way will have an even tougher time and a shorter shrift in the marketplace competing with Corbin than they did competing with each other in the old days. Sport-Flite may be one of these short-lived operations; my Handloader's Digest source is 10 years old.

I always wondered how the Sport-Flite stacked up to the Corbin, though. Did anybody ever buy one of their .22 rimfire swage kits?

[ofreen]

Can these bullets with .22RF jackets take .223 velocities with 1-7" to 1-9" twist?


Kaj


Yes, no problem with the 1-9" twists in two of my rifles.