Trimming Lead

[Hooker53]

Just wondering if anyone in a pinch has had any luck trimming a lead Boolit in a lathe to create a heel? Do t think I would want to do this much but if your tool is sharp and you turn it up fast, just wondering if it would be worth a try. Thought about drilling a bit of of Teflon to hold it tight.

Roy

[fredj338]

If you need a heeled bullet, just order a mold from Accurate to your specs. I like to tinker, but that sounds excruciating.

[Hooker53]

A mould is endeed on the To Do list. I want to shoot it this weekend!!!!! Lol.

[upnorthwis]

I shortened some 420 gr. boolits to try in a Browning Hi-Wall .40-65 back when I couldn't get it to shoot with anything. Put a 3-jaw drill chuck in lathe and bored out a steel collet. Then hacksawed in three places to get it to clamp. They shot great at 100 yds but not at 200 or farther. At least it was an experiment that proved the shorter boolit didn't work.

[Mk42gunner]

My first thought was a close fitting collet would be better than trying to use a three jawed chuck.

My second thought was that a round ball can be made to work easier if all you want to do is make sure the gun shoots. Then order a mold.

Robert

[303Guy]

I might have tried trimming a boolit in a lathe.[smilie=1: A hard alloy might work but not a soft alloy. Spinning it faster will make it worse as the boolit will fling itself out sideways. A close fitting collet should work but keeping the speed low and taking very small cuts.

[leftiye]

I turn off the rear land on some 330 grain .375s to make a gas check thingie (having a brain fart). My first reaction to the present question was - only if you have a boolit like a loverin with lots of lands to grip (and size it first to straighten it out). A collet is the bomb here. Lead cuts like butter, keep your tool sharp, slow turning is fine (so is some faster, but don't get carried away), light cuts, fine feed, and it will werk fine.

[Tatume]

You could make some bullets on your lathe from leaded steel or brass. They would be soft enough to shoot, and would probably shoot well. To be even easier on your barrel, you might cut many grooves, or knurl the bullets.

However, the round ball suggestion is the most practical.