9mm jackets out of 5/16 copper tubing

[newbieMaker]

I have 5/16 copper tubing trims from fridge business, I am interested if anybody has experience to make jackets for 9mm using 5/16 tubing?
in my case they come in two sizes, 5/16 x 0.016 and 5/16 x 0.02
If I understand correctly, 0.02 wall can be resized down to 0.014 and thus increasing diameter to 0.343 or about.
I am newbie to the topic, so any information/tips would be helpful, thanks

[midnight]

I have made 30 caliber jackets (.306) from 5/16 tubing. It is not too difficult to draw down the .312 tubing. I can't conceive of a way to increase .312 dia. tubing to .356 or so. You would be better off using 3/8 (.375) tubing & draw it down.

Bob

[MUSTANG]

You will have to expand the tubing. Played with it a bit years ago before I invested in actual Copper Tubing Jacket Dies and Swage Dies.


1. The process WILL BE LABOR & TIME EXTENSIVE.
2. Get a series of reloading die neck expanding mandrels. For sake of discussion you might want a .223, .243, 25/06, .308, 8mm.
3. You will need a thick washer or plate with a diameter hole the same or .00o5 or .001 over the size of each of the expanding mandrels.
4. Basic idea is to place a cut piece of tubing on the smallest expansion mandrel; drive it through the tubing so the tube is expanded, and the washer sits on top so you have something to hold the copper tube/jacket as it is driven, the tubing expands, and the washer pushes the top of the tubing onto and "Off" the mandrel at the bottom. Repeat for each size expander mandrel until the tubing is the correct diameter.
5. Addendum. TO keep the copper tube from collapsing (banana collapse); you will need short metal rod that fits inside the copper tube for each expanding process. Put the rod in the top (slips through the thick washer hole - while the walls of the copper tube DO NOT SLIP THROUGH THE WASHER HOLE. The expander mandrel is driven through the other side of the copper tube expanding the walls outward with each expansion step. The rod is pushed out the other end of the tube, and the mandrel follows through the washer hole. All this can be done on a traditional reloading press (heavy duty is better) by having a plate on the ram to keep the mandrel rod from dropping down the bottom of the press ram; and the washer centered on the top where a die is screwed in. Hold the assembly of washer, rod, copper tube, and expander mandrel all together and aligned while slowly cycling the reloading press. It works; but is labor and patience intensive.

NOTE- Each time you drive a mandrel through, the thickness of the tubing becomes less.

It will work - I have done this; it is Difficult and Trying to do. You will have lots of Failures (mostly banana tubes). Reason I did it was curiosity if I could; and Limited ready cash when I was trying it. I was expanding 1/4 copper tubing to .308 (.308/7) jackets.


Best advice:

a. Do as midnight advises above.
b. Trade or sell the tubing to someone on this site for 3/8 tubing.
c. Give expanding some of the tubes a try; just use whatever expanding mandrels you have/can borrow from a fellow reloader.

[newbieMaker]

midnight
MUSTANG
Thank you for your replies,

until now I didn't realize there would be so many steps and work required to increase tube OD from 0.312 to 0.343.
I've found video where 0.343 tube cut is resized to final 0.355 size during core seating, this is 0.012 increase.
To do resize during core seating I will need to resize 0.042, which I think will simply snap the tube.

about drawing down, any suggestions for small tube cuts? I need to be effective, 1-2 pass operation on press.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ITgMXtuMv0
in this video I see factory drawing of long tubes, how to do the same for small, 0.900" long tube cut?

[midnight]

Drawing down bullet jackets is very different from drawing down a length of tubing. You must first make the jacket by closing the end of the cut piece of tubing making a cup. It will be shorter and thicker walled than the desired finished jacket since the walls will thin and the jacket will get longer as you draw it down. My draw dies are made using a 2.5 to 3.0 inch length of 7/8 drill rod threaded 7/8-14 it's entire length. I drill & ream a through hole slightly larger than the drawn jacket that will come out of it. Then, using a boring bar I bore a pocket in one end that will accomidate the drill bushing I select with a very tight press fit. I select a drill bushing with an ID slightly smaller than the size of the jacket I am making. Chucked in a lathe I grind and polish a taper on both ends of the bushing leaving approximatly 2 mm in the middle untouched. Then using a barrel lap I lap the center to the desired jacket diameter allowing for about .001 in springback. After applying red loctite to the pocket & bushing, press the bushing completely into the pocket you bored in the drill rod. Usually I bore the pocket deep enough to accomidate 2 drill bushings. After seating the one I just described, I make another with an ID only about .001 in larger than the starting jacket to serve as a guide to be certain the jacket enters the draw bushing squarely. I just put a slight taper on each end of the guide bushing & loctite & press it in place. To go from .375 down to .307 you will probably need three of these dies. I make the first draw down to .356 so I can make 35 cal jackets too. As you can see, it's quite an involved process but for those of us who love this stuff it's fun. Sorry to run on so long, once I get started it's hard to stop.

Bob

PS: I use a one ton arbor press to press the bushings into the pocket.

[tiger762]

I've made 550's out of 50cal jackets. Use the punch from the 50cal set in the core seat die of the 550 set. Every once in a while the jacket will split. The ones that don't, end up with an odd cross-hatch pattern. Probably not best for a beginner to try. Requires knowing what to feel for, as the expansion happens. The lead tries to slip past the punch, but the rounds I was making had some jacket around the top that stayed the same diameter. The lead was contained even as it was expanding the jacket!

[Gew]

I swage .308 jackets to .329. When I get 338 dies I hope the 308 jackets can make that jump. I'm sure they will even if I have to anneal them.

[newbieMaker]

very helpful responses, thanks.
as I see most practical way for 9mm is 11/32 tubing, any increase or decrease in diameter incurs additional steps, with not so reliable results or too much effort for results.
only information I've found is very old video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzqyOfrhqZY and I wonder why I can't find anything like made in last years. nobody is doing swaging from tubes? or no time for youtube videos?
one more question guys, almost every manual jacket making process is for hollow/lead points, with closed end made from cups, why people don't make round nose, open end bullets like ones we have from factory?

[lup]

very helpful responses, thanks.
as I see most practical way for 9mm is 11/32 tubing, any increase or decrease in diameter incurs additional steps, with not so reliable results or too much effort for results.
only information I've found is very old video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzqyOfrhqZY and I wonder why I can't find anything like made in last years. nobody is doing swaging from tubes? or no time for youtube videos?
one more question guys, almost every manual jacket making process is for hollow/lead points, with closed end made from cups, why people don't make round nose, open end bullets like ones we have from factory?

You can make round nose open bottom bullets. You need an elliptical point form die. Harder to make yourself but certainly available to buy.

[MUSTANG]

newbie maker:


Another thought on a way to go on your 9mm jacket objective can be found in a BTSniper post from 2012. He was using .223 cases to make a .308 jacket; and a 9mm jacket from one piece of brass. Interesting post and discussion; just click on the link below.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?164162-9mm-and-308-bullets-from-scrap-223rem-brass!

[newbieMaker]

newbie maker:


Another thought on a way to go on your 9mm jacket objective can be found in a BTSniper post from 2012. He was using .223 cases to make a .308 jacket; and a 9mm jacket from one piece of brass. Interesting post and discussion; just click on the link below.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?164162-9mm-and-308-bullets-from-scrap-223rem-brass!

Thanks for help,
I've abandoned 5/16 tubing project, too time consuming and ineffective, I will be doing 11/32, it is the way to go.
I will also consider swaging from strip, for higher volume shooting needs.