Exposed lead at base of bullet

[BT Sniper]

I was able to improve on my bullet jackets from 30-06 cases by reducing the amount of lead exposed at the base of the bullet. Some concern was raised in the .357 from .223 brass thread as to possibilty of jacket seperating from core and getting lodged in barrel. So I did some tweeking and was able to reduce the diameter of the exposed lead at the base of a .429 bullet from .225 to .165.

I have shot the .225 exposed bullets from my 44 AMP at 1300 FPS with no problems but figured I would attempt to make it better for shooting from a .444 Marlin at higher FPS.

Previous jackets I made from 270 brass and it gave me the .225 exposed, now I size the brass down with 25-06 first to give me the .165 exposed lead. With some more tweeking I could probably get it even less but I figure that it looks pretty good the way it is. Any one have any thoughts on possible jacket seperation left in the barrel with a bulllet like this?

I was able to seat the core and form the jacket in the same stroke of the press. This left the core seated jacket with a little more then a 45 degree angle at the base of the bullet. The final swage took care of the rest with a flat base and nice rounded edge. I'll get some pics of the step by step process soon.

Good shooting,

BT

[jack007]

That looks real nice

[stocker]

Have you tried leaving the discharged primer in the pocket ? The flash hole is a pretty small area for gas pressure to work on in terms of pushing the core out but who knows in the long run?

[BT Sniper]

Yep! I leave the spent primer in. These are made from the cut off top of a 30-06 case and the bottom of the case with the primer pocket is made into a 44 AMP case.

[stocker]

So, is the majority of the base lead other than the exterior jacket when you are using the top parts of the case or does the swage form the brass around the base? I would be concerned if you only have brass walls and nothing on the base. It was certainly possible to shoot the core out of military rifle bullets that had the nose remeoved with the intent of providing expansion capability.

[BT Sniper]

Bullets pictured above are example of jacket forming around base of bullet to limit the exposed lead. Majority is jacket. A .429 dia bullet with .16 dia lead exposed.

[stocker]

Got it now. Thought the pictures were of the bases with lead swaged into the primer pockets.
That would concern me as there is quite a bit of exposed lead. Not sure what you are running for pressure etc. and perhaps there is no worry I don't really know.

Just after WW2 my Dad bulged the barrel of a Lee Enfield with military bullets he had modified by filing the points back. Shooting at a deer, he thought he had missed the first shot. Fired a second shot and then the barrel bulged about 1/3 of the way up it's length. Amazing it didn't rupture entirely. Gave me some respect for the strength of those rifles. He cut the barrel off and found two bullet jackets in the bulge - one inside the other. No lead left in either. He kept those jackets and barrel section for years but after his death I was unable to locate them in his effects. He had moved several times and they were probably discarded.