Making Hollow Points

[roadwarrior307]

I have been casting some .45, and I was wondering how I can turn my cast bullets in hollow points. Can I just drill out a hole in them? If I can't, does anyone know where I can get a .45 hollow point mold at a decent price?

[Leftoverdj]

I have been casting some .45, and I was wondering how I can turn my cast bullets in hollow points. Can I just drill out a hole in them? If I can't, does anyone know where I can get a .45 hollow point mold at a decent price?

Yup, you can just drill a hole in them IF you have a means of getting that hole concentric. I'm fortunate in owning a lathe so it's no problem for me. Forster makes a jig to be used with their case trimmer that some use with varying degrees of success.

Your best bet for a mould would be to look for a secondhand Lee. They have been discontinued a year or two, but had a really good system for centering the pin. Lyman uses a removable pin that is a real PITA. Avoid removable pins if you can.

[WARD O]

Here's a possible idea.....

http://hollowpointmold.com/

Ward

[GLynn41]

The Lyman is not that bad to me-- it does work and works well-- the Foster case trimmer will work too and buckshot might can make yours into an HP also

[qajaq59]

If you get the Forster drill don't get the 1/16. It's too small and bends way too easily.

[fredj338]

I have been casting some .45, and I was wondering how I can turn my cast bullets in hollow points. Can I just drill out a hole in them? If I can't, does anyone know where I can get a .45 hollow point mold at a decent price?

Lyman makes the only commercial HP I know of. It's a good bullet for 45ac, no crimp groove & weighs in about 200gr from ww. It expands quite well if cast from 25-1 lead/tin mix @ 800-900fps. For 45colts, a custom HP can be had from Erik @ HPMS, Ward posted the link. I have the RCBS 270grLSWC w/ one cav HP. It will throw 250gr-270gr LHP depending on alloy & pin choice. I can get expansion from 800fps to 1200fps.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v703/fredj338/452-268-1K.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v703/fredj338/45-215gr.jpg\
This mold is a custom Lyman from Erik w/ a 5pt HP. It's sim. to the Lyman Dev. mold but a bit more weight.

[Ohio Rusty]

Funny you should mention this.... I have a small vice locked down on my drill press and I have been wanting to make .380 hollowpoints. The vice has metal serrated jaw faces that screw off. The plan is to cut a couple flat nylon jaw faces the same size as the metal ones. Then screw them to the vice jaws and close the jaws. Drill a hole part way thru both halves to accept the lead .380 bullet. Now when I open the jaws I should be able to slip in the .380 lead bullet, tighten the vice jaws and drill a shallow hollow point hole dead center in the tip of the .380 lead bullet. Loosen the vice slightly, remove drilled bullet and insert new bullet, drill again ...... Lather, rinse and repeat until I have as many hollow points for the .380 as I want. The mould is the Lee .102 gr. bullet, and I should be able to get the weight into the high 90's after the shallow hole is drilled.

BTW ...... the nylon jaw faces I'm making to hold the bullet and not mar or deform the bullet comes from a common white nylon cutting board.

Ohio Rusty ><>

[XWrench3]

"This is America !!, where many have fought and died for our right
to celebrate our views with inflatable creatures in our yards ......."

OHIO RUSTY, this is the best thing i have read in a while! now all we have to do is get it in the NBC Nightly News for a week or so.

as for the hollow point situation, i have one of the Forster hollow point jigs as well. they work quite well, for me at least. the key is taking your time, getting everything square, and using the little "thimble" aligning tool. that is what gets the hole started dead center. you also have to be patient. it is not for high production! the 1/16ths bit is for rifle boolits. having used this, i am looking for a used mold. something that is not such a P.I.T.A. to use!

[Trapshooter]

A while back, someone posted a method of replacing the seating plug on a seater die with plug that has a drill pilot hole in the center. After seating the bullet, you can drill a well centered hole in the nose of the bullet, down through the die. With a stop collar on the drill, the depth is consistent. I looked at making one for Lee dies, they all use the same diameter and thread.

I made a quick search but couldn't find the earlier post.

Trapshooter

[ace1001]

Good hollowpoints are much softer than good cast bullets. They have a jacket so as not to lead the barrel. Unless you drive the hell out of them, they will not deform as you hope. They are also a single bullet mold. Very slow casting. Rainer Ballistics makes a plated swaged HP that will perform well at magnum levels and is very cheap. Otherwise get a 6 gang mold with a large meplate and cast a whole lot of cheap devastating solid bullets. OR.. contact me and I will sell you my Lee HP mold. $15.00 plus shipping. Ace

[fredj338]

Good hollowpoints are much softer than good cast bullets. They have a jacket so as not to lead the barrel. Unless you drive the hell out of them, they will not deform as you hope. They are also a single bullet mold. Very slow casting. Rainer Ballistics makes a plated swaged HP that will perform well at magnum levels and is very cheap. Otherwise get a 6 gang mold with a large meplate and cast a whole lot of cheap devastating solid bullets. OR.. contact me and I will sell you my Lee HP mold. $15.00 plus shipping. Ace
Not really true. As you can see by the pics posted, you can get really good expansion from soft cast lead bullets @ modest vel. In fact, it's tough to get them to hold together above 1000fps w/ many types.
The Ranier HP are NOT good at vel. much above 1000fps either. I have shot several of the 124gr 9mm @ 1250fps & they pretty much fragment.
Speed of casting, well, if you pay for Cramer style mold HP, you can cast 2,3 or 4 almost as fast as solids. For modest vel. roudns like the 45acp, a lead HP will work just about as well as any std. cup/core JHP.

[Hardcast416taylor]

Ohio Rusty. I did about the same as you only I used 2 pieces of pine not nylon.Robert

[ace1001]

My .45 Ranier HPs worked well at 1350 and 1850fps, but not well expanded at 1050. Nosler HPs disintigrated at 1850, but did well at 1050. XTPs had beautiful petals at all velocities tested but were twice the price of the Ranier HP which were not beautiful flowers but made a 3/4 inch front about 95% intact. Ace

[fredj338]

My .45 Ranier HPs worked well at 1350 and 1850fps, but not well expanded at 1050. Nosler HPs disintigrated at 1850, but did well at 1050. XTPs had beautiful petals at all velocities tested but were twice the price of the Ranier HP which were not beautiful flowers but made a 3/4 inch front about 95% intact. Ace
It is possible that the larger dia. Ranier expand better, w/ more control, but the 124gr9mm fragment badly above 1200fps, leaving just the base in wetpack. I would not rely on the Ranier for consistant expansion, at least in the smaller bores.

[ace1001]

I have also used .357 at 1000 fps and they expanded to aproximately 1/2 in. If I know I'm hunting, I will spring for the XTPs, but the Ranier Ballistics is better than we can make ourselves. Ace

[Ugluk]

Are there no tools available for swaging a hollowpoint in a RN or TC boolit in a press?
Or would that damage the lubegrooves?

Just a thougt..

[Obmi]

Ammo smith
Making Hollow Points With a Case Trimmer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEsTD8CJzAg

[dragonrider]

Ugluk,
It is possible o form a hollowpoint in the manner you describe but it will result in a longer boolit, the displaced material has to go somewhere. If the lube grooves have been filled prior to forming the hollowpoint they won't distort.

[StarMetal]

I wonder how accurate, or should I say inaccurate, that youtube guy drilling the hollow points are....because they sure weren't dead centered?

Joe

[dk17hmr]

I wonder how accurate, or should I say inaccurate, that youtube guy drilling the hollow points are....because they sure weren't dead centered?

Joe

I have found it really doesnt matter if it is off centered just a bit, they still seem to group tighter than soilds in my handguns.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=12150&highlight=drill+press

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=47568&highlight=drill+press

[fredj338]

I have found it really doesnt matter if it is off centered just a bit, they still seem to group tighter than soilds in my handguns.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=12150&highlight=drill+press

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=47568&highlight=drill+press
Well, at any distance beyond 10yds, an off center HP isn't going to help acccuracy. A small drilled HP isn't going to do as much for expansion as a larger one. Many times the bullet will just mash the smaller HP in on itself. It would take longer to cast solids & then set them up properly & drill them than just getting a HP mold & cast them. Have Erik @ HPMS do the conversion & get a couple of diff pin shapes & you can really customize your HP for the alloy & vel. you want to run.

[shotman]

you dont need a holding jig . use some rubber gasket sheet. dont use a drill-- 45* counter sink and drill press. I made a wood block for each size and it fits in the drill vice the rubber stops the boolit from spinning. you just have to get used to the down pressure and drill speed

[ace1001]

Roadwarrior wants my mold, so you all can stop PM me. Sorry. Ace

[ace1001]

They should have a star plug in the mold to help the petals separate. Ace