Which crimp with this RN boolit?

[Gunslinger]

I've started casting a .358 158gr RN PB boolit. I dosen't have 1 lube groove like many of the traditional designs, but has 3 small grooves placed on top of each other.... is that a tumle lube boolit then?? I have never seen a TL boolit! Are these 3 smaller grooves as efficient as 1 big?

I cast some up the other day and dropped them in water because I want to try using them for .357 mag. I tend to use 10gr Bludot. Any comments?

This boolit doesn't have a crimp groove, so I would assume the right thing to do is to taper crimp them.... correct?

[lwknight]

You assume logically and probably correctly. The depth of seating is what is critical to load data. As in don't seat it too deep or higher pressures may occur and to shallow will be over length.
Can't go wrong with taper crimp either way.

[Bass Ackward]

I've started casting a .358 158gr RN PB boolit. I dosen't have 1 lube groove like many of the traditional designs, but has 3 small grooves placed on top of each other.... is that a tumle lube boolit then?? I have never seen a TL boolit! Are these 3 smaller grooves as efficient as 1 big?

I cast some up the other day and dropped them in water because I want to try using them for .357 mag. I tend to use 10gr Bludot. Any comments?

This boolit doesn't have a crimp groove, so I would assume the right thing to do is to taper crimp them.... correct?


A tumble lube bullet generally has characteristics where the space for lube does not exceed the normal height for rifling and the bands appear round on top with a V bottom. If the space is an actual groove and you have multiple grooves, then it is often described as a Loverin design, but it is still just a multiple groove bullet designed by someone NOT named Loverin.

Is it more efficient than one groove? Depends on the round count and wear of your handgun. If your forcing cone has been worn longer over the years, then pushing lube up toward the front where it can be protected by the bore before the base breaks seal with the cylinder face can ensure that some lube actually makes it up the pipe. I have had good and bad success with both, but one groove is definitely easier to lube in a press.

Strangely enough, I just finished a batch off (60) similar to what you are describing that was passed on to me. I couldn't locate the exact configuration for the mold from any of my sources and the gentleman to ask has left the range. These resembled a rifle bullet. It had four equal width bands / three grooves and a round nose with a PB and no crimp. They were actually sized to .361, so I don't know how big they were originally. I would be interested if you had a number or something to look up.

I couldn't hold them for any velocity. (recoil) Because this was a 27 Smith (short cylinder N-frame) I couldn't use the back of the first lube groove either. Eventually, I just did a light roll crimp into the front drive band similar to what you would do with a jacketed. The slight .... bulge seemed to perform a centering in the chamber that helped out too. I used 8.5 grains of AA#7 that is very similar to BlueDot. Above that and they walked.

Just watch your first cylinder to be safe.

[Gunslinger]

I will take a closer look on the mold this weekend and post you a picture... there are no stamps on the mold.

I got some loaded this evening and will go to the range tomorrow and see how they perform. I'll watch the cylinder.... Bludot is pretty aggressive. The gun is a performance center S&W with a .44 cylinder... I think. It surely is fatter than a normal cylinder.