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Post by nonpcnrarn on Nov 13, 2009 11:58:41 GMT -5
Perhaps John Taffin would have this information as he is pretty innovative in his experimenting with bullet/firearm combinations. For instance it was he who influenced me to buy a 1911 after reading an article of his regarding the use of heavy bullets (250-255 gr) in the 45 ACP cartridge. Has anyone experimented with using hollow base bullets in WFN or LFN design? Using the same principle as the 38 hollow based wadcutter, would a skirt of a hardcast bullet be malleable enough to bump up to obturate the bore? I know the swaged soft 38 HBWC could have separations of the skirt from the main bullet if shot at too high a velocity. It would leave a ring of lead in the barrel that would act as an obstruction when the next round was fired. But would this be a problem in a hardcast bullet with a skirt that is thick enough? I believe that such a design would help make up for some of the variance found amongst revolvers even of the same make. For instance I am going to contact Veral Smith regarding a mold that makes a 250 gr sized WFN and by using a hollow base, reduce it to 230 gr so standard loading data can be used in the 45 ACP resulting in standard 230 gr velocities. Since wound size is dependant on meplat size and striking velocity, my aim would be to increase the meplat size using a WFN while maintaining about 850 fps. The hollow base should not only allow a reduction in weigth while maintaining the WFN shape but allow for more room in the case for powder than a solid based bullet would. My thinking is that the skirt would help seal the bore of even a bevel based bullet. IIRC, didn't the Webley revolver use such a hollow based bullet? Although it was a RN design didn't these bullets get the nickname "man stopper"? If one were to have a custom mold made why not have the mold designed to drop hard cast hollow based WFN bullets? I have thought of chucking a 250 gr WFN bullet in a case trimmer and using a drill bit to remove enough lead to reduce the weight to 230 gr and creating the hollow based skirt, but such a process would be tedious, hence the need for a custom mold. Would there be enough benefit of such a design over just having a custom mold made for a flat base or bevel base 230 gr WFN bullet? Any thoughts?
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groo
.327 Meteor
I yet live!!!!
Posts: 855
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Post by groo on Nov 13, 2009 20:14:00 GMT -5
Groo here One of the best factory rounds in 45 colt in my m-25 was the Blazer lead round. that bullet had a hollow based bullet and was soft.. Remember that most bullets used in the OLD days were much softer than today and would seal better with normal loads.. Try some factory soft lead 45colt bullets with your 9gr unique load and check the leading......... My m-25 is a 4in that I carried for about 4 years, dropped on rocks and needed a crown. I took it to SSK and they did the job along with an 11deg forcing cone cut { Do it} and the smith said to call when I had my first 1 in group at 25 ... Had to call about 9 months later It is easy to get too hard in a lower pressure or non-magnum load
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jgt
.327 Meteor
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Post by jgt on Nov 14, 2009 10:16:36 GMT -5
I had trouble finding sizing dies for my 44's larger than .431 . One day while reading a post on the Cast Boolet site I saw a reference to a couple of fellows there that made custom sizing dies. IIRC their names were "Buckshot" and "Lathesmith". Anyway I contacted Buckshot and ordered one that sized to .432 and another for .433 for a RCBS sizer. They were not expensive and now I can properly size for my Marlin rifles and early Smith & Wessons. Take the time to look them up or ask on the Cast Boolet site and I think it will be well worth your time.
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Post by J Miller on Nov 14, 2009 12:09:12 GMT -5
nonpcnrarn, The Remington 250gr .45 colt bullet uses a concave base. They used to be a hollow base but changed sometime in the recent past. The Winchester 255gr lead .45 Colt bullets are still hollow based. Both of these bullets are swauged from a softer alloy and do indeed expand up to fill the over sized throats. But these bullets are a poor design for anything but general shooting. And they won't expand enough to seal the very large throats on my S&W 25-5; .457". It would be fairly easy to make a bullet with a hollow base and cast it from 20-1 lead-tin alloy and shoot it at normal velocities. The skirt at the base of the bullet does not need to be long and fragile like the classic hollow based wad cutter target bullet. If I could find a mold for such a bullet I'd be glad to give it a try.
Groo, You are correct. I too liked those classic Lee .45 Colt loads. I still have one left in my cartridge collection. I've not seen a full box of them in over 15 years. I have a reproduction of a Winchester 1896 ammo catalog. It lists the alloys most of the bullets were made from. The .45 Colt was 20-2 Lead-tin. That is similar in hardness to straight air cooled wheel weights. I've cast literally thousands of my Ideal 454190 with wheel weights. They cast out at 255grs and work superb. They even cast large so I can size them properly. I've used various loads with the bulk Remington lead bullets and they work just fine. I have taken to coating them in Lee LA to help keep my dies clean. The powdery waxy lube they use gets everywhere. Hornady, Speer, and any other swauged lead bullet gets the same treatment.
Jgt, Thanks for the tip. I'd like to get a sizer die in .456" and .457".
Joe
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