Bullet swaging for the 450b --CHEAP!--

[bushmeister]

...I could then tap(thread) the cavity for the use of those polymer 1/4" threaded dart tips. I would have to trim off the thin portion of the dart tip...but it would leave me with a nice plastic tip, I think.

I think thats a pretty good idea, but you might want to add a drop of loc-tite on those threads when you assemble, as those dart tips always find a way to loosen themselves.

[hawcer]

HAHA...I just received a notification from UPS stating I would receive a package from MGI on Aug. 4th and to have Money order to cover COD. Funny thing is, I canceled that order and purchased the barrel and bolt from Mike instead. It even shows canceled on my order on their website since the beginning of the month. I guess I finally get to refuse a shipment.

[Hoot]

Well, I have the ones Hawcer sent me loaded for testing tomorrow. They look like something Van Helsing would carry.



I loaded them ahead of 35, 36, 37 and 38gr of Lil Gun with a .475 taper crimp. Will report in when I get the numbers crunched and with accuracy results. I'm not sure what to expect pressure-wise with the annealed brass, so I started low. Looking forward to this and as an added bonus, get to add another pass to my brass life-cycle study cases.

Hoot

[2zero6]

Holy cow!

[hawcer]

Boy, do those look nice loaded up...I only hope they shoot as good as they look.

Van Helsing? I love that movie!

[MudBug]

Wait...I am apparently missing something

[Hoot]

I could have gone with more Gas after all.

Not only did they not cause too high a pressure. They didn't come apart and pepper my chrony. They didn't corkscrew into the next zip code. Every one hit the target paper I was aiming at. I was not sure what to expect in terms of buildup in the barrel, so I cleaned thoroughly every five rounds. So, the results include my control group of fouling shots using 230gr Hornady XTP MAG bullets over the ever-successful 38gr of Lil Gun. Their behavior served to check whether the test shot's performance was my fault, with a fouler every five shots. First, the ballistics:



Now, the results in a single range picture:



While this first venture did not yield benchrest-like results, most shots made minute of deer. So I'd say the the concept is sound. When I get my .243 die, I will be trying this myself. One thing I will probably do is turn the rims down to slightly less than .452. I could feel them drag the case walls when seating and the body of the bullet that followed did not drag the case wall as much. One could actually turn the rim off most of the way to create somewhat of a boattail base. All kinds of experimentation avails itself. I was going to withhold a few and shoot them into my water jug setup to see how the expanded but hawcer convinced me that we probably would be better served just making sure they shoot straight first. This was fun and provided for plenty of barrel cooling time showing them to other reloaders at the range this morning. To a man, they were totally impressed with hawcer's work, as was I.

Hoot

EDIT: If you noticed only 4 holes in the 36gr LG target. Close examination revealed two shots went through the hole at .25H/1.25R

[Hoot]

I had an Idea on the possible use of ballistic tips on these. If I was to trim off the extruded lead instead of forming a tip with it...snip

There was probably over 100 years of reloading experience total in the fellows at the range today. The unanimous consensus was to leave the lead tips alone if you don't intend to load them into a tubular magazine. If you want them lighter, use a different ratio of lead and tin or a shorter bullet. When I tried casting a few in .45 ACPs, I noticed the flux caused bubbles to percolate up for a while. I would assume the need to get any bubbles out is paramount to being able to tighten up the groups. No idea how to detect any trapped bubbles, just heat them until the bubbling stops and/or possibly vibrate them for a while before the lead starts to solidify to dislodge any trapped ones. You could stir them with a hot nail also. How do boolit casters do it?

Hoot

[bushmeister]

[ http://i25.tinypic.com/25ziedl.jpg ]

Those do look awesome. Great work Hawcer!

[hawcer]

Not bad for first time results.... At least they all hit paper.

Any signs of over pressure with the higher charge amounts?

The first cut down rifle cases I did...I did remove the rim and turned them into a sort-of rebated boat tail...it's a little extra work, but it might be worth it. I am also looking into a way of pressing in the core instead of pouring it. Maybe a tweaked sizing die and a 40cal punch from a Lee bullet sizer set. The main problem will be getting the cored jacket back out of the sizing die after the core is pressed into it. Swage sets have an ejector system to do this.

Thanks for taking the time to test these out and relaying the info back for all to see. I'll continue to do some tweaking and testing on my own once I get my 450 together...it shouldn't be much longer.

One other question...What was the range of the targets? 50 yards? 100 yards?