The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Guns, Politics, Gunsmithing & Reloading Gunsmithing Making a Swaging die ?Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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I have a desire to make my own swaging dies so I can make my own .224 projectiles for use in my .222 Rem. I will do what a lot of other blokes do and use empty .22 rf cases for the jackets. Preparing the jackets and the lead cores shouldn't pose too much of a problem I hope. My question is How do I make the pointed finishing Die. Do I need to polish or temper the die? I had a 1" high tensile bolt and cut a 7\8x14 tpi external thread on it to suit my RCBS Rockchucker. I intend to use this bolt as the material to make the dies. I hope to make projectiles of around the 52 grain weight. Any replies with advice greatly appreciated and Thanks in advance. If it sounds too good to be true it usually is. | ||
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Hello. I used to swage bullets commercially in .455 and .380 using a Corbin press and Corbin dies. Reality is that you'll get better bullets for less cost if you buy them off the shelf. The problem is not so much the swaging itself but proper point forming (unless you want a flat point bullet) and weight control of your lead cores. But try You Tube for videos on bullets from .22 RF cases and I am sure you'll find a few. | |||
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I know the pointing die is polished with a diamond lap and I'd heat treated. I had one that had to be fixed and had an intensive conversation about that aspect. As for cores, I get best consistency by flipping my core and swaging it a second time. I can keep 213gn cores at .2gn, plus or minus, with that technique. Also, core plugs that are 15gn over desired weight tend to be more consistent and accurate to target weight than cores closer to target weight. I think it has to do with the amount of compression they get compared to a shorter, lighter core. | |||
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 Does a Rockchucker even have enough mechanical advantage to do the job? I use it to take 416 down to 410 but adjust the die 3 steps to take advantage of the cam over. As usual just my $.02 Paul K | |||
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I had a set of Corbin dies for 22 and I made a few for 22 from drill rod. The bullets would shoot about 2 inches at 100 yards in a hornet and an inch to inch and one half in a 221 Remington Fireball in a 700 varmint gun. Both of those guns shot 1/2 inch with factory bullets so they were no screaming hell. The bullets I made from 22 casings probably cost about 4 times what factory stuff cost if you added up the swaging equipment and time spent. LOL  When I was a kid. I had the stick. I had the rock. And I had the mud puddle. I am as adept with them today, as I was back then. Lets see today's kids say that about their IPods, IPads and XBoxes in 45 years! Rod Henrickson | |||
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Yeah, he is right, of course. Guys used to do this during WW2 when bullets were not available, but they are now. But if you just want to play, go for it. To answer your question, you can form the point with your nose punch, not in the die; make the base/eject punch flat and the nose punch pointy. Make a nose shaped cutter and bore it. Yes you need to polish it and use good lube. I use STP. Or buy Corbin dies. But yes, a Rockchucker does have enough power to do this. Your tag line says it all; this idea is too good to be true/valid. | |||
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I bet no one would whine if the Chinese got big time into competitive shooting and started pissing out high quality bench rest bullets for a nickle-a-piece ? Betcha? Betcha-huh? Dint think so ! When I was a kid. I had the stick. I had the rock. And I had the mud puddle. I am as adept with them today, as I was back then. Lets see today's kids say that about their IPods, IPads and XBoxes in 45 years! Rod Henrickson | |||
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I think I need to attach my bench to the wall and get a cheater. When doing 416 bullets to 410 there is a spot that wants to turn over my bench. I know buy more stuff and load it down.  As usual just my $.02 Paul K | |||
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I have swaged down 416s to .410 too, back when we couldn't get any .410s. On my RC, but you do need it to be firmly screwed down and I already had a 4 inch extension on the tiller. But this .22 thing is much easier. As for the Chinese connection, the US import laws will have to change first. Then it could happen. | |||
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I simply have my bolted down to a store bought counter top on a couple store bought cabinets. When I try using the full range it simply wants to pull everything over. Works fine for normal reloading. Got me a new HEAVY bench in the garage for Christmas. I think I need to bolt it to that and try again. Using the cam over works just slow. As usual just my $.02 Paul K | |||
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My bench is made from 2x6xs with a plywood cap on top of them. 4x4s for legs. | |||
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Heavy. My reloading bench is light and moves easy. Not an issue with normal reloading. New one in garage has heavy steel legs and I bolted it to the wall studs. Needed to be able to mount my heavy vice. So I think a couple holes for the press and do my bullet resizing there. Will need a cheater for a while until everything heals.Just love it when a plan comes together.  As an after thought, after I do the couple hundred 416s I have not much need with all the 410&411 I own. But those 350grs make nice plinking loads. As usual just my $.02 Paul K | |||
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Go here, http://castboolits.gunloads.com/ and look at the swaging section. You'll find more information than you can imagine. Personally I've made dies in several calibers including .224 that used rimfire cases. The 22 caliber ones shot quite well, i.e. several thousand ground squirrels with quite a few taken at ridiculous ranges. If I missed a squirrel at 200 yards, I was the most likely cause, not the bullet. | |||
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