Polymer-coated LHP - Why oh why can't I find these?

[Suck My Glock]

The choke point in reloading ammo these days is primers. I've not had any trouble getting powder or brass. I had to hunt for them, but I eventually found heavy 9mm bullets, too. And it seems cast bullets are easiest to find these days.

I loaded up some polymer-coated 158 grn. LSWC in .38spl. recently. I hadn't bothered with the polymer-coated stuff since it became commonly available. I had preferred copper-clad stuff like Berry's or Xtreme. But I was very happy with the batch I loaded up recently,...particularly with regard to cleaning up the suppressor afterwards. BIG DIFFERENCE over plain cast!!

So I have decided, because of the suppressor and its utility, that I wanted to load up a stockpile (cheaply, hopefully) of "FBI load" 158 grn. LSWCHP,...but poly-coated.

To save my life, I haven't been able to find a single supplier or seller anywhere that has a poly-coated 158 grn. .38 cal HP of any design at all! WTF?!

I have found plenty of videos and photos of guys showing how to do the poly-coating yourself as a caster,...and I suppose I COULD invest in the gear to coat plain lead SWCHP projectiles that are available. But I really don't want to mess with all that. I'd like to just buy them pre-coated. Obviously it can be done as easily as the regular solids offered everywhere. I'm just frustrated and befuddled as to why not a single place seems to offer this.

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[Suck My Glock]

Wow,...not even anyone pretending to have an answer?

 

[TheAccountant]

I'll pretend.. I think the pins needed in the HP molds make it difficult for manufacturers to cast them in large numbers. The lead cores of the plated bullets are often swaged, which apparently can easily produce a HP.

These are in stock. Never heard of the site before, but it seems like the seller might be a group of old guys casting lead for a few extra bucks. Who knows what you'll get, but for under 40 bucks, worth a shot?

http://www.reloadersauction.com/cart/?id=221648

 

[Hammer 35]

This guy has plain lead hollow points, you could always coat them yourself. It's not a terribly complicated process.

https://www.mattsbullets.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=65

I can say, his bullets are top shelf. They almost are too pretty to shoot.

 

[TheAccountant]

Those are sized for 38spl and would likely need to be sized down a a little bit for 9mm, especially if coating after the fact. Interestingly he doesn't offer HP in his 9mm offerings.

 

[Suck My Glock]

Those are sized for 38spl and would likely need to be sized down a a little bit for 9mm, especially if coating after the fact. Interestingly he doesn't offer HP in his 9mm offerings.

I am looking for .38s. I was just using the 9mm availability as an example.

 

[TheAccountant]

Yup, I see that now. Read it and my mind stuck on 9mm.

 

[Intel6]

As was said above, the HP makes it hard to cast commercially in quantities using a commercial grade casting machine. There are some smaller commercial casters https://www.mattsbullets.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=65&zenid=phgdnedfigf2skunoqm7vb5k91 that do cast by hand using all types of molds but typically I have found they are pricey which is why I started casting my own. Also I have never seen any of them that PC their bullets.

What you are looking for specifically is a HP bullet cast using softer lead and then coated in PC. I hate to say it but too bad you don't know anyone who can cast and coat. I do it frequently and it does not take much effort once you have the knowledge and equipment. I don't do much .38 SPL, mainly making big HP bullets I PC in .458" and .501" were I really save $ doing it myself. I have found that specialty and/or big caliber cast bullets can cost as much as jacketed bullets.

Here are some big .501" bullets I cast and PC'd, you can see the big mouth HP from one of my molds. That one in particular is cast out of almost pure lead for max expansion. That one is the HP version of the 700 gr. solid next to it.




Here is another custom bullet I make for shooting in my .458 SOCOM. It is a 600 gr. mold that also has a HP pin that makes it a 540 gr. deep HP. This is also cast from almost pure lead to increase expansion and then coated with PC for clean shooting.

 

[Hammer 35]

Those are some good looking bullets!

I used Matt's bullets when I owned a 500mag, and they were great but if I wanted to keep shooting it I would have started casting myself. Still might though.

 

[Old Jeff H]

Those are some good looking bullets!

Yeah they are. Wish my PC came out that nice.

 

[Boriqua]

I feel your pain. I went looking for coated 38/357 LSWCHP .. couldn't find it and finally gave up. Plenty of lswc but no hollow points but underwood ammo has to be getting them somewhere?

Lead uncoated I could find but not coated

 

[TheAccountant]

What about a 158 grain SJHP design like what Zero offers?

 

[Suck My Glock]

What about a 158 grain SJHP design like what Zero offers?

Again,...I'm looking to duplicate the old-school "FBI-load" - which is to say a traditionally heavy soft lead hollow-point that opens up relatively reliably at moderate non-+P velocities. We're talking about 800-850 fps.

While modern jacketed hollow-points have gotten very good and are much improved over what they used to be, opening at lower velocities than ever before,...nothing opens easier and more reliably than plain soft lead.

I'm trying to create a .38spl expanding bullet load that will not only do well in my Marlin CST lever gun (not a challenge at all) but also in 4 inch and 2 inch revolvers. The "FBI load" I am referring to is about the only effective and semi-reliably opening HP for snubbies with heavy bullets. Yes, I could go lighter, such as 125 or 110 grainers. That would work ok in the handguns. But then they would be super-sonic in the Marlin, which is threaded, and which I shoot almost exclusively suppressed. So to achieve my goal, I HAVE to use a heavy projectile.

I've already proven my concept to myself with regular cast lead round nose and SWC projectiles. I have a powder selected that will achieve what I'm looking for. All of that has been achieved. My last piece of the puzzle is getting the projectile in Polymer coating, so as to minimize deposits in the suppressor and simplifying clean up and maintenance. The poly-coated non-expanding cast bullets I've shot through it already are WAAAAAAAY cleaner and easier deposits to deal with than plain cast lead produces. And the poly coated projectiles are a little bit slicker in the rifling and gain just a bit more velocity that even the cast lead.

 

[TheAccountant]

The SJHP design is an exposed lead hollow point with a jacket covering 70+ percent of the bullet depending on the manufacturer. I don't know that it would take full-house velocities to open it up. I get it's not exactly what you're looking for, but given the fact nobody has exactly what you're looking for, it might be a reasonable replacement.

 

[Suck My Glock]

The SJHP design is an exposed lead hollow point with a jacket covering 70+ percent of the bullet depending on the manufacturer. I don't know that it would take full-house velocities to open it up. I get it's not exactly what you're looking for, but given the fact nobody has exactly what you're looking for, it might be a reasonable replacement.

You might right. But I figured I would consult the brain trust here to see if anyone knew something I didn't.

 

[Boriqua]

Like you I was trying to create the FBI load and found these at Underwood

https://www.underwoodammo.com/collections/handgun-ammo/products/38-special-158-grain-lead-semi-wadcutter-hollow-point-gas-check?variant=18785707458617

Its what I run in my 642 but for days I searched and couldnt find the damn bullets in anything but lubed lead.

https://www.gtbullets.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3&products_id=10

I may have to look into coating and see how much of a PIA it is and how expensive it is to get into.

 

[Suck My Glock]

I may have to look into coating and see how much of a PIA it is and how expensive it is to get into.

Same here. Ooooorrrrrr,...if you do that,...I'll buy some from you.

 

[Boriqua]

I may have to look into coating and see how much of a PIA it is and how expensive it is to get into.

Same here. Ooooorrrrrr,...if you do that,...I'll buy some from you.

If I do it I will give you a heads up! Now its kind of a mission!

 

[Suck My Glock]

If I do it I will give you a heads up! Now its kind of a mission!

 

[Hammer 35]

Doing your own powder coat is pretty easy from what I've seen, just maybe a little messy.

Shake some bullets in an old piece of Tupperware with the powder, sift bullets out, bake, load, shoot.

There's a number of good videos on YouTube. Or at least there was.