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Old February 1, 2013, 12:42 PM   #1
hillbillyme
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modifying a 40 cal bullet??

jus wondering if anybody has cut the top off a fmj 40 cal to make it expand more for using it for home protection?? i have a bunch of the flat top fmj and i was thinking of sanding or filing the top of the bullet down to the lead,,, ????


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Old February 1, 2013, 12:46 PM   #2
mikecu
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I don't see it ever expanding like a hollow point.
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Old February 1, 2013, 12:50 PM   #3
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Really bad idea if they are FMJ with an open base. The jacket can be stripped off the lead core and left in the barrel, creating an obstruction for the next bullet.
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Old February 1, 2013, 12:56 PM   #4
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Most folks recommend against home grown self defense ammo because the lawyer will use it to make you look like a hate filled, evil person who shot the little disadvantaged angel in your home with a Bowie knife.
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Old February 1, 2013, 01:02 PM   #5
rajbcpa
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the 40 fmj is a great SD round..... you don't need to modify it....
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Old February 1, 2013, 02:29 PM   #6
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The simple answer is often the right one.

The manufacturers have spent exhausting hours developing these slugs and ya gotta know that there are a number of competing companies that are all pushing each other to make fantastic products.

It's simply not ever going to be as easy to just lop the end off a cheap slug and get the best results. Most likely--you won't even get good results, and the pitfalls that await make the whole idea seem fruitless, in my opinion.
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Old February 1, 2013, 03:00 PM   #7
hillbillyme
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ok scratch that idea LOL....

i was just thinking again...thats scary sometimes... il just go buy a box fo critical defense rounds and be done with it.....

thanks
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Old February 1, 2013, 03:16 PM   #8
eldermike
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40 comes pre-expanded.
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Old February 1, 2013, 05:25 PM   #9
Martys
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Not a legal beagle here but I would "highly" recommend not doing so. Why not just purchase a high end commercial ammo which you keep loaded by the bedside.
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Old February 1, 2013, 09:35 PM   #10
hillbillyme
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" Not a legal beagle here but I would "highly" recommend not doing so. Why not just purchase a high end commercial ammo which you keep loaded by the bedside."

thats why i said in the post above that i was just going to buy a box of critical defense ammo..... thanks
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Old February 1, 2013, 10:50 PM   #11
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I had a feller over on the castboolits website make me a jig to hold shellholders so I could make hollowpoints on my drill press to loaded rounds. It works good and is fairly consistent. I didn't do it for the SD aspect of it, but rather I had read an article which said hollowpoints are more accurate than RN or FP style. Something about the air curve in front of the boolit. It was fun to play around with but has been gathering dust for awhile now.

If any of you guys are interested in such a jig, PM me and I'll sell it to you for 25 shipped.
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Old February 1, 2013, 11:05 PM   #12
hillbillyme
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Edward, you drilled holes in the lead of LIVE shells? i dont even think id try that... lol
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Old February 1, 2013, 11:30 PM   #13
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Sure. A sharp bit and gentle pressure. Walks right into it. I did at least a few hundred of them with no problems or bullet setback.
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Old February 2, 2013, 12:38 AM   #14
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I hollow point lots of them almost the same way myself. Except I use the trimmer. Great results and its amazing how much they expand with just an 1/8" hole.

Theres only one way to find out. Hillbilly, if it was me, I would try one if for no better reason than just for the sake of knowing. I dont see why it wouldnt work. If you wanted you could even drill an 1/8" dia by 1/4" deep and try it out for expansion. I've even used a counter sink bit to cone the end of the hole in the nose. Makes a BIG hole.

Just a thought, but dont sand it down while its loaded. It would probly get hot.
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Old February 2, 2013, 03:34 AM   #15
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I have used the hollow pointing bits quite a bit on my Forster case trimmer with good results. The chuck squeezes the rim of the case snuggly and presents no problem . Would like to see that setup for a drill press as well to allow use of different bits other than the 2 only available by Forster.
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Old February 2, 2013, 12:54 PM   #16
hillbillyme
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are you drilling these with fmj? or bare lead?
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Old February 2, 2013, 02:11 PM   #17
Edward429451
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bare lead.
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Old February 2, 2013, 02:28 PM   #18
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Filing the noses off military rifle ammo, to expose some lead, was a pretty common modification when I was a kid. Whether that ammo expanded like a factory soft-point or not, is another story...

The bullet depicted by the OP is a plated bullet. If that's the case, I wouldn't be afraid to expose a little lead at the meplat. If the core is dead soft, you might get a little expansion. FWIW, the Remington UMC 180 grain factory load will occasionally rivet at the nose, when fired into water-filled jugs.

Lordy Ed, it's a wonder some of us ever got old. LOL
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Old February 2, 2013, 10:58 PM   #19
Edward429451
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I hear ya. That's not the weirdest thing I've done though. Of course I always use a lot of common sense so have never KB'd any gun or even had any squib loads! This in over 4 decades of handloading. Just a bit of the mad scientist in me.
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Old February 3, 2013, 05:54 AM   #20
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buy some good JHP's for 40sw and load them. remington makes some good stuff so does speer ie golddot.
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Old February 3, 2013, 08:37 AM   #21
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#2 Center drill in the end will give expansion close to factory SD ammo. For a legal aspect I wouldnt use it for SD. Try a couple and fire them into water or wet newspaper. If you dont have a lathe clamp a block of wood in drill press and drill a 13/32 hole about 3/16 dp then change the bit to the #2 CD. Should give yo pretty good concentricity.
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