Conical bullet selection website

[user 33697]

I came across a website of a bullet company located in New Mexico that has a nice selection of different shapes and weights of conical bullets for BP revolvers to choose from .31 cal. to .45 cal. The .454 Dia. bullet selection is most interesting.

https://www.hunters-supply.com/muzzle-loader-bullet-c-49.html

 

[JRL1164]

Thanks, I have not heard of them before. I buy most my round balls from Midway when they're on sale with free shipping.

 

[windini]

Thanks for the lead!

No pun intended, but I'm gonna let it stand.

 

[Pete453]

Jd, I'm not sure what they're suggesting, but those look like they're used in the guns that load from the wrong end.

 

[user 33697]

Jd, I'm not sure what they're suggesting, but those look like they're used in the guns that load from the wrong end.

I gave the company a call and was told that all the bullet types shown on the muzzleloading page are pure lead and not hard cast.
Also, click on a bullet type and you will see in the description a statement that says 'Due to the inconsistency of the different black powder cylinders, you must know the diameter required before you order.' which implies that the bullets are meant for black powder revolvers. The company puts this statement in the description to be sure that your BP revolver cylinder chamber diameter will leave a nice lead ring when you load a chamber for a good seal. I plan on ordering a couple .454 conical bullets types to try out in my Pietta 1860s to experiment different loads. The .430 conical bullet on the page looks especially interesting to me to load with a .015 patch in my Thompson Center .45 cal. Patriot.

 

[Whughett]

I gave the company a call and was told that all the bullet types shown on the muzzleloading page are pure lead and not hard cast.
Also, click on a bullet type and you will see in the description a statement that says 'Due to the inconsistency of the different black powder cylinders, you must know the diameter required before you order.' which implies that the bullets are meant for black powder revolvers. The company puts this statement in the description to be sure that your BP revolver cylinder chamber diameter will leave a nice lead ring when you load a chamber for a good seal. I plan on ordering a couple .454 conical bullets types to try out in my Pietta 1860s to experiment different loads. The .430 conical bullet on the page looks especially interesting to me to load with a .015 patch in my Thompson Center .45 cal. Patriot.

I’d be interested in some of their bullets for the reason suggested in post #4, aka BP cartridges, paper or otherwise.
If you order, an update on their service should be appreciated.

 

[Pete453]

I'm not saying they won't work, I'd be the last guy to tell you not to try something. Just commenting on the fact that they look like modern revolver bullets. I play with those too, and I shoot cast exclusively, and they look like modern bullets. Maybe they are meant to be used in sabots? Who knows, it's kind of unclear to me. Give em a test drive and let us know. Good luck!

 

[Pete453]

I plan on ordering a couple .454 conical bullets types to try out in my Pietta 1860s to experiment different loads.

A heads up, but I bought a pietta 60 about a year ago. Beautiful gun, shot balls great, but I bought it to hunt deer with. There wasn't enought clearance to load conicals on the gun, and I couldn't bring myself to grind on such a fine firearm, something I'm not normally squeamish about. You may have to grind clearance on yours or load off the gun. You may want to buy a loading stand along with the bullets if you don't want to grind on the barrel. Good luck, let us know how they shoot, those Piettas are good shooters.

 

[PastorB]

I'm not saying they won't work, I'd be the last guy to tell you not to try something. Just commenting on the fact that they look like modern revolver bullets. I play with those too, and I shoot cast exclusively, and they look like modern bullets. Maybe they are meant to be used in sabots? Who knows, it's kind of unclear to me. Give em a test drive and let us know. Good luck!

I've used .452 bullets made for .45 Colt for years in my cap and ball .44's. What gave me the idea was the fact I have a conversion cylinder for a couple of my guns, and I used those bullets when shooting cartridges with good results. Decided to give them a try just loading them as I normally would with any other bullet/ball in my cap and ball. They are not pure lead, but surprisingly, they shot pretty well in my Remington 1858 and Colt 1860, and I didn't even melt off the smokeless lube before loading. Still used Crisco over the top however. I can load the Remington on the gun, the Colt I have to use a press. I hunt deer with my revolvers on occasion, and I wanted the extra punch of a bullet, along with a wide flat nose. As far as expansion goes, I got none at black powder velocity using pure lead conicals anyways, so using a bullet that was slightly harder didn't hurt anything. I don't like conicals much as I way prefer round balls for ease of loading and lower recoil, but the extra ooomph is desirable for the few shots I take while hunting. I'd try the Kaido bullets, but have never been able to find molds, and since I already got the .45 Colt bullets, I'll just continue to use them, as they are quite cheap. (500 @ $49.99, Missouri Bullet Company) Your results and price may vary, maybe by a whole lot.

 

[nkbj]

For hunting... if you're wanting to maximize the load capacity behind any given weight of lead then lube grooves or felt wads as well any unneeded elongation in the nose design are a matter of wasting the already limited powder space. That all makes for some interesting play-offs in choices like for instance how much weight and what nose design is going to be best for the game being shot at.

 

[Pete453]

PastorB, I'm curious how you were able to get the bullets started straight and centered. I never tried it with any modern bullets as I didn't have a mold that seemed suitable for the powder space juggling issues nkbj brought up, and the one bullet i cast is too long to load on my Remington. I have a semi wadcutter mould that might work well as a solid or big gaping hollowpoint, I just haven't tried it yet. I too like the extra umph of a flatpoint conical for hunting deer, and have my new uberti 1860 army sighted in with them. I'm thinking of making up a sizer die to size down the bases of modern bullets so I can try them in the 60. More tinkering for the winter.
I already have a couple custom revolver moulds that work very well, so I don't know how much of a priority the project will be.
Good discussion, I'm finding this subject very interesting.

 

[PastorB]

PastorB, I'm curious how you were able to get the bullets started straight and centered. I never tried it with any modern bullets as I didn't have a mold that seemed suitable for the powder space juggling issues nkbj brought up, and the one bullet i cast is too long to load on my Remington. I have a semi wadcutter mould that might work well as a solid or big gaping hollowpoint, I just haven't tried it yet. I too like the extra umph of a flatpoint conical for hunting deer, and have my new uberti 1860 army sighted in with them. I'm thinking of making up a sizer die to size down the bases of modern bullets so I can try them in the 60. More tinkering for the winter.
I already have a couple custom revolver moulds that work very well, so I don't know how much of a priority the project will be.
Good discussion, I'm finding this subject very interesting.

Hey Pete, 3:15 in the morning here in NW Missouri, just came in from letting my 140lb. Great Dane/Lab mutt out. I enlarged the loading port on my Pietta Remington 1858. I load my "Colts" off the gun using a loading press. Getting conicals started straight is a BIG PITA! Off the gun, I use a rubber mallet to start them, and I finish with the press. If they start "wonkey", I pull them out with pliers before they.get too far in. On my Remington, I can load on the gun, but it is even a bigger PITA to get conicals going straight. I kind of hold them with my left hand fingers while ramming with my right hand so they don't start tilted. I hate loading conicals, and do a single cylinder only when I am hunting for deer and want the extra punch. All other shooting is round balls.

 

[Archer 756]

Has anyone found any cast 36 cal conical

 

[Pete453]

I found the same thing with Buffalo ball-etts. I gave up on them early on. I've had a couple flatpoint moulds cut by Lee with the rebated base. They make loading a snap. They shoot good, too. My next mould will be from accurate, their 200gr flatpoint, I think. It should flatten deer. Give them a try, I don't think you'll be disappointed. If you like, I can send you some to try.

 

[TDM]

Eras Gone might be a good place to look.

 

[hawk1229]

It looks like they have good choices for black powder 45 colt cartridge loads.
I load round ball paper cartridge.
I have never tried conicals yet in paper cartridge.
I am glad you showed this web site.

 

[nkbj]

Has anyone found any cast 36 cal conical

Only when getting a mold modified to suit.

 

[nkbj]

PastorB, I'm curious how you were able to get the bullets started straight and centered. I never tried it with any modern bullets as I didn't have a mold that seemed suitable for the powder space juggling issues nkbj brought up, and the one bullet i cast is too long to load on my Remington. I have a semi wadcutter mould that might work well as a solid or big gaping hollowpoint, I just haven't tried it yet. I too like the extra umph of a flatpoint conical for hunting deer, and have my new uberti 1860 army sighted in with them. I'm thinking of making up a sizer die to size down the bases of modern bullets so I can try them in the 60. More tinkering for the winter.
I already have a couple custom revolver moulds that work very well, so I don't know how much of a priority the project will be.
Good discussion, I'm finding this subject very interesting.

Sizing down the hind sides of bullets is tedious but it can work.
If you find a Lyman #45266 (otherwise known as #452066) the big bevel on the base helps centering it up. It still has a modern design nose that wastes volume but it's usually pretty good. Especially so in Dragoons.

Something I've been thinking about but just haven't tried yet is to take a .44 Pietta with those undersized chambers and make the front of the chamber .001 or .002 bigger than groove diameter. And at the back of the rebored area have a taper that the base of the bullets squish into. The depth of the rebore versus the bullet length might get a little picky so it would probably need to be made to suit the shorter bullets and let the longest get squished the most. But, the longer bullets would still be in much better shape than they are with the current undersized chambers and round ball shooting would definitely benefit. Any how, it's just something I've been pondering.

 

[Pete453]

I use these as cast. They’re sized to drop the major front band at .458” (it’s marked .456 in the drawing) and the rebated bottom band at .450” (marked .445”) They work really well. No sizin required, just lube and shoot.View attachment 129495View attachment 129496

Found this in the thread: INTERESTING CONICAL BULLETS FOR ROA. This is exactly what we need in a black powder revolver. Accurate will make the base any size you want.

 

[nkbj]

And the Ruger is big enough and stout enough that we could use a bullet designed to be useful in a rifle.