Hollow Base Revolver Bullets

[nkbj]

Hollow base bullets have long been in use with cartridge revolvers for target shooting but what about their use with percussion revolvers? Anyone here tried using them?
It would seem that perhaps the undersized chambers in Pietta revolvers could have encouraged their use in load development. Surely having a properly engineered hollow base to help fill the rifling grooves wouldn't hurt. And, a hollow base could help with bullet stability in the slow twist usually provided by Pietta. Any how, thought I'd ask seeing as it might be interesting to see what folks have come up with.

 

[rodwha]

Hollow base bullets have long been in use with cartridge revolvers for target shooting but what about their use with percussion revolvers? Anyone here tried using them?
It would seem that perhaps the undersized chambers in Pietta revolvers could have encouraged their use in load development. Surely having a properly engineered hollow base to help fill the rifling grooves wouldn't hurt. And, a hollow base could help with bullet stability in the slow twist usually provided by Pietta. Any how, thought I'd ask seeing as it might be interesting to see what folks have come up with.

I much prefer the idea of having the chambers brought up to or close enough to groove diameter, fix the problem don’t bandaid it. But if this isn’t possible it might well be the ticket.

My Pietta NMA is at least 11 yrs old now and IIRC the twist was a hair over 1:16 which seems about ideal for shooting bullets.

 

[maillemaker]

I use the Moose Moulds "collar button" bullet. Rather than expanding, it compresses.

 

[ZUG]

Might be interesting to find out if it does improve accuracy. The cost of making that kind of mold would not be cheap to make. I would venture to say that the round ball and other conical bullet molds now on the market that a hollow cavity bullet mold of higher cost would not fare well.

 

[nkbj]

Lee of course could crank them out as inexpensively as their various other hollow base designs but they wouldn't see the market for Pietta owners if you held it in front of their noses. Many decades ago Ideal and later Lyman made hollow base molds for percussion revolvers. However, their hollow base designs really were not practical due to not having a shear ring at the front band on the bullets. And in use the problems with such molds were exacerbated by the different chamber diameters produced by various manufacturers being all over the place. Nowadays Pietta has created the market niche though with standardizing their undersized chambers. It's easy to make a mold produce a bullet that slips into that specific chamber and then shears on the leading band the same as a round ball does. Add a small hollow in the base and voila, it works.

 

[ADK Bigfoot]

I have used the .450229 Lyman for years. Great mold, shoots well in the 1858 (others?). Don't put through a lubrisizer; the pressure will dent the skirt and make it square. Dip lube only.

ADK Bigfoot

 

[nkbj]

Hey Bigfoot, good to hear about using hollow bases.
How much bigger is the bullet diameter than the chambers?
Are your chambers beveled for let the skirt swage in?