Lee improved minnie bullet

[jtmattison]

Anybody shoot the Lee improved minnie bullet?

I just ordered the oversize mold in .540-415 grain to give them a try in my GPH.

HD

 

[mike alexandre]

Do you have any more info or a web reference for this improved bullet. Thanks JM

 

[bpollock_sr]

I shoot the improved minnie and the lee modern minnie in my shortie 58 buffalo hunter.The modern minnie looks like a trash can and
is a devistating bullet at close range .Both the improved and the modern have heavier skirts which allows for a stouter charge of powder.I shoot them over a load of 80 grns of 3f in the 18 in. barreled gun.

 

[gmww]

If this is the one with the hollow base I have. I have had mixed results. As a hunting round it was fine. That was in my 1:48". Others have posted great results. My barrel seems finicky with this one.

 

[jtmattison]

Do you have any more info or a web reference for this improved bullet. Thanks JM

You can see it at[url] leeprecision.com[/url] under their black powder molds.

I am hoping it will perform like the Hornady plains bullet does out of my 1:32 barrel.
Not that I need another conical for it (I already make four different types) but I like to experiment.

HD

 

[marmot]

I use the .575 Lee imp. minie in a 2 band Enfield - with the right load it is very accurate out to 50 yards (2" 5 shot groups from rest), but I have had a few tumblers at 100 yds, which I suspect has more to do with barrel/bullet fit than the bullet itself. Within accurate range it works very well on whitetails and groundhogs.

M

 

[jtmattison]

I got the mold today and cast up a bunch.
They actually weigh about 426 grains, not the 415 advertised and I am using pure lead.
I like the way the core pin works on the Lee mold.
The bullets cast perfectly and drop right out of the mold.
The sprue is on the nose of the bullet. I wonder what effect it has on accuracy?
I read somewhere that nose damage didn't hurt accuracy as much as base damage on a bullet so I guess the not-so-perfect nose is okay on these.
Maybe drilling them into a hollow point would help?
The skirt is pretty thick. Thicker than that of a Hornady Plains Bullet.
It looks like a good bullet.
I will give it a try this weekend if all goes well.

HD

 

[BS]

Huntin Dawg,

For a dollar, you can buy a new core pin and make some flat base bullets also. [lee parts]

Just saw, file the core pin flat.....and have two bullets for the price of one mold.

Or not! :grin:

 

[sledgemeister]

I have the Lee original minie mold and have had the same thought about making a hollow point out of it. Apparently from what I have been told a hollow point adds stability to the projectile because of the air pressure hitting the hollow and forming around the bullet. Now thats what I have been told so dont no one crucify me if I been told a porky.
If you make a few hollow points let me know how they work. On second thoughts I might talk to a mate who is engineer and makes molds and see what he can come up with.

 

[jtmattison]

I have the Lee original minie mold and have had the same thought about making a hollow point out of it. Apparently from what I have been told a hollow point adds stability to the projectile because of the air pressure hitting the hollow and forming around the bullet. Now thats what I have been told so dont no one crucify me if I been told a porky.
If you make a few hollow points let me know how they work. On second thoughts I might talk to a mate who is engineer and makes molds and see what he can come up with.

I thought about making a jig to hold the bullet in my drill press and drilling a few. I would check them for consistency by weighing them.
I might try it, but I have to find the right size drill to make the jig first so I know the bullet is perfectly centered every time.

HD

 

[jtmattison]

Huntin Dawg,

For a dollar, you can buy a new core pin and make some flat base bullets also. [lee parts]

Just saw, file the core pin flat.....and have two bullets for the price of one mold.

Or not! :grin:

I already have a few different flat based bullet molds.
I wanted this one for the hollow base.

HD

 

[jtmattison]

I shot some of them this weekend.
I'm not too impressed so far.
Even with the oversize mold they are too loose.
I got about a four inch group at 50 yards with 80 grains 3f.
I will try different charges and see what happens.
I was hoping for them to perform more like a Hornady Plains Bullet but no such luck.
Oh well, I have a lot of other bullets that shoot great out of my GPH.
this was just to have something new to try.

HD

 

[playfarmers]

I tried them in my .50 cal Deerstalker and got huge groups, with some bullets going side ways through the target. I then tried paper patching them, and found them the most accurate bullet I had ever shot. I no longer use bullets due to shoulder troubles, but if I did this is the bullet.