.40 cal REAL bullet

Every now and then someone is looking for a conical, maxi, REAL type bullet for the .40 cal. I considered having a special mold made by Lee Precision but the cost would be around $180. They say they hear no interest in that type of bullet.
If everyone who would be interested would send them an email, perhaps they would spend the $150 set-up fee and make some molds for those interested. Either that or someone spend the money and then sell bullets to those interested in them. :grin:

Have you checked with Lyman for .40 caliber pistol(revolver) molds for wadcutters, and semi-wadcutters? They are basically the same thing as the R.E.A.L. bullet in shape, altho they are not designed with stepped bands to self-center in the muzzle. You can size them to within .001" of the bore diameter, and then use a good thick OP wad under them to serve as your gas seal. :hmm:

You could just get a larger bore rifle that shoots the same weight round ball. In this case something in the 180 gr range or 50 caliber.

If for some reason you are REALLY desperate to shoot a conical from a 40 the Lyman bullet for 38-40 will probably work in Green Mountain barrels. Its a Lyman number 401043 I think. Cast of pure lead it will weigh about 180 gr and should work in a 40 cal without even a starter.

But remember that it may not stay on the powder if the rifle is pointed muzzle down and carried about.

Dan

My wife has a very nice .40 perc. rifle built to fit her. Somewhere along the line I purchased about 100 hollow base bullets we planned for her to use in it for hunting. We have never fired a single one. However, I would like to have a mould for this projectile in case she ever gets the bug again.

Are you willing to sell any of the cast REAL bullets..

I was fortunate to have 'oldnamvet' let me get a few for range, then field testing...they were outstanding in both cases, and will expand the utility of someone's existing .40cal plinking / small game rifle into a serious deer rifle.

I was told by TVM do not shoot this bullet in my 13/16 .40 Mark Dehass barrel because of the breech pressure it would generate :idunno: .

Well, speaking only for myself, a couple thought come to mind:
1) There are a lot of unfounded keyboard opinions available in this less scientific of shooting hobbies called muzzleloading;
2) Manufacturers / builders selling to the public seem to be understandably over cautious from a liability point of view;
3) And others should only do what they personally understand and are comfortable with;

That said, I personally approach such things with a bit of research / planning / thought and had no worries about excess pressures out of my modern high quality .40cal GM barrel.

For example, double balls loads out of MLs are a well established fact of the muzzleloader world...and a pair of them is usually equal to a similar weight conical that's offered in a given caliber. In this case a pair of 92grn .395" balls is a 184grn payload...essentially the same as the 200grn REAL.

In addition, I used 2F instead of 3F for a beneficial element regarding the pressure curve.
In addition, I used a mid range powder charge of only 70grns Goex 2F.

Both double ball loads, and 'oldnamvet's REAL, are extremely accurate for me, and neither give any unusual recoil or indications of excess pressure whatsoever. In fact, taking that beautiful 8 pointer with the 200grn REAL in the shoulder at only 30 yards didn't even make a pass through.

But this is what "I" did...I make no recommendations that anyone else do anything I do.
My standard recommendation is that everybody should follow manufacturer's guidelines, period.

I just finished a build that uses a 40 cal green mountain...I wouldn't mind giving those a try. Is there anyone that molds them or a place to buy that mold?

You can have mine.

Member 'oldnamvet' eventually had them custom build the .40cal REAL mold for him.
More details on this whole issue would best come from 'oldnamvet' himself...maybe send him a PM.

Thanks! I shoot with armakiller, so I'll try some of his out first.

I got a few of those conicals figuring to see what they would do. My .40 has an "A" weight x 38" barrel. Using 60 grains of 3F it hits about the same poi at 50 yards as a prb. Have yet to try them using 2F.

That's my exact barrel dimensions. I'm going to give those a try as soon as I get my lock back from Cabin Creek.

hanshi said:

I got a few of those conicals figuring to see what they would do.

Click to expand...

Who did you get them from ?

Oldnamvet. I like those conicals but prb are my mainstay.

PRBs for sure...haven't used any more .40cal REALs since that time of range & field testing.
But if someone might not have a larger caliber round ball gun on hand, that 200grn REAL definitely moves the .40cal to the varsity level as a solid deer gun.
And the beauty of it in that caliber is also the fact that the .40cal's 1:48" twist is an excellent match for the conical like T/C's 1:48" standard barrels.