CIL projectiles

Don45

Don45

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I got some CIL projectiles in a deal I did a little while ago and I wanted to share some pictures of the box and packaging that they used.
Not sure how old they are but guessing 60's or 70's. They sure made sure they protected the projectiles, I have never seen any packaging like it before.
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Yes, I have several of those compartmented boxes still around....a few with original bullets in them, lol.

Early in my reloading career, these C.I.L. bullets were about all we could get easily, so loaded plenty in the day.

They came in 5 flavors [in 30 cal at least] RN KKSP, Spitzer KKSP, plain Pointed Soft Point, SabreTip, and Copper Point Expanding [CPE].

The KKSP was actually a very good bullet, and the CPE was a very sleek expanding bullet with a great BC.

I have a 180 grain RN KKSP that I recovered from a big muley I shot in 1961....it is as perfect a mushroom as you could wish for.

Regards, Dave.
 
They were and still are great bullets. Not as accurate as most offerings today but they held together very well on game.

I have several of the trays that held 45 cal bullets. They are perfect for use as holding trays for medium cases like 30-06 and work well with rimmed pistol cases.

That box is in very nice condition. Doesn't have a lot of collector value though. Maybe in about 50 more years.
 
Yes, CIL made some very good bullets. I'm guessing on dates made, but the old faithful Dominion ammunition that enabled so many families living in the boondocks in the great depression of the 1930s to have fresh meat to eat, should go into history as a great Canadian artifact.
The round nose bullets with a lot of lead exposed looked like the KKSP, but I don't know if they called them that or not, in their loaded ammunition.
I think the Copper Point Expanding came out shortly after WW2. I have said on these threads various times that I think the CPE were even better than the Nosler partition, which also came out within a fairly short time after WW2, but the Nosler, being produced in the country it was, became the premium bullet that other bullets were judged by.
My opinion on CPE bullets was reinforced after I read Jack Boudreau's books on hunting grizzly bears. He shot a lot of Grizzly bear, all with a 30-06, and all with CIL Copper Point Expanding bullets, claiming there were none better.
But, like so many products, apparently they cost too much to produce, so they switched to the Sabre Point, which were supposed to be similar, but were usually considered far inferior to the CPE.
In the nice, green bullet boxes, it can be seen that foam was used on top of the shorter bullets, but the longer, like CPE, didn't require foam!
 
I still use lots of the old C.I.L. bullets from the estate of my father and I grab up every box I can , just because!
I really like the 215's in my 303 rifles, but use the 180's and 150's as well in my .30 cal guns and the smaller .223 bullets in my Deuce.
the 257's work super in the Bob.
Cat
 
It was a sad day when CIL changed hands and became lean/mean. Most of their equipment went to the US where, as far as I know, it has languished or been turned into scrap.
 
Right now I'm looking at a full and part box of .277 130gr ST with a price tag of $3.95 from Melfort Sporting Goods. Same price tag for .277 130 gr PSP. I used to shoot the CIL 180gr KKSP in my .303 JC and it always worked well. When Nosler brought out their Ballistic Tip bullets in the 1980s I suggested to one of their sales people that CIL had come out with the idea of the polycarbonate tip in their Sabretip bullet many moons previously, so they weren't the first to climb that tree.
 
I have a 180 gr, .308 KKSP in my successful bullet drawer that is a perfect mushroom shape after it killed a Whitetail.

I never recovered a Sabretip, my guess is that they all fragmented. Killed deer OK though.

My brother had a close call with a wounded black bear shot with one of the CIL .303 /180 gr. Copper Point Expanding bullets, hit in the ribs broadside at less than 100 yards, it went right on through both lungs and the far ribs with no expansion - we determined that after skinning it. The bear ran and hid behind a log, and was finished off with a head shot when it was coming over the log at him at spitting range. Kinda soured me on the CPE bullet. Remington later copied the design. It was erratic performer in their version too. I used one 150 gr. .308 to kill a very big whitetail buck, bullet completely blew up in one lung, didn't even make it to the far side. Dead deer though.

It makes me laugh to read in American gun publications that Nosler introduced plastic point ammo to the world. I believe not only CIL, but Norma beat them to it. When Imperial went out of business Federal took over their wonderful plastic cartridge holder but people think they were a Federal innovation. Sigh.

I don't miss the old CIL bullets, but do wish we had a major Canadian manufacturer to buy ammunition from.
 
If i dig a little deeper under the loading bench i could likely find some CIL 30 cal KKSP. I had a fellow give me 25 boxes of CIL and Imperial 30-06 empties this fall, didn't really need them as i have a lifetime supply already. There is still lots of this old stuff floating around.
 
I purchased a box of the 130 grain SabreTip bullets in .277 caliber back in 1974.....they had the foam over top of them as well..! My late uncle used the CIL factory ammo 215 grain KKSP bullet in his 303 British to hunt moose in NW Ontario....He called it a flying brick that dispatched many a swamp donkey in its day....
 
I worked on the Sabre Tip project at CIL R&D in the early 60's. We tested expansion in the big blocks of bee's wax we had for coating 22 ammo.

I don't recall the results of the testing....

I have some of those boxes of bullets on the shelf, too. The one I wish I had more of is the .312 150 gr RN. I used them to make good 7.62x39 hunting rounds.

I don't think anyone else makes a 150 RN.
 


I have a bit of CIL stuff to use up yet. Inherited from the father of a friend. The primers are all used up except for 200. The 160 gr and the 175 gr bullets work like a charm in my 7x57.
I also got a bunch of old Nosler 154gr partitions and a pile of Hornady 175 gr RN as well.
 
Longwalker said:
It makes me laugh to read in American gun publications that Nosler introduced plastic point ammo to the world. I believe not only CIL, but Norma beat them to it. When Imperial went out of business Federal took over their wonderful plastic cartridge holder but people think they were a Federal innovation. Sigh.
Click to expand...

I have a few of those plastic pointed Norma projectiles as well- in 6.5mm. I will try to get a few pictures and post them as well- not intending to hijack this thread.
 
One of the better 270 bullets made if hunting moose. 160 grain KKSP

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180 grain .308 Sabre Tip Pretty good performance on deer when used in the .300 Savage or .308 Winchester. Way to frangible in the .300 Magnum unless shotts were way out there. ;)

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2 boxes of unfired 30-06 CIL brass.

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Brno8x57 said:
I have a few of those plastic pointed Norma projectiles as well- in 6.5mm. I will try to get a few pictures and post them as well- not intending to hijack this thread.
Click to expand...

as mentioned, I inherited a box or 2 of Norma 6.5mm bullets. Some were 139 gr plastic point, and others were 156 gr RN Here are a few photos.





Having trouble with photobucket today. hopefully these will be better pictures
 
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