convertin FMJ to hollowpoints for hunting

Goldenlakepete said:
I had a friend in the old days who constantly did this with .303 British bullets and he never had an incident of core separation. Just luck?
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Hard to say unless we see what the recovered bullets looked like.

Perhaps the surplus .303 he was using were the copper-nickel bullet type.
Who knows... Dumb idea anyway.
 
If you have a chance to go to Elwood Epps, check out their blown up firearms wall. There are parts of a 303 British hanging there were the shooter cut the tip off a FMJ bullet to make it legal (?) for hunting. This left lead exposed at the pointed end of the bullet as well as at the base. When he fired the first shot, the jacket went part way down the barrel and the lead squirted out and exited the barrel. This left the bullet jacket as an obstruction in the barrel. When the next shot was fired, the gun blew up. The shooter did not survive.

Play it safe and use proper bullets.
 
johr4 said:
If you have a chance to go to Elwood Epps, check out their blown up firearms wall. There are parts of a 303 British hanging there were the shooter cut the tip off a FMJ bullet to make it legal (?) for hunting. This left lead exposed at the pointed end of the bullet as well as at the base. When he fired the first shot, the jacket went part way down the barrel and the lead squirted out and exited the barrel. This left the bullet jacket as an obstruction in the barrel. When the next shot was fired, the gun blew up. The shooter did not survive.

Play it safe and use proper bullets.
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This is what I have always understood the risks to be. I too have snipped the end off of FMJ bullets and shot them, but not anymore. I suppose if only a small portion was filed down and then drilled out, the risks could be minimized, but with so many soft points so readily available, I just don't see the piont.
 
I have no interest in trying it, I have better things to do with my time and have Partitions on hand from .22 to 9.3mm. The only cartridge I would even consider it in would bethe 8x56r and not even that since hornady has the proper bullets.

Just wondering what the wisdom of what I read was. The fellow says he has shot thousands of bullets modified in that way and that the pressure required to squirt the core out is higher than the action could contain. And that the risk is imagined.
 
my grandfather did it during the depression herd many stories of ww1 .303 surplus having a x cut in the tip for moose and deer since hunting ammo was expensive and hard to find now I would say not a good idea since hunting ammo is so cheap
He also hunted for deer with a 22 pistol when his brothers had the rifle
 
During the first world war they reversed the bullet and it actually worked like a punch and pounded a hole through a metal plate on the first tanks.
As to drilling and cutting the tip, not so smart.
 
duncansuds said:
Didn't know there was a danger. I have done it with 7.62x39. It worked well for me, made a guide and shaved just a bit off and made a small pocket on the tip. Was just as accurate and opened up beautifully in the two coyotes taken with it. Core passed through, jacket was shrapnel and cut large holes. Like I said , didn't know there was a danger in it, never considered the jacket separating in the bore, guess I got lucky. Been a while since I have owned it now, probably a good thing.
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It's quite possible the the bullets are steel cored there, minimizing such a risk. But it's not good to be having your face permanently and suddenly rearranged.
 
OP, get yourself a bullet puller, and a lee loader kit. Buy hunting bullets of the same weight as the original load. Pull the bullet, pour the powder back into it, and seat the new one. Probably cheaper than buying hunting ammo. Be aware the solids have higher pressures, so the amount of powder already in the bullet might be too much. So, lead core bullets with this method.

And, welcome to the reloading world....
 
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