SWC for Cowboy Action Competition

J

JRDANIELS

New member
Can you use lead semi wad cutters in Cowboy Action Competition? Have a chance to buy some lead swc for my .357 Blackhawk. I wasnt sure if you could use them or not. Thanks
 
You can use them but you might have problems feeding them thru your rifle if it's the same caliber.
 
I wouldn`t want to load them into a rifles tube mag . myself
You would have a slim point on the SWC which would be resting against the primmer in front of it .
Round nose flat point are safer in a lever rifle or carbine .
 
Hawg is correct. The meplat on the SWC is large enough to not be a worry in your lever gun but the shoulder ahead of the crimp groove is sharp and WILL hang up on the feed ramp when you are running at speed.
Revolver use is fine.
I'f they are commercial hardcast bullets you might experience some leading. The cowboy bullets need to be softer when run at cowboy speed.
 
The SWC run fine in my Uberti 1860 Henry ....no problems with feeding at all ..
it`s the post I`ve seen in the last few years about rounds going off in a mag tube that bothered me ...( I don`t want anything but a flat nose against a primmer ) ,,,, but hey thats probally just me .
I`ve had to seat them deep in my pistol rounds because the point will jam up the cylinder if they aren`t seated deep enough ...( on my 45 `s I have to seat all the way to the top of the flat part , with only the dimple exposed and crimp there)
They seemed more trouble than they were worth for me , I shot up what I had and now stay with RNFP in rifle and pistol .
 
Sounds like you're confusing Semi Wadcutters with Wadcutters Sundance. The flat point nose of the semi-wadcutter is usually the same as the nose found on a RNFP. The shoulders are what's different. Semiwadcutters have straight sharp shouldered sides where the RNFP has rounded shoulders. It's the step between the shoulder & body of the bullet that will hang up in a non-toggle linked rifle. Henrys, 66s and 73s don't usually have a problem with SWC bullets because the carrier lines the bullet up for a straight push into the chamberd. On Marlins, 92/94 Winchesters, Lightnings and the like, the round sits on the carrier and is chambered at an angle.

I dont have any pictures handy; but here is a web site that will show the difference between SWC, RNFP, and Wad cutters.

http://www.cheycast.com/catalog.htm
 
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JRDaniels had asked about SWC Semi Wad Cutters ....SWC have a nipple stuck out in front of the flat part ...

Wad Cutters are just flat on the end ....Wad cutters would not feed well in any of my lever guns ....but I would feel safer loading them in a tube mag with their flat end .
And Wad Cutters would work great in a pistol also , you could load them flush with the end of the brass , no problems

Fingers you must be thinking about Wad Cutters Not Semi Wad Cutters SWC.
SWC
2n733p2.jpg
 
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Hey Sundance, I don't know what those bullets are but they are not what we are calling SWC. I agree that what you show would not be a good choice for a tubular magazine.
Most of the SWCs have a meplat tha is as large or larger than the RNFP.
 
The first bullet on their list that is a "true" semi wadcutter (IMHO) would be the 255 gr. The ultra lightweight bullets called semi wadcutters do not have the flat meplat of the true semi wad cutters and as I said, I would agree with you, that they would not be a good choice in a tubular magazine. It appears that they have rounded the nose of that bullet, possibly for ease of casting?

Also bullets 1 and three in the photo at the top of the page are SWCs
 
Looks like a truncated cone .45ACP bullet. Probably has the long narrow nose for reliable feeding through a semi-auto.

There is absolutely no issue with using a true SWC in a tubular magazine.

Looking at those prices, I sure am glad I found a local caster!
 
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