Thread: Projectile manufacturing

Does anyone know what happened to the CAC factory equipment. ?
Found this in an old book not that many steps involved by the look of it.

Originally Posted by Martin358

Shhh , cindy wont like this..GOOD

I saw an article talking about how searches for "handloading" in the US were soaring.

Next year there will be nothing on the shelves here quite possibly.

I've said from the beginning one of the best ways to support ourselves is manufacturing. These projectiles could be exported. Cindy loves your money.

We need to get back to good Kiwi traditions of being inventive and creative and making things.

I've seen projectiles made from a .22LR case. This is doable. It's just a process of tracking down the stuff needed and someone who can do each part.

All about economy of scale, looks good for you guys tho since Truflite Barrels and Barnard actions made in NZ and bought all over the world. Would need to make hundreds of thousands to be worthwhile but at least you have Targex as mentioned.

Used to have Hodgdon Powders made in Scotland but the only way to purchase on the commercial market was after it had been sent to the States to be packadged and re-imported!

Have heard faint rumours of hobby projectile makers here and there, the gear occasionally turning up on the open market but for the same price you could buy about 30k projectiles for several calibres so why bother?

Maybe in a real 'end of days' scenario (New World order run by China maybe...) it would be good to have,our money will be worth nothing then anyway!

It works at a very small scale so economy of scale can only help.

We all really like flinging bits of copper and lead at stuff.

You make an excellent point regarding Trueflight. They are flat out exporting apparently.

As manufacturing goes, stamping and pressing things is at the basic end as we are talking about non bonded swaged jackets. These can be made in a hand press.

Be a fun thing to try crowd fund at whatever scale you could get it working. Get the projectiles designed as a kiwi project, write about the whole process in one of the magazines, including testing, then use that exposure to crowdfunded capital for mass production and tender for a company to do it.

First step is development. Basic equipment, have the projectile designed, dies manufactured to make then and the billets and jackets. You would be at the Targex scale at this point.

Second step is crowd fund to upscale.

Alternatively you work with Bryn and try and convince him to grow. Then it's a matter of making a projectile die design and supplying him with parts he currently buys in (jackets) made locally. Process is similar.

Scandinavian countries like Finland are no bigger than us and make target supplies for the globe and it's always in short supply.

Theres a few good good shooters here in Timaru and a proper testing range as well. so testing would be easy enough.

Originally Posted by Marty Henry

Does anyone know what happened to the CAC factory equipment. ?
Found this in an old book not that many steps involved by the look of it.

Greetings Marty Henry,
I think that all of the CAC equipment was worn out, one of the reasons they folded. I don't think they made all of their components in the later years either. There is simply not enough demand in NZ to support the manufacture of any projectiles other than the low volume high value types. Manufacture of projectiles other than the above types folded in OZ many years ago as well.
Regards Grandpamac.

the big question is what are you willing to pay for a NZ made projectile?
More than an E-DLM?
when this all passes like it inevitably will will you keep buying them at said price? or go back to your old fave


Bryns targex are fantastic but i believe they were Berger cups if memory serves rightly which I imagine will be the bottleneck

I use more of Roberts cast ones tho If im honest lucky for me they are just lead.

Originally Posted by Tussock

Alternatively you work with Bryn and try and convince him to grow. Then it's a matter of making a projectile die design and supplying him with parts he currently buys in (jackets) made locally. Process is similar.

Scandinavian countries like Finland are no bigger than us and make target supplies for the globe and it's always in short supply.

Surprised Nathan Foster never came out with anything, he has gone through all the trouble with coming out with a chambering (7mm Practical?) and writes all the articles so why not?

Things change with time.

There was a time where everything imported cheap was easy and convenient and came at no cost. Initially.

Now we are paying that cost. I would not automatically assume this is going to be over in a flash.

Manufacturing has changed. Automation has altered economies of scale. Look at the NZ suppressor market. Or any parts market. I the past the machining costs would have been prohibitive. CNC allows small machine shops to mass produce in a way only large factories could in the past.

Manufacturing is only limited by imagination. How good a product can you design? How practical is your idea?

A lot of projectiles get fired in this country, it's getting increasingly popular. Even more are used internationaly.

How about not worrying about the manufacture. Assume it's possible.

I would assume a

70-80gr .22cal
95-105gr 6mm
140gr 6.5mm
160gr 7mm

Would be the sequence. One of each.

Bryn uses Berger jackets and I believe he hand presses all those projectiles.

Originally Posted by caberslash

All about economy of scale, looks good for you guys tho since Truflite Barrels and Barnard actions made in NZ and bought all over the world. Would need to make hundreds of thousands to be worthwhile but at least you have Targex as mentioned.

Used to have Hodgdon Powders made in Scotland but the only way to purchase on the commercial market was after it had been sent to the States to be packadged and re-imported!

Have heard faint rumours of hobby projectile makers here and there, the gear occasionally turning up on the open market but for the same price you could buy about 30k projectiles for several calibres so why bother?

Maybe in a real 'end of days' scenario (New World order run by China maybe...) it would be good to have,our money will be worth nothing then anyway!

...if you could source the 30k of projectiles on the open market... this is what the above idea is about, locally made projectiles.,,,


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Call it a general purpose hunting projectile. Which it will be. That along with a low price per projectile ensures a good market.

Be bloody good if there was a bit of a culture of making a point of using local gear. That would ensure we always have it.

If the machinery is automated, then there are no/minimal labor costs. You want a computer controlled machine that presses out projectiles from copper and lead.

I'm pretty confident this could be built locally if some backing from shooters could be achieved.

Have a browse through this site. Corbin January 2020 Bullet Swaging Price List

Originally Posted by robhughes-games

Have a browse through this site. Corbin January 2020 Bullet Swaging Price List

Cool cheers.

There's a manufacturing approach already in use in NZ where a lot of people have a small set up in their home (I'm thinking clothing) making things for a brand.

At the smallest level, a bunch of full home set ups could be purchased and capable people found to do it as work from home. Retired engineers etc. A cash sideline for retirees or similar.

There was a guy x ring I think was his handle used to make 223 projectiles. They were excellent. I recall he put all the gear up for sale over $8k from memory. He was selling them for 30 or 40c each from memory I know i brought several hundred. It would take a lot of bullets to break even and that's one calibre.
The idea is noble but the scale I just don't think is there to make it viable.
Belmont must have a direct tie in with bullet manufacturers. They already sell powder at astonishingly good prices, maybe they could be convinced to do the same with projectiles.

Lets look at it this way, there are some very good tool making workshops around NZ that have the spark eroders, CNC grinding equipment etc who make press dies, so having them made isn't an issue. Auto feed presses are not hard to get from China, 30Tonne ones would be about right. So to do bullets you'd have a 2 or 3 step press tool with every stamp which would require at least 4 presses running. Each press tool would be $10k+ at least. So to setup a small factory running ONE bullet caliber would be close to $300k. Then factor in $40k for each extra caliber and weight.