Originally Posted by
TurnipEaterDown
Profiles changes on cast bullets often serve different purposes (hunting, target, Long Range target, etc.), and are also made to fit different guns (Lead & Throat geometry, freebore, magazine length, etc.).
Cast are fundamentally different than jacketed - generally people want the grease grooves in the cartridge neck versus exposed (and there are LOTS of different cartridges & guns in, say, 30 caliber), hard cast pistol bullets can be made to deliver good wounding w/o expansion if the nose shape is correct, a lead cast bullet "skin" is always softer than jacket alloy - so design changes made to improve fit of lead and throat will help improve accuracy while attaining higher speeds where this is not so often done w/ jacketed, etc.
There are some "unique" designs (compared to jacketed) also w/ Very specific "mechanical" purpose - stop rings, heels, etc.
If it seems "odd", chances are it serves a purpose, and the point of reference is a modern jacketed skewing the perception.
Also, some people who design cast bullet molds likely think they can hit the "magic idea".