44 magnum mousefart load

[49FMarlin]

looking for a quiet mousefart load for my 44 magnum 14inch barrel break action
1-20 twist

260grain boolit (thank you steve)
I just got some unique and Bullseye

thank you

I just tried 8 grains of unique--its LOUD but hit dead nuts to where i was aiming,
want a quiet load,at a 25 yrs target

[thegatman]

trailboss loads. 70% rule

[49FMarlin]

trailboss loads. 70% rule

IDO NOT HAVE trial boss

Ihave
unique and Bulleye

if i had trail boss i wouldn't be so dang frustrated but its unobtainable right now for me,

[Blackwater]

.433 round ball. Lee makes one (or did?) Small charge of powder. Lube ball in LLA or similar and put in sized and expanded case over powder & crimp very lightly so the ball is held gently, but firmly enough to keep the assembly from coming apart when you don't want it to. Adjust powder charge to your liking and according to gun's performance on target. Won't likely take long to come up with a workable load.

[Outpost75]

Not quiet, but milder use 5 grains of Bullseye with your 260-grain bullet. I would not reduce below this.

Chronograph data, Remington NFP cases with 2-1/2 primers, Alliant Bullseye, Accurate 43-230G bullet seated in front crimp groove at 1.59" OAL. Side by side tests on same day.

5-1/2" Ruger Vaquero 720 fps, 37 Sd, 97ES
7-1/2" Ruger Vaquero 797 fps, 16 Sd, 37ES (Likes LONGER revolver barrel)
20" Marlin 1894S 917 fps, 32Sd, 87ES

[Artful]

.433 round ball. Lee makes one (or did?) Small charge of powder. Lube ball in LLA or similar and put in sized and expanded case over powder & crimp very lightly so the ball is held gently, but firmly enough to keep the assembly from coming apart when you don't want it to. Adjust powder charge to your liking and according to gun's performance on target. Won't likely take long to come up with a workable load.

+1 - start by visting your local black powder supply/LGS - .433 is sold in 100 count box so you can try 'em

[Litl Red 3991]

By all means, work with the Bullseye and save the Unique for what it's best at.

MF loads have a bad rep for squibs that leave a bullet in the barrel. The ballistics people have suggested that squibs and "secondary explosions" happen with slower powders, and don't with fast ones. Unique in your combination could be considered slow. Why risk it. Bullseye in any combination is fast.

[49FMarlin]

By all means, work with the Bullseye and save the Unique for what it's best at.

MF loads have a bad rep for squibs that leave a bullet in the barrel. The ballistics people have suggested that squibs and "secondary explosions" happen with slower powders, and don't with fast ones. Unique in your combination could be considered slow. Why risk it. Bullseye in any combination is fast.

a question

why is unique considered too slow a powder for downloading in my combination ?
im not understanding this,



I have been told that downloading with this 14inch break action barrel is safe

with unique,and bullseye
as long as i look and see if theres a stuck boolit before i fire the next round,

I have been told I can safely go down to a stuck boolit with both unique and bullseye
and then load up from there

to find my mousefart, with the different boolits to find the one i like best,

[Artful]

Unique will take more powder to do the same action as Bullseye powder. And as it's slower burning the pressure curve will be higher when the projectile exists the barrel with a Unique load.

To be quiet you want the least amount of powder burned to achieve the velocity you want with the fastest burning powder so that the residual pressure will be at it's lowest point when the barrel uncorks.

[49FMarlin]

Unique will take more powder to do the same action as Bullseye powder. And as it's slower burning the pressure curve will be higher when the projectile exists the barrel with a Unique load.

To be quiet you want the least amount of powder burned to achieve the velocity you want with the fastest burning powder so that the residual pressure will be at it's lowest point when the barrel uncorks.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH
now I'm understanding and learning

[tsubaki]

If you do decide on some .433 RB loads here are some I picked up a while back but haven't tried yet.
Case preparation was suggested to chamfer and debur to be very sharp, load powder and then paper punch a cardboard wad between case and die, then seat ball letting the case shave it a little, then crimp.
44spl
(1) .433 RB with 2.3gr Bullseye or 3.0gr of Unique

44mag
(1) .433RB with 2.9gr Bullseye or 3.6gr of Unique

[mdi]

Not meant to be snarky, but after all it is a .44 Magnum. It's gonna be pretty loud with any load with a 260 gr. bullet (ya gotta have enough powder to push that bullet outta the barrel!). I've used 3.5 gr. of W 231 (I know, you don't have any) under a 123 gr. ball. Aloxed the ball, seated to where the diameter was just below the case mouth and a very light roll crimp. Shot 2" groups from my Ruger SBH at 20 yards. That was quieter than a factory round but louder than a .22 LR....

[44man]

I do not understand why you bought a .44 mag at all. Why did you not buy a cork shooter? Do you know about all the plastic ball shooters? z

[Blackwater]

That's a good question, 44man, and the answer is that most of us are urbanized critters these days, and some like to shoot quieter loads. Not the same, of course, but at least we get to actually SHOOT something, and keep the neighbors from calling the law on us. It's a dang nuissance, but it's just the way it is these days for many of us. I live 5 mi. outside a small college town, and I have to be careful not to get the neighbors TOO upset. It's mostly live and let live here, but that can be pushed TOO far if we're not careful. I quit shooting in my back yard when a neighbor and valued friend's wife developed "nerve problems." She was a teacher and was sued by a parent alleging abuse of her child. It came out at trial (thank God she didn't "settle!!!") that this "parent" had made a right fair living suing folks, and my friend's wife had an impeccable reputation for honesty, fair play, and real love for her students. Brain chemistry is a funny thing, and we don't understand it very well at all, and the long, drawn out process of the trial, and some of the things that happened during that time that shouldn't have ever occurred, she came out at the end very "nervous," so I just didn't have the heart to disturb her or cause her any anguish whatever with my shooting, so I found another place. I do think I could have gotten away with those quiet little loads, even though it's not the same in all respects, but I just didn't have the heart to even risk that. She was a truly good woman, and my neighbor was a truly good man. They've passed on now, and I miss them very much. Their grandkids now live in the house. This is a pretty quiet place for a semi-urban area, but I'm planning on building a really good backstop and bench in my yard very soon, and I think I can get away with it as long as I don't keep up a constant barage. It's good to live in a place where I can do that, but better to be able to live on or near a farm where one can shoot to one's heart's contentment.

Special loads like this have a place, but only as a stop-gap proposition. They don't and can't pretend to fulfill all the things full loads can. Where possible, though, I very much agree with you that shooting full loads is by far the best way to "keep our hand in," learn, or just practice.

[GabbyM]

Just in case it's not been made clear. Major reason to use a round ball in low pressure rounds. Is to better insure the bullet exits the barrel. RB having a very low contact area with the bore pops out much easier. RB also doesn't build up much pressure for powder ignition so the fast powders would be best. However Unique ,I'm sure, would work. If the ball isn't the proper size to load and chamber. You can push them through your boolit size die.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Pellet Guns work really well for in town shooting.

I have a 190 gr SWC bullet mould from Magma which will work for really light loads. 3-4 gr of Bullseye would push that boolit thru a 14" bbl.

I pretty much just load 429421's with 6gr of W231 for my generic .44 Spec/Mag load. Bullseye would work for that load as well,,, it's just not as clean.


Randy

[49FMarlin]

If you do decide on some .433 RB loads here are some I picked up a while back but haven't tried yet.
Case preparation was suggested to chamfer and debur to be very sharp, load powder and then paper punch a cardboard wad between case and die, then seat ball letting the case shave it a little, then crimp.
44spl
(1) .433 RB with 2.3gr Bullseye or 3.0gr of Unique

44mag
(1) .433RB with 2.9gr Bullseye or 3.6gr of Unique

thank you
I'm going to try this,

The "Mainepowderhouse" is just up the street from me I'm shur he will have round balls

[49FMarlin]

That's a good question, 44man, and the answer is that most of us are urbanized critters these days, and some like to shoot quieter loads. Not the same, of course, but at least we get to actually SHOOT something, and keep the neighbors from calling the law on us. It's a dang nuissance, but it's just the way it is these days for many of us. I live 5 mi. outside a small college town, and I have to be careful not to get the neighbors TOO upset. It's mostly live and let live here, but that can be pushed TOO far if we're not careful. I quit shooting in my back yard when a neighbor and valued friend's wife developed "nerve problems." She was a teacher and was sued by a parent alleging abuse of her child. It came out at trial (thank God she didn't "settle!!!") that this "parent" had made a right fair living suing folks, and my friend's wife had an impeccable reputation for honesty, fair play, and real love for her students. Brain chemistry is a funny thing, and we don't understand it very well at all, and the long, drawn out process of the trial, and some of the things that happened during that time that shouldn't have ever occurred, she came out at the end very "nervous," so I just didn't have the heart to disturb her or cause her any anguish whatever with my shooting, so I found another place. I do think I could have gotten away with those quiet little loads, even though it's not the same in all respects, but I just didn't have the heart to even risk that. She was a truly good woman, and my neighbor was a truly good man. They've passed on now, and I miss them very much. Their grandkids now live in the house. This is a pretty quiet place for a semi-urban area, but I'm planning on building a really good backstop and bench in my yard very soon, and I think I can get away with it as long as I don't keep up a constant barage. It's good to live in a place where I can do that, but better to be able to live on or near a farm where one can shoot to one's heart's contentment.

Special loads like this have a place, but only as a stop-gap proposition. They don't and can't pretend to fulfill all the things full loads can. Where possible, though, I very much agree with you that shooting full loads is by far the best way to "keep our hand in," learn, or just practice.

Im learning to reload, and cast because its fun,
im wanting to shoot quieter rounds same as above, i have neighbors were all country folk, but we respect each other,
and small town values rule here, folks don't mind a little noise, but value the quiet also,
come hunting seasons, no one ever complains, I've been shooting 5-20 rounds during the week when folks are at work and kids in school
I could buy a modern BB gun but they never did anything for me, wheres the casting or loading fun?
hell i could sell it all and buy a NICE crossbow and not make a sound, wouldn't have to worrie about sniffing too much lead, no powder to hunt down
no brass to shine, no books to read and no reloading group to make friends with, and learn from,
NO,
Ill stick to being a big ol PAIN in u guys butts and asking all the crazy questions, about how to take my guns and play with them,

Hopefully you all won't toss me out into the river and p-diddle on my powder
cheers
and thank you all
john

[Litl Red 3991]

Once upon a time, CB Longs were available. They are an option that really works, if using a 22 is an ok way to get your shooting fix.

CCI markets them. They also market Subsonic, but at a higher price. Oh heck, I forgot...... Well, when and if CCI ever shows up for sale again.

No lie, they are so quiet you can shoot in your backyard while your neighbor reads his Sunday paper on his deck next door and he will be startled when you notice him and go over to apologize for the noise. Which he had not heard at all.... How do I know?

[Lonegun1894]

"NO,
Ill stick to being a big ol PAIN in u guys butts and asking all the crazy questions, about how to take my guns and play with them"

Now that sounds like an EXCELLENT idea to me! There's always something new, or at least new to me, to learn. Then again, I was always taught that the day I quit learning, they may as well put me 6 ft under. Or with my luck, get out the dust pan and put what's left or what they can find in a shoebox and put that in the backyard.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

I load my 44 mags for target work at 25 yards using H&G #503 (a 255 grain SWC) and 9 grains of 4756. Recoil and muzzle blast are quite low. I also use H&G #107 which is a full wadcutter with 5 grains of Unique which is even softer to shoot. Both loads shoot accurately and there is no shooter fatigue so I can work for as long as I wish. Admittedly they are a lot less than what most 44 Mag shooters usually use, but they are quiet by comparison and get the job done. LLS

[44man]

OK, understand the noise problem near a college town, lot's of liberals.
I am 1/2 mile out of a little town, Bakerton, WV. A development with the paper we had to sign, no shooting or hunting but we all do anyway. I made my range when I moved here 28 years ago and shoot mighty big stuff, even touched off a bunch of 50 BMG rounds once. [smilie=2:I even hear shooting from the town now and then. Only had one complaint from an old guy on the other road that almost fell off his porch chair. :bigsmyl2: He has passed, maybe I gave him a heart attack!
Anyway, you are NO PAIN so keep us up to date on what works.
I have noticed one thing since I shoot so much. There have been break ins here and there but never here. Thugs dare not come around. I don't even have to lock my doors or cars. I can walk on or hunt all my neighbors lands without asking and they can come here. Country living at it's best.
My situation is different but I understand yours, I will not tell you what I got away with growing up in Cleveland Ohio. Had to make a toilet float silencer for the .22's! Best was when I dropped a starling off a wire and it fell on a guy's car at the red light. Shot hundreds of pigeons and rats. Found pigeons send a scout to see if it is safe for the rest to come back.
We could shoot any .22 at Edgewater park in Cle. Shot rats and carp all night. You could not hear a gun near the water, just the click of the firing pin. Strangest thing ever, set a fishing lantern on a rock with a hunk of wiener close, aim at the meat and a rat would come out, just pull the trigger!
The break wall was full of rats that ate dead fish. Some were big as cats. Darn fun to shoot carp too. They spin crazy!

[Yodogsandman]

"New to the country" type folks need to become acclimated to the sounds of the country. Let them hear you shooting so they can get used to it.

[49FMarlin]

"New to the country" type folks need to become acclimated to the sounds of the country. Let them hear you shooting so they can get used to it.

now a days if the neighbors hear ya shoutin they call the cops,
then you get hauled off to the pokey for demestic violence even if the missis aint home, they just write she ran off to save herslf,

yuppies,,,,GRRRRRR tree huggers,,,OMGawd I'm just cutting firewood for pets sake,
glen call the cops he just swore at me,and he's hurting this prty tree

where did the country go? where folks waived, stopped if you were broke down, greeted ya with a beer and a smile,
sayin
Hows the shooting doin over there? you wanna have a contest someday? whoever gets that dern gofer in the eyeball gets a free mason jar of hootch,
and some dang good cornbread from the misses

I remember outhouses, horses hawlin trees down the road, and bears deer and rifles close by
kids roaming free, and dad knowin what i did before i got home,
and the telephone you picked up and listened to the neighbors yack and gossip,,,funny i even remember my phone number as a kid,
can't remember my phone number today for the life of me,

[Digital Dan]

thank you
I'm going to try this,

The "Mainepowderhouse" is just up the street from me I'm shur he will have round balls

Was doing some of this with the .44 years ago in a 77/44. Sized .433" round balls to .422" and paper patched them to .430". Single balls shot well to 25 yards and beyond with only 2-3 grains of Bullseye. You can do the same by sizing to groove and lubing with ALOX as described previously. I also shot some double ball loads and they did quite well but consistently printed two groups, one in the 10 ring and another at 10 o'clock about 4-5" off center. Never quite figured why that happened but it was very consistent. Paper patching roundballs is a lesson in tedium by the way. The loads down around 2 grains of powder were closer to frog fart loud, don't know how that works for you. You can also load a single ball up to around 2400 fps but a) it likely won't hit paper at 25 yards, or b) the Chrony if you're lucky. But man-oh-man, it sure is fast! I'm still waiting to hear from NASA about reentry.

You need to be attentive to seating the sized ball with proper orientation, if in fact you wind up sizing them.



Also did some loads with 300 gr paper patched lead. Odd noise, bullet visible going down range at 2.7 gr of Bullseye. About 550 fps as I recall.

[Outpost75]

"New to the country" type folks need to become acclimated to the sounds of the country. Let them hear you shooting so they can get used to it.

Our neighborhood sounds like a shooting range on match day, between the Peacemaker National Training Center and the 167th AW we hear the sounds of freedom daily around here. The gunfire is less noisy than the C17s on tracking inbound over the North Mountain VOR on their final approach.

Ah, the smell of JP8 in the morning....

[whisler]

Had a little cook-out/shoot-out this weekend. Didn't think it would bother the neighbors. When I heard the 44 mag going off across the road before we even got cranked up, I knew we wouldn't bother them any with our pop guns. I love the country!

[44man]

Our neighborhood sounds like a shooting range on match day, between the Peacemaker National Training Center and the 167th AW we hear the sounds of freedom daily around here. The gunfire is less noisy than the C17s on tracking inbound over the North Mountain VOR on their final approach.


Ah, the smell of JP8 in the morning....
You must live close, Martinsburg maybe? I am in Bakerton, near Harpers Ferry.