Help with 44 Special loads

Hi,

I am very new to the cast bullet game... I am loading for 2 different 44 spcls...my dad's 4 5/8" New Model Blackhawk and my 5.5" Ruger Bisley. I picked up a box of 240 gr Hornady SWC/HP's lead bullets the other day at my LGS.. The Hornady book shows 6.3 Grs of Unique... I loaded some up tonite with 6.2 grs of Unique..I am looking for lead non gas checked loads for the following powders...N-110, 296 and 2400. I am wanting to get the most out of this cartridge with out leading. We are using these pistols to shoot bayed hogs...I am thinking a lead bullet will be the best for this application. Please share with me some of your loads. Thanks for the help. Robbie

Those bullets are machine swaged from a soft lead alloy. They are only Suited for mild to mid range loads. Being a soft alloy, if you try to move them at too high a velocity, you will probably get leading. The unique load is OK, and you could probably use modern 2400 data. H110 and W296 are really the same powder and require more pressure than the Hornady lead bullet is suited for. they will lead if driven too fast.

First, don't waste your time on bullets that won't make the grade. There are folks here who will sell you boolits made out of good alloy which will also fit your gun if you don't cast. Fit is the foremost factor. Slug your barrel. use pin gauges to measure your throats. chamber mouths (throats) should be slightly (.001 to .002") larger than groove dia of barrel. Boolits should be chamber mouth size (friction fit). 50/50 alloy can be heat treated and is a good all around choice. Now you can make accurate loads at any performance level.

Thanks guys... where can I buy some good gas checked boolits???

You don't necessarily need the GC boolits.


Here are a few, many many more out there.
Mattsbullets

montanabulletworks

rimrockbullets (good GC soft lead version that buffalo bore uses)

use the skeeter load of 7.5 unique for 900 fps or 16.5 2400 for 1050 fps if it shoots good with out leading they should work for your hogs

Thanks Guys... I checked out Rimrock bullets and I am leaning toward the 240 gr gc hp's. Can you shoot lead bullets thru a ported barrel?? I load for some of my hunting buddies and a couple of them have ported guns. I really appreciate the help. Rob

As I've written several times, THE load for .44 Special with any bullet (swaged, cast, plated or jacketed) from 180 to 240 grains is 6.0 American Select.

If I were loading boolits for hogs I would choose a non-hp and one as heavy as I can get for deep penetration. A good swc or one with a large meplat of 250-300 gr pb slug would be fine. With heavy boolits in 44 spcl you do not need gas checks.

i agree with hicard no need for gas checks and no hp 250 to 300 gr swc or lbt lead bullet for your piggies

Ok.. thanks.. How bout the HP's for deer???

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Originally Posted by Southarkrob

Ok.. thanks.. How bout the HP's for deer???

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The bullets you have are soft swaged lead as previously mentioned. You may get some leading with the load you have. The Skeeter load (7.5 gr Unique) will be a good one for deer (at very close range; 25 - 40 yards max) with the soft swaged lead bullets you have but shoot very many before cleaning and leading will no doubt be problematic. If you have some LLA I suggest a coating of the before loading also. A soft cast (almost as soft as the swaged ones you have) 429415 GC'd bullet HP'd to 1/4" with the Forster 1/8" HP tool loaded over 7.5 - 8 gr Unique makes for an excellent 44 SPL load for hunting deer or pigs.

Larry Gibson

Southarkrob I may be the nay-sayer here, but sounds like you all ready re-load and if you’re really talking about hogging ( or any other animal ) a box of 50 .44 jacketed will cost you under 20.00 ( jacketed XTP) I can’t imagine your putting 50 hogs in the freezer a year they balloon nicely, but still have a good core of about 200 gr if they fragment for deep penetration.( I use the 300 gr for bear up here in my BP encore and both my .44 ). You can drive them a lot faster without leading your barrel or trying to work up a load. There is a saving is you are sending a lot of lead down range to casting your own, but your first boolit you have a couple hundred bucks into your project. The other nice thing ( if you have .44 mag ) is you can put the round some place between a spcl and full .44. I shoot a ton with real boolits but think you should consider using a jacket bullet for this application. IMHO testing should not be conducted if your trying to dispatch one of gods creatures. Copper does have its place even if your a purest PB caster. Just my .2 and i can say that i have taken game both with cast and commercial ( bullets, no one in there right mind should buy complete ammunition )

Thanks for the help guys.. bgoff... you are right I reload...but have just now got into pistol hunting...killed my first handgun deer last year...3 total. We kill a lot of hogs...my dad is retired and he used to hog hunt daily (Jan of 2006 they put 59 hogs down in front of their dogs)(that was their highest month...they used to average 20 to 30... they all got eaten...not all by us..) most were shot with a SKS, 41 Mag or stuck with a knife. Dad's back gave out and he had to have major back surgery last year and a couple years before that he had to give up hunting hogs... barely could hunt deer. He is doing better now and is slowly getting back into it and I want to load him the best for his pistol. I am a huge XTP fan... they have ended a many hogs life out of the 41 mag. I also like to try different bullets on game and found this site and have learned alot ... still want to shoot one with a cast bullet. I am trying to load a lot up as my dad is really wanting to practice alot with his 44 sp Blackhawk... he loves this gun.

I have both of those revolvers.
they both shoot the superclassic load just fine.
7.2 grs of unique a cci-300 lp primer and the 429241 sized to 430.
I worked on it real hard, then someone told me skeeter thought of it first.
ehh whatever, it works.
think of it as a deeper penetrating, heavier boolit weighted, slightly faster, 45 acp.

For hogs and deer check out the montanabulletworks LBT 280 gr either with or without gc. Huge meplat, good weight. It should hammer them. I don't think you need it at "special" velocities but guys here are generally more knowledgeable than me.

a good link for 44 sp shooters put together by Matt G

http://www.goodrichfamilyassoc.org/44_Special_Articles/

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Originally Posted by hicard

If I were loading boolits for hogs I would choose a non-hp and one as heavy as I can get for deep penetration. A good swc or one with a large meplat of 250-300 gr pb slug would be fine. With heavy boolits in 44 spcl you do not need gas checks.

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Lyman 429421

Lyman 429421 wuth 8.0 grs of Poer Pistol is my load in a Ruger Bisley 5.5".