.44 mag with existing alloys

[Oklahoma Rebel]

I have two alloys laying around that I don't use for my rifles. one is 2sn-2sb96pb, the other, 4sn-2sb-94pb. would these be appropriate for the 44 magnum with and without GC's at hunting load velocity, aka 1300-1400, depending on weight, powder used will most likely be 296. one though was possible heat treating the 2-2-96 mix, but with only 2 sb I don't think it would take. thanks for your help,Travis

[montanamike]

I use 2/2/96 (not water dropped or heat treated) and h110 for full house loads and get no leading what so ever without a gas check. you should be fine.

[Cowboy_Dan]

I cast for .44 Mag for a carbine. Straight WW and WW/Pb 50/50 both work just fine with a plain base, even full-snot with 296. Your 2/2/96 shoild be just fine air cooled.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

ok cool! now I think that the 4sn-2sb-96pb will do better for hunting though, since it is going to have more malleability to it, and save the 2-2-96 for plinking and whatnot. do you think it would do well as a HP at those speeds? 1300-1400?

[Oklahoma Rebel]

when I asked about the hollow point bullets and its performance, I meant the 4%sn alloy, not sure I was very clear about that,lol thanks

[DougGuy]

You certainly wouldn't need hollowpoints with that alloy, just use a heavy, wide flat nose and you will have some brutally successful hunting boolits. And you wouldn't need more than 1200fps either.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

I have a 250 keith pb and a 275rnfp gc mold (combo) picked out from accurate, the keith for plinking,coyotes and other varmints and maybe deer, the 275gr for deer, hogs, and if I ever get the chance, elk

[Oklahoma Rebel]

thanks for the help! I appreciate it

[lightman]

Neither of those would be a bad choice. I use mostly clip-on wheelweights, which have less tin than either of your alloys, and I get good bullets that perform well. I don't really like casting hollow point or hollow base bullets but have been happy with the Keith styles.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

so you don't use gas checks at all? I guess I have just gotten used to using them in my rifles. I used to shoot pb all the time in my 45-70. I guess they are just extra insurance to me.also when you have tried casting HP's, who made the mold, I haven't ever cast any hp's yet but I will use eric ohler's system with the pins having two retaining bars that allow them to slide out from the mold half to let the boolit go, instead of the lyman style such as the devastator where you remove the pin by yourself, that allows it to cool more anyways. thanks for your help

[lightman]

The last hollow points I cast were with a Lyman mold. I had a higher rejection rate than I'm accustomed to. I don't use gas checks on any of my pistol bullets, only on rifle.

[JohnH]

Elmer Keith, the man who created what became the 44 magnum used 16-1 lead tin and plain base boolits. In the 44 Special case he was loading 18 grains of 2400 and getting about 1200 fps from a 4" barrel. His favored gun for this load was a Smith and Wesson Hand Ejector. He liked it because of the crane lock, even though the 2nd model Hand Ejector had heat treated cylinders and were more capable of standing up to the pressures (that load generates about 28,000 psi). It may well be that you already know this information. I certainly don't in anyway mean to be insulting. I do however find that a lot of how we got to where we are is being lost and it seems too short a time for that to be happening. I've run into casters and shooters who don't know who he, or others like Skeeter Skelton, Ken Ulgade, Warren Center, Phil Sharp, E. H. Harrison and others even were. I get all kinds of funny looks and am always asked by someone "What is that" when I pull out my 10" octagonal barrel 44 Magnum Contender. Guess I'm just an old fart, please excuse the rambling.

[white eagle]

I use gas checks when needed but not always
get less problematic with alloy selection
I know what you mean about people not knowing who Elmer and the 44
Associates were

[Oklahoma Rebel]

johnH- yes, I know all about keith and his favorite alloy, 1-16, and shooting those PB'd to 1400 I think ( in the magnum) the other names you mentioned, I only know the names, not about them. I am only 30 so probably before my time, but if you want to tell me about them I would be glad to learn. especially skeeter, I have heard that name a lot. thanks-Travis

[JohnH]

Phil Sharp and Elmer Keith developed the 38-44. It was a hot rodded 38 Special that was meant to be used only in the Smith and Wesson "N" frame, often referred to as the 44 frame at the time, hence the name. The cartridge would drive the Keith's 357 170 grain semi wadcutter to about 1200 fps from a 6 inch barrel. Phil Sharp was firearms and ballistics expert who worked in the industry and with the military. Elgin Gates who I didn't mention before created several cartridges for international handgun silhouette shooing, the most famous of which is the 357 Maximum. Do a search here of E.H. Harrison, should be a link somewhere to download the cast bullet manual he wrote for the NRA. Warren Center created the Contender, Ken Ulgade used it in long range handgunning, the 7mm TCU bears his name, (Thompson Center Ulgade) Skeeter Skelton was a Border Patrol agent and writer for Shooting Times (way back when the magazine was worth buying) He wrote extensively about the 44 Special his favorite cartridge. Early in the morning, gotta go to work, but that outta peak your interest some more about an older generation. Google search 'em and find out more. Maybe some other guys here will throw in their two cents too.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

cool, thanks for the info, I have some googling to do!