which 44 mag?

[fireguy715]

I'm ready to move beyond muzzle loader bullets into 44 mag. I've got a smith 629 6.5". I'm not opposed to gas checking but would prefer a bullet that would take full up 44 mag loads without. I would be using wheel weights and most likely lee liquid alox lube. My gun shoots 240 grain jacket bullets with 19 grains of ramshot enforcer very well currently. would like to get something similar in cast like 240-250 grain. It would be nice to have something that would be a good full power hunting bullet as well as reduced load bullet. THanks.

BTW, I'm fairly new. Do I have enough time in to call them BOOLITs yet?

[MGySgt]

You may have a problem finding 1 boolit that you can drive hard and also use it for plinking. Besides you don't want to be sighting in on a 12 white tail and then hit him with your plinking load because what you thought was a full bore load was actually was a plinking load!

I would look at a SWC or WC for your plinking loads and get one of Veral's LFN or WFN for your full bore loads.

Personally I use a Keith Style SWC and one load for all my 44 mag loadings. - It is not a max load (about 90%) but it will do everything I want it to do at 50 yards which is my max with a 4 7/8's SS SBH with open sights.

[44man]

No need for a GC but it is hard to find a mold without one. There are a few.
Next is the Alox, just dump that idea and use a good lube.

[MGySgt]

That is what I forgot to say - the Lee Tumble lube may do well on the Lee Tumble Lube boolits, but if you have a standard lube groove you need a standard lube, weither you pan lube or use a sizer luber.

[ipijohn]

I use the Lee TL with a mid range load of Unique for plinking and EK's 429421 with a full up load of 2400 for hunting. I mark the bases of all of my hunting loads with tool makers dye (blue dykum) so I am certain which load I am shooting.

[MT Chambers]

Lyman's 429421 is kinda the std. for accuracy in the .44 Mag, no matter what molds for heavier WFNs or LFNs I try, for just recreational shooting I always come back to that variation of the Keith bullet (Lyman 429421).

[geargnasher]

Forget the Alox, waste of time even with mild loads. you might get it to not lead, but if your experiences are anything like mine, you won't get acceptable accuracy using it.

I use the 429421 plain-base cast of 16:1 lead/tin and a midrange load of 2400 for 100-yard accuracy in the 3-4" arena. I use Felix lube for that one. Also, if I want the best accuracy, I use a round-flat nose (not WFN) with no step at the nose, cast of water-quenched wheel weights. That one will get to around 2" consistently at 100 yards, probably better but I have a LOT of trouble with grip control and the Model 29 frame, damn thing just shakes and wobbles all over the place for me and twists badly in my hands when it goes off. I much prefer the Ruger plowhandle for control both from the bench and offhand. I'd bet in more competent hands the RFN would do an inch at a hundred.

Oh, and Federal LP primers seem to make a big difference. Most of my guns don't care about brand, but this one does, I've played with that a bunch and Federals consistently improve accuracy with either boolit or loading level.

Gear

[runfiverun]

well i guess i'll heap on with my two favorite molds then.
the 429667 a 240 gr rnfp by lyman
and the 429241 a 2 hundred sumthin swc by elmer.
i have a few more versions of both types and even one with a gas check.
i probably have one or two thousand kicking around here and there of them.
but i make the first two by the 5 gallon bucket full.
unique and 2400 seem to be my powder choices
cci-300's with unique and win or fed with the 2400
i don't shoot a handgun well enough past 50 yds to tell what's what.
but i do shoot a lever gun well enough to see those loads are superior.

[williamwaco]

Lyman's 429421 is kinda the std. for accuracy in the .44 Mag, no matter what molds for heavier WFNs or LFNs I try, for just recreational shooting I always come back to that variation of the Keith bullet (Lyman 429421).



DITTO.
This bullet is the "Age old favorite"

[fireguy715]

You may have a problem finding 1 boolit that you can drive hard and also use it for plinking. Besides you don't want to be sighting in on a 12 white tail and then hit him with your plinking load because what you thought was a full bore load was actually was a plinking load!

I would look at a SWC or WC for your plinking loads and get one of Veral's LFN or WFN for your full bore loads.

Personally I use a Keith Style SWC and one load for all my 44 mag loadings. - It is not a max load (about 90%) but it will do everything I want it to do at 50 yards which is my max with a 4 7/8's SS SBH with open sights.

I could certainly get a couple of molds, may be a 200 grain something or other for plinking and a 240-250 for hunting or putting bigger holes in things. Of the 240-250 which ones would not need gas checks and mushroom some in a deer?

[nemesisenforcer]

I use 240 grain semi wadcutters without the gas checks in place (though it will accept them) and have been very satisfied with its performance, albeit in light 44 Special range loads out of my 44 magnum

[MtGun44]

GCs entirely unnecessary for .44 as far as leading is concerned. I echo the Keith std designs
with 2400 for fairly stout loads work very well for me. I can shoot 3-4" at 100 like gear says,
but have not any improvement with harder alloys or water dropping for hardness. Not done a
massive research project but have many dozens of groups that show no improvement with
harder boolits.

THE most accurate ammo I have ever fired in a .44 mag put 5 into 1.5" at 50 yds, but my eyes
are not up to it most days.

I have purchased a number of different WFN and LFN molds and commercial hard cast boolits
and found very poor accy with the commercial, even though they look to be very well cast.

My own LBT .44 molds have not had a good enough test to have an opinion, yet. Just have not
had the time free to really buckle down and test them well.

Definitely support conventional lube, NRA 50-50 is a good starting point, many others out there,
but recommend you start with some known good lube and only start experimenting there after
you have a load that is working, and ONLY change the lube as a single variable test.

Bill

[geargnasher]

Mushrooming has to do with alloy choice. You don't need gas checks for the .44 Magnum, or at least I don't. Even with the 16:1 at 1350 FPS I'm still getting hunting accuracy to 100 yards, and that alloy EXPANDS at that speed quite well. The other approach is use a lot of meplat, hard, plain-based boolit, and run them about as fast as you reasonably can for shock effect, they don't NEED to expand. It's much easier to get good, plain-based accuracy out of a harder boolit. So here are three good choices among the possibles: Medium-fast plain base, fairly soft alloy, really fast, gas-checked, malleable but slightly harder alloy, or really fast, hard, plain-based (or checked if you prefer) WFN or RN.

Gear

[runfiverun]

you don't need mushrooming for a 1/2" hole to be effective.
i had a couple of xtp's fail to open on deer, [velocity had dropped below their oprating range] they the deer were still dead.
they didn't go any further.
they were just as dead.
using the flat nosed boolits actually let's me "see" the hit's better.

[MGySgt]

I could start a war here -

Normally GC boolits will be more accurate than a plain base. Some guns need a GC to not lead no matter how hard you try with plain base. Don't know why but it happens.

GC's are an extra expense and they are getting more expensive every day. There are Check makers on the market to make your own checks that by all reports for pistol at least - they are as accurate as store bought. (Check out the Gas Check portion for more information on Check Makers).

The question is how much accuracy do you need for MOD? (MOD=Minute of Deer)

With my limitation of a 50 yard shot for my SBH - the old reliable Keith plain base SWC is plenty accurate enough and has killed a lot of game, not only in 44's but also in the 45's.

[44man]

I could certainly get a couple of molds, may be a 200 grain something or other for plinking and a 240-250 for hunting or putting bigger holes in things. Of the 240-250 which ones would not need gas checks and mushroom some in a deer?
Don't bother with a light plinking boolit, they don't seem compatible with the twist. The S&W is at the very best at 250 gr. Just download it for cans and step it up for deer. With 296 or H110, just find the best accuracy, never the fastest. It will be a little under max. 2400 can also do a good job.
The 429421 is a good choice even though I am not a fan of the SWC.
The .44 will do it's best with the Fed 150 primer with any powder.
Gear and a few others offer wisdom and to tell the truth they are starting to sound like me! [smilie=1:
Lube? It is just so important it is hard to explain but after thousands of my own tests I found you can cut groups to little holes with just a lube change. I do not look to stop leading because any lube can do that, I look for accuracy only. Even testing one good lube against another can improve shooting with the slight change in viscosity. I have used many good ones and LsStuff makes some good ones. LBT soft blue will out shoot LBT hard blue in revolvers. Felix is great. Lube is something to test.
Commercial boolits use a lube that is too hard even if the boolit fits your gun.
Next the .44 does NOT need to expand on deer if it has just the right energy and velocity. I stay around 1300 to 1350 fps with heavy but you do not want to shoot over 265 gr in the S&W, recoil inertia can do damage to parts. With a 250 gr you can approach 1400 fps and still kill deer with a hard boolit, don't look for more and a little less is better. Find ONLY the best accuracy and the .44 will kill deer fast to 100 yards.
Muzzle velocity and muzzle energy has never killed a thing. Only what the boolit does in transition of the animal counts and the .44 is one of the best.

[Mal Paso]

What 44man said about light bullets plus the little bit of lead you save won't make up for the way different bullet weights shoot. Get 1 good mold and spend the rest on a lube/sizer, then lead, powder, primers...........

I think this mold is available: http://noebulletmolds.com/orders/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=37&products_id=244

[mdi]

Well, the Lyman 429421 cast from wheel weight equivalent alloy propelled by 10.0 gr. Unique will do almost everything a person would need from a .44 Magnum.

As far as alox goes, look up the different methods to use it, then try some and make up your own mind. A whole bunch of casters have found alox to be an effective, easy to use bullet lube. But like nearly everything involved with casting/reloading/shooting, it won't work for everything (neither will any single bullet lube, but some are more versitile). But that's jes my .02...

[Blammer]

I like 19gr of 2400 for full house loads, I use air cooled WW's for about 1300fps out of my RSRH 7.5" brl, quite a few I use are plain base and they do just fine.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Cast%20boolits/44list-1.jpg

This is what I used to kill a deer with.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Cast%20boolits/DSCN6457.jpg

And this one also, I used the 44 cal version. (the one on the right is 44 cal, the other is 50 cal)

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Cast%20boolits/DSCN8129.jpg

[Blammer]

in short, in my opinion a GC is not NEEDED, choose a bullet you like, and pick a good lube, and you should be set.

[fireguy715]

I ordered an RCBS 250 k today.

[Artful]

Good choice - works well with 10gr of Unique if you can stand the smoke - also you can push it with 2400 at a pretty good clip

[Mal Paso]

Although I love my Lyman 429421 and think Iron is superior to Aluminum both of my molds were undersize. It took me a full day to lap one mold. The feedback here is Lyman is hit and miss.

I would buy this 429421 mold http://noebulletmolds.com/orders/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=37&products_id=244 It will cut nice clean holes in paper, instant feedback is important, as well as being a proven hunting boolit.