Slugging a Revolver

[DeadWoodDan]

I'm sure this has been covered, but i can't seem to find the info I am looking for. Looking for the best method to slug a revolver, only found two videos on youtube and didn't think they were great.

My blackhawks are easy as the cylinder comes out. With regards to my S&W58 I was wondering if i would need to take the cylinder off?

I picked up a set of pin gages to check the cylinders. My next question is what do I need to order to open the cyl. throats up if needed.

Thank you
DWD

[bhn22]

The cylinder in the M58 comes out with only one little screw, so that'll be easy for you. Cylinder throats should be resized with the proper sized reamer, in a fixture that assures you are cutting it straight. No ball hones, brake hones, or anything that resembles them.

[DougGuy]

What calibers are the Rugers?

[DeadWoodDan]

.357 mag. and .41 mag.

[DeadWoodDan]

The cylinder in the M58 comes out with only one little screw, so that'll be easy for you. Cylinder throats should be resized with the proper sized reamer, in a fixture that assures you are cutting it straight. No ball hones, brake hones, or anything that resembles them.

So is this something any "joe" can do or do i need to take them to a gun smith? Wasn't sure from the reading and videos I've watched but thought a special reamer was purchesed didn't know if a kit was available.
DWD

[DougGuy]

Dan, it's unlikely you will need to ream the Rugers. If the boolit you plan to load/shoot in them will slide into the cylinder throats with a light drag at the tightest, they are fine, regardless of what they measure. Mostly the .44 and .45 calibers are the ones that need attention.

The reason I say this, measuring with a pin gage is fine but it's not really accurate in the sense that pin gages are + or - .0002" so that they can be used as a go no-go gage. Plus a LOT of the Ruger cylinder throats are not really round. The best gage to use to measure cylinder throats is the boolit that you are going to shoot out of it. Use that for a gage. If it's tight or won't fit in the front of the cylinder, then that tells you right there that the cylinder throat might be swaging the boolit diameter down somewhat upon firing. However, unless you are shooting hardcast at BHN18 or harder, it will never be noticed because under the immense pressures those cartridges operate, softer lead (especially jacketed boolits) will happily swage down and go through the cylinder, and swage back up once it hits the bore.

In a perfect world, the boolit diameter would be .0005" to .001" or even .002" larger than groove diameter, and the cylinder throat diameter would be .0005" to .001" larger than the boolit diameter, so you have this sorta of funnel effect of swaging the boolit slightly smaller as it's fired, ensuring good seal in the bore. The softer the alloy that is fired, the less that rule matters.

However, if in your checking the Ruger cylinder throats you find some holes are tighter than others, which is quite common, that situation can cause flyers and whether they need reaming or not, if they are all honed to the same drag fit of the same boolit, (or honed to match the largest hole), groups will improve noticeably.

[DeadWoodDan]

Doug,

Thank you for replying. I understand and am attempting to open the door to the "perfect world". My concern is I also shoot hardcast out of this revolver, but may stop once i slug the barrel. Its just such a fun gun to shoot i go through a lot of ammo. I really haven't noticed extreme leading from hardcast bullets, but there is some evidence when cleaning.

My .358" pin goes in all cyl.'s .359" will not go in but starts in some. I have one cyl. that it stops directly at the face, dead even flush. Alomost the the tooling was worn or didn't go all the way through during maching. Any thoughts on this? Hate to buy the reamer just to clean this up. Looking at the Brownells site I couldn't find a reamer that would open the throats up to .359" or .360" do you know if I am misunderstanding the tool or they don't exist?

I'm alittle confused on when you say " swage back up once it hits the bore"? Even of softer alloy is this possible?
Thanks for the help
DWD

[white eagle]

Swage back up means the boolit of choice once it hits the barrel seals the bore with its dia. obturation (sp)
so in essence bumps back up

[DeadWoodDan]

with my hardcast I'm keeping relatively midlevel loads and don't think leading is an issue. I'm wanting to take both my BH's to the next level with magnum loadings. Curious if when I do this will the hardcast create a problem? and with my own GC'd boolits will i have an issue with leading if I'm sizing to groove diameter or under?
Thanks
DWD

[DougGuy]

Doug,

My .358" pin goes in all cyl.'s .359" will not go in but starts in some.

My question would be what diameter boolits are you wanting to shoot? Will the boolit slide into the cylinder? Use the boolit for a gage if you can, since that's the actual piece that will be fired.

I have a SBH in .44 magnum. It had uneven cylinder throats bigtime. 3 different sizes. I hunted with it for years with J word hollowpoints and killed many deer. It shot acceptably well, killed everything I dropped the hammer on, no escapees ever made it past about 10 yards. When I wanted to switch it over to shooting just cast, I chose one boolit design and found two forum members willing to share some of their work and supply me with a few hundred boolits in two different alloys, 50/50+2% for deer, bear, and other thin skinned game, and a harder alloy for hogs, sized to .432" diameter. Same Lee C430-310-RF boolit, two alloys.

I used one of these boolits as a gage, I had a .431" reamer which fell through two of the holes, took finger pressure to do two others, and the tightest ones needed a T handle on the reamer to cut a very thin take out of the cylinder throats in those two holes. After that I used a 3/8" wooden dowel with a slot in the end, and a piece of 180 grit cloth backed abrasive and I made a real simple hone that would work in a drill. I could feel the boolit sliding in the two biggest holes with just a slight drag fit. I worked the other holes with the hone (making SURE not to let it come out the end of the cylinder or back into the chamber part!) until the boolit would slide in and out with the same amount of drag fit as the other two holes. If I left the boolit in one hole and turned the cylinder up on the end, the drag fit would hold it from falling out. We are talking removing scant tenths of thousandths at a time, then checking for fit. Splitting hairs really but hey if you want it right, this is what will get it right.

Final diameter? .4325" or .4327" who knows. Not even worth hunting up a pin gage to measure because the actual decimal measurement makes ZERO difference anyway, it's how the boolit fits in the hole that matters!

Also it used to spit a little out the barrel/cylinder gap and I noticed the forcing cone was rough, had a ring all the way around right in the middle of it, so I used an 11° cutter and cleaned it up nicely, it cut farther into the barrel/rifling but I didn't make it any bigger than it already was at the fire ring. Fixed that chit and I mean right now.. No more spitting at all.

The first 3 rounds I fired with the re-dimensioned cylinder throats and the recut forcing cone told the tale right there and I knew then that the load I had developed for cast boolits and also the gun were a winning combination. It had never shot that good before in all the years I have owned it.


Looking at the Brownells site I couldn't find a reamer that would open the throats up to .359" or .360" do you know if I am misunderstanding the tool or they don't exist?

http://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-tools-supplies/barrel-blanks-tools/reamers/throating-reamers/revolver-cylinder-throating-reamer-prod7700.aspx

The .357 reamer will cut to .358" which usually would mean it finishes at .3585" you could call Dave Manson and dbl check this. He makes any reamer you could imagine and he will make a .41 caliber reamer for you to cut whatever finished diameter you want. If you want a .359" he will make that too. Cost is about $135 + shipping for a custom reamer made to your specs.

Again, what boolit diameter will you be using? Check what is available before you jump in to reaming/sizing the cylinder with both feet. Case in point, my .44 magnum. It is VERY hard if not impossible to find factory ammo in .432" size. I can order cast boolits in that diameter but for the most part most molds only cast at .432" and to get larger the mold has to be lapped or beagled. The Lee mold drops .432" in some alloys, and in other harder alloys that .432" becomes .4325" or .433" in a few weeks of sitting. I don't see .359" mentioned when talking about a .357 magnum, but I see .358" referenced a lot. Same deal, check in advance..

[DougGuy]

with my hardcast I'm keeping relatively midlevel loads and don't think leading is an issue. I'm wanting to take both my BH's to the next level with magnum loadings. Curious if when I do this will the hardcast create a problem? and with my own GC'd boolits will i have an issue with leading if I'm sizing to groove diameter or under?
Thanks
DWD

Yes you want your boolits at the very least .0005" over groove diameter. It will lead like crazy if they are smaller. My hunting loads are a softer alloy over a gas check, they are .002" bigger than groove diameter and work very well.

You can match your alloy to the velocity which helps barrel leading a lot. It also helps accuracy in most cases. Too hard an alloy promotes leading as bad as too soft.