270gr 44 Mag for Deer Air Cooled or Water Quenched?

[Themoose]

I want to deer hunt with Henry BigBoy in 44 mag. I have worked up a accurate load using a 270 gr
LFN, cast from wheelweights, gas checked and lubed with LBT softblue. Velocity avg was 1642 with a spread of 10 fps for a 5 shot string. Expected hunting range would be 25-100yds with expected velocity was calculated: 25 yds 1560, 50yds 1484, 75yds 1412, and 100 yds1345fps.

Given the above data and stated purpose would you recommend air cooled or water Quenched? I do not have experience with adding tin or antimony and would prefer to keep the alloy simple.


Thanks for your help.
TheMoose

[Djones]

Was your accurate load air cooled or water quenched? Go with shoots the most accurately. I doubt terminal performance is going to change much either way you temper your alloy.

This deer was shot with a 44 carbine. I usually water drop all of my bullets and my alloy is usually COWW with a little SOWW and a pinch of tin.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/archive/index.php/t-266049.html

[stubert]

If you're not getting leading, stick with what you have. Air cooled would be my choice (less steps)

[runfiverun]

I run a 240 at the same average velocity from my lever guns.
I use a little softer alloy and no gas check.
my hesitation time on pulling the trigger on a deer or even an ELK within reasonable [to me] distances is zero
nano- seconds.

your gonna see a hole on both sides unless you try for the front shoulder and rear leg joint.
heck even then you might see 2 holes.
keep them in a place that shots down the central nervous system and put some pictures up.

[gunseller]

I would go with runfiverun, I have shot a pile of deer with a 240 grain cast out of ww, aircooled, and all went down with blood running out both sides. Ranges run from 5 feet to close to 200 yards. Placement means more to me than how hard is the projectile.
Steve

[white eagle]

agree,agree,agree...
sounds to me like you have no worries

[44man]

Air cooled for sure. I would not run too hard over revolver velocities.

[sixshot]

No need to water drop a sixgun bullet, you're still going to get an exit. I've put them through both front shoulders of elk.

Dick

[Thumbcocker]

What they said.

[Washington1331]

+1 on the whatever shoots better in your gun. The change in BHN between air cooled and water quenched isn't going to make a big difference on whitetails. As long as you can put it in the boiler maker you'll be letting a lot of blood out and air in. Contrary to popular opinion, deer haven't evolved in the years since WW2 to be boolit resistant, or benefited from advances in body armor. With the set up you describe and the game you're going after, you won't be under-gunned.... unless you meet this guy.

176783

[jhalcott]

I shoot a LOT of air cooled wheel weight alloy boolits in several calibers! There is NO reason to water quench them. In fact a too hard bullet MAY cause leading because it can NOT expand to fill the bore. But hey, I'm lazy and the less work the better for ME. IF you MUST experiment, Quench a few from the mold and SEE if they shoot more accurately than unquenched ones. That IS a big boolit for white tails.

[44man]

I shoot water dropped from everything because they are more accurate for me. In the 1300 fps range they kill very fast but at higher or lower speeds they don't work well at all.
I cast a soft nose for those.
Boolits do not need to expand in the bore if they fit. Hard does not cause leading. These soft nose are also water dropped to keep drive bands hard.
At rifle velocities I would not shoot full hard. They should be more accurate with fit but I would have a soft nose to get some upset.
I would think air cooled would work but they will age harden too. I think a soft nose is the best thing since Jack was bottled! I do NOT like HP's.

[nagantguy]

I have a soft spot for the 270 grain weight in 44, before I ever cast, or thought about it I loved the 270 grain speer gold dot soft point. deer bear hogs and a cow elk fell to that bullet out of red and blackhawks. then I found the lee 310, and have a hunt coming up.for a tyrannosaurus rex, water dropped, gas checked, pcd with Smokes black cast under a red harvest moon on an odd day of the month of August using wild sage as a Flux media the water was the tears of scorned lovers and my mold.tapper was the left front leg of an albino giraffe.

[Blammer]

go for the air cooled as it's less fuss.

[Shuz]

The only .44 boolits I heat treat are for the .444 Marlin because I'm driving them past 2000 fps. IMHO the .44 magnum does not require water quenched or heat treated boolits for expansion. Some folks seem to get better accuracy with hard boolits in the .44 mag., but that has not been my experience in over 50 years with that cartridge.YMMV.

[44man]

I get fliers with air cooled in the revolvers but found an aid, anneal the GC's. I don't know why but it helps. Must be a better skid stop. I shoot my bigger bores with PB so they must be WD to halt skid at the base band. I can't group a 50-50 PB even if oven hardened, these need a check.
Been close to 61 years with the .44 mag. I shot the original 429421 with air cooled for a long time until I found what the .44 could do.177203 My boolit at 200 yards.
A rifle does not have the problems a revolver has unless it has the 1 in 38" twist.

[runfiverun]

they conform to the boolit better and stay that way.
unannealed tend to spring back a bit after being sized into place.
they don't spring back the same amount from check to check mostly because the copper strip they are made from heats up more and more down the roll as they are punched out.

you get to a point when looking for more accuracy or velocity where little stuff like that matters.

[44man]

That might be it. Now if I could gain back 20 years! Heck 5 would help.

[Markbo]

Hmmmmm....never heard of annealing gas checks. Before or after mounting? Think an aluminum check would benefit??

[44man]

Hmmmmm....never heard of annealing gas checks. Before or after mounting? Think an aluminum check would benefit??
I don't know! The check is to stop boolit skid at the base, you can skid some before but NEVER at the base band. I don't know if aluminum is tough enough. Might be a "FEEL GOOD" thing. I have seen copper checks exceeded by velocity with the wrong alloy.