240 Gr. SWC, .44 Cal. Do they exist?

[Murphy]

Perhaps it is just I, but I seem to notice that more and more the .44 caliber boolits run into the 250+ grain catagory.

Anyone else notice this?

What was indeed the original .44 Magnum boolit weight?

A 240 Gr. SWC in a group buy mould would interest me far more than the 250/255 grain boolits that keep popping up.

Thanks for any input.... :drinks:


Murphy

[James C. Snodgrass]

I think the main reason for 250 is that fella named Keith. I do believe Elmer wanted heavier but was limited by the amount that H&G was willing to build ? I know that the original half jacket was 240. But that would be my guesstimate ? See ya James[smilie=1:

[beagle]

I guess that's what Elmer's design ran when H & G cut his first mould. In fact, H & G made two more designs to Elmer's specifications as their #326 (275 grains) and # 328 (320 grains).

He had fairly favorable comments on the #326 and loaded some "car stoppers" with the #328 but never said much about it.

I'm pretty happy with his #429421./beagle

[mooman76]

I have a lyman 44 SWC that is 240g.

[Ricochet]

The original factory bullets were 240 grain swaged lead SWC gascheck, lubed with wax. Similar hardness to .22 LR bullets, I'd say. They mushroomed very well. I still have some of the Winchester-Western ones from the mid-70s. They used to come at .433", but I believe the ones I still have are marked .430". I LOVE those bullets, and was deeply saddened when they became unavailable. Of course, I can cast my own that are similar (but a bit heavier) now.

[Boerrancher]

Murph,

Lee makes two different 240 gr 429 dia SWC moulds. The first is C429-240-SWC, and it uses a gas check, the other is the TL430-240-SWC. Both are available in double cavity and 6 cavity moulds.

If you don't like Lee, Lyman makes a double or a 4 cavity in 245 gr SWC that is a plain base. The # for it is 429667. RCBS also makes a Plain base 245 gr and its number is 44-245-SWC, or if you want a 240 gr with a gas check the number for that is 44-240-SWC.

I know that 245 gr is not a 240, but if you are useing WW it will probably fall closer to 240 gr than 245. I don't know about how many cavities are offered by RCBS besides the double cavity, but I am sure you could call or visit their web site and find out.

Best Wishes form the Boer Ranch,

Joe

[Lloyd Smale]

my favorite 44 bullet is the rcbs 240 swcgc.

[Swagerman]

The Hornady swaged 240 grain SWC is sold in that exact weight...a good shooter too.

Though not a like a hard cast one.

Jim

[44man]

What is the difference? On the average most .44's like a heavier boolit anyway. How a boolit shoots is more important and I would sure never worry about how much a boolit weighs.
The way the semi wadcutter has been stamped, spindled and twisted over the years makes it even harder to choose a shooter let alone find an exact weight.
To me, they are the hardest design to get to shoot the way I want a boolit to perform that I just gave up on them long ago.
The only thing good about them is the looks and nostalgia left over from Elmer.
The only ones I liked were the original 429421 and the 358156. None since I sold those molds has made me happy.
I have Lyman, RCBS and Lee molds for them and only use them for close range plinking.

[Swagerman]

I have to agree with the above, maybe Elmer was right about wanting heavier bullets in his .44 revolvers.

Here is a Lyman bullet mould #429244 that was supposed to cast 240 or 245 grains, it has a gas check...it comes out of the mould at 265 grains with gas check.

I've loaded it moderately, but expect it could be stepped up a bit faster if one wanted too.

The gun used was a Taurus three inch barrel .44 special model 441 with target sights.

Target 15 yards, bullseye not very big and hard to see.

Jim

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e321/44and45/PC120011265grainbulletX.jpg

[Shuz]

Weight isn't that important to me as long as it shoots well. It's been many years since I've cast any 429421's outta linotype, but if I recall correctly, they weighed around 235g. Bottom line here is...if you want a slightly lighter boolit, use an alloy that will give it to ya, or hollow point the mould! A factory hollow pointed 429421 weighs 230g when cast from clip on style wheel weights for me.--Shuz

[Ben Dover]

Usually the mould maker rates their bullet weight in Linotype. If you use wheel weight as your alloy it shoud result in an increase of approx 6%. So a 240gr now becomes very nearly a 255gr. Most times neither the gun, shooter or target will notice the difference. Ben

[Lloyd Smale]

I agree with 44man to a certain extent. Swcs can be excellent bullets and you can also spend money on a mold that is about only good for a paper weight. Some of the good ones are the rcbs 240swcgc the lyman 429244 and 429215. Problem with these designs is there all gas checked bullets and some people dont want to spend the money on a gas check. I think the problem with a plain based bullet that light is that it tends to be a short squatty little bullet that doesnt have great sectional density. Thats about the same problem that the design of a wfn has. there short for the wieght of the bullet. Lfns with there long noses seem to be easier to get to shoot well but at under 250 grain i havent had much luck with lfns shooting well either. I shoot a slug of 44s. More then any other caliber and have or have at least tried about every mold out there and if you want a good bullet under 250 grain the three listed here are about it and the funny thing is that they are swcs so it just shows that the swc isnt a bad design. Its just that theres alot of molds that the bullet designer didnt know what they were talking about designed them. Lyman is notorious for that. They will take a proven bullet that has been around for years and for no apparent reason redesign it. I personaly think its just that there cherry wore out and the guy cutting the new cherry is a machinist and not a shooter and doesnt have a clue as to the fact that a small change in a bullet can change it from a great bullet to a mediocure or even a poor bullet. A poor swc is pretty easy to spot. If it has a short nose or a large metplat stay away from it!! I love a keith it could be because of what 44 man said. I am a keith worshiper. But ill say one thing. Elmer designed a good bullet. He put alot of thought into it. A true keith will usually shoot. Its the idiots that thought they knew more then elmer did and modified his design that made the swcs reputation for being a finiky bullet.

[Bass Ackward]

I agree with 44man to a certain extent. I am a keith worshiper. But ill say one thing. Elmer designed a good bullet. He put alot of thought into it. A true keith will usually shoot. Its the idiots that thought they knew more then elmer did and modified his design that made the swcs reputation for being a finiky bullet.


One more thing to keep in mind. Elmer pushed for development of the 44 Mag for one reason and one reason only. He wanted a 250 grain bullet at 1200 fps at a safe pressure. Because of all the old Specials out there, he needed a new gun and a longer cartridge to do that so manufacturers would make it. Had he had 296 or H110, he would have never pushed for the 44 Mag when he did. When the round was introduced, Remington loaded the ammo hotter, Keith actually told them to cut it back cause .... all he wanted was 1200 fps.

What's my point? Elmer's bullet testing revolved around 700 - 1200 fps and his selected design was one that would allow him to do that level well. At what velocity level do people usually have trouble with Keith's and prefer olgivals? Above 1200 fps.

[Bad Karma]

I have a RCBS 240gr SWC GC thats OK. I don't shoot them much because I like plain base boolits.