bear bullet

[300mag]

i am new to the site but have watched for a while. i have never casted but would like to start. i need to know what would be the best bullet to cast for a 44mag to shoot black bear and posibly lions and deer with. i would prefer not to use gas checks because im trying to save as much as possible. also what is the best form of lead. i have had a couple of people tell me that WW are not that great to use when i do not know what im doing. if anyone has a mold that they would part with that would serve my purpose let me know. last how well does lil gun powder work. it was the only pistol powder availble so i have 8 lbs:bigsmyl2:. i would appreciate any help. thanks

[outdoorfan]

I think WW's work just fine. My preference is heavy-for-caliber bullets, so that would mean 300+ grains with a least an 80% meplat (flat nose). However, you'd probably be served just fine with a 250-280 grain bullet. As long as you fit the bullet to the gun and don't get crazy with the velocity (keep it under 1200), you'll be fine. There are lots of choices. If you want to spend some money, an LBT mold will serve you well.

[runfiverun]

lil gun wouldn't be my first choice but it should work.
just about any 240 to 300 gr boolit with a decent flat nose 65% flat on the nose [meplat]
will punch a hole right through any of the animals you describe. and will do the job just fine.
12-1300 fps is plenty in a revolver you can get more from a lever action 1600 fps or more even.
with a plain base.

[1Shirt]

Go with the 310 Lee GC, w/big wide flat meplat. I would go with 2400 by choice, but as you have beaucoup Lil'Gun, start low and work up to safe and accurate load with same. I would cast it to between 16-18 BH, and think you would have just about what you want. Good Luck!
1Shirt!:coffeecom

[Larry Gibson]

300mag

First thing to do is get a current copy of Lyman's Cast Bullet Handbook. It is the "primer" for learning how to cast bullets properly along with load data and a wealth of other cast bullet information. Then with some knowledge you can come back here and ask a particular question which you have asked but without the basic knowledge the answers aren't going to do you much good without a lot of frustration involved. Casting bullets and shooting them is a wonderful way to further enjoy more and most often better shooting. However you have to learn how to do it first.

Larry Gibson

[looseprojectile]

should work well if used in a carbine or rifle. Rossi/Puma is good for me.
You could do a lot worse than starting out with that which I and others have ended with.
This would be the Ranch Dog 432 265 . Cost would be about sixty bucks, mould and checks. That is assuming free wheel weights, or scrounged alloy, should be a lifetime supply of hunting boolits.
Lil Gun powder is as good as any for your intended purpose.
I have a friend that hunts in Montana and gets his deer and antelope every year with a Browning 92 .44 magnum carbine. He has never recovered a boolit from any animal. We both use a max. load of H 110 with the RD boolit. They always go all the way through and kill like lightning.
Plain base boolits can be made to work, it is just a lot easier with gas checks at 1600 to 1800 fps. I myself would not hunt with a revolver in .44 mag because of my own limitations and range considerations and I am a fair shot with a handgun. Your mileage may vary.
And, as has been said get the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook and memorize it.

Life is good

[Slow Elk 45/70]

300mag, If you want a great cheap mold for your 44 go to : Ranch Dog...hurry he still has some double cavity 265gr molds w/handles that are great for most 44 shooting, pistola or rifle. These are Lee molds made to his spec. drops a +- .432 boolit.

He is going out of the mold business asap. The 310 Lee mentioned above is also good, a bit heavy for most folks in a pistola. Then there is the "Old Stand By" Lyman 429421 , 245-250gr boolit. Don't worry about the GC on these, they shoot fine with out the check, if made from proper alloy.

Any of these are good for any game in the States, Sod Poodle to Brown Bear, Cast from WW and water dropped [my preference] not totally necessary unless you push the velocity

:cbpour::redneck:

[anachronism]

RCBS makes a really good 300 gr SWC for the 44. I'm suggesting the 300 gr because I (personally) like a little extra margin when hunting something that bites. I just ordered a 300 gr LBT WFN 2 cavity mould. I'm going to try to arrange a black bear hunt in Minnesota & decided such a trip would be worthy of a new mould. To be honest, from what I've researched so far, the RCBS 250 gr Keith bullet would also be a good choice. So would my 429244 Lyman, but I wanted an excuse for a new mould anyway.

[Bret4207]

WW are just fine for a hunting boolit in most guns. The Lyman 429421 would be a good place to start. Plus it's a PB as you wanted.

[Blammer]

I've not shot a bear before but I'd have no problems in my mind using this boolit for the job.
I shoot the first boolits below at 1350fps out of my 44mag SRH using air cooled wheel wts.

The 3crimp groove one is the one I killed the deer with. It completely penetrated the deer diagonally.
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Cast%20boolits/DSCN6457.jpg

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Cast%20boolits/44cal250gr.jpg

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/2008%20Deer/DSCN7394.jpg

Here are a few boolits to look at for comprison.

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

[oldhickory]

WW are just fine for a hunting boolit in most guns. The Lyman 429421 would be a good place to start. Plus it's a PB as you wanted.

That's my favorite .44 boolit, it'll be up to any task a .44 magnum can handle. With W-Ws mine come out of the mold around 265grs.

I've never tried LIL GUN powder, but Elmer's load of 20gr of 2400 is just right for my 629-3 4".

[runfiverun]

my 429 boolit will just barely snick through my 44 lever and once in a while i gotts to give the handle a little oomph to get the carrier to lift it up.
not a big deal as i always run the load i am going to use for hunting through it at least twice
just to make sure i have a quick second shot if needed.
i have even trimmed about 10 thou off some cases just for hunting purposes,so that a load will run through the lever gun properly.

[anachronism]

I almost forgot. If you're wanting to use Lil Gun, you'll want to look at heavy bullets. It seems to be the velocity champ for 280 gr & heavier bullets.

http://data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp

[300mag]

hey thanks for all the replys everyone. i think i will do a little reading then maybe buy me a couple of molds and give it all a try. i think i need to try a heavy bullet for the lilgun powder that i have and maybe try to find some different powder for lighter bullets.

[shotman]

If you are going to buy one mold I would go with the Lyman Devastator. It is GC but I use a Lee push through and total money about $100. If you want meat you dont want a shoulder shot on deer

[44man]

Any heavy flat meplat boolit will work fine. The RD or Lee 310 would be my choice or an LBT 320 gr WLNGC or the WFN version.
You didn't say which gun you will use but all of these will feed in a Marlin.
Velocity has to be watched, do not shoot them too fast. Stay below 1400 fps, 1300 fps is better and any hardness will do the job. If you go too fast you will need to soften the nose.
High velocity with a hard boolit can cost you animals no matter how flat the nose is. A heavy boolit at 1100 fps can't be stopped by a deer or black bear and will do a lot of internal damage but the same boolit at 1600 fps just pokes a hole unless it expands.
I learned the hard way with a lot of necropsies on deer. Do not be a speed freak.

[300mag]

most of these bullets will be shot through various revolvers of my brothers, dad, and me. we run hounds so shots will not be far unless i do try to get a deer. most critters will be just a short distance up a tree.

[44man]

most of these bullets will be shot through various revolvers of my brothers, dad, and me. we run hounds so shots will not be far unless i do try to get a deer. most critters will be just a short distance up a tree.
Good, just use WW boolits with enough weight and a nice meplat. The .44 will do the job. Load for accuracy with whatever booit you choose and don't worry how fast it is. Just don't try to download a heavy boolit, it needs to match the twist for accuracy. My best accuracy with a 310 Lee is 21.5 gr of 296, ditto the 320 LBT. Average is about 1316 fps. The 265 gr RD boolit needs 22 gr. All are super for deer to 100 yd's or as far as you can hit them. Any will smash both shoulders on a black bear.