Best molds for 41, 44, & 45 (ACP)

[klausg]

Hey Gang,

Not so much of a rookie question this time, more looking for advice. As I've stated before I am compiling my wish list should this new hobby pan out, and I am fairly sure it will. What I would like to get from you guys is some of your favorite molds for the purposes outlined below. Being what I would consider at least fairly intelligent, I'd rather ask the wealth of experience contained in this forum, prior to laying down hard earned cash for something that I won't like. So here goes:

a) .41 MAG- I'd like an everyday knock around/plinking bullet around 210gr or so, SWC or a RNFP, plain-based. I'd also like a good gas checked hunting bullet, the heavier the better; something along the lines of the Cast Performance 265gr.

b) .44 MAG- Pretty much the same as above, a SWC or RNFP plain base 220-250 gr plinker and a heavy gas checked hunting bullet. I currently am very happy with the Cast Performance 320gr; I just really don't like paying that much for them. And finally:

c) .45 ACP- A plain-base plinker around 180-220gr that'll feed reliably through a 1911.

I hope you guys can give some of your favorites, thanks in advance for all of the input I'm sure to get. Take care

-SSG Klaus

[45 2.1]

a) .41 MAG- I'd like an everday knock around/plinking bullet around 210gr or so, SWC or a RNFP, plain-based. I'd also like a good gas checked hunting bullet, the heavier the better; something along the lines of the Cast Performance 265gr.

PB plinker = Lyman 41032, we just had a GB for the GC boolit at that weight, sorry you missed it.

b) .44 MAG- Pretty much the same as above, a SWC or RNFP plain base 220-250 gr plinker and a heavy gas checked hunting bullet. I currently am very happy with the Cast Performance 320gr; I just really don't like paying that much for them. And finally:

GB 429421 for everything

c) .45 ACP- A plain-base plinker around 180-220gr that'll feed reliably.

Lyman 452374 is tops for the 45 acp.

[Larry Gibson]

klausg

They are finishing the second Narrows Bridge which should help traffic during rush hours but the bottle neck at I5 will still plug things up. That whole Gig Harbour area is exploding with people just like around here. I'll be retired this time next year so the wife and I will be looking for less people somewhere. That's getting very hard to find anymore. Oh well, on to your questions.

a) .41 MAG- I'd like an everday knock around/plinking bullet around 210gr or so, SWC or a RNFP, plain-based. I'd also like a good gas checked hunting bullet, the heavier the better; something along the lines of the Cast Performance 265gr.

I've used several bullets from 175, 195 and 210s, all Lee's and all SWCs. The 175 and 210 are TLs. The 210 (I have a 6 holer) is getting a work out these days. With 8.5 of Unique it runs a very accurate 1150 fps (7 1/2" barrel). But then the 175 over 5 gr Bullseye is a very pleasant load and hard to beat for small game and general plinking. I don't do cast heavier than 220 gr so someone else will have to answer the last part.

b) .44 MAG- Pretty much the same as above, a SWC or RNFP plain base 220-250 gr plinker and a heavy gas checked hunting bullet. I currently am very happy with the Cast Performance 320gr; I just really don't like paying that much for them.

A good plinker bullet and small game load is the Lee 429-200 over 6 gr of Bullseye. Runs 860 fps out of the 4" Anaconda with superb accuracy, mild report and little recoil. But it is very hard to beat the Keith 250 gr SWC over 8.5 gr of Unique for accuracy or general plinking or hunting with the .44 mag. I have used the Lyman and RCBS moulds with neither better than the other. The heaviest bullet I prefer in the .44 is the 270 gr GC Lyman 429244. It is extremely accurate and will penetrate as good as anything heavier in the game I would be shooting.

And finally:

c) .45 ACP- A plain-base plinker around 180-220gr that'll feed reliably.

If you can get an older H&Gs #68 with the flat base it is just the ticket for the .45 ACP. The Lyman 452460 or Lee's 452-195s are really good also. The RCBS version works well too. A "sleeper" for the .45 ACP is the Lee 452-205 cowboy bullet. Sized .452 it feeds in every .45 ACP I've tried it in without fail and is very accurate. Of course it is great in the .45 Colt also.

Larry Gibson

[boogerred]

the only one on your list that i shoot is the 45acp.Larry Gibson just about nailed it.the lyman 452460 and 452374,the lee 452-190,and the rcbs45-230rn are what i shoot.all function great in my peashooter.

[Topper]

I'm with Larry on the 210gr Lee TL and Unique powder for the 41mag.
I don't even size mine, just tumble lube em and give an a day to dry.

[GLynn41]

For me my over all best accuracy in a .41 cast PB has been the Lyman 410459 which can be sometimes found on ebay-- as 2 heavy bullet i have used up to 305 wfngc -- a 250 gr wfngc CPB will shoot very well I have some of the 265 but just got them --I have the Lee 230 TL and have got fair accuracy-- I still prefer to size and lube..I'd watch Ebay regularly I just a really nice 220 Saeco Keith complete with square lube grooves off there -- and a new in the box 410459 -only single cavity but it is only for me so it does not really matter -- I really like the saeco --btw my first deer with a handgun was with the 410459

[9.3X62AL]

41--Not enough time in grade with this caliber to comment.

44--More "pile-on" votes for #429421 (plain base Keith SWC) and #429244 (Thompson SWC-GC).

45 ACP--VERY tough to bad-mouth #452374 (230 RN GI Ball duplicator). I like the copies of H&G #68, a 200 grain SWC that feeds in most 45 stutterguns all right. Mine is a Lee. More recently, I've become fond of #452460, called a "wadcutter" but more like a SWC--it shoots well in my 45's, and REALLY well in a buddy's match-grade Kimber 1911A1.

[Lloyd Smale]

452460
429421
410459
all classic molds and they all are good bullets.

[AnthonyB]

I have no opinion on the 41, but very strong opinions on the others. The RCBS 44-250K is the best example of what the 429421 should be, and nothing appeals to my eye as well. For the 45 ACP, the RCBS 45-230 CM is the only boolit you need. I have several other favorites, but that would be the last one I'd let go. Tony

[BruceB]

Our cooked-down ESSENTIALS lists are so similar, they're almost comical.

For mine:

-.41......RCBS 210 SWC (217 in my wheelweights)

-.44......RCBS 250 KT

-.45 ACP...Lyman 4-cavity 452374, the 230 roundnose.

See what I mean???

[GLynn41]

KLausg currently there is both a 410610 Lyman and an RCBS 210 SWC on Ebay --if you are interested --go to sporting goods--reloading-- molds type in .41

[klausg]

GLynn- thanks brother, I'm already bidding on the SAECO .44. My .41 is still in storage at my buddy's place in Nebraska, along with quite a few other firearms. Looks like I'm going to have to go down there for a pheasant trip, or he's gonna have to come up here for salmon, maybe moose even. Anyway I don't think I'll have hands on the .41 for at least a couple of months. Thanks again for the heads up.

-SSG Klaus

[GLynn41]

my honor to do so --

[klausg]

Gang - thanks much for all of your input, now I just need to get a second job to pay for it all. I think I may have been screwed up with my wording though; when I said "hunting bullet" I meant "bear defense bullet". I want the biggest, hardest cast bullet I can find; going as fast as I can accurately shoot them. When Mr. Bear decides I'm a menu item, I'd really like to discourage him in a BIG way. Again thanks for all of your input.

-SSG Klaus

[Dale53]

SSG Klaus;
If you need a BIG bullet for the .44 mag, you can do no better than the
Lee C430 310 RF. Now that is a SERIOUS bullet.

Dale53

[JOE MACK]

I don't shoot a .35 caliber, .429, or .45 so I won't comment on those. My most used mold for the .41Magnum is a LBT 2 cav. 220gr.WFNGC. I'ts what I use for plinking, small game hunting, and hunting deer/antelope-sized game. When I move up to bear/elk, I use a NEI 250gr.WFNGC. I don't go any heavier nowadays as this bullet is accurate in all my .41Magnums. It'll do the job on black bear, elk, and wild/feral pigs.

[Edward429451]

452374 for 45.
429421 for 44.

I've been shooting the 429650 for a year or so now and it's destined to be a classic just like the 429421, It's the 300gr GC (320 ww). I like it.

No 41 mag yet.

[Lloyd Smale]

that rcbs 250 k is another great bullet probably a better bullet then the 429421 and id use it alot more if rcbs would get off there buts and make 4 or 6 cavity molds.
I have no opinion on the 41, but very strong opinions on the others. The RCBS 44-250K is the best example of what the 429421 should be, and nothing appeals to my eye as well. For the 45 ACP, the RCBS 45-230 CM is the only boolit you need. I have several other favorites, but that would be the last one I'd let go. Tony

[GLynn41]

If you are taking bigger game -- mine is a Mountain Mold 255gr wfngc it has .331 meplat-- i also have some 305 wfngc with a .328 meplat

[Bucks Owin]

.44 mag:

RCBS 225 gr GC for plinker, RCBS 250K for "all around" and the excellent 310 gr Lee to replace the 320 Cast Performance....

If I could only have one mould it'd be the RCBS 250K I guess....
(although I'm tempted to pick the 310 Lee. It's a great bullet, very accurate and I'm sure very deadly for anything you can hunt with a .44 handgun!)

IMHO,

Dennis

[happy7]

So I know this is not a new question but I still don't know the answer. How do you guys keep your PB 429421 boolits from leading? I'm not keen on water quenching and if I add expensive metals like tin to the mix, does that not cost as much as gas checks? I don't know. I'm asking. Can you push this boolit to max velocties or do you have to restrict it to under 1200 fps. I have had bad leading in my redhawk in the past so since then I have restricted mag loads to gas checks and that has solved the problem, but I would love to get away from the expense of gas checks. I have been looking for a good mold for 44 mag in the 240 grain range. The Lee six cavity, a C429-240 SWC, that I had, I was not able to get any accuracy with in my guns. Probably just my inexperience. I prefer a RF over a SWC just for looks, but am more concerned with accuracy than looks. I see everyone loves the 429421, but it is a PB. So how do you do it?

[Edward429451]

Sizing to .430 and water quenching them pretty much eliminated leading in my RH & SBH for me. I'm inclined to think it was more the sizing change (from .429) than the quenching.

[Crash_Corrigan]

I have one in .44 that puts out a SWC of about 235 Gr in WW with Tumble Lube Grooves and they are very accurate and easy to make.

In the .45 ACP I have a RNL boolit also with TL's that molds really easily and loads great boolits that feed in every .45 I have tried. My Taurus 1911 gobbles them up and produces excellent groups. I quench them all in a bucket hot from the mold and heat treat them a week later at 450 Deg for an hour and quench them again. My LEE hardness gauge sez they are about 22 bhn after that. None of them leave any leading in the bore and I have shot over 1,000 in a row out of the Taurus without having to clean it up. It is reliable and accurate and a joy to shoot.

[Bass Ackward]

Klaus,

Realize that all bullet molds are / were made to be sold. So they must be working for someone or they would be dropped. Look at how many designs have been created over the years that eventually were dropped to the displeasure of a few.

So much depends on the gun and then how you want to shoot it. Sometimes a wide open design will be less than stellar as a plinker and visa versa. Every gun can and probably will require something different from diameter to mix hardness to make it work "best" for you. While there are no rules, I have seen some tendencies with my guns that have made the guessing a little .... better.

If your gun prefers closer to bore diameter and has pretty good alignment, then semi wadcutters and softer bullets tend to be the best performers in PB designs. If you need to fill the throat to stop leading, and you still have good alignment, then the world is still fairly open to you for design as long as you can get the diameter you need from a mold. You may have to adjust hardness depending on the powder speed and width of the drive band as it takes time for larger bullets to size down. Increase the time in the cone, and this means more pressure is lost at the BC gap increasing chances for gas cutting of the top strap. But yaz got's to do, what's yaz got's to do.

If you have chambers that require some rotation then still aren't prefect, then something in a RF will probably turn out to work better with the olgive closely matching your forcing cone angle where that chamber impacts the cone. That makes it strongest to survive the impact. If the angle is worn or slight, then you may need a wider meplat to match it. And you may have to size smaller than the throat to allow the bullet some flexibility to .... turn and enter the bore. The hardness required will probably be just hard enough for that design to seal and then survive the impact / rotation.

So what I do first these days is play with diameter until I learn the gun. Whether or not you need a GC will depend on more things than I can cover, but a check makes sence if you want flexibility from load conditions across multiple guns. And in truth, who knows what you will buy in the future. Please read the discription on LBT's site as to whether you need a check or not. That is good advice based on my experience.

My biggest criteria for "initial" design work to learn the gun is that the mold throw the diameter I need to fill the throat so I can size it to where I want. Then I pick the design I want once I add it all up based on what velocity I want from the load. This guess can get me fairly close. When my guess is wrong, it usually was my intrepretation of my initial testing or memory failure. It saves time / money or settling for good enough cause .... "at least I ain't leadin." Then again, sometimes it ain't the destination but what route you take. HTHs.

[MT Gianni]

I get no leading in my rossi 92 or redhawk with 429421 using felix lube and fittting the bullet to the throat and sizing to the bore. I keep velocitys under 1600 fps in the rossi, ww alloy air cooled. Gianni.

[happy7]

Thanks for the replys guys. I am going to have to shop around and try to find a 429421 and see what happens. I have a 431 sizing die in my shopping cart at midway. they are on sale this month.