Best design for a light 44 for CAS???

[happy7]

I'm getting ready to start cowboy action shooting. Due to having some guns already in 44, I am going to be using 44 rifle and pistols. The rifle is an 1895 Marlin. I can use either special or mag brass, but have more of the mag and would rather use it. So what I want to do is design a mold with a round nose bullet as light as possible that will still function in my rifle.

Question 1: Does anyone know enought about the 1895 to be able to say what my cartidge needs to be like to function reliably in that rifle?
Question 2: What ideas does anyone have for boolets for this purpose?

I have considered a giant lube groove to lighten the bullet without shortening too much. I don't really want to use so much lube though but maybe that is the way to go.

[Cheshire Dave]

Do you mean the 1894? The 1895 is chambered in 45-70.

[MakeMineA10mm]

Happy7,
For CAS, I shoot a 205gr RNFP "BigLube" that was a custom group buy MANY years ago over on the SASSWIRE. It was designed to be THE boolit for 44-40s and Black Powder. (Big Lube groove bullets are designed to carry enough black-powder bullet lube - such as SPG - to keep the black powder fouling soft.) It's the bullet on the right in this photo:

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/picture.php?albumid=179&pictureid=1136


I've hardly loaded 44-40s with it, literally, only 10 rounds or so to see how they fit in the case. I'd say 70% of these I've cast, I load in 44 Russian.

The other 30% I load with 50/50 Alox lube and loaded as my light load while awaiting a different mould for my 44 Spl and Mags. This load has worked out really well. It IS a little wasteful of lube, but the good news is that there is never a worry about driving the bullet so hard that it runs out of lube. I've found lube stars on the front of all of my carbines, which means there's more than enough lube for a 24" barrel.

Another aspect is the one you alluded to about the bigger lube groove creating a longer boolit for the same weight. I think this has helped with accuracy too. I get ragged holes at 50 yards with this bullet and light loads in 44 Mag brass in my 1894 Stnls. Marlin.

The one thing I'd caution you about is to avoid the idea of a total round nose. Even though CAS loads are light and the type of RN I'm confident you're thinking about is fairly blunt, there is still a chance of a chain-fire from the bullet imparting an impact on the primer of the round ahead of it. It happens, even with low-power loads or under strange conditions, so it needs to be designed for.

In addition, a straight RN bullet tends to have a longer out-of-case length than one with a clipped point. This CAN (but not necessarily will) cause problems with too long a round for the lever-gun. (You can cure this by loading them in the Special brass, but if you want to use the Magnum brass, it MAY be a problem.)

[mag44uk]

The RCBS 200 gn CAS boolit works very well in my 1894.
I will have to get round to trying it in the 44 Russian.
Its a nice economical short range paper punching boolit.
I tried to generate interest in having it made up in 4/5 cavity.
There was zero interest,sadly.
Just a pity its only a two cavity.
I also have the Saeco 200 gnr but the RCBS seems to shoot better.
HTH
Tony

[Blackhawk Convertable]

I shoot 44-40 for my match guns. Rugers for pistols and a Winchester 92 for the rifle.

I use a Saeco 420 boolit in my rifle. It is a truncated Cone design that runs about 205 grains. Feeds like butter. http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j320/vrieze42/101_1014.jpg

In my pistols, I use a 44 Slim mold that casts a 165 grainer. http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j320/vrieze42/Bullets.jpg

[Lloyd Smale]

there doing a 44 round flat on the group buys right now.

[happy7]

Thanks for the tips. I think a big lube design in a RF is going to be the way to go. I have the Lee 200 RF and may start with that. I would like design one to go to 150 or 160 grains if I can to save lead.