Anyone ever heard of a .44 spl. with .434 cylinder throats?

[Swagerman]

Well, I've got one, maybe two. Getting a lot of lead splatter from one of my S&W on the top strap, even though my cylinder gap is not bad...about .006

The other gun diffinetly has oversized cylinder throats that are .434 or .4335 in diameter. This is not good if I expect to have any accuracy with it.

I'm in the process of asking Lee Precision to make me up a seating die that will accomidate that problem by sending them some fired expanded brass and OS bullets in the diameter I require... .434 or .4335.

Also, need a sizing die in that diameter and a swaging die.

Jim

[45 2.1]

Unfortunately, there a a lot of newer revolvers in 44 caliber out there like this, both special and mag. One of the reasons for the GBs with 0.433" and 0.434" as specified as cast diameters.

[Swagerman]

How is one expected to load these bigger bullets on standard .429 or .430 diameter loading dies.

That's why I'm lookin into some custom size dies.

Jim

[45 2.1]

Most all of my reloading dies are RCBS with late 60s or mid 70s dates on the dies. I have no trouble loading 0.434" boolits in these. Dies from other manufacturers have caused a lot of trouble. You might try contacting the maker to get a replacement that will work OR lapping out the die itself with an aluminum split lap that you can expand useing wet or dry aluminum oxide paper.

[Swagerman]

Good idea, but I'm not up to such fancy machine work as the aluminum oxide lapping. (man has to know his limitations)

I have a Lee 30-30 seater die that is near perfect, it begins at the bottom of the die at about .4335 diameter, if I could only get it lapped out straight up as far as it goes...then have a dandy die body to seat these oversized bullets, plus use the same die body as a swaging die to bump up smaller cast bullets.

Jim

[Char-Gar]

SWagerman.... Don't hit the panic button yet. Smith and Wesson sixguns with .434 cylinder throats are not uncommon. I have some pre-war (WWII) Smiths that run large. It is not the kiss of death accuracy wise.

If a 44 or 45 revolver a bullet that is .002 or even .003 under throat size will slug up to fill the throat and give a good gas seal and fine accuracy. The trick is to use an alloy that is soft enough to slug up for the pressure of the load. 1-30 will do the job for 44 special loads and 1-20 will work for 44 magnum.

I have a Model 29-2 with .434 throats that shoots like a house-a-fire with .432 bullet of proper temper for the pressure.

I am afraid we are living and loading in a day when folks think rock hard bullet are just the ticket and if that is the case, then they must be throat diameter or greater. But, if we can take a step back in time and get off this hard/water droped nonsense, these large throat sixguns will perform like a show pony.

[SharpsShooter]

I am afraid we are living and loading in a day when folks think rock hard bullet are just the ticket and if that is the case, then they must be throat diameter or greater. But, if we can take a step back in time and get off this hard/water droped nonsense, these large throat sixguns will perform like a show pony.

Amen to that. I shoot 45 colt fodder through a Ruger BH up to 1150fps with boolits cast of 20:1 and get decent accuracy and no leading. I am having the throats reamed to make them all equal in dimension and expect it will get even better.

SS

[Swagerman]

Trying to make do by using softer lead, always have...but don't have a clue what my lead hardness is, don't have a hard tester gadget.

But I know it isn't very hard.

Finished making an ejector stem and knob to fit the 30-30 Lee die body, had to buy a bolt 5/8X18 thread to fit the Lee die top. Then drilled a hole to take the ejector stem I made...put a slight taper on the upper part of the end's stem's base above where bullet contact is made. The base is only about 3/4 of an inch long and the rest is all stem a little over 1/4 of an inch in diameter.

Well, it ain't pretty but it'll work by punching out .435 diameter bullets in a crude short stroke. Then all I need to do is get a sizing die that will do the final sizing to .4335...I hope.

I'm doing all this because some gent told me he used .434 bullets in the gun and it worked very well with great accuracy.

Have faith I says...then back to the drawing board.

Soon as I get that dang .4335 sizer die I'll load some and try it out.

Thanks fellows for all your imput.

[crabo]

You also might check and see if you have a restriction where the barrel screws into the frame. It would be a shame to do all that work and then have the first part of the barrel swage your bullet back down. Firelapping may be in order. Just a thought.

Crabo

[Swagerman]

I shoot an old 2nd model S&W of WW-1 vintage, a contract gun to the brits that was later converted from .455 to .45 Colt. The conversion was done by an expert as accuracy is excellent.

However, the cylinder throats are oversized at .458 or .459 and the barrel is supposed to be .455 but expect it is more like .456.

As I've stated the lead is not real hard, and by bumping up the bullets with holow basing is the key to getting the bullets past the oversized cylinder throats and then slightly down-sizing the same bullet to enter the forcing cone and hence through the barrel rifling.

So, I expect there will be some bullet swaging going through the forcing cone and into the barrel.

This has not caused me to have a leading problem build up in this revolver.

Jim

[Char-Gar]

The old Lyman 250 RN with a flat on it bullet for the 45 Colt has always been speced to cast large. My throws bullets that are .456. I think the mold is 454190 but I am not certain.

I lube these in a .457 sizer and they do very well in a couple of revolvers in 45 Colt with huge cylinder throats.

[Swagerman]

Charger, that is exactly what I want to do with the .4335 bulets in the oversized 44 spl. cylinder throats. At least that is the intent...do hope it works.

Jim

[Swagerman]

The more I look at this sorry scenario bumping up bullets for an over sized cylinder throats...the more I don't think much of it.

The most practical option would be to just profusely hollow base the heck out of the bullets base, and rely on that expanding a tad through said cylinder throats until the smaller forward bullet nose of not more than .430 or .431 diameter entering the barrel forcing cone then the barrel rifling.

Having bullets with overall diameter of .434 may just be a bit too much to swage back down to the barrel's .429 rifling lands.

I'm going to load up some test rounds and see how this works.

Jim