Cast boolits for a 44 Special.

[riddleofsteel]

I know this ground covered before but...
I just picked up a Ruger Bisley flat top in 44 Special. I dont have pin gauges so I took out the cylinder and sized bullets to .430 and .431. The .431 bullets fit the throats exactly. You must line them up exactly to get them in the holes. Then they pass through with a gentle thumb push. All except for one throat. It goes in just a little easier and has a tiny bit of play once in the throat.
Now the question. I plan on loading .430's and ..431's to see which size is better shooting. What size should be better suited?

Thanks

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[Wheelguns 1961]

I would try the .431” bullets. I like my bullets tight and soft.

[rintinglen]

^^What he said, especially for the 44 Special. Your throats are .431, I assume your bore is .429, you should be golden.

[mdi]

I agree with the gentlemen above, .431" bullets.

[AZ Pete]

try both, you might be surprised. I agree that if you were buying one the .431 would be the one, but you have both.

[murf205]

I would load about 10 of each and let the Ruger tell you what it likes.

[fredj338]

If you use 0.430" bullets, they will be 0.431" when they hit the bbl forcing cone. I would give the larger dia a try first. I run 0.431" in all my 44mags.

[gwpercle]

I would load about 10 of each and let the Ruger tell you what it likes.

What he says ... trying different stuff is what reloaders thrive on ... the BH will tell you it likes .

Gary ,
I root for LSU and any team that's playing Alabama

[JoeJames]

My Ruger Bh likes both .430 and .431. It will not shoot .429 for diddly. Speer .430, Oregon Trail .431, and my home cast .430, all in a 240 grain swc, all do well. Naturally I shoot more of my home cast now than the others.

[stubshaft]

My Lipsey likes these ahead of 7.5 Unique (Skeeters load). They are sized at .430".

[JoeJames]

My Lipsey likes these ahead of 7.5 Unique (Skeeters load). They are sized at .430".

Must be younger than I am. 6.5 grains of Unique with hard cast, or 6.8 with soft cast, not water quenched, or the Speer swaged swc’s. Sweet spot on my BH is @894 fps. Pleasant to shoot and very accurate. Still a formidable load here in the Arkansas.

[cowboy4evr]

OK , the cylinder throat are good to go , but what about where the barrel threads onto the frame ? Is there a tight spot in that junction area ? Or where they " roll stamp " the markings onto the side of the barrel ? I use pin gauges to determine throat size and try to slide one down the barrel . If it goes all the way through , great ! But if it stops and won't easily slide further , then I have an area that needs attention . In those situations I resort to " firelapping " the barrel . It takes time , patience and understanding when to stop . After " firelapping " a barrel then I spend time hand lapping it to a very highly polished state . It helps stop lead in the barrel and really improves accuracy . I googled " firelapping a barrel " on youtube to learn the proper procedure . I have a Ruger NMBH in 41 magnum and a Vaquero ( OLd Model ) in 45 colt . Both of those had perfect barrels , proper groove size , no restrictions and proper cylinder throat size . Maybe you will be as lucky . Regards Paul

[paul edward]

If I was beginning today loading for the 44 Special, I would probably choose the Lee 429-200RF. I have been using Lee 429-214 SWC which is excellent for moderate loads. The Lyman 429336 SWC has no crimp groove, but was used in a single shot 44 Russian where this did not matter. The RCBS 44-225 SWC-GC with it's gas check is good for heavier loads in the 44 Magnum.

[rmichael63]

I would try the .431” bullets. I like my bullets tight and soft.

What this gentlemen said, i checked my Ruger GP100 in 44 SP and the throats checked at .431, the .430 pin fit no problem and fell right through. The .431 fit with very very little play and needed a little help to go through.

[Tom_in_AZ]

OK , the cylinder throat are good to go , but what about where the barrel threads onto the frame ? Is there a tight spot in that junction area ? Or where they " roll stamp " the markings onto the side of the barrel ? I use pin gauges to determine throat size and try to slide one down the barrel . If it goes all the way through , great ! But if it stops and won't easily slide further , then I have an area that needs attention . In those situations I resort to " firelapping " the barrel . It takes time , patience and understanding when to stop . After " firelapping " a barrel then I spend time hand lapping it to a very highly polished state . It helps stop lead in the barrel and really improves accuracy . I googled " firelapping a barrel " on youtube to learn the proper procedure . I have a Ruger NMBH in 41 magnum and a Vaquero ( OLd Model ) in 45 colt . Both of those had perfect barrels , proper groove size , no restrictions and proper cylinder throat size . Maybe you will be as lucky . Regards Paul

This exactly


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[white eagle]

Now the question. I plan on loading .430's and ..431's to see which size is better shooting. What size should be better suited?


let your pistol tell you what it likes
mine I size the boolits to .429
so it depends

[DougGuy]

See if your odd throat shoots to the same POI as the others. If not, you might have to mark it and load 5 or send it and have them all honed to match.

[murf205]

I thought the same thing Doug. Riddle, mark that cylinder and be on the lookout for fliers from that one. If that happens, it's a pretty simple fix. Good luck and let us know how it shoots.

[riddleofsteel]

Got a set of pin gauges yesterday. As I thought the .431 pin fits perfectly. you can feel it glide in when properly aligned. The .432 wont even start. This set does not have any sizes between .431 and .432.
Funny though, with a proper pin gauge I really am not finding a chamber throat with more "play" than the others. They all seem the same now.
Using the pin gauges I have already found that I have one Sp101 with .357 throats and one with .358 throats. Can't wait to see what else is hiding in my revolvers.

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[white eagle]

they seem to have done these 44 specials to good tolerances
mine like yours has nice chambers