Anybody Cast 44 Magnum?

[Big Bad Bob]

Interested in casting for the .44 Magnum for my Marlin 1894.

Anybody got any good load recommendations?

As fas casting, I have a bucket of wheel weights, what should I mix to it to make hard casts so I dont lead up the barrel?

 

[rcmodel]

I would look at Lyman mold #429667 240 grain RNFP.
Allox bullet lube.

Harder isn't necessarily better.

A properly sized bullet that fits your bore still needs to be soft enough to bump up and make a perfect gas seal when it is fired.

I'd try 10 pounds of wheel weights with a couple ounces of tin bar solder added.

You can try that, or water quench them out of the mold if you still think harder is needed.

I can't recommend a load.
But those bullets should be able to be driven from 1,200 to 1,500 FPS without leading.

I would strongly suggest you buy the Lyman#49 reloading manual & the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook before you even consider casting and shooting lead bullets.

Those are the best source out there for lead bullet info & load data for every caliber.


BNTW: If you have an older Marlin with Micro-Groove rifling, all bets are off.

You can get them to shoot cast bullets, or so I hear.
But it won't necessarily be easy.

rc

 

[USSR]

Harder isn't necessarily better.

A properly sized bullet that fits your bore still needs to be soft enough to bump up and make a perfect gas seal when it is fired.

+1. Suggest you check out: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/. A wealth of knowledge.

Don

 

[Big Bad Bob]

thanks for the info, My Marlin is micro grooved.....thanks for the heads up.

 

[Big Bad Bob]

Thanks

 

[EMC45]

I cast my bullets from straight clip on Wheel weights. I cast the Lyman 429-421 and shoot it in my Marlin 1894. I load them over 20gr. 2400. They do fine with no leading in a Micro Groove barrel. The funny thing about the argument against Micro Groove barrels and cast is this.....All Marlin .22LR barrels are Micro Groove. Funny how they shoot countless rounds without leading (let alone cleaning). Heck, next thing ya know folks will start saying you can't shoot cast in the Glock......

 

[41 Mag]

Hey Bob,

You might also want to check out Ranch Dog Molds. He is also one of the members of Castboolits and sells Lee molds he has worked over especially for the lever action rifles.
Ranch Dog Outdoors

 

[GP100man]

I cast for my 30-30 with micro groove riffling & found accuracy is good If I shoot as big a boolit as will chamber ,for my rifle that`s .3105.

I run GC with the 30 calibers , my best group at 50yds was 2" with open sites & no glasses on.

 

[kelbro]

RanchDog's 265gr mold drops at .432 (perfect for many Marlins), shoots well, and will pass through fully grown hogs from any direction.

 

[grubbylabs]

I also cast the 265 ranch dog mold and it works awesome. I ran them about 2,100 fps in a Win 94 444. I used straight wheel weights with about 10-12 inches of solder to a 20# pot.

I also load this bullet for my 44 mag Smith and Wesson 329PD only it is going about 1,200 fps. I load it over 19 grains of Win 296 For this load I used the data for Speer's 270 grain JSP since with lube and gas check it comes to about 270 grains.

Since my revolver is a really light one I also got a 240 grain SWC Lee mold that I load up over 6 grains of Unique. It is probably a little light for your rifle but many folks load up to 10 grains and it should be a real nice plinker for that rifle. The nice thing is the Lee molds are fairly cheap and you can get their sizers for about the same price as their mold making it super cheap and easy to start casting.

 

[GooseGestapo]

Ditto the Lee moulds and Unique.

Remember that the Marlin w/microgroove barrels will need a larger sizer diameter. I recommend 0.431"

I started casting/loading for the .44mag over 30yrs ago. I got a .429" sizer. Bad choice. My S&W 329PD insists on a 0.431" bullet. I found this out shooting "unsized" Lee bullets w/tumble lube. My 200gr RFN mould "unsized" and lubed w/tumble lube will shoot under 2" at 25yds over 6.0gr of Universal or Unique.

I had a Marlin M1894 in the early '80s that I tried to load for. The Lyman #429421 "Keith" style SWC short seated would feed fine. It would shoot under 2" at 25yds through a S&W M29 (several in fact) but wouldn't hit the side of a barn from the Marlin.

Only 20yrs later did I find out about the large bore issue of the Marlins with microgroove bbls.