44 mag 240gn hard cast LSWC short barrel

[oink]

I'm loading up a bunch of rounds to familiarize myself with my 69 2.75". I loaded a couple hundred at 8 grains of 231 and of course their quite pleasant. In years past I've cranked out tons of then at 6 grains of 231 but I'm wanting something for more realistic practice. I just cranked out about 150 rounds with 10 grains of 231 and they're not at all bad to shoot. Just a good thump. I was testing with my 3" 629-4 Trail Boss as my 69 is clean and the Trail Boss wasn't. My Chrony died so I don't have any idea on velocity out of 3". The 2 manuals I have that list the 231 pushing 240 gn HCLSWC show 6 to 11 grains so I figured with those lighter weight guns 10 grains should be enough. Going near max with 231 which has room for a double charge does cause some concern.

Problem - While I probably have 7lb of 231, I accidentally double bought H110 awhile back. I need to use some up. I'd be very interested in any good proven loads using H110 pushing the 240gn hard cast LSWC, if such a load exists. Remember, I'm using short barrels and lighter guns (2.75" 69 and 3" 629-4).

 

[6GUNSONLY]

H-110 may not be your best choice for short barrels. I'd guess you'd blow a fair amount of it out the muzzle unburned. JMO. But the manuals are full of H-110 loads if you want to try it. Remember that H-110 (like near-identical WW-296) usually does best at near top pressures, not so good with reduced loads.

 

[dr. mordo]

H110 from a 3" or smaller gun will be quite a handful. I would leave it on the shelf, personally.

I've had good luck with Universal, 9gr is a good place to start, even up to 10gr is a nice moderate load with enough energy to be interesting.

 

[RoyM52]

I chronograph 23 grains of H 110 today. 240 grain XTP , CCI 350 primer, Mag case. Used my M 69 2 3/4 . the spread was between 1150 and 1208 fps. different bullet but most things are close enough to get an idea. Jumps a bit, but manageable. settled on a nice load of 20 grains of 2400 with a Speer 240 grain Jacketed flat point at 1068 fps. I like this load.

 

[oink]

Yeah, lots of loads for H110 for the 44 mag not not so much of cast. I'm seeing mostly jacketed.

I haven't tried the coated bullets before. I wonder if they'd be clean enough for my old Ruger 44 carbine, the old semi-auto model?

I suppose I can load up for my Ruger SBH too. But I'd want to use cast lead for that too, if I could find a good H110 for cast lead.

 

[Fishinfool]

Problem with Win 296 / H-110 out of a short barrel is it is a "boomy", "flashy" powder. It also does not lend itself well to reduced loads.

That said, if maximum velocity is your goal, it is a very good powder, even in a short barrel. However, other slightly faster powders like 2400 will give almost the same velocity in a short barrel with a little less "shock and awe", as well as being a little more tolerant of down loading from max. I would be careful loading for max velocity with a relatively fast powder like Win 231, as pressures build quickly

H-110 certainly works well with hard cast bullets as long as they fit the guns throats, and are properly lubed. I usually use a gas check bullet for these type loads, but have had success without a GS as well. You should be able to use book loads for 240 grain jacketed bullets with the equivallant weight cast / coated lead without pressure issues, as the lead bullet will slide down the barrel with less resistance than jacketed.

I own a Ruger Deerstalker, and the issue with them is lead / lube fouling of the gas port. Though I have not tried them in that gun, it seems to me that a powder coated lead bullet might very well work in that application.

Larry

 

[shocker]

For short barrel 44 I settled on 200 gr. RNFP cast bullets. 10 gr of 231 is about all I want to shoot in a 69. Above that the recoil gets pretty snappy.
I shot some 15.3 gr AA 7 loads yesterday. Not as unpleasant as I expected them to be. Could see working up to recommended max (17 gr) without developing terminal flinchitis. OTOH, I think the law of diminishing returns really applies to short barrels. If a starting 44 magnum load works don't push it. It's still a powerhouse load as far as handguns go. The increase in noise, recoil, muzzle blast, added wear and tear on the gun and shooter isn't worth the few fps gain.

 

[Forrest r]

While h110 has it's place, it wouldn't be my 1st choice for cast bullets in the 44mag.
You'll need mag primers.
The window is only 1gr between min/max
You'll find that unless the moon and stars line up/everything is spot on. H110 will be more erratic with lead bullets/short bbl's then jacketed bullets in the same firearm.

Per lyman 49th edition:
lyman 429421 "keith" swc
mag primer
h110 24.0gr/31,900cup to 25.0gr/35,300cup

The 69 should have the tightest cylinders .429/.430" bullet
The 629-4 .430" bullet
The ruger carbine, I've owned 3 of them and they all shot .430" cast bullets extremely well.
The ruger sbh needs a .431" bullet.

If it was me, I'd save the h110 for jacketed bullets and burn up the 231.

 

[oink]

Well at this point it seems it's the 231 getting burnt up, at least so far. It's only the W231 and H110 that I have any quantity of.

I haven shot my 10 grains of 231 in the 2.75" 69 yet but it seems fairly nice in the 3" 629. It doesn't seem harsh at all to me. A nice thump and push. I need to get to the range as I'm about to wear out my test tree. I'd just prefer to be making the "hotter" loads with a powder that's not so capable of a double charge. It really slows down my production. Older Dillon RL550.

I used to shoot a lot of max 231 loads in my 6" 629-1. Those were my own cast boolits from a Lee 240 grain SWC. I had a PB and a gas check molds. The GC were the ones that got maxed out. I used straight WW. They were accurate at 100yrds. Still have the molds but not the inclination to cast in this heat and humidity. Besides, with the wheel weights now mostly of zinc I no longer have a readily available lead supply. Plus my old 6" 629-1 has seen enough hot loads. I just use it mostly for paper now.