What size and type bullets for the M69

[fortyshooter]

For those with this revolver..what type cast lead bullets are you using and what hardness and diameter bullet is working best.

Looking at 200-240 gr. weights and at top end .44 Special/ low end .44 Mag loads. Skeeter load comes to mind!

 

[Fishinfool]

Just about any 200 / 240 grain cast SWC, no harder than wheel weights, and lubed with a good soft lube will work fine. I use 6.0 to 6.5 grains of Red Dot powder with a 240 grain SWC for about 925 fps with excellent accuracy.

Since you have "fixed" the throats of your model 69, I would use a bullet diameter .001 over what ever your throats measure now to avoid gas cutting and leading. Do not fall into the trap of thinking you need hard cast bullets in a .44 mag., especially at mid-range velocities. You don't.

My experience, anyway, loading a fair number of cast .44 mags in a couple dozen .44 mag handguns over the years.

Larry

 

[twodog max]

I have a RCBS 250KT mold that I use. As far as hardness I really do not worry to much about details. Ignorance is bliss I suppose. All I can say I scrounge lead all over and the bullets are harder than pure lead and softer than linotype. I use the same lead in 44, 45 Colt and 357. I size the 44 to 430 in a RCBS lubrisizer. At my age I try not to overthink anything it cuts in to the fun to much. What I do works for me but admittedly may not be what you are looking for. For the record I shoot these bullets from mild loads with 231 powder to low end stout magnums with no noticeable leading differences and that is very little. I do not shoot full house magnums because of an old hand injury that flares up when I pound my hand hard.

 

[PeterK]

Honesty I haven't found a bullet that my 69 doeśnt like!

 

[Paul105]

Not sure where to start. I have 5 M69s - three 4 1/4" and two 2 3/4". One 4 1/4" was function checked, sighted in and put in the safe in case S&W discontinues this model.

I have shot over 11,000 rnds thru the four guns and have been able to find lead bullet loads that shot well in all of them (not necessarily the same load).

You may have complicated the search somewhat by opening the throats on your _but, maybe not.

Three cast bullets that have worked in most of my gun (all have .4295 or .4285 throats) are:

1. 265gr Lyman Thompson SWCGC (429244) -- the ones I have are not real hard and are sized .428

2. 260gr LBT Montana Bullet Works ( 44 Mag, LBT, 260gr, WFN-GC - Montana Bullet Works )

the ones I use are sized .432 and are BHN 22 -- loaded over 23.0gr of H110, they have been accurate in almost all .44 mags I've tried them in.

3. Lee 310gr FNGCDC, seated and crimped in the top crimp grove over 20.0gr of H110/W296, I haven't found a 44 Mag that won't shoot these well. The ones I have are .429 and aren't real hard.

Some of my guns will shoot the generic 240gr SWC BB over 6.0 to 7.0 gr of WW231/HP38 -- these are, for the most part hard cast, and run from .429 to .431. These bullets don't typically perform well with magnum loads.

One of my favorite loads is the above mentioned Lyman Thompson 265gr SWC GC, seated deep and crimped over the front drive band propelled by 17.5 gr of 2400.

My second 2.75" M69 with the 265/17.5 2400 -- rested on my range bag at 25 yards.

The load works in most .44 Mags, but not all.

Point being, some guns require a bit of effort to find a load they like -- there really isn't a magic combination that is guaranteed to work in all guns.

Again, as mentioned above, you may just have a lemon.

Sent it back to S&W and see if they can make it right. Test it when it comes back. If it still isn't up to your expectations, take Kasscop's recco, sell it and move on.

For those that are on the fence, the M69 in both barrel lengths have been great performers for me and are my favorite .44 platform.

Good luck!

Paul

 

[junglefighter]

I am thinking of buying a M69 and my question is which barrel length is more accurate for you and do you have a preference on the lock up(ball/detent or std.front lock up? Thanks.

 

[twodog max]

I only have one 69 so far and it has the ball detent. So far as I know all 69 versions have a ball detent in some form. In my limited experience I think that the concept works very well. If S&W ever makes a 6 inch 69 I will be having one of those. The short barrel version my just be a little more than my arthritic right hand can endure or I would have one of those too.

 

[oink]

I am thinking of buying a M69 and my question is which barrel length is more accurate for you and do you have a preference on the lock up(ball/detent or std.front lock up? Thanks.

I'd say what you intend to use it for would be the main determiner of choice of barrel length. I got the 2.75" because I wanted it for CCW carry in hot humid Southern FL. The short barrel with it being a L frame makes it very feasible for me. For other purposes I don't see a down side to a longer barrel, only advantages. I have a 3" 629 I originally intended for CCW (EDC) but I found it too thick and a bit heavy and I never found round butt grips that were appropriate for CCW with the lightweight clothes worn in the hot humid environment.

I guess with all of these guys accuracy testing their guns from the bench or a rest I'll have to go try mine. I've just tested mine for practical self defense (combat) accuracy for CCW (EDC). It's just fine for that. So far I really like my 69 in that context.

The only real downside I've found with the gun is what I understand is a lack of gas seal on the cylinder/crane. After 60 rounds or so of hand rolled LSWC the cylinder starts to stiffen up due to deposits there. It's easily remedied but it is a bit annoying. I'm going to try some grease next to see if that seals better than regular oil lubrication.

I think if I wanted a 44 to target shoot with I'd go with a 6" 629. Of course I already have one of those. With light loads I can't really think of anything more fun to spend a day at the range with.

Oh, and for the lock-up, I have to say the lock-up on the 69 is new to me. It seems to work fine. It does seem it might be more susceptible to getting dirty than the traditional lock-up. It hasn't been a problem so far and strength wise it seems to make sense.

 

[stykshooter]

For my milder loads through my model 69, I have been shooting a lot of the ACME moly coated bullets over Unique. VERY accurate out of my gun.

 

[fortyshooter]

I'm looking at some 240 gr. LSWC with gas check called the Thompson design that Matt's Bullets makes. He seems to offer bullets that are not to hard and should work well in the 900 FPS range using Unique.
Other bullets I have on hand and loaded for the other .44's are the Missouri Bullet coated,Xtreme 240/200 plated and 200 gr. XTP for defense loads. Have some .44 Special loads using the 200 gr. Speer GD that work very well in my CA Bulldog.

Nothing at all wrong with the chamber throats using the .430 cast bullets...they just slide in with slight drag.

 

[Paul105]

This group was shot with Matt's 265gr Thompson Gas Check.

You can buy 240gr Jacket Flat Point (real jacketed not plated) bullets at about half the price of Matt's (Matt's makes a great product and I've used a bunch of them).

Roze Distribution: 44 Magnum (.431 diameter)

They sell these in quantities of 500 also.

They are .431 but can be sized down to .430 with a Lee push thru die if you so desire (I've used them both ways with no apparent difference).

Here's a group using 9.0gr of universal that chronoed 928 fps at 5 long paces from one of my 2 3/4" guns. They also shoot well with magnum charges.

FWIW,

Paul

 

[dogdoc]

With any new revolver, I shoot several hundred jacketed bullets to break in the barrel. May or may not make any difference but it makes me feel better. Also do not be so quick to open up the throats. I know that’s the rage but I have some Smiths that shoot like lasers with 429 throats. Shoot them a lot with different loads and bullets before making that decision . Accuracy test at least at 25 yards from a rest with several groups each load. I say all this because I too have a new 4.25 inch 69 and have been testing it recently. I have never been able to get consistently good accuracy with the bevel base type 240 grain commercial bullet that everybody sells. I shoot them because they are cheap and I can get ok accuracy. The cast bullets that I get by far the best and most consistent accuracy from are the flat base Keith bullets like the rcbs 250k or Lyman 421429. I cast my own when time permits but time is not on my side. I found some reasonable cost 255 Keith bullets from magnus bullets. They are very close to the rcbs version check them out.

Those are 25 yard rested groups from my new 69 with those bullets with an unmodified gun. I feel 1.5 to 2 inch 5 shot groups at 25 yards are pretty decent from a 4 inch barrel. Many shoot at 10 or 15 yards and that does not tell you much as good at that distance can open up a lot at 25.


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