casting session complete...

[Jac Spring]

I made-up some 44 cal conicals and some target minis this morning - used 30-1 alloy for both (lead to tin).

Here are the pics:

They turned out very nice - I always try and cast two different bullet types when I work - this produces a good "cadence" and I get more done too.

As to the conicals - does anybody use these? I noticed that the base fits down into the chambers on my dragoon a little - do they snug up as you seat them further down? (I hope).

I tried them with one of my 1860's and I don't think that'll work - unless I remove the cylinder to load...

The target minis are 50 cal and are for my TC Renegade.

 

[Runner]

I am getting ready to send some 250 grain REALs to another gentleman. If you want to try them in your pistol, I can send some to you also. I used them in my Dragoon over 40 grains of 3f, so I have a hundred or so cast up.
Warning! Shooting conicals out of the smaller pistols is not recommended. Somewhere I have a box of brass frame and Navy style pistols with broken frames and such. The conicals are just too hard on them. The smaller pistols are nice, but don't push them at all.
The 320 Target Minnie with a light coat of alox and BB smeared on the outside when loaded is a good deer bullet out to about 125 or so. You can pretty much count on them doing the same thing a ball does up close, only at that range. They are the most accurate of the Lee Conicals in my gun that likes them. I have heard reports that they paper patch very well, and that the side design was done that way in case you wanted to patch them. All of my target work is roundball. Conicals are only for hunting where I expect a longer than normal shot. I don't need to try to tweak the Target Minnie past what it will do straight out of the mold for my purposes. Since I use them for over 100 yard shots out hunting, I also use a fairly hefty powder charge of 90 grains under them. I don't know how well they would shoot at lower target charges.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

You didn't say what size mold you had as far as diameter of the .44. Lee makes 2 different sizes that I know of - 1 for the RugerOA and another for pistols that have a .451 chameber. I have both since I have a ROA and a '58 Rem replica. I've had good luck with both, I try to use as pure lead for my casting as possible for the 'expansion factor'. I've had 2 shots into wild hog, one with each pistol and both were complete pass-thrus. One head shot (knocked chunk of the brains out)with my '58 Rem Buffalo and a chest shot on a fairly large hog with my ROA, it ran off but it was easy to track as me and my buddy saw it run and found much blood about 50 yds on. Tracked it about 200 yards and found it piled up in thicket blowing blood out I shot it again for the coup but it was near dead. Upon dressing it I found I had missed the heart-lung junction and went thru both lungs a little too high to clip the heart area. anyway enjoy shooting those conicals they look good :thumbsup:

 

[PreglerD]

Nice pills!

I use LEE molds for .54. Have a .533410 minie mold and a .530 RB mold. For .45 and .50 I use Rapines primitive molds in .445 and .490. Works all pretty good, especially the Rapine products.

 

[Jac Spring]

thanks guys :hatsoff:

The conicals are .451", but my Dragoon does have pretty big chambers - cuts a very thin ring with .454" balls... hopefully I don't have to get the larger mould.

I've been told that the target minis are too fragile for heavier charges and that you should stay around 60-70 grains in a 50 or they'll start skidding- apparently not? I think they'd make a heckava good hunting bullet with that blunt nose.

 

[GreyWhiskers]

OSOK,

That looks like an ad for Lee. :grin: I like to cast using 2 molds too. You can empty the pot fast that way. Good lookin boolits. GW

 

[Jac Spring]

Thanks :grin:

I have several Lyman moulds too and like them but I have to say that the aluminum is easier to work with - don't have to oil for storage and de-oil for use.

My Lyman moulds are for my milsurp rifles and I also have to admit they make excellent bullets.

 

[sidelock]

Nice work. Looks a lot like my operation which works fine. those who don't cast are missing a lot. :thumbsup:

 

[Runner]

The last one I fired at game was at about 120 yards across a lake. I could not get to the other bank because of ice. I loaded the slug gun and slipped down to the bank before daylight. Off my knee the bullet hit just exactly where it was aimed. I would not depend on them past that because of the trashcan lid nose, but out to 120 they work fine for me. I have not slugged that barrel, but it is the tightest 50 caliber barrel I own. That barrel is 1-48 with a square cut muzzle and almost no crown. I have read where one person turned the plug down so that the skirt was thicker. I have not needed to make any mods, but my use is strictly limited hunting with that gun. I never tried to get 1 inch 5 shot groups at 100 yards with the load.

 

[Jac Spring]

Just a little update - I measured my .44 cal conicals and found that they're actually .458" - and a little out of round - will measure .455" many times if you rotate them. I guess they'll size down a bit when seated in the cylinders though.

This bodes well for shooting in my dragoon and the 1858 that I just acquired. And I took another look at my 1860 - its a very close fit but I think I could use them in that as well - but it'll be a bit tricky getting them to start straight down into the cylinder, so I may just leave that to balls afer all.

 

[paulvallandigham]

My brother had his revolvers tuned by Mulie Ball, who has sinced passed away, and he opened his Remington .44 up to .457 when it was found that the chambers were so out of line with the barrel. Now, Peter uses only .458 round ball in all the revolvers. Oh, Mulie installed new barrels or liners, with a faster twist, throated properly, and tuned the actions. The guns shoot great.

 

[Jac Spring]

That's interesting. I was thinking the other day that there could be a market for a "premium" traditional cap and ball. Not like the ROA, a true to original design with tuning like you mention.

 

[paulvallandigham]

I saw Mulie shoot way back in the 60s, at friendship, but didn't know who he was. I didn't know he worked on revolvers, until my brother found out about him and sent his ROA, and his Remington to be tuned, and rebarreled. The ROA has a new barrel with a faster ROT in it; the Remington has the chambers rebored, and centered to the barrel, and a new barrel like on the ROA with the Fast Twist for pistols. He sent peter test targets shot with each. Peter has fired both guns, but the grips on the Remington are way too small for his hands, and he has to make some oversized grips to fit his hand if he is going to take advantage of the revolver's new accuracy. The ROA shoots very well.

I was shocked to see how out of alignment the chambers were on that Remington '58 replica. We deserve better than that, even from our Italian friends. You can test your own gun by getting a piece of brass rod the diameter of your bore, and running it down the barrel when the hammer is cocked, to see if it enters each chamber, or is it stopped by hitting the edge of the chamber. If you use a scratch awl to mark the face of the chamber around that rod, you will be able to see how far off center the chambers are drilled. That would be the very first thing I do with any replica- preferrably before I paid good money for it. It would be worth carrying the rod and a scratch awl to the store, or gun show, or even to Friendship when looking at guns to buy.

With the CAS craze, there are a lot of men now who can tune any single action revolver, and tune the action to allow fanning, or fine target shooting, as you wish. There are even replacement parts that can be inserted that make a huge difference in how the guns will shoot. As for throating the barrels, you want an 11 degree angle throat, but anything up to 15 degrees will probably produce better groups than what comes out of the facory. By relieving the throat, the ball or bullet is swaged into the barrel after jumping the gap from the cylinder to the barrel. Without the throating, the bullet or ball smashes into the barrel and lots more lead gets shaved off and spit out the side of the revolver. No one needs a gun that does that.