44 special and hard cast bullets

jimaw2 · August 27, 2012, 11:26 PM

i just purchased a 624 s&w revolver. i have 500 hard-cast bullets i used in my 629. it seems i remember reading that a hard cast bullet can actually cause some leading when used in a low pressure round like the 44 special. something about the gasses blowing around the bullet instead of expanding the base and sealing. its a beautiful old revolver and i dont want to end up scrapping a lot of lead out of it. any thoughts? thanks

griz · August 28, 2012, 07:19 AM

Too hard a bullet can cause leading but I think the only way to find out is to try it. I've used commercial cast bullets* in 44 special and while there is a tiny bit of leading it's not a big deal to clean up.

*"hard cast" is on of those marketing terms that's far from carved in stone. Many companies use the term because their customers think they want hard bullets, but they are still fairly soft.

SL1 · August 28, 2012, 09:09 AM

Bullet fit is as important as alloy hardness, maybe more important.

Make sure that you don't have a bore constriction at the frame (common), and that your cylinder throats are about 0.001" large diameter than your (not restricted) groove diameter, and can proably shoot bullets bullets with a wide range of hardnesses without leading.

SL1

**Unclenick** · August 28, 2012, 09:51 AM

Search the board on bore slugging to see how to find constrictions and throat sizes.

A bullet being "too hard" is neutralized by having the bullet sized large enough and having constrictions lapped out. The only instance in which a soft bullet is better is when pressure had to bump it up to seal the bore either because it started out on the small side or because it was narrowed by a constriction. If you don't have those two problems, the hard bullet won't lead more. Indeed, if your bore is smooth, you may find you can shoot them with no lube at all and still get no leading.

salvadore · August 28, 2012, 10:04 AM

Take one of the bullets and see how hard it is to push thru the chamber (throat) If its difficult to push thru you're probably okee pokee.

jimaw2 · August 28, 2012, 11:15 AM

Thank you for your input, much appreciated!

August 27, 2012, 11:26 PM	#1
jimaw2 Member Join Date: October 2, 2008 Location: n california Posts: 83	44 special and hard cast bullets i just purchased a 624 s&w revolver. i have 500 hard-cast bullets i used in my 629. it seems i remember reading that a hard cast bullet can actually cause some leading when used in a low pressure round like the 44 special. something about the gasses blowing around the bullet instead of expanding the base and sealing. its a beautiful old revolver and i dont want to end up scrapping a lot of lead out of it. any thoughts? thanks

August 28, 2012, 09:51 AM	#4
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,061	Search the board on bore slugging to see how to find constrictions and throat sizes. A bullet being "too hard" is neutralized by having the bullet sized large enough and having constrictions lapped out. The only instance in which a soft bullet is better is when pressure had to bump it up to seal the bore either because it started out on the small side or because it was narrowed by a constriction. If you don't have those two problems, the hard bullet won't lead more. Indeed, if your bore is smooth, you may find you can shoot them with no lube at all and still get no leading. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

August 28, 2012, 07:19 AM	#2
griz Senior Member Join Date: July 31, 2000 Location: Middle Peninsula, VA Posts: 1,588	Too hard a bullet can cause leading but I think the only way to find out is to try it. I've used commercial cast bullets* in 44 special and while there is a tiny bit of leading it's not a big deal to clean up. *"hard cast" is on of those marketing terms that's far from carved in stone. Many companies use the term because their customers think they want hard bullets, but they are still fairly soft.

August 28, 2012, 09:09 AM	#3
SL1 Senior Member Join Date: November 8, 2007 Posts: 2,001	Bullet fit is as important as alloy hardness, maybe more important. Make sure that you don't have a bore constriction at the frame (common), and that your cylinder throats are about 0.001" large diameter than your (not restricted) groove diameter, and can proably shoot bullets bullets with a wide range of hardnesses without leading. SL1

August 28, 2012, 10:04 AM	#5
salvadore Junior member Join Date: January 1, 2007 Location: Idaho Posts: 2,282	Take one of the bullets and see how hard it is to push thru the chamber (throat) If its difficult to push thru you're probably okee pokee.

August 28, 2012, 11:15 AM	#6
jimaw2 Member Join Date: October 2, 2008 Location: n california Posts: 83	Thank you for your input, much appreciated!