Cast bullet for my Marlin 1894 carbine.

[FrankCVA42]

Have a Marlin 1894 in 44 magnum. Would like a suggestion for a 240 grain cast bullet mold. Gas check preferred. Not looking for full power loads. And if possible would like the same cast bullet to be used in my S&W 44 specials. Most of my casting has been done for various 30 caliber mil-surps and my Ruger #1 in 45/70 if that helps. Thank you, Frank

 

[CWLONGSHOT]

I dont remember dates. But some Marlins was plagues with fat barrels.

Best ta check your bore dia. Fat ones needed up ta .432/.433

CW

 

[waco]

I shoot this Accurate bullet from my 1894 Marlin sized to .433”
They have lots of good GC designs in or around the weight your looking for.

Bullet Design Details | Accurate Molds

www.accuratemolds.com

 

[BBerguson]

Yeah, I went up to a .432 and it still wouldn’t shoot well. Nothing gas checked but I did try some jacketed rounds too and none of them would shoot well either. I sometimes wonder if I should have tried pure lead bullets instead of wheel weights. They might of filled the bore better and made it shoot. Sold it so I’ll never know.

 

[Bret4207]

I use the 429421 Lyman quite happily in all my 44's. With todays custom mould makers it shouldn't be hard to to get a nice fat 429421 type design, or the GC version whose number escapes me. I lucked out and got a Lyman that drops near .432 IIRC, but that was luck!

 

[Brad]

Shoulda bought a lottery ticket Bret. My Lyman 429421 was dead on at .429. Right at spec and worthless in anything I own.

The Marlin 44 mags can be finicky. Good enough for deer at 50 yards but don’t expect much more.

 

[Ian]

Try a 200 grain bullet first.

 

[CZ93X62]

Try a 200 grain bullet first.

Great idea, since the 1-38" twist rate found in many Marlin 94 44 Mags was intended for the 200 grain round flatnose bullets of the 44/40 WCF that ran in the 1100-1200 FPS realm during black powder days. At 1100-1200 FPS, no gas check will be necessary IF THE BULLET FITS THE THROAT. Take a look at SAAMI specs for 44 Special and Magnum--upper diameter limit for bullet diameter and throat diameter is .433", and a whole lot of 44 Spec/Mag arms are so dimensioned.

Those 200 grain RFN bullets are only 30% heavier than the roundballs for that caliber. Yes, they are short and squatty-looking things, but they shoot well in my 44/40 and 44 Mag arms.

 

[BudHyett]

I have two carbines, bought thirty years ago. These both have micro-groove rifling and large chambers requiring .432 bullets. I have an Ohaus three-cavity mold built to the original callout of the Keith bullet with the deep square grease grooves. Cast at 850 degrees in tandem with another LBT mold for .45 Colt, both drop needed larger bullets. These bullets at .432 shoot well in the Marlin carbines. My twist rate is 1 in 38" as the first carbines and .444 Marlin. These bullets go in my .44 Special and .44 Magnum. revolvers and carbines With 2400 powder, I've never found a need for gas checks.

Maybe my talking to Marlin at the Long Beach Annual Meeting did some good. I refused to talk to anyone until I had a person familiar with twist rates. We discussed that the slow twist on the black powder era rifles was to lessen black powder fouling. Then we discussed the smokeless powder era and the faster twist rates.

I recommend that people attending the NRA Annual Meetings talk to the various manufacturers and refuse to talk to anyone behind the table until you have the manufacturing representative. As bullet casters, we have experience and deeper knowledge that they come to respect.

 

[MW65]

Have a '71 saddle ring. My issue with 240s is feeding from the mag tube because of a long nose on a swc... 429421 wouldn't feed from the magazine, but a magma 240gr copy from a commercial caster would. I have rd 432-265 for a 444, which I suspect would work amazing in this carbine. I run most of my 44 loads as midrange, and have no issues clearing silhouettes @100yds as long as I do my part. Sizing 432/433 is a good thing in marlins.

 

[Winelover]

Try a 200 grain bullet first.

Accurate's 215 grain RNFP with gas check, in my Marlin 1894.



Not too shabby for a RCBS 300 grain SWC that was hollow pointed by Eric. Rick owns this mold.

Marlins like fat bullets. I size mine at .433 on a Star, preferably..........if they will drop large enough. Best the RCBS 300 will do is 431 diameter.

 

[CWLONGSHOT]

I do more 45's then 43's. These tend to not be a issue with diameters. But still have idiotic twist rates.
My Rossi is a 24" version and is suposed to have about 1:38 twist????? BUT, the very first loads, I shot thru is barrel, was 300g GC Ranch Dogs and 8.5g Unique. Sized, .454. That load shot touching holes @ 50 and about 6" @ 100. BUT BUT, thats iron sights and poor at best eyes.

I have swapped to a tang peep and that 6" became a 2.5".

Sometimes ya just need to shoot and see what ya get!!!

CW

 

[Jeff H]

That Accurate Mould bullet looks like a winner. That basic design/profile has not failed me in 22 caliber, 30, 35 and 44. It is very versatile, feeds well through levers and is accurate in whatever I shoot them in.

I agree on the 210 grain bullet too though. Same basic profile - RFN, and easier on the lead stash by a significant amount. Makes just as big a hole in paper too. I have an Arsenal 200 grain RFN (traditional lube groove, but I tumble-lube it) and was able to specify .433" minimum. It arrived in just a few weeks and has been a marvelous mould.

Can't argue with the 429421 either, and I did just order one from Arsenal (4C for under $100 shipped), again specifying .433" minimum. I'll be here in a few weeks too. I DO NOT know if it will feed in a lever, because I never tried a 429421 in my 1894 (long gone), but it's a no-fail shooter in any revolver I've ever owned in 44 Mag or Special. Just can't get away from the design.

I have an original Ranch Dog 265 grain RFN, which shoots well in anything, but is heavy for anything but actual hunting and takes a GC. I really only use it to cast for a friend who shoots it in a 1894 and he is very, very pleased with the design. Same basic profile as the one @waco suggested, just heavier.

If I could only have ONE 44 mould, I'd probably defer to the 429421, but that 210 grain RFN, which really shoots well in anything I currently own. Saving 40 or 50 grains per shot is a real benefit when conserving a finite resource - lead. In a ten-pound lead pot, the difference between casting 240s and 200s is SIXTY extra bullets.

 

[Charles Graff]

I am in agreement with the lighter (200-225) grain bullets fired at 44-40 velocities. I have discontinued RCBS GC mold of this weight and shot at .433 is very accurate in my Marlin 1894 44mag. IIRC the powder charge was 10/Unique. While not a full snort magnum load, will kill anything in the Lone Star State.

 

[CZ93X62]

Over the years I have owned almost a dozen 44 Special and 44 Magnum firearms. Not ONE OF THOSE examples had .429" throats or grooves, which most bullet makers use as their base diameter. My closest example is the 1999-made Ruger Redhawk x 5.5", which has .430" (+ a few tenths) throats and grooves a few tenths smaller. I feed it castings sized @ .431", and it has run happily for almost 23 years on that diet. The few J-words it gets are Hornady, which are .430"-listed and a few tenths wider IRL. The newer Bisley Hunter is almost .431" in throats and a few tenths over .430" in its grooves. The Rising Sun Win. 92 in 44 Mag is .430"+, not quite .431" as well. Fortuitously, all of these run .431" castings very well. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

The ONLY "44s" on staff here that digest .429" bullets properly are my two 44/40s--a Win '73 (made 1897) with .429" throat and grooves a few tenths smaller. The 2012-made Uberti Cattleman x 4-3/4" has throats not quite .429" and grooves @ .428". My regimen is to ALWAYS "round up" if a dimension is "in between" a one-thousandth inch spec. Does .001" matter? Dunno, but why mess with it? To quote Buckshot--"If it's a little big when the Big Light hits it, pressure will make it fit."

 

[FrankCVA42]

Thanks for the many answers, comments and suggestions. Definitely will have to slug the barrel on the carbine. Unfortunately one of my shelving units collapsed and took the other one down. So cannot get to the safe with all the stuff piled around it. Have to make a trip to Lowes and see what they have as an heavy duty shelving. Thanks again. Frank

 

[garrisonjoe]

Another recommendation - the Accurate 43-200Q. A Round Nose Flat Point which feeds real well in almost any lever gun. And this particular mold has an oversize driving band area which you get to specify as the MAJOR DIAMETER. So once you slug the bore and check throat, you can match that or add a thousandth of inch to that diameter.

 

[PED1945]

Not had much luck with cast bullets in my microgroove rifled 1984 Marlin. The RCBS 44-225 GC, when crimped in the crimp groove, is too long to feed through the action. As a result, I do not know if it is accurate. The Lee 429-214 plain base works through the action, but is not accurate, Both were sized to .430".

Last time I loaded cast for this rifle was ten years ago, before I learned about the challenges of loading for microgroove barrels. All of my cast loads work well and shoot with accuracy in my SBH. Needing two different types of reloads for revolver and carbine defeats the purpose of having a common load.

 

[FrankCVA42]

Thanks again for all your help. Hopefully should get to Lowe's for some steel shelving and then get to slug the barrel on my Marlin 44 mag carbine. Frank

 

[fiver]

those gorilla shelves are good ones.
if your gonna store cast bullets on them grab some plywood the thin stuff they use will bow down low enough to make you wonder why they haven't just snapped already.