I am new to reloading and have not loaded any cast bullets.

I bought some Hornady 240 SWC and would like to load up some target rounds for my SuperRedhawk 44 7.5" bbl.

Should I use Gas checks? and any recommended Target loads would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance
HKG3

Most of the .44 Magnum junkies settled on using from 7.5 to 8.0 grains of Unique with the 240-grain lead bullets. This is their "target" load and it apparently is very satisfying.

At this level of loading, a brass gascheck is not necessary, but can be helpful when sizing and lubricating. It may be just as convenient or more so to tumblelube the slugs and use them as-cast.

HK.....It depends on the heel of the bullet.If the bullet is designed to be used with gas checks,then use gas checks.If it's not,then don't.If you're talking about factory swaged bullets,there are none that I'm aware of that are designed to be used with gas checks.Swaged,non jacketed bullets are normally very soft and will lead the barrel badly if driven at high velocity.

I bought them midwayusa, they are Hornady 240gr swc.
So do I understand correctly that I dont need gas checks? as I probably am going to try 8 to 8.5 gr of unique.

Thanks everyone
HK

HK,
The Hornady SWCs are very soft, swaged lead, and won't take much velocity, so the loads you are looking at are about the heaviest that you would want to try with this bullet.
You also might try about 7 grains of WW231. Check for some .44 Special data to give you a better idea about light target loads for .44 mag.

HK....As a general rule,swaged,non-jacketed bullets are too soft to be driven at much more than 800 fps or so.The 8 to 8.5 unique load will yield a bit more than that(between 900-1000 fps}.It'll work okay but will lead the barrel excessively.If you insist on using swaged,non-jacketed bullets in the 44 mag,I'd recommend that you lower the velocity a bit with a somewhat faster powder.Your best bet would be to get some "cast" bullets of that weight.These will generally be fine with the load you suggest.

What about using .44 Special cases and a load that averages 700-750 fps?? Unless you can return the swaged bullets this might be worth your effort.
The .44 mags take to cast bullets well and they are a nice alterbative to heavy, jacketed loads. Unless your a masochist one doesn't need 1400 fps to pop a can or a rock, 800 is more than enough. You and your gun will last longer too.

There are all sorts of good hard cast bullets out there, available from Midway, Dillon, on the net, etc. That would be the route I would go with 8-9 grains of Unique and a standard primer, with a medium to moderate crimp.

Frank N.

I use a 240 gr round nose from Oregon Trail Bullets in my 44 and 9.5 gr of Hodgdon Tightgroup.
It is clean and inexpensive. I found unique to be smokier than I liked.

DV

Ok, when should someone use gas checks? I am not really sure what they are? I have been loading 240g of Oregon Trail SWC with 10g of Unique for some time. They seem to work well for me. I questioned the Oregon Trail people about gas checks, but they said you don't need them. Is the gas check like a patch in Muzzleloading to stop blowby? Do you only use it with cast?

[This message has been edited by bigcountry (edited 12-13-2001).]

Big country....A gas check is a metal cup that is press fitted to the heel of a bullet.In principal,it's supposed to help scrape leading from the barrel.Many of us find them to be more of a bother than they're worth when used for revolver loads.When to use them and when not to use them is very simple.If the cast bullet design has the recess on the heel(not to be confused with bevel based designs)then you should use the appropriate gas checks.If you attempt to seat gas checks on a bullet not designed for them,you will very quickly see the folly of such an attempt.Hope this clears it up.