Fireforming .44-77 brass?

[Don McDowell]

Yup that's what it would look like.

[Kurt]

I will next time I heat up the lead pot. How many do you want to try

[Distant Thunder]

Well, once I find out what diameters I need and length I'd be very interested in a bullet just like that.

I will be looking into trying to getting set up to cut my own molds sometime next year, but I have no idea at this point how that will go. It would have its advantages and always worked out well for me before, well at least eventually. Not every mold I made was a winner, but not every mold I bought was either! My thoughts on what makes a good bullet continue to evolve. That is part of why this stuff remains so fascinating to me, that and my love for the old guns.

[Distant Thunder]

Kurt,

I'm not entirely sure how long the learning curve will be on this .44-77, but I hope I will get a handle on it fairly quickly. Once I have a sense of what powder, wad, primer and compression it likes I'll want to start thinking about what is the best bullet for it. At that point I'll be very interested in trying some. I would think 20 to 30 would be enough to see what the potential is.

Some of the brass I have is thicker in the neck and may lend itself to bore diameter pp very well with minimal sizing. The Jamison stuff would probably be better used with a 2-diameter bullet. My hope is to do a lot of testing with just about every kind of pp bullet there is and get a better understanding of how they can be used and just what works best or at least better. That of course will involve a lot of different molds and a lot of shooting, but I am ready and willing to give it my best for as long as I can! Someone has to do it and I might as well have in on some of the fun.

[Don McDowell]

Well, once I find out what diameters I need and length I'd be very interested in a bullet just like that.

I will be looking into trying to getting set up to cut my own molds sometime next year, but I have no idea at this point how that will go. It would have its advantages and always worked out well for me before, well at least eventually. Not every mold I made was a winner, but not every mold I bought was either! My thoughts on what makes a good bullet continue to evolve. That is part of why this stuff remains so fascinating to me, that and my love for the old guns.

Jim in that 17 twist barrel, you may find that my .434470 mould from Buffalo Arms works quite well. My 44 2.4 shoots that bullet very well, and the small amount of vertical it will hold at 1000 is pretty amazing.
The problem with that bullet in the 19 twist is it's just a tad long and past 800 it can deal you fits especially in a cross wind.
When my #1 is getting close to going on the floor, I will have Brooks make me the dual diameter bullet with the original postel nose at 1.3 inches long to the same measurements as those I gave you when I was at Lodi.

[Distant Thunder]

Don,

Those 2-diameter bullets you gave me were .45 caliber, right? I plan to try those in my CSA .45-70 that doesn't like paper patch so much. It looks very similar to my little .40 caliber bullet and that one works very well in my freebored .40-65 chamber. I just have too many irons in the fire most of the time it seems and that one keeps getting pushed back to make room for something else. They are sitting there just waiting for me to have time to try them.
I made a 2-diameter mold for a friend that looks very much like yours and works very well in his .45-90. I have some of those I can try in my CSA too.

One of these days I will...…..

[Don McDowell]

I gave you 45's and 44's, more 45's than 44 I think.
Cliff had Dave build him a dual diameter mould based off that one of Arnie's. He sent me 50 of them to repay the .446 535 money bullets I sent him home with in October.. Anyway, I've got 15 or 20 of them loaded for my Shiloh 45-70 but haven't got a chance to give them a try yet. I am thinking they may work better in the Browning. And I'm thinking that maybe try the rest in the CPA 45-90, but so far this fall the weather just flat hasn't cooperated for bullet trial shooting.

[Kurt]

Jim, send me the numbers on your mailbox through a pm. or ishoottoo@yahoo.com
I will start casting for next season soon and I will put a sleeve full in a box.

[Eric Johanen]

Jim, just load the brass with any odd lot of powder and go shooting. I used some GOEX 2 fg and a paper patched bullet and on my local range limited to 200 yards they shot pretty good. Getting used to the new rifle and how it handled in recoil, the fire forming worked surprising well. I found that the fire formed cases used about 5 grains more powder than the new cases. You will really like a 44-77. I'm at 75 /77 grains with the KIK 2fg and 2 fg OE with either of my paper patched bullets.

[Distant Thunder]

Thanks, Eric.
It's good of you to help out with advise since you are the responsible for this project! Well in part anyway, there are plenty of enablers around here.
Judging by all the views threads about the .44-77 get there are a good number of other shooters with the itch too. I hope to help them jump in with a push.

I've decided to use the GG bullets I have already cast and sitting here for my fireforming, but those will be the only grease groove bullets this rifle will ever sees. For powder I have several cans of odds and ends leftover from 30 years of shooting these big bore single shot rifles and many years of shooting muzzle loaders. I have more that enough.

Thanks!