[thesalos]

What dia? .430 or .429 S&W 29 6' 240gr bullit

[robocop10mm]

I use a .430 sizing die for my .44 Spl/Mag bullets. You generally want to go .001 larger than bore diameter. Normal bore diameter for a .44 is .429.

[spittinfire]

I agree with robo, I like to go .001" larger the the bore.

[Tuner]

Originally Posted by thesalos

What dia? .430 or .429 S&W 29 6' 240gr bullit

The accepted practice for accuracy in a revolver is to shoot cast bullets that are sized 1/2 to 1 thousand larger then the throat of the cylinder. My Ruger Black has cylinder throats that are .432 and .433. this is an old 3 screw handgun. I have gone to not sizing by cast bullets which drop out of my mold at .433. In acutality to get things right you would need to measure your throats to see what is best for your Smith. There are several ways you can do this the easiest if you have a michrometer is to get an adjustable inside gague that covers the range you are measuring, set it to the throat and then measure it with the mike. You would need to do this for each cylinder. You can buy these tooles relatively inexpensive (I think) if you can just buy the one you need instead of a complete set. There is also an inside screw adjustable divider that will work ro this purpose.

[robocop10mm]

Ideally goinig .001 over throat diameter is best. Sometimes you cannot get a round to chamber if you load a bullet that large.

[noylj]

Slug your barrel to determine groove-to-groove diameter. Slug the throats of your cylinders.
I find no problem with lead being several thousandths over throat diameter. For .44s, I have found 0.430-.431 works well.
Given some of the measurements I have found with revolvers, it is amazing that they shoot as well as they do.

[Fuzzball]

I've sized bullets for my 6" M29 at .429" since my wife surprised me with it, very slightly used, in '67.

Prone sand bagged 100 yd. groups astonished most of those who watched me shoot it with factory sights until my eyes got old and foggy. Had MANY sub-4 MOA 3 shot groups with Lyman hard cast and alox lubed 240 SWC-GC over 22/2400 and standard primers. The bore still looks new...and if only I could see that well I'd still be doing it!

[patret]

I agree with Robo cop and so does Lyman concerning the 44 mag. Please size to .430 and use a cast bullet of 18 to 22 bhn hardness for high pressure loads.

patret

[thesalos]

Thanks for the info everyone. What A Great bunch no B.S.