Just received my order for beartooth lapping bullets for my Ruger Super Redhawk 44 magnum. No Info on how to load.
High pressure loads or low pressure loads.
What powder and how much?

Did you get the lapping compound? And the technical guide?

Definitely use low pressure loads. Start with about 2.5gr. of Bullseye and go from there. If they stick in the bore, go up a couple of tenths, if they lead the barrel, drop a couple of tenths. Often you can drop the load slightly after the first couple of cylinderfuls.

I'd plan on at least 48 to start with.

Use fired brass, and don't resize the cases. Roll the lapping compound well into the bullets with a couple pieces of flat steel. Load them backwards into the case with the base of the bullet even with the case mouth.

Get rid of the brass when you are done as it will have grit than can screw up your loading dies. Thoroughly clean the gun also.

Swifty,

Mike's right on track with the loading data and velocity levels... air gun velocity, no more for lapping.

Did you get a Tech Guide? It will give you step-by-step instructions, taking you in a chronological progression from beginning to end with your lapping project. The longest of 13 chapters is devoted to fire-lapping.

Here's the link:
http://www.beartoothbullets.com/bulletselect/book.htm

Let us know how your project goes.

God Bless,

Marshall

I used 3.2 grains of Hodgdon Titegroup for lapping my 44 Ruger Super Blackhawk with Beartooth lapping bullets.

I chronographed 100 of the shots and they were mostly between 520 and 550 fps. Some slower. Some faster.

I decided to use Titegroup because Hodgdon claims that location of powder doesn't matter much with Titegroup, and with so little powder there's no telling where it will be lying inside that big 44 case. I tried to remember to tip the barrel up before every shot to bring the powder against the primer, but I don't think that mattered much.

I used Winchester WLP primers -- they only make that one large pistol primer that serves for both standard and magnum loads.

I spent a LOT of time rolling the lapping compound into the bullets and shot nearly 200 thru the stainless barrel. I may have overdone it. Probably 100 to 150 may have been enough considering the good lapping compound I had on them.

GOOD IDEA: I borrowed an old friends hand plane (old guys have some of those old pre-power tools), removed the cutting blade, and rolled the bullet between a steel plate laid on the workbench and the hand plane. It was a bigger size hand plane with a shoe (the base plate) that was about 10 or 12 inches long and 2 inches wide and it weighed a couple of pounds. With the good grip handle on it and the grip knob on the front I could bear down pretty good and had good control to keep that plane level with the surface of the steel plate. I got the lapping compound imbedded very well.. I bet I processed only about 20 or 30 bullets per hour. I spread the job over several days.

There is some good lapping advice scattered around this forum. Marshall's Guide Book was important and I read that a few times to be sure I didn't miss anything. Old carpenter's saying: Measure twice, cut once. Or the reverse is: "I cut it twice and it's still too short."

Marshall - why don't you or your webmaster create a FireLapping section in this forum and bring all those archived contributions together in one place? Thanks.