.44 Magnum Chronograph Results
A friend of mine and I had a chance to run out after work this afternoon and run some rounds over his chronograph and thought I'd share the results.
I loaded two bullets, the Lee C430-310-RF and the TL430-240. The big guys weigh out at 305 grains after sizing, lube, and gas checks. The TL boolits weigh out right at 240.
I loaded the 430-310's in .44 Mag cases with three increments of IMR4227; 18g, 18.5g, and ending with the book max, per my Lyman manual, of 19g.
I loaded the TL boolits in .44 Spl. cases with "Skeeter's Load" of 7.5g Unique.
We shot each loading through my 4 5/8 inch Ruger SBH and my 20 inch Rossi R92.
The results were as follows:
18g C430-310-RF; SBH-894 fps avg., Rifle-1147 fps avg.
18.5g C430-310-RF; SBH-923 fps avg., Rifle-1195 fps avg.
19g C430-310-RF; SBH-980 fps avg., Rifle-1240 fps avg.
.44 Spl. "Skeeter's Load;" SBH-902 fps avg., Rifle-1140 fps avg. (This load was very consistent and, in the rifle, very quiet. It might be my new .22LR stand-in during the ongoing shortage.)
We also tried out the Lee Modern Reloading max load of 7.2g of unique under the C430-310 with an average of 752 fps through the revolver.
One round of a 240g SWC over 11.7g of Unique made it through the 'chrono with a velocity of 1426 fps.
All in all, the results were pretty satisfying. There was not a hint of leading in either gun. I might try sneaking up past the 19g load by tenths to try for an honest 1000 fps from the revolver. I also still have 2400 and AA #9 to try out.
The velocity gain from the rifle was telling and confidence-inspiring. It makes the .44 Mag seem like a whole 'nother gun and turns the .44 Spl. into a magnum. We didn't shoot for accuracy; as it was fuh-reezin' out and it was all we could do to keep our fingers working. All the loads did hold a decent minute-of-snowbank group, though.
All the usual disclaimers apply. These loads were perfectly safe in my guns; extraction was effortless and primers looked good. Any comments, suggestions, or questions are welcome.
Thanks for reading.