44 special loads in 44 mag case

[Judan_454]

Would it be ok to use load data for 44 special in a 44 mag case. I know the 44 mag case is slight longer,would there be any problems with pressure by doing this. Thanks Dan

[Silver Jack Hammer]

Judan 454, I load the RCBS 44-250-K in the .44 Mag case seated deep and crimp over the front driving band so that reduces case capacity by .11” and I reduce the charge of Unique 1.0 grain to achieve approximately the same velocity. Since the .44 Special case is .125” shorter than the .44 Mag I thought this might be helpful.

.44 Mag case with RCBS 44-250-K crimped full length in the crimping groove with 10.0 gr of Unique 1130 fps.

.44 Mag case with RCBS 44-250-K crimped over the front driving band and 9.0 gr of Unique 1192 fps.

I have to seat the RCBS bullet over the front driving band because it will not chamber in my 3 screw SBH when seated full length. This load has very light recoil, hits at 175 yards right on, and allows me to do with the Keith bullet most of what I need to do.

Hope this helps.

[Snapping Twig]

IIRC, there's @ 10% difference between spl and mag, regardless of caliber due to case volume.

You'll get less velocity/pressure if you use spl data in a magnum case.

No harm, unless you're at the ragged bottom and get a squib.

My favorite for the 44 using a magnum case is the Lyman 429421 @ 250g from WW over 7g W231/HP38.

Shoots nice and I figure it to be @ 900fps.

For a 357 using a magnum case I like the Lyman 358156 @ 160g from WW over 5g W231/HP38, which is oddly enough @ 900fps.

[stubshaft]

No pressure problems and it would eliminate the potential problem of having a carbon ring in the chamber.

[2wheelDuke]

I was researching this lately because I shoot at a club that doesn't allow "magnum" loads. I made some with a relatively light charge of Unique, and they shot pretty well.

Then I went ahead and got a can of Trail Boss. You can fill the case to the bottom of the boolit with Trail Boss and you're just a bit over 900fps according to IMR's numbers.

I've been very happy with Trail Boss in .44mag cases for my light loads.

[375RUGER]

Duke,
How exactly does the club define a 'magnum' load? Just curious.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Any proper loading for the 44 special used in a longer 44 mag case will shoot "softer" to some extent because the mag case is longer and increases the air space. This will decrease the pressure that is generated. For a while I used a "Keith load" of 17 grains of 4227 behind a 250 grain bullet in the 44 Mag; it was listed for the 44 special. There was nothing particularly soft about it. It was accurate, but tiring after a while. I like to shoot target and part of that game is not to get slammed around. I went over to 9 grains of 4756 and did much better for longer periods of time on the line. I also found that full wadcutters produced excellent scores from the 44 Mag when properly loaded. The same would apply to the 44 special which was known for its good accuracy. LLS

[bbq223]

you are fine, just less recoil.

[JohnnyFlake]

It should not make any really, noticeable difference. It should feel and shoot like and feel like a normal .44 spl. load.

[2wheelDuke]

Duke,
How exactly does the club define a 'magnum' load? Just curious.


That's a great question, and I'm not certain that there's an absolute answer. I've been basing it off the numbers provided on factory .357 and .44mag loads vs .38spl and .44spl loads.

Lots of .38spl and .45acp are shot there, and .44spl is on the approved list. I don't suppose they mean Elmer Keith's experimental .44spl loads that gave birth to the .44mag either.

I was told that I can "load down" and basically run special loads in a magnum case. I was also given permission to shoot my 10mm there since it's "not magnum" even though I can get in .357 territory with some of the rounds I have loaded. Most of the commercial 10mm I've tested is at .40S&W levels, and .40 is OK there.

My Trail Boss loads are about 900fps with the .44mag. They're definitely OK. I haven't chrono'd my .357 Trail Boss load but they're also very tame.