44 Mag in a 444 Marlin??

[ohshooter]

Can I shoot 44 mag cartridge in a 444, I know the Marlin wants a little bit bigger dia then the 44 mag. Looking for a milder recoil for my granddaughters (9)first deer hunt.

[GhostHawk]

Like shooting 38 special in .357 mag. Long jump to the rifling, may build up a carbon ring if you shoot a lot of them.

I don't that I would recommend a .444 for a first deer hunt.

[dverna]

Not sure it is a smart idea. Why not just reload some light .444's for her? No feeding issues or other concerns.

KISS

Don Verna

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Light reloads, 220-240 grain, 1000plus fps in .444 cases would probably work better, more accurate, feed without problem, Assumption - 444 Lever Gun. 44-40 (.471 Head diameter) fits a 444 chamber without the slop of the 44 Mag (.457 head diameter) if you must shoot shorter cartridge.

[Moleman-]

I'd be concerned about the cases splitting in the larger chamber of the 444. Have you thought about using trail boss powder? You could load normally but with 16.0 gr trailboss the case would have a 96% load density and 1400fps with a 240gr xtp out of a marlin. All kids are different, but my 11 year old daughter is ok with a 410, but doesn't like to shoot the 20ga. I'd think a 44mag level would kick a little more than some kids could shoot comfortably. I shot some 444x1.8" (i'm in a liminted firearms zone) this past Saturday out of my marlin which shoots very accurately with standard 444 loads. The shorter rounds were a disappointment with more of a pattern than a group.

[HABCAN]

Assuming (?) that you are going to carry that rifle for her, I'd strongly recommend you go with Moleman's advice and load .444's with Trail Boss.

[Kestrel4k]

Possibly split cases, poor feeding, and/or substandard accuracy; I certainly wouldn't want to see a youngster start hunting with such headwinds.

[dkf]

The jump is entirely too long IMO. Load up some light .444 loads with Trail Boss.

[tdoyka]

i'm with dkf, its way too long a jump. 444 in trail boss or unique.

[Ithaca Gunner]

I tried it back I the 80's just to see if it could be done. Yes, it fired and did not split the case. I don't remember anything of the accuracy or if I fed it through the magazine. It was when I tried a .44Spl. I had problems with the cartridge/boolit sealing, I had a lot of gas blow back and it sounded like a squib where as the .44 Mag. at least went boom. It's something I tried out of curiosity, (maybe 5 shots) if I was in a real bind sometime, not to use regular basis. I later sold the .444 in favor of a .308 I believe.

If the .444 is what she's going to use, load the proper cartridge down to acceptable levels for her.

[Sur-shot]

If you have the Lyman 215 SWC w GC or the 240 SWC w GC they will both shoot in the 444 rifle with Unique without any filler. My Cowboy Silhouette load with the 215 is 17gr and it shoots to 1 inch at 200 yards with a scope in a first year production rifle with micro rifling. The bullets are hard cast, water dropped, with LBT lube, crimped in the crimping groove. The 240 gr shoots with 12gr and holds an inch at 150 yards. They should do well for a youngster.
Ed

[quilbilly]

I think that the 444 is entirely too heavy for most youngsters under 13 years old and will discourage them. That being said, I load a 260 gr SWC plain base with 19 gr of 5744 and the recoil is very modest in that heavy rifle. It shoots very well with my moderately soft alloy (no trace of leading) and with the mv of about 1150 fps is more than adequate for deer out to 100 yards with that heavy boolit.

[tdoyka]

i have a tc encore in 444 marlin with a 23" MGM barrel. i only ever did two types of powder and i just did it for fun. i don't have any trail boss pix, but i did a 200gr xtp with 16.5gr of tb and i could put all 5 of the shots into a 5/8" circle at 50 yards. the next one was a 250gr mihek hp(1 in 40/8bhn) and unique. i can't remember whether it was a 50 yard or a 100 yard target but heres a pix.
http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h273/tdoyka/IMG_20160425_124903_zpsp917cfrn.jpg (http://s66.photobucket.com/user/tdoyka/media/IMG_20160425_124903_zpsp917cfrn.jpg.html)

[blikseme300]

The brass will end up looking like shooting 9mmP through a 40S&W. Accuracy was poor and the brass bulged to make the Glock bulge look insignificant. Do this only when it is the end of the world as we know it. Yes, I tried this once and the brass was ruined.

[dkf]

You could even use a heavier bullet like the Lee 310gr with the Trail Boss and have a light recoiling load. It has a nice big metplat to do some work without having to be pushed hard.

[GhostHawk]

10-13 grains of Red Dot is deadly accurate in my .444 under the .430 310gr gc but IMO it is still too much gun for a youngster.

That is your ONLY choice?

[OverMax]

I agree. Down load the 444 brass. Easy to find a recipe. (don't have to look any further than this thread to find a dandy one.) And too. A 444 brass is sure to function in the receiver. I don't think a 44 mag brass is capable of total reliability in such a receiver.

[ohshooter]

Thanks for the suggestion and replies, I decided that we go with a single shot 410. We are going to see how she handles it if is kicks too much then she will use her crossbow. Maybe by next year I will find a 357 rifle to try. I got a couple grandsons also so I need to keep my eyes open for more youth oriented weapons.

[OverMax]

single shot 410. Good call.

[GhostHawk]

Excellent call.

FYI I was small for my age and started out with a bolt action Mossberg .410 and slugs for deer. Never did get one with it but I learned a lot.

.410 shotgun is going to do a lot less damage to her shoulder and still share that special time with dad out in the woods.

[CHeatermk3]

Ditto the above...


tdoyka, I sure hope those ain't your eyes in the diamonds of your target....

[parson48]

I bought .44 mag Handi rifle a few years back that has a .444 barrel that had been marked wrong. Swelled and split cases and lousy accuracy.

They replaced it for me.

[w30wcf]

The .44-40 will fit nicely in the .444 chamber.:-D

w30wcf

[MostlyLeverGuns]

You might want to check the ballistics of a 410 shotgun slug. I don't think 410 slugs are capable of RELIABLY killing deer, especially in the hands of a youngster. 410 slug-under 100 grains, somewhere between a .32 S&W Long and a .32 Magnum, adequate penetration is an issue. 20 GA sure or a .357 break-barrel?