getting set up to reload 44 special

[mickbr]

Will a lee 4 die set cover everything I need to do
https://leeprecision.com/4-die-set-44spl-carb.html

And is starline good brass in this calibre?

I'll be loading cast and JHP.

[Thumbcocker]

Yes. Yes. Jhp's are a waste of money


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[Walks]

Lee will do what you need.
Starline is good brass,if a bit hard. Every one waxes poetic on it. It tends to be cheapest.
I think you would be better served by buying RCBS Cowboy dies.
They are specifically made for loading lead bullets. So they will load Jacketed w/o a problem. And they come with the spacer ring to go from .44Spl to .44Mag with no adjustment.
And they are just better quality. I've been using the same set for 45yrs.

[pworley1]

Yes to all questions. That is one of the easiest to load next to 38 special in my opinion. Good luck.

[rintinglen]

I have loaded hundreds, maybe thousands of 44 Spl using that die set, and a fair few 44 mags with it also. Starline brass is as good as you can buy these days. Red Dot and Unique are my go to powders in the 44 Spl., but there are passionate supporters of Bullseye, WW-231/HP 38, Power Pistol and a fair few others I gloss over. This is my current favorite.
263121

[shooting on a shoestring]

I find the larger caliber Starline brass often chatters in the dies during the first loading unless it’s tumbled first. I think they use a coating to keep the brass shiny and that doesn’t play well with the dies. I’ve tried lube and that didn’t help, but a short trip through the tumbler cures it. After that, the subsequent reloading run slick.

[mickbr]

Thanks fellas. One of the aims is to work up some +P loads as well, not elmer kieth level, more 45 colt level. Just noticed the other thread running on this too.:cool:

[megasupermagnum]

The best die set would be to buy the 3 die set, and buy the custom collet (not carbide) crimp die. Unfortunately, Lee has currently shut down the custom dies due to the government shut downs effecting business. This option will be back in the future. Many here hate them, but the carbide crimp die does work too.

Starline brass is fair brass, but it is not the best. It is some of the longest lasting, but not the most consistent. The top of the line would be likely Hornady or Remington, which are thinner, and more consistent.

Don't waste your time with a jacketed hollow point. While some work, 44 special in particular is notorious for poor performance with them. This is one cartridge where a cast bullet, solid or hollow point, will excel.

[onelight]

I have loaded hundreds, maybe thousands of 44 Spl using that die set, and a fair few 44 mags with it also. Starline brass is as good as you can buy these days. Red Dot and Unique are my go to powders in the 44 Spl., but there are passionate supporters of Bullseye, WW-231/HP 38, Power Pistol and a fair few others I gloss over. This is my current favorite.
263121
Ditto to everything he said .

[MOA]

I think your Lee dies will work just fine. Are there other 44spec dies that are better???? Well there are other dies that will work better if you are going to be loading cast, and if you haven't already purchased your Lee dies, and you can afford to spend more money on the dies than yes, get the very best dies that facilitate your efforts and that you can afford, remember if you take care of them they will last longer than you will likely be above ground. As to Starline brass, I use it, I also use Winchester and Remington and Federal. I think in most cases any of the above mentioned brass is just fine for 44 special loads. Just be sure that whatever brass you use, clean it well, and be sure to keep the primer pockets nice and clean too. Invest in a good tumbler for your brass. A bit of a day with my 44 special loading.

https://i.postimg.cc/Tw91k0sq/20190524-104536.jpg (https://postimg.cc/phmPrfRp)

https://i.postimg.cc/zDpZvzcs/20180622-145919.jpg (https://postimg.cc/w3tbbpH2)

https://i.postimg.cc/RhtMkTsD/20190524-114801.jpg (https://postimg.cc/XBVSF90f)

https://i.postimg.cc/Y2vjN63g/20190524-114641.jpg (https://postimg.cc/JtW1MBS4)

Remember take your time, have fun and stay safe.

[onelight]

I have the habit of buying the Lee 4 die set to start with one reason is I like the pro auto disk measure on the LCT if I find I need a special die for some reason then I pick it up I also like the seating and crimp adjustments on the Lee dies. My 44 carbide crimp die does not size the bullets I use (a fired case will push into it with hand pressure)
So the carbide ring does not do anything for my loads but the 4 die set is cheaper than a 3 die set and separate crimp die.

[35 Whelen]

Yes, Lee dies will work, I've been using them for probably 10 years now and there's no telling how many thousands of shells I've loaded and fired since I shoot ,ore .44 Special than anything.

I've also mainly used Starline brass, probably 500 in all. It seems to be good brass although I lose quite a few to split mouths.

I'll second the notion that the .44 Special is an extremely easy cartridge for which to load. Like the .38 Special, it's just hard to find a load that won't shoot. I personally stick with bullets in the 245 - 260 gr. range. I've hunted with the cartridge quite a bit using both SWC's and SWCHP's.

As far as powder goes, Bullseye, Red Dot and IMR Target are fantastic for loading factory duplication loads, and I'd hate to have to pick just one.

https://i.imgur.com/4VKflmAl.jpg

For hunting loads, I don't see much need in loads over 1000-1050 fps, so I stick with three powders; Unique, Power Pistol and Herco. Any of the three are great and again, I'd hate to have to choose one.

https://i.imgur.com/8hPyJHyl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/lsLjjH9l.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/fjJoE1jl.jpg

Hope some of this helps!

35W

[mickbr]

Great posts thanks. Can I ask what case life is likely to be like with regular and +P loads in this calibre? Even hunting loads I am guessing are not going to be very high pressures as far as brass goes.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

My 44 Spl Winchester 1892 has many Starline cases that are on their 8th reload with medium loads
.

https://i.imgur.com/J2smU8Bl.jpg

[mickbr]

Thanks Bad *** Wallace, and bad *** name btw as well :D

Is that a 44 rem lever, how do you find the 44 specials generally cycle through them?

[ioon44]

I have a lee 4 die set for .44 SPL, I had to remove the carbide ring from the FCD so it did not swagge my cast bullets. I don't load a lot of .44 SPL but if I did I would get better dies.

[35 Whelen]

Great posts thanks. Can I ask what case life is likely to be like with regular and +P loads in this calibre? Even hunting loads I am guessing are not going to be very high pressures as far as brass goes.

It has nothing to do with the loads. It's from overworking the brass, or maybe because the brass is a bit hard.

35W

[Art in Colorado]

Buy them on E-Bey. You will save money.

[Art in Colorado]

Buy them on E-Bay. You will save money. I think you can find them new in the $40 range.

[MOA]

Sweet six guns there 35Whelen. Just got to love a beautiful six gun.

[onelight]

MOA you have some purty pictures of your loads and revolvers. Very nice !

[mickbr]

It has nothing to do with the loads. It's from overworking the brass, or maybe because the brass is a bit hard.

35W

how does overworking brass occur for this calibre? Or do you just mean in general?

[35 Whelen]

how does overworking brass occur for this calibre? Or do you just mean in general?

Either the chambers are oversize or the sizing die is undersized.

35W

[MOA]

MOA you have some purty pictures of your loads and revolvers. Very nice !

263261

[richhodg66]

I've been loading and shooting a lot of .44 Special lately and I've used the Lee three die set for many years without a problem. I will say, the RCBS Cowboy dies are awesome in the rifle cartridges I load with them, but I think Lees are fine.

Lots of powders work great. Bullseye, Unique, Red Dot, 700X all work fine. Lately I've been working with old Alcan 7 which I got a large quantity of for free and it seems to be working fine as well.

I have three revolvers in .44 Special now. My first one, and the first handgun I ever bought, is a standard Charter Bulldog from the late 70s I think, bought it in 1989 at a gun show in El Paso. Went to get some ammo for it, and the LGS had a box of PMC 240 grain SWC with some kind of copper washed bullet which I shot up, but kept the brass as I grew up around reloading and knew I would soon. True story, I averaged maybe six or eight reloads of that brass for many years, but started shooting .44 Special a lot more when I got another one a few years ago that is more comfortable to shoot. Bottom line, even allowing for the fact there were years I was deployed and didn't shoot, that box of brass has been reloaded and fired at least 150 times as a conservative estimate and I still have 47 of them, finally had three split over the course of a few different range sessions in the past couple of months. Granted, I load it fairly light, but that brass life is phenomenal.

I have picked up a few other lots of brass I'm using now, by the way, but for all those years, 50 was enough, that Bulldog just isn't something I was gonna shoot a lot even though it's a good little gun.

Don't waste money on jacketed bullets, it won't push them fast enough to expand them anyway.

[onelight]

Just took out my Labradar for the first time to figure out how to work it.
44 special 3" GP100 and a 45/8 Bisley here is what the 3 loads I tested measured.
The 240 and 200 are both commercial cast Hi-Tek coated , WW primers , Starline cases Crimped in the groove.
240 swc on 4.6 red dot 3" 690fps 6.8 sd, 45/8" 759fps 7.6 sd. Close to factory 246 grain load.
200 rnfp on 5.2 red dot 3" 800 FPS 6.8 sd , 45/8" 860 FPS 14.6 sd
And just for fun the Speer 200 grain gold dot hp factory load averaged 860fps for 5 shots from the 3".
The 200 grain gold dot load was from Underwood.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

These days I'm generally happy with revolver loads below 1000 fps. And the 44 special is perfect for those. Check your cylinder throats with a sized boolit and adjust your boolit size for a push through fit. Happy loading and shooting to you!

[Ohio Rusty]

I use the Lee 4 die set for my .44 bulldog and my contender. I use starline, R-P, what ever .44 special brass I have. The dies work excellent. I recently purchased the Noe .44 Special HP mould as I wanted to load a 200 grain boolit to try to closely imitate the 200 grain Speer Gold Dot boolit I carry in the Bulldog. I have loaded hundreds and hundreds in my Lee press with teh 4 die set and every boolit comes out perfect. I have a separate 4 die set in .44 mag that I load for my hunting contender.
I've never had any issues with Lee dies, presses, moulds, etc.
Ohio Rusty ><>

[rintinglen]

264144264145
These are my other 44's. The Ruger Flattop is my best shooter, though my GP 100 (Back a few posts) is pretty sweet. There are two shots of the Model 21 nickel S&W, and the 5 inch is a model 544 with the 44-40 cylinder lying next to it. I had a gunsmith re-chamber a M-27 cylinder that I got off E-bay.