Loading 44 special with 44mag brass

L

luckey

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
8   0   0
Hi, since 44spl brass is hard to come by these days and I read some places people are using 44mag brass to load 44spl. Has anyone here done that and any special considerations, or just business as usual as long as we follow the 44spl data. And the bullet is the same between the two, right? Thanks! on the side note, just got a 627 and a 629 off EE, couldn't wait to start loading these. :)
 
Budget shooter supply has starline 44 special brass. I've heard no special considerations for using 44 mag brass. A lot of people do it because they don't like the carbon ring 44 special brass leaves
 
What is your gun chambered for? If it's .44 special then .44 mag brass won't fit. But, it can be trimmed to fit with no problem.
If it's chambered in .44 mag, then just load some soft loads. But try to use a low density powder to get good case fill. High density powders rattling around in a big case can do weird things.
 
I am referring to 629 which is 44mag and 44spl. not sure what you meant "High density powders rattling around in a big case can do weird things." I am planning to use up my HS-6, and then move on to titegroup.

dirtybarry said:
What is your gun chambered for? If it's .44 special then .44 mag brass won't fit. But, it can be trimmed to fit with no problem.
If it's chambered in .44 mag, then just load some soft loads. But try to use a low density powder to get good case fill. High density powders rattling around in a big case can do weird things.
Click to expand...
 
HS6 burns well at high pressure. It is not a good choice for milder loads.

Titegroup is a great choice for mild loads. Try 5 to 6 gr with a cast lead bullet. Very accurate and a pleasure to shoot.
 
If you want 44 special loads, just load your 44 mag brass with lighter loads.
Hard to beat Unique for this. With 250 grain, or there about bullets, about 7 grains of Unique will give you a load a little lighter than a 44 Special, while 10 grains would give you over a thousand feet per second.
Just adjust the powder to get a load that you like the feel of.
 
Below a Quickload chart for my S&W 629 Classic 44 Magnum with a five inch barrel downloaded to approximately .44 Special velocities using .44 magnum brass.
This is a mild load for a .44 magnum, please look at the purple dotted line below and note that 100% of the powder is burnt at 4.2 inches down the 5 inch barrel.

44231_zps745df461.jpg


luckey, In the movie "Magnum Force" Dirty Harry Callahan claims to be loading his .44 Magnum with "light Special" ammo at the range with the young cops. He says "This size gun it gives you better control and less recoil than a .357 Magnum with wadcutters."

Magnum Force - Target Practice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs8AqzN9Ga4

Now go ahead lucky, make your day. :cheers:
 
Last edited:
luckey said:
I am referring to 629 which is 44mag and 44spl. not sure what you meant "High density powders rattling around in a big case can do weird things." I am planning to use up my HS-6, and then move on to titegroup.
Click to expand...

Considering how rare .44 special is just load the .44 mag cases light.
Problems can (supposedly) arise with using an energy dense powder that leaves a lot of empty space in the case to the point where it's possible to have misfires or hangfires because the powder has moved so far away from the primer flash. Some of the work arounds are to use magnum primers, some kind of a filler wad and even tilting the gun upwards before firing to make sure the powder is near the head of the cartridge.
I didn't like the results of using light loads of high density HP-38 in my former 29-10 as it seemed to detonate rather than burn and the cases were surprisingly difficult to extract. 50 rounds was more than enough to convince me. But like all things, your experiences will probably be different. Just be careful, less isn't always better.
 
Thanks Ganderite and H4831. Since I have HS-6 & titegroup, I will try them first.

please allow me to boil it further down to the details(that's always where the devil is. :) ), for 5-6gr, are you talking about 200gr? hodgdon gives 4.5-5.4gr for 44spl and 5-6.6gr for 44mag for 200gr. So, I basically will follow the 44mag recipe and not worry about 44spl?
Then, in that case, since I am thinking the 240gr, preferrably plated as I shoot indoor exclusively. Hodgdon gives titegroup for 4-4.8gr for 44SPL and 4.7-10gr for 44mag on 240gr. I probably should start with 4.8gr and work my way up? Is that right?

at last, I guess I bought the extra toolhead for nothing then unless I buy some 44spl brass.





Ganderite said:
HS6 burns well at high pressure. It is not a good choice for milder loads.

Titegroup is a great choice for mild loads. Try 5 to 6 gr with a cast lead bullet. Very accurate and a pleasure to shoot.
Click to expand...
 
I see. it makes sense. Thanks dirtyberry! To this particular sense, given the fact that it needs much more HS-6 to fill the case than titegroup, would it be better to use it as lighter load then?
I know lots of seasoned reloaders, not just here, but other internet sites, say that HS-6 is only good for full loads. I believe what they say as I am still very green. However I have been using it for regular target load on 9/40/45 so far, as light as it cannot even reliably cycle the gun(just to experiment how low it can go). with the recipes I got(definitely not full load and right now I use it for my 9mm only, 5.5gr-6gr behind 124gr fmj at 25 meters), I am quite happy with the results.

dirtybarry said:
Considering how rare .44 special is just load the .44 mag cases light.
Problems can (supposedly) arise with using an energy dense powder that leaves a lot of empty space in the case to the point where it's possible to have misfires or hangfires because the powder has moved so far away from the primer flash. Some of the work arounds are to use magnum primers, some kind of a filler wad and even tilting the gun upwards before firing to make sure the powder is near the head of the cartridge.
I didn't like the results of using light loads of high density HP-38 in my former 29-10 as it seemed to detonate rather than burn and the cases were surprisingly difficult to extract. 50 rounds was more than enough to convince me. But like all things, your experiences will probably be different. Just be careful, less isn't always better.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks. Will check it out. If not expensive, it's fun to try to real thing, rather than mimic. I am new and still curious. :)

dogzilla said:
Budget shooter supply has starline 44 special brass. I've heard no special considerations for using 44 mag brass. A lot of people do it because they don't like the carbon ring 44 special brass leaves
Click to expand...
 
For 44 mag 240 cast I think I was loading in the neighbourhood of 8gr Titegroup, which makes it interesting but not harsh. I'm around about 9gr or so for HS-6, which is milder.

I always work up until I find a load that shoots best in all of my guns, if possible. I do t go for a specific power level. I just found that light loads are erratic, as are heavy loads of fast powder.
 
Speer lists loads that they call short barrel loads (for snubbies) they are sort of between a 44 special and 44 magnum and are very mild, especially in a full sized gun (believe me full house loads in a snubby are just plain nasty)
 
luckey said:
I see. it makes sense. Thanks dirtyberry! To this particular sense, given the fact that it needs much more HS-6 to fill the case than titegroup, would it be better to use it as lighter load then?
I know lots of seasoned reloaders, not just here, but other internet sites, say that HS-6 is only good for full loads. I believe what they say as I am still very green. However I have been using it for regular target load on 9/40/45 so far, as light as it cannot even reliably cycle the gun(just to experiment how low it can go). with the recipes I got(definitely not full load and right now I use it for my 9mm only, 5.5gr-6gr behind 124gr fmj at 25 meters), I am quite happy with the results.
Click to expand...

The HS-6 is a bulkier powder so case fill might not be an issue. There's only one way to find out for sure.
The .44 is a great gun to shoot and reloading will save tons o' cash with lots of different powder and bullets to choose from.
Having all these options is one for the best things about it, enjoy the fun!:cheers:
 
From playing with lighter loads for my own .44Mags to get down to .44Spl like results the goal is to achieve .44Spl muzzle velocities for a given bullet. And that means keeping the muzzle speed down to around 850fps.

The load data for .44Mag given for loading cast bullets is a trifle deceiving. The loads are cut down to avoid the bullets having too much velocity and pressure. So what you see with the data that overlaps is more what I would consider as .44Spl +P if there were such a thing. So if it's a true firm but lighter recoil of a proper .44Spl you want keep that in mind.

Mostly I'd suggest you can use .44Spl data but with the amounts increased by roughly 10%. That extra 10% added to the min and max charges will compensate for the greater case volume of the .44Mag cases. The "mostly" comes in with powders that are fill and position sensitive. I can't comment on your HS6 since I've never used it and have not talked about it with anyone who has. But I can say for sure that Titegroup is very insensitive to small volumes and positioning. Another powder with the same attribute is Bullseye. Both of these are from personal experience as well as learning from others in the area.
 
Thanks BCRider. I will play with the light 44mag load as suggested. also for the sake of fun, buy some 44spl cases to try out the real thing. :)

BCRider said:
From playing with lighter loads for my own .44Mags to get down to .44Spl like results the goal is to achieve .44Spl muzzle velocities for a given bullet. And that means keeping the muzzle speed down to around 850fps.

The load data for .44Mag given for loading cast bullets is a trifle deceiving. The loads are cut down to avoid the bullets having too much velocity and pressure. So what you see with the data that overlaps is more what I would consider as .44Spl +P if there were such a thing. So if it's a true firm but lighter recoil of a proper .44Spl you want keep that in mind.

Mostly I'd suggest you can use .44Spl data but with the amounts increased by roughly 10%. That extra 10% added to the min and max charges will compensate for the greater case volume of the .44Mag cases. The "mostly" comes in with powders that are fill and position sensitive. I can't comment on your HS6 since I've never used it and have not talked about it with anyone who has. But I can say for sure that Titegroup is very insensitive to small volumes and positioning. Another powder with the same attribute is Bullseye. Both of these are from personal experience as well as learning from others in the area.
Click to expand...
 
When I first started loading the 44 special cases were hard to get--I used to trim back 44 mag brass (which was plentiful) to 44 special length. The only issue was that the expander die would bulge the brass slightly when expanding the cases--was a cosmetic issue only and depended on the thickness of the brass. Remington and federal were the worst and Winchester the best. At 44 special load levels the brass lasted almost indefinitely if you were not too aggressive on the belling and crimping.
 
thanks good to know and it makes buying the case makes more sense. I only do target load as I am not using the 629 for my strength exercise. :)

44Bore said:
When I first started loading the 44 special cases were hard to get--I used to trim back 44 mag brass (which was plentiful) to 44 special length. The only issue was that the expander die would bulge the brass slightly when expanding the cases--was a cosmetic issue only and depended on the thickness of the brass. Remington and federal were the worst and Winchester the best. At 44 special load levels the brass lasted almost indefinitely if you were not too aggressive on the belling and crimping.
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom