.44 spl vs .44 mag / Lead vs FMJ Decisions

[Typetwelve]

A link to the hornady 4th edition manual that you can download for free it has AA#5, 7 & 9 data for the 44spl & mag. You can use the data outright or use it to cross reference data. Keep in mind that their lead bullet data is low because they are using their soft lead swaged bullets, not hard cast.
http://marvinstuart.com/firearm/Manuals/Reloading/Reloading Manuals/Hornady Handbook of Cartridge Reloading - 4th Edition - Volume 1.pdf

First off, thank you for the link. I was combing through it and was surprised to see how different some of the load data is vs current Hornady data. I only had time to compare 44 magnum, but that guide is quite a bit different from the current Hornady stuff.

 

[CodeSection]

Yesterday, I spent time with my son shooting at an indoor range in a town where he lives. This was the first time shooting the Alaskan .44 Mag and it was a lot of fun and was a blast! Pun intended.... The recoil was very, very controllable for both of us. Even when I rapid-fired it, my follow-up shots were on target. It is a very accurate revolver! We were shooting .44 REM Mag 240gr SJSP Flat. In an 8.3 inch barrel, it has MV 1617 fps and ME 1395 ft.lbs. With my Alaskan being only 2.5", I realize my numbers were less. I can't wait to shoot it again ~ maybe next weekend.

Other shooters, as well as the range staff, came by to watch us shoot and commented how well it performed. People said there was a flash with every blast. I never saw it when I was shooting probably because I was focusing on the target. I did see it on occasion when my son shot it. I could have easily shot 50-100 more rounds but ran out of time. The good thing is we closed the range and the range officer, after learning I reload, swept pounds and pounds of brass up for me to take home with me. So, I have my work cut out for me to separate and inspect the brass.....

I am so pleased I bought the Alaskan .44! I'm still watching for large pistol primers, but at least I have plenty of commercial .44 ammo that I bought.

Yesterday was a great day!

 

[Walkalong]

For playing around with your .44, coated lead is hard to beat these days. That said, I shoot so little .44 Mag these days, I am using Zero 240 Gr JHPs. 500 coated .44s are on the need to pick up list though. That might be a lifetime supply now.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

I am going to pick up my new SRH Alaskan .44 soon and I eventually plan on reloading that caliber once I secure some large pistol primers and gather additional items such as dies and other components. In the meantime, I plan on buying both practice/training loads and defensive Buffalo Bore 300r JFN rounds.

Initially, I was thinking of acquiring .44 specials to train with and would keep that brass to reload with. It was suggested on another thread that I consider just using .44 mag and then when I reload, just lower the charge. If I did use .44 mag brass with a lower charge, then CCI #300 primers would be ok, correct?

I have been reloading .38 specials, 9mm, .40 with a Dillon 550B and 30.06 individually for years. Everything, except the .38 special, uses a FMJ. My .38 spl uses DEWC that has a very, very low load so as not to cause leading in the barrel. While I have never had a leading problem, I have seen other people’s revolvers that had.

So, back to the .44. I’m afraid to buy anything with a lead cast bullet and a higher velocity. Though, I did find a Fiocche .44 spl 210gr LRNFP pushing 750fps. This seems low. Though, I’m not sure of the lead’s hardness. Does anyone know if it causes leading? Obviously, if I went this route, now I will have both .44 spl and .44 mag brass.

On the other hand, I can just buy .44 mag 240gr FMJ rounds and not mess with any lead cast or .44 spl brass. In the future when I will reload the .44, more than likely I would buy the 240gr JSP from Montana Gold Bullet.

Sorry for the long post. What are your thoughts or suggestions?

I just loaded up some hog pills for one of my neighbors and his Model 29. I used 240gr. Carter S. Jones BULL-X hard cast/lubed SWC's. No leading at 1250fps (15.5gr. of AA#9) and they flatout SMACK! the KRAP! out of whatever they hit. With lead, the powder, lube, hardness and bullet diameter matter most. The CSJ's tend to run wide (.4305") and very consistent. The wax lube they use seals well. AA#9 does not tend to run hot in my experience in large calibers. So, yes, you can run lead hard and fast if you do it right. The advantage to hard cast - versus swaged or a higher % lead cast - is it will punch through like an FMJ. The disadvantage is it will not expand much, if at all, like an FMJ.

 

[CodeSection]

Well, I finally separated the brass haul from the range late last night/early this morning. As I'm guessing many of you already predicted, 9mm dominated the .380, 38 spl, .40, and .45. I'm guessing an eightfold increase over the combined other calibers.

I guess that was to be expected since many shooters are buying 9mm over the .40 cal. Then there are gun manufacturers that eliminate .40s altogether in their lineup. I actually had more .45 brass than I did with .40.

I guess I'm old schooled as I love my .40s and only carry a 9mm as a bug.