What's your favorite .44 mag load?

[chainsaw]

Mine?I like running a 300 gr Hornady XTP in front of 19.5 gr of H110 out of my '94AE.Same load for my Redhawk.Never shot any game with this load but it is real accurate in both guns.

[AJMD429]

240 grain JSP (or SWC-GC) with about 19.5 grains of 2400. Moderate load but accurate in my various .44 Mag carbines, rifles, and handguns. Max load is significantly higher than that, but doesn't kill deer any faster.

[Chuck 100 yd]

I don't push mine hard, 240 bullet over 18-19 gr. 2400 is a fine shooting load in rifle or hand gun.

[KCSO]

240 grain cast bullet from W/W over 22 grinas of IMR 4227. Not hot but still a good deer load.

[Stan in SC]

240 grain cast semi wad cutter from Meister Bullet Company over 23.5 gr. of H110.

Stan in SC

[meanc]

240 grain JSP (or SWC-GC) with about 19.5 grains of 2400. Moderate load but accurate in my various .44 Mag carbines, rifles, and handguns. Max load is significantly higher than that, but doesn't kill deer any faster.

+1 to what AJ said.

Have found this load to work great in all my 44mags; single actions and levers.

[txpete]

target

my cast 240 gr swc
7.2 grs W231
win brass
win LP primer

200 gr w/c
4.5 grs titegroup
win 44 special brass
win lp primer

[Ysabel Kid]

240 grain JSP (or SWC-GC) with about 19.5 grains of 2400. Moderate load but accurate in my various .44 Mag carbines, rifles, and handguns. Max load is significantly higher than that, but doesn't kill deer any faster.

+1 to what AJ said.

Have found this load to work great in all my 44mags; single actions and levers.

+ another.

Years ago I used to really like to stoke the .44 Mag, and shooting them out of my old model Ruger Super Blackhawk was a hoot, but I see no need to abuse the gun or my wrist any more!

[Malamute]

I've shot more 9 grs Unique than anything, it's fairly mild compared to full power loads, but shoots quite a bit flatter than 44 spl level loads. For full steam, I've used Keiths old load of 22 grs 2400 under the Lyman 429421 bullet. Seems to work well and be a bit under max factory stuff. I have a few 290 gr swc loads with 18.5 grs 2400. They clocked 1225 fps out of a 6" 29 years ago with a very consistant std dev.

Don't shoot much 44's in rifles. Have a Browning 92, but rarely shoot it. I seem to have better guns for about anything I can think of using a 44 carbine for. It's real pleasant with the 9 gr/Unique and a 200 gr rnfp bullet. Would be a good bunny gun with that load.

[earlmck]

300 gr. LBT gas-check, LBT Blue lube, of waterquenched wheelweights pushed by 25 grains of ww296, CCI 350 primer, WW case. My Ruger Redhawk has shot bushels of these in the days when I was practicing a lot to be prepared for hunting. Killed 2 elk, several bunnies, lots of beer cans.

This is not a mild load.

[2X22]

Redhawk--429244 & 20grs 2400.

Anaconda's--429640 & 18grs AA#9.

M29's--429244 & 9grs Unique.

Ruger Blackhawks--SSK320 & 21.5grs W296.

Ruger Flattops--(4 3/4" & 6 1/2")RCBS245 SWC PB & 9grs Unique.

Ruger Flattop--(7 1/2") Remington 240JSP & 22.5grs W296

T/C's--(10") 300gr XTP & 18grs AA#9

Winchester Trapper--SSK320 & 21.5grs W296

24" Marlin Cowboy (receiver sight)--RCBS245 SWC PB & 9grs Unique.

24" Marlin Cowboy (2-7X Leupold)--RCBS240SIL & 23grs W296.

That is just a few. I keep everything in plastic boxes that are color coded. No mixups and by grabbing a particular colored box I know without looking exactly what load it is and what gun it is loaded for.

I find lots of uses for .44 rifles. Almost 2 dozen elk have fallen to my .44's, some of them rifles. Seems like I kill at least 1 deer a year, sometimes more, in one State or another as I hunt up to 8 States per year. But luckiest of all, I can grab a rifle and head out my back door and am into the timber within a few scant yards and then it is miles and miles and miles of timber. Of course last year I made it about 200 yards into the timber before I killed a very nice buck with a .44 rifle......

2x22

[claybob86]

I don't push mine hard, 240 bullet over 18-19 gr. 2400 is a fine shooting load in rifle or hand gun.

Me too. 18.5 gr. 2400, 240 gr. Remington JHP or JSP works for me. Cast 240 gr. bullets usually get 8.5 gr. of Unique, which has been very accurate for me.

[txpete]

there was a time when I would wind up my loads and push my rugers hard.then you have to think how dead is dead and paper targets don't have teeth,tusks or claws.
when I go to the range and watch the guys with their max dose of 2400,296 and H110 spitting flames and the barrel pointing to the heavens you just have to smile.I guess maybe I am getting old.

pete

[alnitak]

240 grain JSP (or SWC-GC) with about 19.5 grains of 2400.

+1

However, I do like roughly the same load in AA #9 as well because it burns cleaner.

[AJMD429]

there was a time when I would wind up my loads and push my rugers hard.then you have to think how dead is dead and paper targets don't have teeth,tusks or claws. When I go to the range and watch the guys with their max dose of 2400,296 and H110 spitting flames and the barrel pointing to the heavens you just have to smile.I guess maybe I am getting old.

If I want a really HOT .44 Magnum load that will shoot a JSP through steel. . .



. . . I just use my 'stretch-44'. . .



(.444 Marlin )

[txpete]

you should try a T/C encore when I got my barrel in and got to the range the 444 marlin went to the used rack on cosignment.

[Griff]

Whatever you're using; as I'd be using your gun!

[JB]

240 gr. jhp over 21 grains 2400. I've had good accuracy out of that load and several different 44 mags.

[TedH]

Guess I'm kind of a magnum junky sometimes. I have some light cast bullet loads, but my favorite is a 240 gr. Hornady XTP with 24.0 gr. of H110.

[SFRanger7GP]

TedH, that is a great load and if a 44 will not shoot that load good it will not shoot anything good.

One day I decided I wanted to spend more time shooting and less time reloading and adjusting dies. I also wanted to minimize the powders I use. I dug through all my records and noticed most of the game I had killed with a handgun had been killed by chance. I had not set out to hunt with a handgun. In all of the "by chance" examples, I was loaded with a 250KT bullet over 18.5gr 2400 in a 44 mag case or the same bullet over 7.5gr Unique in a 44 special case. Now, I only load and shoot those 2 loads in all of my 44 mags.

[Blaine]

If I need a super .429, I'll use the .444. Otherwise, I use Bluedot and push 240s and 300s both 1100-1200 fps.....just don't need more than that.

[Bullard4075]

44 mag ...240 Keith and 19.0 2400
44 Spec...240 Keith and 7.0 Unique

[Ji in Hawaii]

for the past 30+ years 240 gr. Speer JSP, 24 grains H-110. I'll also use Sierra 240 JSPs too if Speer not available.

[Bigahh]

Factory loads only in this RedHawk, but only because its new to my collection, and i have no dies yet, but soon it will be 19 gr. 2400 and a 240 grain Hornady thanks to you guys!!

I think i would be a lost Sole without all of you !

[Jeff H]

After many years with the 'mag' I don't have one any more, but my "most shot" load was 10 grains of Unique under a 250 grain cast SWC. I shot a lot of H110 and 820 under 250 to 265 grain cast and more than a few hot LEE 310s. I always kept a bunch of the 10 grains of Unique loads handy while I experimented with real magnum stuff.

Now that I have the .44 Special that I have always wanted, I am shooting 7.5 grains of Unique under a 240 grain SWC as my main load. I have 'Special loads unsing anything from 5.5 grains of W231 under a LEE 208 grain WC to medium doses of 2400 and 4227 under the RDO 265 grainer.

[chainsaw]

I got some Nosler 300 grainers today,the cannelure is very far forward compared to Hornady 300's.i can't imagine the load data would be the same for the two.Does anyone have a Nosler manual that could post the load data for H110 powder,velocities too if provided in the nosler Manual.Thank you very much.

[Jacko]

23 grains ADI AR2205 [ Hodgdon 4227 ] under a Westcast 240 gr rnfp cast projectile and 23 gr 2205 under 265gr Hornady JSP shoot near enough to the same point of impact in my 1894 Marlin and both are good for 1.5" at 100 yards.

10 grains of AP70N [ aka Universal ] 240 rnfp cast bullet shoots as accurate as the AR2205 and is very mild and economical. Toomorrow afternoon I'm casting some 250 gr hollow points I'll try with AP70N. Hoping they will shoot well as I need a milder hunting loads for feral Goats.

regards Jacko

[mikld]

In my Puma (I guess I just don't like writing "Rossi") I'm shooting a home cast 265 gr. Ranchdog FNGC ovet 15.0 - 16.0 gr. of Bluedot. For my handguns I'm working on loads of a 250 gr cast SWC (Lyman 429421) and WC820, 'cause I've got 8 lbs. of it...

[chainsaw]

Found out today that my local gun club will be shooting some silhouettes this season,so,180 LaserCast bullets and 8.0 gr of Unique will be my "knock em over' load.

[Glenn]

I'm with Malamute - 9 grs. of Unique and a 240 SWC is a fantastic load, very accurate and just sub-sonic. It was my chicken-pig-turkey load years ago when I shot silly-wets. It's mild enough you can shoot it all day and not wear yourself out.

I came into a jug of Thunderbird 680, so use it for firewalled 285 - 320 gr. loads. Those aren't mild!!

Glenn

[Don McDowell]

The Keith bullet cast from wheelweights, and either 9 grs of unique, or 20 grs of 2400.