I bought some of this yesterday. I'm going to test it out soon, and then probably the Underwood 180gr which zips along considerably faster.



The nice thing about .44 Magnum is you definitely don't need full power loads against two legged critters.

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Psalm 27:2

We have a winner!

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Pisgah

That looks good!

I carry the Underwood 44 SPL 200gr Gold Dots. That said, I have a boat load of 180gr XTPs that I will end loading into some ~1300fps rounds and carrying.

Sounds good to me. Two holes are better than one.

I also carry my 29. I am a big man so concealing is less of a problem. Like Dr. in previous post I like the Underwood 200 gr. Gold Dot bullet @ 1100 fps which is a compromise between 44 special load and a full 44 mag load. The more serious the game, the bigger and faster my load gets.

Friend of mine bought a Model 21 TR Special to CC... He tried every available at the time .44 Special loads in lined up water jugs and could not get any of them to expand relaibly.

At the time I had a 4" 629-5 Mountain Gun that I shot the (now longer available) Speer .44 Magnum 200 grain Gold Dot Short Barrel Load from.

Velocity from a 4" was 1080 fps, modest recoil and muzzleblast. Duplicated a practice load with 10.0 grains of 231 with a Berry's 200 grain plated bullet or GDs. Speer has a section just for the .44 Special bullet in their reloading manual...

My friend sold the TR after finding a 3" 629 PC with fixed sights and when the load was tested in his gun expanded every time...

Bob

This is what I was referencing earlier. I think that's why I like the idea of those Buffalo Bore lead rippers so much. I'm not going to get any expansion out of my bedside Bulldog...so might as well use a flat, hard, lead slug to do as much damage as possible with no expansion.

Not always true. Hollow Points are used to not only limit over penetration but to also to ensure that all energy transferred from the round stays in the target/body.

A bullet stuck in a body causing internal bleeding is a good thing.

I'll continue to carry the Speer 240GR Gold dot 44 mags that were the last Dept. issue 44 Mag rounds. These are in fact the remnants from the Dept armory. I doubt they're super fast out of my 2.75". Probably not a heck of a lot faster than +P 45ACP out of a 5" 1911. BBTI - Ballistics by the Inch :: Results

The FBI determined 30 years ago that energy transfer does nothing at pistol velocities. More penetration is better.

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I've still got it made.

I tested out that Cor-Bon 165gr stuff today.

By tested I mean I didn't have a chronograph or ballistic gelatin.

I didn't even have any wet phone books or watermelons.

It was a mild, sharp kick that I'd expect from a light bullet at that speed. Very controllable from my 629 Classic 5". Shot a little low compared to "normal" 240gr stuff, also expected.

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Psalm 27:2

I have shot the 165gr 44 SPL Critical Defense, which chrono'd around 950fps, thru my 21oz Taurus 445 and it was very manageable. I bet those Corbons are just about perfect from an N frame.

165gr at 1300fps is pretty much .357 ballistics. It's far less punch than any factory 240gr I've ever shot.

My daughter and I shot some 240gr loads that day, but they were .44Spl cowboy loads. She's 10 and had no issues with recoil from that big heavy 629.

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Psalm 27:2

I think you've watched too many Dirty Harry movies. You need to worry more about over penetration. 245 gn bullet at 800~900 fps is more than enough for the Hulk.

Since my earlier post I’ve started carrying 210 gr Silvertips in my 3” 629 instead of .44 Special loads, for no other reason than I carried 145 gr .357s for many years with great confidence and I like the nickel cases.

I posted this in another thread, but I chrono'd some 44 SPL defensive loads.

Fiocci 44 SPL 200gr JHP (44SA)(I question whether this would expand at these speeds)

4" M29:
792/778/768/772/756/792 Avg:776

2" Taurus M445:
758/756/err/764/761 Avg:760

Underwood 44 SPL 200gr Gold Dots

4" M29:
1055/1071/1040/1070/1044/967* Avg=1056 (excluding the *Crit Def)

*=Hornady 44 SPL 165gr Critical Defense

Hornady 44 SPL 165gr Critical Defense

2" Taurus M445:
937/953/958/940/1017** Avg:947 (excluding the **Underwood)

**=Underwood 44 SPL 200gr Gold Dot (snappy in a 21oz gun!)

Those Underwoods are pretty dang hot for a 44 SPL round.

My late friend of many years always carried a 1950 Target 44 Spl which he had reduced to 4"bbl length. He used the factory load of 246 grain lead bullets at about 775 fps. It was a ferocious manstopper and mild/controllable. Not sure if this loading is still available but a handload of similar power is fully adequate.

Do some searches for gel tests on .44mag and you will be surprised at what you find.

1. You don't need "premium" JHP loads at full magnum velocities for either .357mag or .44mag to perform. Old school JHP/SJHP expand like crazy at full magnum velocities, bare gel or through the usual clothing barriers.

2. Full magnum 240gr JHP loads (premium or otherwise) are not as penetrative as we have been led to think. Most have penetration within or slightly more than the FBI standards.

3. Full magnum 180gr JHP loads similar to 240gr loads, just less penetration.

4. Point being, .44mag, even in full magnum loadings & velocities, is not super-penetrative with JHP. There are plenty of highly regarded service cartridge loadings with similar penetration performance.

5. WC, SWC, and such do penetrate like crazy at full magnum velocities.

6. Full .44mag recoil and muzzle blast are no joke and deserve consideration. I will add that full .357mag loads from my Ti alloy .357mag snubby are nastier to shoot than full magnum .44mag loads from my 4" 629.

7. Many .44special HP loads do not perform well. Or perform as well as .38special HP loads. Some newer loads do better than older designs, so spending more for the "premium" JHP is worth it.

8. Like .38special, .44special benefits from a bump in velocity to 1000fps or so. At that point, HP loads become more reliable performers.

9. My suggestion is to try a few loads out and see if any work for you.

10. I have exposure to rifle & pistol rounds shot indoors. I use lower-pressure loads for HD: .38spl+P 158gr LSWC-HP in my .357mag, .45ACP 230gr in pistols; 12ga instead of 5.56mm in long guns. For out & about SD in a CCW, I will go full .357 & .44 magnum.

11. My dream .44mag defensive load would be a soft 240gr LSWCHP-GC at 1000fps from a 4" barrel. My plinking reloads are a LSWC at 1000fps and I can shoot those all day long and quickly.

I load 240 grain hardcast SWC to about 1000 fps. If I had to use my 629 for self defense, that would be what I'd load with.

For that 44 magnum, for protection against bad guys loan it with 44 specials.

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Riding, Shooting, and Truth

I really have trouble with the idea that even light .44 Magnum is required for defense against two-legged attackers at any realistic (and legally defensible) self-defense range. Given the figures showing that the typical SD shooting occurs at five yards or less, seven tops, it seems to me to be grossly excessive.

Bears, yes. For people, I'll stick with five very fast rounds of .38 Special +P if worst comes to the ultimate worst.

But I'm old and set in my ways.

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Oh well, what the hell.

I haven't shot a 44 indoors, but I've shot plenty of 357. Even with just muffs on, you feel it more than you hear it.

My results might be skewed because I've had someone dump a cylinder of 357 less than a foot from my head, but all the 44 (special and magnum), 41 Magnum, and even some 158 grain 357s I've shot with out muffs are damn loud but they don't hurt to shoot. But there's something about those 125 grain 357s that set in instant tinnitus and a major headache.

PC Cast HP test results - Google Sheets

This guy has been doing very useful scientific work in the question of 44 Special and Magnum using various cast bullets with comparison with factory. Interesting results, I think the 44 Magnum SWCHP has potential on paper.

The more time spend in the woods... the more I'm thinking I'm going to load my own 260 grain "Keith-Style" bullets from Matt's bullets; and to 925-950FPS velocity range... The animals I've shot with a load that was just little heavier bullet and pushing more than a touch over 1200FPS... This load, even from a 3" M629-5 Mountain Back Packer... has decimated bore & a deer... It literally lays down a crushing wound channel while tracking strait and thru bone(s) as the large Meplate plows forward.

So a lighter semi-truncated-cone Semi-Soft-Cast with a Meplate of 80% the bullet's diameter; a (Keith Bullet) loaded to .44Special Pressures would be my choice.

A 255-260 grain "Keith" ([Medium Cast]... Loaded to 925fps, w/flash retardant powder most certainly in the, "powder-mix..."

This would be my all time favorite "Self-Defense-Revolver" load against 2 legged buttholes... YMMV!!