44 Special question

[gregintenn]

I just acquired my first 44 Special. Since cases are out of stock everywhere, would there be any problems cutting 44 magnum cases to the proper length? I have a bunch of Hornady 44 mag cases that are for some reason shorter than normal 44 mag cases, but still a bit longer than 44 Special trim to length. This would be a good use for them, as I already have a good supply of proper length 44 mag cases. What say you?

[moosedog]

No problem with cutting the 44 mags down to 44 spl.
What kind of 44 Spl did you get?

[gregintenn]

USFA 4 3/4" SAA. See the other brands subforum for pics.

[29aholic]

The case head web may be thicker in a mag case than a special case. My thoughts are to trim a mag case and compare the case capacity to a special case with the exact same charge.
What you want to do will work, but you might want to back off your charge a bit due to the smaller case capacity of the cut down mag case. Not a big deal, especially if you are loading cowboy loads.

[gregintenn]

I'll definitely not be hotrodding this revolver. Mild loads only, and not many of them.

[Krogen]

You'll be fine even if the cut down 44 Mag is a bit smaller in capacity than a 44 Special. 44 Special loads - per the book - are pretty mild. The gun will be able to handle it.

Good observation about those Hornady cases. To accommodate a type of bullet they produce, the cases need to be trimmed shorter than SAMMI length. Their factory ammo with those bullets also has short cases. Downright annoying in my opinion because the cases are of little use short of loading the specific Hornady bullet or cutting down as you plan. Sooner or later, if it hasn't happened already, somebody will load a full 44 Mag charge in the short case and seat a bullet to the cannelure while not paying attention to LOA specs.

[BLUEDOT37]

Originally Posted by Krogen

Sooner or later, if it hasn't happened already, somebody will load a full 44 Mag charge in the short case and seat a bullet to the cannelure while not paying attention to LOA specs.

If the shorter cases get mixed in with normal length brass they might not get noticed when they're sized but when they (try to) get flared, or later if they get to the crimp phase, they'll surely get caught as either step will out them as being different from normal length.

.

[Ruger 1,3]

No problem at all! A friend of mine just gave me a bunch of 44 Russian and 44 American brass that I’m going to handload for my 44 specials.

[mikld]

FWIW; I have (and so has a well known celebrity shooter) loaded 44 Special cases with 44 Magnum data/bullets. Fired in a 44 Magnum revolver, no noticeable difference. Measured case heads before and after, same diameter. I don't normally recommend it, but I have been reloading the 44 Magnum for over 35 years and have played with bullets from 123 gr. balls to 310 gr. ingots, gallery loads to Howitzer loads so I was aware of any potential problems...

[gregintenn]

Originally Posted by mikld

FWIW; I have (and so has a well known celebrity shooter) loaded 44 Special cases with 44 Magnum data/bullets. Fired in a 44 Magnum revolver, no noticeable difference. Measured case heads before and after, same diameter. I don't normally recommend it, but I have been reloading the 44 Magnum for over 35 years and have played with bullets from 123 gr. balls to 310 gr. ingots, gallery loads to Howitzer loads so I was aware of any potential problems...

Ol Elmer liked to load em hot.

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

Originally Posted by gregintenn

Ol Elmer liked to load em hot.

Ol Elmer blew up a gun or two.

[rockquarry]

Originally Posted by mikld

FWIW; I have (and so has a well known celebrity shooter) loaded 44 Special cases with 44 Magnum data/bullets. Fired in a 44 Magnum revolver, no noticeable difference. Measured case heads before and after, same diameter. I don't normally recommend it, but I have been reloading the 44 Magnum for over 35 years and have played with bullets from 123 gr. balls to 310 gr. ingots, gallery loads to Howitzer loads so I was aware of any potential problems...

I don't know what a celebrity shooter is, but using .44 Magnum data in .44 Special brass doesn't sound like a safe practice; certainly not something a competent handloader would do.

Regarding case head expansion measurements...this probably has some very limited usefulness but is totally dependent on many changeable factors. It's often not a reliable indicator of pressure.

[squidsix]

Originally Posted by Model520Fan

Ol Elmer blew up a gun or two.

One.
A Colt SAA blew up in his hand while shooting holes in the sky standing on the roof of a hotel.
No injuries. The only gun destroyed by his loads.

YouTube

[LostintheOzone]

So what tool to cut the cases? I may buy a 44 mag but might buy a 44 spl. if the right one comes along. I really haven't decided yet. If I end up with the spl. I've got about 250 mag cases that will need to be cut. 44 spl cases are expensive even when you can find them.

[squidsix]

A case trimmer is a must have if you are going to reload long-term. Thats what I would use for this.

[gregintenn]

Originally Posted by LostintheOzone

So what tool to cut the cases? I may buy a 44 mag but might buy a 44 spl. if the right one comes along. I really haven't decided yet. If I end up with the spl. I've got about 250 mag cases that will need to be cut. 44 spl cases are expensive even when you can find them.

I use a Lee cutter, lock stud, trim gauge, and shell holder. They are cheap and work well. You chuck the Lock stud in a drill, screw on the shell holder, put in a shell and tighten.



Screw the trim gauge into the cutter, stick inside the case and pull the trigger. Then chamfer the case mouth inside and out with a chamfer tool.


Grab another shell and repeat.


It took longer to type than it does to do.


Cutter & Lock Stud - Lee Precision
Chamfer Tool - Lee Precision
http://https://leeprecision.com/gage...r-44-spec.html

[gregintenn]

This project worked fine.

The cases are boxed separately and are clearly marked.

My sissy hands did develop a blister after a couple hundred trimmings, bit all is well.

[BLUEDOT37]

Originally Posted by rockquarry

...but using .44 Magnum data in .44 Special brass doesn't sound like a safe practice; certainly not something a competent handloader would do.

Definitely not without making some adjustments, especially to full loads.

By my volume measurements, the 44 Special case hold ~5.3% less than the 44 Magnum. (35.9 -vs- 37.9 H²O Wt./gr.)

Same powder in less space means more pressure.

.

[gregintenn]

7 grains of Unique behind a 200 grain lead round nose flat point bullet did feel a little stout. I think I’ll back it up to 6 and see what happens.

[Nevada Ed]

If you need to cut down a 44 magnum case, the Hornady is the case to use.....

since it is shorter than the standard 44 magnum case, IF, it was loaded with the red flex tip bullet.

Do to the bullets length and design, the company had to trim the case for the correct OAL, in a revolver.

Here is a picture of my .357 cases, to give you an idea of what is happening.

[mikld]

Originally Posted by rockquarry

I don't know what a celebrity shooter is, but using .44 Magnum data in .44 Special brass doesn't sound like a safe practice; certainly not something a competent handloader would do.

Regarding case head expansion measurements...this probably has some very limited usefulness but is totally dependent on many changeable factors. It's often not a reliable indicator of pressure.

I may not call my self an expert/competent reloader, but in 1970 I had a squib, none since, and in about 40+ years of reloading 12 different calibers for 21 guns (and only one shotgun), never had a Kaboom. I was experimenting different cases, Special vs Magnum as I sectioned a couple cases and measured, looking for a difference. Very slight difference in case wall taper/thickness but bases/webs were the same. I used the same gun for all my testing, A SS Ruger SBH. Primer condition, case head "recoil marking", extraction are not reliable, but measuring case heads is much more efficient and reliable. "Flattened primers" and "hard extraction" are not a reliable method of watching for pressure signs in a revolver. I rarely depend on internet wisdom for much information on my reloading, just reliable texts and my own experiences...

Yeah, I guess some may think it was a cavalier, Bubba experiment, but my guns, my brass, and me all survived quite well, and dispelled some "forum wisdom" and old wive's tales..