Old Arkansawyer
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Anyone here use Underwood .44 Special ammo? If so your
opinion please.
opinion please.
Underwood ammo
- Thread starter Old Arkansawyer
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Valmet
Member
I’ve used it before in a Ruger Blackhawk. It’s been awhile but mainly remember it was very warm- like most anything Underwood produces.
375hh1973
US Veteran
I have a 629 5" that I carry when in the woods. I carry full power 44 mag loads.
My EDC 99% of the time is an auto of some type.
That being said, I enjoy CCWing a revolver now and then and the 629 gets loaded with Underwood 44 specials. I carry the 200gr Bonded Jacketed load, I believe their sku is 321.
Very accurate. Clean as well.
Does a number on large raccoons
My EDC 99% of the time is an auto of some type.
That being said, I enjoy CCWing a revolver now and then and the 629 gets loaded with Underwood 44 specials. I carry the 200gr Bonded Jacketed load, I believe their sku is 321.
Very accurate. Clean as well.
Does a number on large raccoons
Rammer Jammer
Member
Yes, the 200gr Gold Dot and Hard cast I think 255gr 44 Special loads are what I have for my 44 Specials if they get called up for carry duty or trail respectively.
OP
Old Arkansawyer
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Thanks for the replies guys.
BillBro
Member
Underwood is the only ammo that Ive ever used, and Ived used alot of it, that will routinely better their stated advertised velocity numbers, and not just for me in my guns but Ive seen many vids online showing the same thing for many shooters. Its also accurate and very reliable. I have 10mm, 44mg, 9mm, 38spl and 357mag. All good.
Really? A 135gr 10mm Nosler jhp at 1675fps? Gave me a little shiver.
Really? A 135gr 10mm Nosler jhp at 1675fps? Gave me a little shiver.
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I bought some of their hard cast 44 Special and it shot fine out of my S&W 69. Like all ammo with cast bullets the lube makes it a smoky but it was accurate and trouble free.
I have had problems with their ammo for semiautos though. It is loaded hotter than what guns are designed for and may cause reliability issues. I tried some of their hard cast 147 grain +P 9mm and it had about a 10% failure rate in a Glock 43 that never jammed once with thousand of rounds of ammo from several different makers. When you see someone complaining about their 10mm pistol not running reliably it is almost always a problem only with Underwood or BuffaloBore ammo. If you want to use their ammo in a semi-auto buy enough that you can make sure it runs well in YOUR gun before you rely on it.
But with a modern, well made revolver the worst case is sticky cases. I don't hesitate to buy Underwood ammo for my revolvers. If you have an old Charter Arms Bulldog you should stick to lower power ammo, it doesn't meet my definition of "a modern, well made revolver".
I have had problems with their ammo for semiautos though. It is loaded hotter than what guns are designed for and may cause reliability issues. I tried some of their hard cast 147 grain +P 9mm and it had about a 10% failure rate in a Glock 43 that never jammed once with thousand of rounds of ammo from several different makers. When you see someone complaining about their 10mm pistol not running reliably it is almost always a problem only with Underwood or BuffaloBore ammo. If you want to use their ammo in a semi-auto buy enough that you can make sure it runs well in YOUR gun before you rely on it.
But with a modern, well made revolver the worst case is sticky cases. I don't hesitate to buy Underwood ammo for my revolvers. If you have an old Charter Arms Bulldog you should stick to lower power ammo, it doesn't meet my definition of "a modern, well made revolver".
BigBelle
Banned SCAMMER !!! < SCAMMER < SCAMMER < SCAMMER
Underwood is all I use for C/C S/D and the cost is worth every penny to me. If you reload the Lehigh projo's they use, Lehigh Defense now has load data on their site for most of the projo's they sell. That said Underwood up's that speed with special blends. Once you see what their ammo will do to live meat most rethink their C/C S/D ammo choices.
BillBro
Member
Im not sure I can agree with this. Ive seen plenty of videos online with peoples 10mm, or any other mm not running right and theyre not using Underwood.
In tour glock, with the stock barrel Im guessing, was it really the pressures or the cast lead bullet and its design that gave yours problems? I didnt see mention of the particular issue. Feeding? Ejection/extraction?
Not saying you didnt experience issues while using it but these sort of blanket negative statements are kinda vague and misleading.
Nothing personal.
ArchAngelCD
Moderator, SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
Is Underwood SAAMI compliant? If not it might cause a problem in some guns.
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My Glock 43 does have a stock barrel. As I recall I had 3 FTF in 20 rounds with the bullets hanging up on the feed ramp. The Hi-Tek coating on the bullets is pretty slick and I did not see any deformation on the bullets so I attributed the failures to the shape of the bullet which had a wide, flat nose with a sharp edge, not the power level.
The loaded too hot comment was due to my personal experience with their 10mm ammo, videos I have seen on YouTube, and threads on gun forums about 10mm pistols that require heavier springs, recoil buffers and other changes before they can work reliably with Underwood or Buffalo Bore ammo. But work fine in stock configuration with other types of ammo. I know a lot of 10mm guns, probably the majority of them, work fine out of the box with ammo this but have seen too many problems to believe the problem is all those guns and not the ammo being hotter than the guns were designed for.
My comments were vague but my conclusion wasn't misleading. Buy UW ammo with confidence if you are putting it in a revolver. But don't just buy a box for your semi-auto and assume its going to work reliably like all the other brands that have worked well in your pistol. It likely will but ammo that has unusual bullets or is loaded significantly hotter than conventional ammo has a much high higher chance of causing reliability issues. And UW makes many types of ammo that are loaded very hot and/or have unusual bullets. Not every type of ammo they make fits that description but a lot of them do.
Underwood has the same 147 grain +P ammo my Glock 43 didn't like 5 years ago on sale for less than $15/box. I know that G43 doesn't like it but bought some to try in my Sig P365 XL. If it works in that gun I plan to carry it while hiking since I don't need to worry about grizzly bears but want something better able to deter a wild boar/feral pig than the HP ammo I normally carry. But I am going to shoot enough rounds through that gun to make sure it works before I trust it.
Sorry for the long post but you asked for details.
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I use Underwood .44 Special 245 grain FMC at a listed 950fps (it actually gets almost 1,000fps over a friend’s chrono) but I use it in 629 early N frame 6” .44 MAG. The real .44 Mag ammo is no fun for me anymore, and 245 @ 1,000 will do anything that I need a handgun to do. Never have had any problems with their ammo, but then again I have only used it in revolvers.
sousana
Member
I keep on hand usually 14k rounds of Underwood 44special ammo of this flavor:
44 Special 245 Grain Full Metal Jacket, it comes in 50rd boxes and this current batch I bought before the Pandemic madness and it cost me 24 a box from my dealer at the gunshow. I have never had issues with Underwood ammo, all in all it's top notch.
44 Special 245 Grain Full Metal Jacket, it comes in 50rd boxes and this current batch I bought before the Pandemic madness and it cost me 24 a box from my dealer at the gunshow. I have never had issues with Underwood ammo, all in all it's top notch.
Charlie Foxtrott
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