.44 Mag Ammo Questions

[SW357Addict]

Hello. I have just entered a whole new realm of power with my recent purchase of a 5" S&W 29-5 Classic DX revolver. The gun is very accurate to say the least. I have some questions about ammo however. I love shooting .44 SPL's in it. Very accurate and love the light recoil.

Has anyone tried out and chrono-ed the Winchester .44Mag 240Gr Lead Flat Point cartridges sold by Walmart? These things are smoking hot! I did not expect this from Winchester as most of there Walmart ammo seems to be loaded slightly lighter than the likes of Hornady or others. Seriously, these made my hand hurt.

Secondly, I also tried some 180gr Remington Lead Flat Point rounds also from Walmart. Definitely less recoil but a HUGE amount more of muzzle blast noise and flash. Is this typical of 180gr .44Mag's or is it just of this Remington ammo?

Also, I love shooting my .44Mag with magnums but I can only tolerate 2 or 3 cylinders of magnums in one shooting session. Should I get a shooting glove or should I try the Hogue grips made for the X-Frame S&W's?

Any comments or help is greatly appreciated.

And since I believe no thread is complete without some gun porn, here are a couple of pictures of my 29-5:

 

[samson92]

First thing ,that is a very sweet revolver you have there.
Reloading really helps with the 44, because you can load up or down to suite your needs and still be safe. The 44 has alot to offer in all directions of use. I have the same grips you have and they feel ok. Only bad thing is they can be addictive as in if you like it you will probably buy a few more 44s.

 

[cp1969]

First, learn how to dissipate recoil. I'm guessing you are fighting the gun.

This is just a matter of physics; you have "X" ft-lbs of recoil energy to absorb with your hand/arm/body and the longer distance it takes to do this will mean the less felt recoil in your hand. In other words, don't make any attempt to hold the gun down or 'control' it. Let the gun go where it wants to go in recoil.

Here's a way to demo this: Shoot the gun from the position used by a lot of silhouette shooters and hunters. If you're right handed, you lay down on your left side and prop your body up with your left elbow. Draw your right leg up until you can lay your right hand against the side of your knee as a support. This is a good, steady position but you will be shooting the gun one-handed. The gun will recoil where it wants to go, there isn't anything you can do to stop it.

Try that and see if the recoil is still punishing. I doubt that it will be. Once you see that letting the gun rise in recoil results in a much more pleasant gun to shoot. Then, when shooting off hand, don't grip the gun like you would a semi-auto with a firm grip from both hands. Only use the left hand as a support for the right and let the gun recoil away from it. At the end of the shot, your hands will be apart and the muzzle will be pointed considerably higher than it was when the shot was fired.

 

[Pisgah]

The best tip I can give for learning to shoot large bore magnums -- don't overdo it. Six careful, well-placed shots with whatever magnum load you are shooting is better than 50 mediocre shots, in the long run. If the recoil is a big comfort factor, a good shooting glove is worthwhile. I find that with just a thin deerskin glove even shooting my cousin's .500 S&W is tolerable.

 

[Chuck Jones]

Like Psigh said a glove could help along with a grip change. Hogues are pretty narrow if memory serves so Pachmayer Decelerators might indeed help.

But as others have suggested reloading is the way to go. I use standard dies and a Lee hand press, Lee dippers, Lee Auto Prime, and a reloading block for small batches; seems I never load over 200 .44 magnums at a time.

Anyway, straight large pistol cases like the .44 are so easy to work with it's really a great way to start in on the hobby. It's also easier retrieve revolver brass. Just drops right into any container and you never have to chase it all over like with autos.

It's funny, while I started reloading on progressives and have done thousands and thousands (and thousands!) of rounds that way, for a few cartridges I don't mess with the Dillon. Especially if I have to change the primer feed. Besides I get a kick out of the fact that anyone can reload great ammo the old fashioned way even with with the modest $20 lee loader and a brass hammer.

Sometimes in camp when everyone's drinking and playing cards, I'll just sit near the fire with my dog at my feet and reload my shells.

As a first step I recommend the 48th or 49th Lyman Reloading Manual. The beginning explains the process (about 3 or 5 times) then watch a couple of YouTube videos, there are plenty online, even for the lowly Lee Loader.

/c

 

[Tackelbarry]

Through my chronograph the Win. that you are talking about was 1175 fps. out of my 2 1/2" "bear tracks". I usually only shoot one 50 round box per session and then move to a different gun. It would actually be a pretty good self defense load. Of course, I guess any 44 mag would be a pretty good defense load, compared to a smaller caliber. I usually carry mine when we are hiking in the mtns.

 

[beach elvis]

If you have any buds that handload, see if they'll put together some 240 gr. JHP's over 11 gr. of Unique. Juicy but not masochistic.

 

[louisianacook]

I agree on the 240gr Winchester "Walmart" load. I took my 29-2 to the range yesterday in anticipation of my weekend hog hunt. I had these and some 300gr Hornady FTX. The Winchesters were very hot, and seemingly not very accurate as compared to the Hornady load. I've shot the 180 Rems too, and like you said the muzzle flash is almost unbearable in an indoor range. I used to shoot these for fun at the range when the mall ninja's were around. Good times. Unique and 44mag are a match made in heaven.