44 mag carbine loads .???

[Drm50]

Just traded into Marlin 1894, 44. Am going to use for deer in Ohio
new rifle season. 100yds will be max shot were I hunt. I have 3
44 revolvers that I have loaded for 50 yrs but no experience with
carbine loads. I want the max velocity that will be accurate. Bullet weight is not important. Any 44 bullet will kill a deer. From
experiance with other Marlin Micro grooves, they tend to shoot
jackets better than cast. Anyone have pet load for this rig? I
will be mounting 4x or less on it.

 

[phonejack]

I use a max charge of h110 with a 240 xtphp in my Ruger carbine

 

[curt1950]

I have had my 1894 for over 30 yrs now, anything you load for your revolver will be fine for the carbine. 100 yards just isn't that far and there will be more enough energy for deer. I don't use a scope on it, even old and half blind I can see 100 yards. My old Ruger flat top and the carbine would be the things they would have to pry out of my hands.

good luck

 

[Nemo288]

Take your favorite revolver (full) load, back off a couple of grains and work it back up in the rifle.
In other words re-develop a favorite round for the rifle.
Don't go over the max listed for revolver pressure.
Some books list separate loads for the rifles implying they can handle hotter loads.
I don't believe this and neither do several authors I respect.
Unless it's a bolt action, they aren't that much stronger but will last forever using revolver loads.
You just have to find the one that is most accurate.
Don't worry about getting every last FPS out of it.

FWIW I have used the "standard" load of 24 grains W296 under a 240 grain jacketed bullet with success in both B-92 and W-94's
I have not tried too many cast bullets in the carbines as they are more of a hassle to clean than the revolvers.
The most accurate load in a revolver I have used is a cast concoction.

===
Nemo

 

[DWalt]

I think a little grouping testing program using several different loads would help answer your question. I probably would try to find the tightest-shooting load for your specific rifle regardless of MV. My only .44 Carbine is a Winchester M94 Trapper, and the only thing I have used it for is Cowboy Action Shooting with lead bullets. By the way, can rifles be used for deer hunting in Ohio now? Back when I lived there many years ago, the only legal modern gun was a shotgun with slugs.

 

[rg1]

I shoot the same loads in my .44 Mag Super Blackhawk and Winchester Trapper rifle. I recommend Hornady 240 XTP-HP's. I shoot 23 grains of Winchester 296, CCI 350 primers and RP and Win brass. Accurate and not maximum but near enough. Too much trouble keeping pistol and rifle loads separate.

 

[Drm50]

44 carbine

Ohio's new regs, 38 cal or larger- straight case only-3 shot cap.
My load for m-29 is mild target/ cast 240
Ruger SBhawk , 240 JHP over 21 1/2 gr. 2400
Had a Ruger carbine when they were first out, got rid of it because it bailed brass. I only shot one box of factory through it,
before trading off.

 

[old 1911 fan]

I bought a used Marlin 1894 in 1973. I still have it. It has little experience with factory loads. Back then my only loading data was a book known now to have some loads that are hotter than published today. I and the gun liked .240g Jsp's I used a lot of Speer and a few others. The 1894 liked HOT loads. It will shoot a 2.5" group at 100 yds. I use WW 296 with magnum primers. I use a lighter charge for magnums out of my M29 or 629. I have never worked with lead for the 1894. I love shooting the 29 and 629 with a lead 240g kt at about 1000fps. I have a couple of other "off brand" .44 Mags T/C and a Deaert Eagle. 5 .44s and 7 different loads. Just a few of the things I still have to keep track of!

old 1911 fan

 

[Fishinfool]

Stick with slow powders like 296 for max. velocity. 240 grain bullets (I like XTP's) work well. Cast work well in Micro-Groove barrels if cast to bore (.001 / .002 over) and hard. Length is important for feeding in these rifles, and bullets heavier than 250 grain may cause feeding issues depending on length and nose profile. The slow twist rifling used in most 1894's is also another reason to avoid heavy bullets in this rifle.

Larry

 

[Collo Rosso]

They tend to shoot jacketed better than cast cause their bore is .433 - .434, not .429 - .430 like handguns. I bought a 1894 in 44mag a couple months ago. At 100 yards it couldn't put a bullet within a foot or two of the last with cast bullets. I found and loaded some .433 240gr. SWC's but haven't had a chance to test them. If your not happy with yours it's something you might want to look into.
You didn't say how old your 1894 is but Marlin went to conventional rifling a while ago. Couldn't tell you when.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

3 shot capacity....does that mean you have to fashion a plug for your Marlin? That three shot limit knocks out the Ruger carbines as well as the Ruger bolt unless Ruger makes 2 shot rotary mags.

 

[MichiganScott]

Check your rate of twist. For some reason, the older carbines had a 1-38 rate. The newer guns have a 1-18 or 1-20. The slower rate may shoot 240gr bullets well, but some guns do not. I use a 200gr bullet over a max load of WW296 in my Ruger because the heavier bullets don't group well.

 

[buck460XVR]

Same jacketed bullet loads that shoot well outta my revolvers, also shoot well outta the .44 carbines. Only thing, in the carbines, I prefer a JSP for deer as opposed to a JHP.

 

[DWalt]

3 shot capacity....does that mean you have to fashion a plug for your Marlin? That three shot limit knocks out the Ruger carbines as well as the Ruger bolt unless Ruger makes 2 shot rotary mags.

That's interesting. Why does Ohio have a 3-shot limit? I wonder if any other states have a rifle magazine capacity limit for hunting? Seems like one would have to make a plug which would allow no more than two rounds in the tubular magazine in order to comply.

Back in the old days in Ohio (I was born and raised there), the reason given for allowing use of shotgun slugs only for hunting was to limit maximum range, i.e., they thought the bullets from a CF rifle would travel too far and kill someone a mile away. Yet for varmint hunting which did not require a hunting license (at least not back then), there was no such restriction.

 

[Magload]

I grew up in Iowa and it was the same back then, Slugs only. When I left in 67 the season was one day and there was a drawing for the permit. I just bow hunted as I could do that for 50 days.

 

[mikld]

Your handgun loads will give you more velocity, in a rifle, just because of the longer barrel. Like you said any ,44 cal bullet will do the job at 100 yds. I use two bullets in my 20" .44 Mag. carbine, both Ranch Dog designs; 240 gr and 265 gr. RNFPGC. Large meplate, designed for accurate hunting, both very accurate in my guns. I use much the same loads in my carbine I use in my 4 other .44s; upper level loads of Blue dot, mid-range 2400, and occasionally a upper (sorta hot) WC820...

 

[radtuck]

I use 23.5 grains of H110 with a 240 gr. XTP that shoots extremely accurate out of my Henry big boy 44. Love that load.

 

[John R]

Check your rate of twist. For some reason, the older carbines had a 1-38 rate. The newer guns have a 1-18 or 1-20. The slower rate may shoot 240gr bullets well, but some guns do not. I use a 200gr bullet over a max load of WW296 in my Ruger because the heavier bullets don't group well.

That's the same load I use in my Ruger 44 auto, shoots great out to 100 yards, never tried it any further.
44 mag rifles are great deer guns for 100 yards or less.

 

[alwslate]

I have taken several Whitetails with my Ruger #3 .44 mag single shot
here in Indiana. I use the same load in it as my revolvers with 240 gr
JHPs, 24.0 grs of W296 and a magnum primer. I use the same charge
with 250 gr cast SWCs in my old three screw Super Black Hawk but I
haven't shot any cast bullets through the rifle. The #3 has a 22" barrel
and I get about 1815 fps with the JHPs. Your Marlin may give around
1800 fps or just a bit less with the same load. Do you have a
chronograph? I have a Ruger 77/44 that I want to use but I haven't
shot it much yet. I expect a bit less than 1800 fps from it's 18.5"
barrel but at the distances most Whitetails are taken it won't matter.
I found a few of the old Speer 225 gr half jacket SWCs that I didn't
know I had. The last deer I shot was with the #3 and one of the 225s
over 26.0 grs of 296 at just over 1900 fps. Distance was about 15 yds
out of a tree stand. The .44 mag from a rifle is potent medicine for
deer at woods distances.

 

[Drm50]

3-shot limit

Ohio is on honor system, no plug, just load 3