44 mag in a 444

[Mule88]

A guy told me you could shoot a 44 mag round in a 444 single shot (H&R) in a pinch. Ive never thought of doing this but does anybody know if this is safe or not. I know the 444 is just a lengthened version of the 44 mag but seems there is a lot head space there.

 

[hangnoose]

YOU CAN DO LOT'S OF THINGS.

They don't always work out so well. Is it worth the risk & what's really to gain? come to mind. I'll only shoot ammo that is clearly stamped on the bbl's to play it safe.

 

[RonJ]

There's a lot of lead to the rifling but not a lot of head space.

 

[mc5aw]

If you're carrying a .444 and need to use a .44 out of desperation, you're in a world of hurt already. Prayer would be a better option ... or simply carrying a few more rounds of .444.

 

[2152hq]

44 Magnum is quite a bit smaller in diameter at the base than the 444 Marlin,,.012/.013" on spec,,could be a little either way with actual loaded rounds and different rifles.
The 444 is actually a rimmed Mauser x57mm case with a gentle straight taper to the 44mag neck diameter if you want something to compare it to.
The base diameter ahead of the rim is the standard .470" of the 30-06 & Mauser family of cartridges.

Rim thickness of the two is the same or within a couple .000".
Rim diameter is the same on both I believe,,that of the 44Mag case . Gone from the 444 was the large rim of previous lever action rounds.

So the 44Mag slides right in the 444 chamber and appears to headspace OK. The problem is the undersize case of the 44Mag in the 444 chamber.
It may just expand upon firing to take up the extra space,, or it may crack the side walls of the brass on firing. Depends on the individual 44Mag rounds in most instances.

The 444 is service pressure rated above the 44Magnum,,but don't take that as a license to use the wrong ammo in the chamber. You're dealing with 35K+ PSI any way you look at it.

Are they intended to be interchangeable?,,no.
Will a 44Mag fit in a 444Marlin chamber and go bang when you pull the trigger??,,yes.
I think the "...in a pinch..." in the OP's post is the key to this one.
Just be aware of what is going on.
There are alot of such combinations out there, some more dangerous than others.

JM .02

 

[Alpo]

It's not just a lengthened version.

The magnum is straight - .457 at the rim to .456 at the mouth, while the 444 is tapered - .470 at the rim to .456 at the mouth. They use the same bullet, so theoretically it would work.

Probably would not be the world's most accurate. With a rifling twist designed to stabilize that 240 bullet 500 fps faster from the 444, seems like you might get keyholing problems shooting magnums.

The headspace does not change because they are both rimmed (like shooting a 32 S&W in a 327 Federal chamber), but the bullet may upset to fit the chamber in that loooooooong smooth jump before it gets to the rifling, and then has to swage back down.

And since the base at the rim is 20/1000 undersize, you will have a lot of swelling. Maybe even case ruptures.

I wouldn't do it.

 

[bigolddave]

Fired a .45 Auto Rim in a 45/70 once. Have no idea why I thought it was a good idea. It wasn't. No harm, but pretty pointless.