Chrono'd some tame handloads and a few defensive loads (44 RUS and SPL, 45 ACP)

dr. mordo

dr. mordo

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Figured I'd post these for posterity and comments from y'all.

My last two purchases have been lightweight big bore guns (21oz Taurus 445 44 SPL snubbie and a 27oz S&W M325 45 ACP), and I've been developing some very tame loads to make them fun to shoot. These are truly very tame! In retrospect, I'm a bit worried about a squib in my 4" M29, so may avoid the super light Russian loads in it.

One strategy I've been using with the 44 SPL snubbie is shooting 44 Russian which has worked out well. While these tests don't reflect this, I'm also realizing that with modern powders the Russian can reach similar velocities to 44 SPL with less powder, which I suspect means a bit less recoil (thoughts?).

Anyway, today at the range I had my 4" M29, 2" Taurus 445, and 2.5" M325.

44 RUS / 180gr coated LSWC / 3.5gr Trail Boss

M29:
546/543/570/476/564/616 Avg:553

M445:
601/583/597/559/568 Avg:582

44 RUS / 180gr coated LSWC / 4.5gr HP38

M29:
628/619/647/630/615/641 Avg:630

M445:
680/694/637/675/674 Avg:672

44 RUS / 180gr XTP / 4.5gr HP38 (I had some so figured it'd be interesting to compare jacketed vs coated velocities)

M445:
618/646/656/663/652 Avg:647

44 MAG / 180gr coated LSWC / 6.5gr Trail Boss

M29:
669/749/659/701/681/682 Avg:690

44 MAG / 240gr LSWC (not coated) / 7.0gr Trail Boss

M29:
769/769/724/734/702/733 Avg:739

Defensive Loads

Fiocci 44 SPL 200gr JHP (44SA)(I question whether this would expand at these speeds)

M29:
792/778/768/772/756/792 Avg:776

M445:
758/756/err/764/761 Avg:760

Underwood 44 SPL 200gr Gold Dots

M29:
1055/1071/1040/1070/1044/967* Avg=1056 (excluding the *Crit Def)

*=Hornady 44 SPL 165gr Critical Defense

Hornady 44 SPL 165gr Critical Defense
M445:
937/953/958/940/1017** Avg:947 (excluding the **Underwood)

**=Underwood 44 SPL 200gr Gold Dot (snappy in a 21oz gun!)

All shot thru my 45 ACP M325:

180gr coated LSWC / 3.5gr Trail Boss
555/596/604/585/512/604 Avg:576

Freedom Munitions 200gr plated HP (not meant for personal protection)
850/810/802/839/835/833 Avg:828

Winchester Train 230gr FMJ (supposedly identical ballistics to Win Defend)
820/830/824/err/824/783 Avg:816 (the last one initially failed to ignite, so the velocity drop is interesting to me)
 
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dr. mordo said:
...the Russian can reach similar velocities to 44 SPL with less powder, which I suspect means a bit less recoil (thoughts?).
Click to expand...

If the gun weight & bullet weight are the same, with both cases, the lighter powder weight charge (in the smaller case) should mean less recoil (even though the MV would be about the same) but I'd think the recoil difference would be subjective.

They are light loads. Thanks for sharing.

.
 
ballistics are always interesting in short bbl'd revolvers.

I'd stay away from those light russian loads in the m29 also. When a 2" bbl'd firearm is getting higher velocities that the 4" bbl'd firearm. That a pretty good indicator that the load doesn't have enough pressure to seal the cylinders in the 44mag. But does in the 44spl.
 
So, to close this thread out, even max book loads in 44 RUS are weak, which I suppose is predictable from such an old cartridge. That said, even at max loads I had a substantial amount of unburned powder - especially the Universal. I am crimping, but not very tightly so I guess the first step is to tighten the crimp a bit. Also, I suspect I could load them much hotter than the recommended loads since I'm shooting them in a gun chambered in 44 SPL.

For these tests I used my Taurus M445 and my 3" M629, which is my primary CCW.

44 RUS / 180gr coated LSWC / 4.8gr Tite Group

M629:
746/735/744/690/717/718

M445:
err/754/749/776/774

44 RUS / 180gr coated LSWC / 5.7gr Universal very significant unburned powder

M629:
633/710/635/626/694/658

M445:
715/746/746/734/760

Hodgdon claimed 950+ fps from a 5" barrel for these loads, so these results weren't a shock but were disappointing as I was hoping for over 800fps. Based on these disappointing results, I knew my 180 XTPs would be underwhelming, but decided to fire a couple to document the results.

44 RUS / 180gr XTP/ 4.8gr Titegroup

M629:
713/744

M445:
777/792

44 RUS / 180gr XTP/ 5.7gr Universal

M629:
618/702 wide spread!

M445:
704/735

I did test a couple of 44 MAG loads as well, all shot from my 3" M629.

44 MAG / 180gr XTP/ 9.6gr Universal This load is tame to shoot and needs to be ratcheted up a bit.

922/930/1001/951/974/978

44 MAG / 180gr coated LSWC/ 9.6gr Universal

941/923/969/1007/989/938

44 MAG / 180gr coated LSWC/ 6.5gr Trail Boss This is my plinking load.

685/681/776/727/726/751

So, I have to decide if I want to push 44 RUS past book limits or just move up to 44 SPL. I'm leaning toward the latter, but the unburned powder tells me there's untapped potential in the caliber so I may push the loads a bit above max and see how I like them.
 
Last edited:
I'd stick with the 44spl & 44mag cases. They are more versatile and the loads will have a higher potential for accuracy.
 
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