Skeeter's load for SD in 696 ?

[crsides]

who uses Skeeter's load for SD in their 696?

How is the recoil ? accuracy ?

I have a bunch of 250g cast SWC waiting to be loaded.


Charlie

 

[shotguntom]

Given that the 696 is a 44 special with what some consider a marginal forcing cone, I would'nt load " Skeeter" type loads. Shoot them in one of your 44 magnums. Just my opinion. I wouldnt treat my 696 to those type of loads.
TJ

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

I have a 696 no- that i bought when they were first announced. It regularly digest(in fact all it gets) is a 250 gr cast SWC pushed by 7.5 grs. of Unique. Skeeeter's standard .44 spl. load. My 696 thrives on it. Also no harm done to a Rossi 720 .44 spl. that preceeded the 696. Both are as good as new. The Rossi is a 3" stainless 5 shot w/adj. sights with a slightly smaller frame that the 696.

 

[semperfi71]

I too have a M696 and I second the opinion of shotguntom. The M696 forcing cone is too thin to trust to anything leaning towards "hot" or "jacketed" for that matter in a .44 Special.

Anybody who is "pushing" the M696 and doing okay is just lucky that the forcing cone hasn't failed.

S&W K-frame revolvers, and I have heard even in .38 Special, but especially in .357 have split their forcing cones. So have Colt "D" frames in .38 Special as in the Detective and the Police Positives.

I will be shooting my M696 with soft cast lead 240 grain bullets at about 800 to 850 fps. Still a very potent load. It would be potent even at 750 fps. A lot of people and critters have been done in with the standard .45 Long Colt load of a 250 lead bullet at about 800 to 850 fps. Even grizzlies.

I even think jacketed bullets in the M696 might be unwise. Also, it is suggested to keep the forcing cones clean in the above mentioned smaller handguns, might be a good idea with the M696 as well.

 

[Paul5388]

I think a little critter shooting will rectify some opinions on how effective a slow moving SWC really is. I shoot 210 gr full wadcutters in .44 Special brass, but I use a 629 and get miserable results on smaller game. A .38 Special with 125 gr HP bullets at 1000+ fps will do much better on small game.

 

[semperfi71]

Small game can show a surprising vitality when shot with a large bore revolver bullet that does not expand. Large game sometimes expires more quickly with the same load.

A proven case in point is the .44-40. It has killed a lot of game and men. It's standard load was a 200 grain bullet at about 1,000 to maybe 1,200 fps out of a 24 inch rifle. Perhaps even as slow as 900 fps from a rifle.

 

[RedBerens]

I could be wrong, but I don't think the Skeeter load goes much over 900 fps. I've always viewed it as a mild load, and not even close to hot.

 

[Paul5388]

Maybe, but I seem to remember most of Skeeter's small game (deer and smaller) being taken with a M27, not a big bore. In fact, Skeeter's favorite gun was that 5" M27 (it probably was a pre-M27).