Trimming 44 Mag to 44 Russian - Case Length?

[Sieveboy]

Hi, I am trimming 44 Mag brass into 44 Russian for my new (old) 44 DA.

The books say that the 44 Russian case should be 0.970"; however, as I reduce 44 Mag cases in small increments, it seems the trimmed case can be fully inserted in the chamber of my 44 DA when it is as long as 1.000". I seated a bullet to make a dummy round and it went into all of the cylinders fine.

My question is, should I go off of the gun's dimensions or follow the book?

I'm thinking that the shorter length is specified to provide clearance so that black powder fouling will not eventually cause a jam-up, but I also like the idea of not having the bullet bridge the gap between the case mouth and the reduced section of the cylinder.

Anyway, I found this interesting and was looking for some advice on this rather than re-inventing the wheel.

Thanks.

 

[TAROMAN]

I tried this very thing and it did not work out well.
Trimmed to SAAMI length.
Problem was that, when trimmed that short, the case mouth was then into the thicker part of the case walls.
Reaming or neck turning would then be necessary to make for a proper bullet fitment.
Quickly came to the conclusion that purchasing some Starline 44 Russian brass was the preferred route.

..my $0.03, YMMV.

 

[Masterpiece]

My question is, should I go off of the gun's dimensions or follow the book?

Sieveboy,

Just curious, but what dimension are you coming up with for Length of the Case from the Underside of the Case Rim?? Reason I ask is the fact that some Manufacturers Casings have Thicker Rim Thicknesses than others & may be what's confusing to you as far as the Overall Length measurement that fits your Chamber!!

What I used to do is measure the depth of the Charge Hole itself from the Rear Face of the Cylinder to the Shelf inside & trim all my Casings just a .001 or so less that measurement...Never Had A Problem!! Now not as to confuse you, but you do realize this measurement I'm referring to is of course from the Underside of the Rim...Not The Overall Length!!

I also just saw what Taroman posted & this also is something to take into account if you're experiencing this problem when seating the Bullet itself!! If you are, as you mentioned you're trimming 44 Mag Casings, might be worth doing a test on a couple of Your 44 Special Casings to see if that will alleviate the problem beings they're about .130 thousandths shorter to start with...Just My 2 Cents Worth!!

 

[arroyoshark]

Give 'em a ring, order a bunch and encourage them to make a production run.

https://www.starlinebrass.com/brass-cases/44-Russian-Brass/

 

[Warren Sear]

I also load 44 Russian cases. At one time, you could not buy new brass, so I had to make them from Special brass. Magnum brass does not work well for the reasons stated above.

If and whenever Russian brass is available, it makes no sense to make cases from converted Special and Magnum cases. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

 

[Step N. Mud]

I too have been reloading 44 Russian for several years with Starline brass with the same 500 ct. brass has been used 10 to 20 times and now getting a few split cases, but got my monies worth. Recently a shooter offered me a box of 50 rounds of Blackhills Ammo in 44 Russian that he'd won and didn't need, so I shot these Black hills 44 R. in a cowboy match and was very impressed with the light recoil and advertised as 650 fps. and brand new Starline brass to boot. Would buy this ammo if the price weren't so high.

Black Hills Cowboy Action Ammo 44 Russian 210 Grain Lead Flat Point

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I have a pair of repo #3 Russians in 44 S&W Russian I bought several hundred brass from Midway and about 1/4 to 1/3 split on each firing so whatever Starfire is charging pay it! Also several years ago (1994+/-) I found a box of 50 factory Winchester brass. These were balloon head cases and from before WW II. So make sure all you brass is of solid web modern type. In the years I shoot SASS, I buy 44WCF and 45 Colt, about 1000-2000 each a year, and still get 20-30 balloon head each. I set them aside for a friend that wants full capacity black powder loads. Ivan

 

[Sieveboy]

Thanks a lot for all the advice. I am waiting on a 44 Russian crimp die as my RCBS 44 Mag/Spec is not able to crimp Russian. I'll see what happens as far as the wall thickness.

Another issue I have is that I live in Massachusetts; years ago the MA Attorney General sent out nastygrams to all the suppliers not to ship to Mass and nearly all comply today.

So it is not easy to find the stuff in stock, from a supplier who says "FU" to mass.gov and ships anyway.