What is the future of .44 special? [Archive]

Hutch

February 28th, 2006, 05:48 PM

I think the future is brighter than it has been. Back in the '70's, there was, AFAIK, the Charter Bulldog in that chambering. Since then, several S&W models have come (and some have gone...), along w/ Taurus and Rossi. Finally, the Cowboy Action Shooting craze (of which I'm a part) has pumped in many, many thousands of .44Spl thumb-busters.

Regarding HP rounds, there are 2 commonly available that I know of, the Speer Blazer 200 gr GDHP, and a Federal 200gr LSWCHP, which resembles a hyper-thyroid .38Spl FBI Load. Cor-Bon and specialty reloaders pump out some "now you see 'em, now you don't" HP loads as well. Availability is spotty.

graffer

February 28th, 2006, 05:49 PM

I don't know for sure. However, a 44 magnum gun can be bought
and reloads are possible at both power levels.

Unless you have a lot of dollars to buy factory, you will forsake either
round due to cost and only shoot it very ocassionally.

Either round commercially bought is in the $25.00 for fifty box range.
Reloads will run as little as $7.00 per box. The cost savings will soon
pay for the reloading equipment. People who have been reloading other
calibers can switch over to 44 magnum dies and a few accessories for
less than $60.00. In that case, at a savings of $18.00 per box, only two hundred rounds would have to be loaded to recoup the equipment expense.

In a similar vain, 45 LC cost figures are similar to the 44 mag.

I hope this helps some.

I would not go broke shooting factory 44 spl or 44 mag to the point that
I would sell my guns and go for less expensive alternatives.

graffer

fiVe

February 28th, 2006, 06:23 PM

I hope this helps some.

I would not go broke shooting factory 44 spl or 44 mag to the point that
I would sell my guns and go for less expensive alternatives.

This post has been very helpful. I was ½-way considering the Charter Bulldog. I have a S&W 642 now and will probably stay in the .38/.357 family.

Thanks for all the info.

Safe shootin',
fiVe

SDGlock23

February 28th, 2006, 06:34 PM

The 44 Special is a great cartridge.For those who carry a .44 revolver, it makes a good choice as a SD cartridge vs. the .44 Magnum

medmo

March 1st, 2006, 03:08 AM

Last time I checked Winchester was still making Silver Tips for this round.

Crosshair

March 1st, 2006, 04:37 AM

44 Special is a good defence round because at low velocity, HP bullets do not expand all the time. Though modern designs almost eliminate this problem, you still can't argue with a big hunk of lead at low velocity going though a BG. Since a revolver only has 5-6 rounds, they might as well be as big as you can handle. The recoil is also less "snappy" to some people than a .357..

IndianaDean

March 1st, 2006, 05:06 AM

I really enjoyed shooting .44 specials last weekend. I also was comparing them to my .45 acp cartridges and there is very little difference in size. I think it's a shame the round isn't more popular and common.

Stainz

March 1st, 2006, 09:16 AM

I'll go a step further... where is the .44 Russian when you need it? Seriously, modern propellants/guns could fire standard .44 Special level rounds from this shorter case - which really is nearly the size of a .45 AR/ACP. I have repeatedly demo-ed a 'poof' load with a 240gr LRNFP/LSWC over 3.5gr Titegroup in Starline .44 Russian shot from my 3" 696 and yielding a chrono-ed 692 fps - for a 'major' power factor just over 165. You can shoot this all day, too... really mild load. Real tight grouping round when shot from my 6.5" Heritage 24.

BTW, since 1907, when S&W superceded the Russian case with the longer .44 S&W Special, which meant it could be loaded with either the new smokeless, or, like the Russian, which was the first mass-produced centerfire handgun round in 1871, blackpowder. They have made such chambered revolvers ever since, albeit never as popular as one would think. The last catalog .44 Special, the 396, followed it's siblings, the 296 & 696, into oblivion last year. I bought my 296, 696, and 2001 6.5" Heritage 24 new... and wouldn't think about selling them... but I reload. The limited production TR21, of course, is a blued fixed sight 'holster' version of the 24 - and is available, albeit pricey.

As for low velocity protective .44 rounds, consider the Speer #4427 200gr Gold Dot JHP designed for Special velocities of 800-1,000 fps. It's thin-walled HP opens reliably at impact velocities of 800+ fps. It is available from CCI as a .44 Special Blazer in Al cases - $12.86/50 locally from 'Academy Sports' chains, or in Starline brass from Georgia Arms for ~$20/50. They both make 805 fps from my 2.5" 296... and thus far, have been a great deterrent...

Stainz

unspellable

March 1st, 2006, 09:50 AM

The 44 Special will be with us for ever. With out it, how would all those gun writers be able to write articles about how useless it is and its imminent demise? They all buy a few boxes to test for their article and that alone is enough to keep the production lines going.

wheelgunslinger

March 1st, 2006, 11:33 AM

Great topic!

I love the .44 special and the russian.

In fact, I've been looking around for a concealable .44 spl round. I really really like this round.
I hope it doesn't disappear and doubt it will. If the SASS shooters accepting it makes it do anything like the 45 colt did, I'd say that it'll be nothing but good from here.

Carry a .44 russian wheelgun loaded with black powder rounds! If you don't plug 'em, you'll set 'em on fire!!!:neener:

Steve C

March 1st, 2006, 11:48 AM

30 years ago the .44 spl was pretty much on the way out. None of the manufacturers made a pistol in .44 spl and the ammo makers only had one load in it and that was a LRN. The .44 mag was the king of the big bore and some shooters would use the spl in their mag pistols. Then Charter Arms introduced their little 5 shot .44 spl Bulldog and rekindled some interest in the old cartridge. Now with CAS being so popular and manufacturers again making .44 spl pistols and a greater variety of ammo, the old cartridge should be around for another 30 years.

P. Plainsman

March 1st, 2006, 02:00 PM

The .44 Special cartridge isn't going anywhere. Between CAS shooters, a fair number of Bulldog-class five-shot guns out there, and the Special's usefulness as a subload for .44 Magnum owners, it's in decent shape.

I use tons of factory .44 Special in my S&W 629, including CCI Blazer Gold Dots for home defense. It's like a revolver version of a 1911 -- big comfy steel pistol shooting old big-bore round at moderate speeds.

I do think non-retro/non-CAS handguns chambered specifically for the .44 Special will continue to be rare. Too many people reason: "Why not buy a .44 Magnum instead, and get both rounds?" A pity, since I'd happily buy a new production stainless Taurus 445 or S&W 696.

I agree that in an ideal world the current wimped-out .44 Special factory loads should be re-packaged in .44 Russian cases, and factory .44 Special loads should be nudged up to the 900-1000 fps range. Very useful.

JNewell

March 1st, 2006, 03:09 PM

Steve C beat me to the point. There are a lot more .44 Special guns, and shooters, than there were 20 or 30 years ago. I wouldn't worry about ammo availability.

fiVe

March 1st, 2006, 07:11 PM

Good info here. I may yet keep the Charter Arms Bulldog on my list.

Thanks. This thread is another example of why THR is so great.

R/fiVe

TexasRifleman

March 2nd, 2006, 01:51 AM

Last time I checked Winchester was still making Silver Tips for this round.

Sure do. My 329OD is stoked with a cylinder full of them right now.

The .44 Special will be around.

Heck it's even available in Blazer. The Blazer line doesn't exactly specialize in obscure obsolete loadings.

JNewell

March 2nd, 2006, 03:07 PM

I very highly recommend the GD Blazer load as well.

Gordon

March 2nd, 2006, 10:31 PM

My 296 goes with me to the store and beach ect..At 18 oz (unloaded) , impervious to the elements and with 180 Hornady xtp loads at 900fps , it is a major defensive round in a small package!I can shoot 3" groups with it at 15 yards all day, well at least until my palm and wallet wear out!:)

shermacman

March 2nd, 2006, 10:35 PM

Rest easy, there will always be a greater demand for the .44 Special than the .45GAP.

jfruser

March 3rd, 2006, 12:57 PM

shermacman:

Talk about d@mning with faint praise... ;)

cookekdjr

March 3rd, 2006, 01:36 PM

looking at buying a .44 spl today....

progunner1957

March 3rd, 2006, 02:00 PM

Smith & Wesson has a Thunder Ranch .44 special revolver, Charter Arms has a .44 spl., and Taurus has a .44 spl. - I'd LOVE to see Smith bring back the old model 24 .44spl.

The .44 special is a great round, and I doubt that it will go away - there are alot of factory loads available for it. It makes an outstanding defense round
-my wife's home alone gun was a 4" model 29 loaded with .44 spl. Silvertip HPs for a long time before I switched her over to a 4" S&W mountain gun chambered in .45 Colt.

orionengnr

March 3rd, 2006, 03:10 PM

and deliver the Taurus 441 to it's new owner within the next week.

Two more happy 44 spl owners...

fiVe

March 3rd, 2006, 04:34 PM

Well, except for the .45GAP comment :p, my .44spl hope grows. ;) :rolleyes: :) :D

P-35/53

March 3rd, 2006, 06:08 PM

i know the future of the 44 special - I'm going to shoot some out of my 4 44 special revolvers.

loadedround

March 4th, 2006, 10:03 AM

Being a shooter and a reloader for over 40 years, I would say if it were not for the CAS and the reloaders the 44 Special would have 11/2 feet in the grave. To my knowledge, the only currently manufactured 44 Special(yes I know S&W made some special runs) is the little Charter Bulldog. I love the 44 Special and would love to have a custom single action in this caliber.

StrikeEagle

March 4th, 2006, 12:01 PM

I love the 44 Special and would love to have a custom single action in this caliber.

Then this may interest you....

http://www.usfirearms.com/cat/single-action-revolver.asp

doublebarrel

March 4th, 2006, 03:44 PM

and Taurus has a .44 spl.

Taurus' web site says the 445 series is now discontinued. To me Taurus seems to be the one that's willing to try anything to make a buck (they're building 500mag revolvers, Ruger hasn't followed Smith's lead yet). So if Taurus dropped a model, I'd assume that it just didn't sell well enough...

Gewehr98

March 4th, 2006, 04:59 PM

Until I purchased a nice second-hand S&W Model 696 for relatively cheap. It's a sweetheart of a cartridge, so now I'm considering a levergun and single-action Colt clone in the same chambering. Ammo isn't too hard to find, just search in www.cheaperthandirt.com and use .44 Special as the search term. Likewise, I've got several thousand cast bullets and lots of Starline brass ready to load into .44 Special, so I doubt I'd call it obsolete any time soon.

StrikeEagle

March 4th, 2006, 05:21 PM

I enjoy the .44 Special very much... mostly out of a SAA in that chambering. But somehow... it seems that it just isn't popular enough for a mainstream manufacturer to make regular, production guns in the caliber.

Ruger won't even touch it... and they'll make revolvers in .30 Carb.

The popularity of the .44 Mag assures us that it won't DIE... but I'm pretty sure that it's doomed to remain a niche round for the rest of its life. :(

I think .44 Special fans make a lot of noise... but there just are not a lot of of us. :p

StrikeEagle

JNewell

March 4th, 2006, 07:34 PM

but I'm pretty sure that it's doomed to remain a niche round for the rest of its life.

Maybe, but it's already had a run that's longer than almost any pistol cartridge! :D

MountainPeak

March 4th, 2006, 08:09 PM

It will out last both of us!!! :)

seeker_two

March 5th, 2006, 06:42 PM

And let's not forget the new lightweight .44 Magnum revolvers made of scandium, titanium, unobtanium, etc.

If it wasn't for .44SPL, you couldn't even shoot 'em... :D

doublebarrel

March 5th, 2006, 06:56 PM

And let's not forget the new lightweight .44 Magnum revolvers made of scandium, titanium, unobtanium, etc.

If it wasn't for .44SPL, you couldn't even shoot 'em...

There was a video of some one shooting a 600 Nitro Extress in a handgun. I'm sure there'll be someone out there "man" enough, that will load their ultra light 44mags with full power ammo having 300gr+ bullets, like those from Garrett or Buffalo Bore, and pull the trigger... :neener:

JERRY

March 5th, 2006, 11:35 PM

id love a charter arms sized .44spl, if it were of better quality.

Crosshair

March 6th, 2006, 03:07 AM

One of the local stores has a charter arms 44spl. It fits my hand very well (It even feels good in my weak hand.) and appears to be very well made. I need to start saving up to buy one.:cool: Sure the walls of the cylinder are thin, but the 44spl is not a high pressure round. According to SAAMI pressure specs (That I have taped to my guns safe.) the pressure of the 44spl is only 15,500 PSI while the 44mag runs at 36,000 PSI. Provided you don't try and hotrod the round, like some handloaders do, you should have no problems with it. The idea of using an steel frame with a seperate aluminum grip frame really does save alot of weight. The quality of the new ones are much better than others that I have seen in the past.

gunfan

March 7th, 2006, 02:19 AM

And it is the most convenient short-barreled revolver that I have, other then my 2 1/2" barreled H&R Model 732, in .32 S&W Long. It just plain shoots well and has sufficient power to "stop the action" when I call on it to do so.

BTW, Nick (Charter's CEO) has informed me that their quality is continuing to improve, and the Bulldog will soon be out in the 4" and 6" barreled models, with adjustable sights, later this year.

I do hope that this helps you in your quest for an EXCELLENT "fighting handgun."

Good shootin'

Scott

Crosshair

March 7th, 2006, 05:01 AM

So I guess I should wait for the 4" version. Thanks for the heads up.:)

355sigfan

March 7th, 2006, 05:58 AM

The 44 special is really dead. Its not that great of a round. The 44 mag is much more potent. The 357 mag does better in smaller guns. The only reason for the 44 special to exist is to satisfy die hard fans of the caliber. The 45 acp does a better job as a soft shooting big bore round if you don't like the mags. RIP 44 special.
Pat

doublebarrel

March 7th, 2006, 12:43 PM

BTW, Nick (Charter's CEO) has informed me that their quality is continuing to improve, and the Bulldog will soon be out in the 4" and 6" barreled models, with adjustable sights, later this year.

That's good to hear. Buffalo Bore (http://www.buffalobore.com/ammunition/default.htm#44spl) has a warning for their 44sp ammo, specifically against Charter Bulldogs. If one can shoot Buffalo Bore in a Taurus' discontinued 445, but not in a Bulldog, Charter still got a lot improvement to work on. I think I read it somewhere that Charter claims their no side plate design(looks like those Ruger designs) is stronger. Well, apparently not as strong as Smith and Taurus, let alone Ruger...

unspellable

March 7th, 2006, 02:36 PM

The 45 Colt is really dead. Its not that great of a round. The 454 Casull is much more potent. The 357 mag does better in smaller guns. The only reason for the 45 Colt to exist is to satisfy die hard fans of the caliber. The 44 Special does a better job as a soft shooting big bore round if you don't like the mags. RIP 45 Colt.

(Or fill in 45-70 & 458 Winchester where appropriate.)

RidgwayCO

March 7th, 2006, 03:33 PM

Class never goes out of style.

Many people like the .44 Special because of the reduced noise and recoil compared to the .44 Magnum. I've read that most .44 Magnum owners actually shoot more .44 Special (or .44 Special-equivalent) loads in their Magnums than they do full-power loads. I guess there's a reason why the old 250gr lead SWC round at 900 fps was so popular (and 450 ft-lbs is hardly a "mouse-fart" load)...

I'll just have to enjoy my S&W 24 Heritage, 296, 396, 624, 696, Freedom Arms 97, Rossi 720, and Custom Ruger Blackhawk at their moderate velocities for a few more decades. A man can't have too many .44 Specials. And yes, I do enjoy reloading...

Stainz

March 7th, 2006, 04:07 PM

If you do elect to shoot .44 Russians from a Special chamber, or either it or a Special from a Magnum chamber, please do brush the chambers carefully before loading and firing even mediocre Magnums - especially with fast powders. I lost my much-enjoyed 629MG due to such carelessness last week. It had launched only Russians and Specials over it's life, being cleaned regularly. I shot a batch of mild Russians and a few similar Specials - then I had to try some 300gr LSWC in .44 Magnum cases over 6.2gr of Titegroup - chrono-ed at 868fps from a 4.6" SBH. On the third cylinderful, I lost my revolver, the cylinder & topstrap having burst. The 629MG paperweight is now back at S&W for metallurgical tests. My contention is that the lead buildup before the rim step in the chambers slowed the opening of the crimp, causing a fast rising pressure spike - and the resultant effect. A double charge would only result in a 20% overcharge - perhaps not quite enough to cause the results. Either way, I have egg on my shoulder - and lucky for me, no personal damage. Okay, my arm is sore - from dissassembling 350+ such rounds - all right on the money - 6.2 gr.

The moral is simple... don't use Magnums after Specials or Russians in a .44 Magnum - unless you carefully clean the chambers. I have since shot ~300 .44 Specials and Russians in my Heritage 24 and SBH - sort of 'getting back on the horse'. I still plan on reloading/shooting Specials... just not up to .44 magnum levels - even in bullet weight (Goodbye to my stash of 300gr-ers!).

Stainz

unspellable

March 7th, 2006, 04:26 PM

Actually, I run only 44 mag brass in my 44 Mag, even with lite loads. The 44 Special brass goes only in the 44 Special.

I'd never thought of lead build up from special cases causing insufficient neck room for a mag case but I suppose it could happen. Most people never think of neck space to begin with and there are situations where it can cause trouble.

I first encountered the neck space issue converting 9.3x74R brass to 400-360 brass. It comes up again if you want to load bore sized bullets in the 9 mm for accuracy loads. For reasons known only to the gods, 9 mm pistols have over sized bores. (SAAMI specs it that way, DWM did it that way when they invented the 9 mm Parabellum.) Another place it can pop up is in the 454 Casull where the chamber has a rather tight neck diameter. that's the reason they don't recommmend 45 Colt dies for loading it.

355sigfan

March 7th, 2006, 04:45 PM

QUOTE
The 45 Colt is really dead. Its not that great of a round. The 454 Casull is much more potent. The 357 mag does better in smaller guns. The only reason for the 45 Colt to exist is to satisfy die hard fans of the caliber. The 44 Special does a better job as a soft shooting big bore round if you don't like the mags. RIP 45 Colt.
END QUOTE

The 45 colt is a bit different. It has factory ammo as powerfull as the 44 mag (+p corbon) Its also the mainstay of Cowboy action shooting. Without CAS it would be a lot less popular.
Pat

Marshall

March 7th, 2006, 04:59 PM

QUOTE
The 45 Colt is really dead. Its not that great of a round. The 454 Casull is much more potent. The 357 mag does better in smaller guns. The only reason for the 45 Colt to exist is to satisfy die hard fans of the caliber. The 44 Special does a better job as a soft shooting big bore round if you don't like the mags. RIP 45 Colt.
END QUOTE

Corbon just came out with a new .45 Colt offering:

45 COLT+P 225 GR. DPX 1200 FPS/720FTLBS

ROAshooter

March 7th, 2006, 05:40 PM

Who needs a 44 special...when we all know a 223/5.56 is SUPERIOR..for eveything.....

Now if I could just dump my two pos S&W44 specials...I would be much better off

unspellable

March 7th, 2006, 06:01 PM

Lighten up. Don't you guys know when your chain is getting pulled? See the post a few levels above the 45 Colt post.

Marshall

March 7th, 2006, 09:57 PM

unspellable,

Sorry that simply posting on new cartidge by Corbon isn't light enough for you.

I do see now what you were doing though and you're right, I didn't catch that the first read through.

unspellable

March 8th, 2006, 03:39 PM

Actually, that Corbon 45 load sounds inetresting. It might be just the ticket for my 45 Col tRaging Bull. (Yes, I have a raging Bull chambered for 45 Colt, not 454 Casull.)

dpote

March 9th, 2006, 05:50 AM

Here's my future of the .44 special. "I will shoot the crap out of it."

fiVe

March 9th, 2006, 11:22 AM

dpote: Nice pic! Thanks for posting it.

gunfan

March 9th, 2006, 01:01 PM

Now if I could just dump my two pos S&W44 specials...I would be much better off

If that's how you really feel... send me a P.M.... We'll talk! :evil:

Good shootin'

Scott

kolob10

November 2nd, 2008, 09:33 AM

Owned a Smith model 624 a while back - shot terrible. Now own a Freedom Arms 97 in 44 special - what a dream packing pistol! also shoot 44 special power level loads in both my 44 mags. Hunt small game and deer with both 44 special and 44mag. If I could own just one caliber revolver, it would be a 44 mag. It will take small game up through elk with proper bullets & powder. Good shooting!

CSA 357

November 2nd, 2008, 05:30 PM

WHATS NEXT? NO MORE 38 SPEC???????:rolleyes:

ilbob

November 2nd, 2008, 05:39 PM

I was ½-way considering the Charter Bulldog.
I would suggest shooting one first. Mine had the barrel cut down to 2". It has quite a recoil when it discharges, especially with the stock grips.

In mine the bullet tends to keyhole a little as well.

OTOH, it is not much bigger than some small frame 38 special revolvers. Not a bad pocket gun if it were not for the trigger spur. I used to sometimes carry it in my inside jacket pocket when I worked security back a long time ago. Probably was not the best thing to do, but as a BUG it would have had some utility.

MagnumDweeb

November 3rd, 2008, 12:40 PM

My uncle who is a 1911 fiend owning nearly every custom job in everything from Caspian and Fusion, with Brownell did-it-himself jobs. But when S&W re-released the modern reproductions of the M21 & M22, don't remember off the top of my which is the .45 ACP and which is the .44 Special, he bought one of each in a 4" barrel in nickel. He got a deal from a gun store owner he knows out of the county who got him the two guns for $1300 (each gun usually goes for $700 to $750 bought alone).

The .44 Special that I've gotten to shoot a couple of times (he's got a kid and wife and our schedules don't always meet up so I can't always shoot his guns, especially when he only brings out the two Smiths once every couple of months, meant more to be guilty pleasures than regular shooters).

It was a great shooter even with the Corbon load that was supposed to push the 230 grain bullet at 1200fps (A load I wouldn't mind in my Redhawk 4" .44 Magnum for CCW).

The .44 special unfortunately isn't a common round. If Taurus made it's .44 Magnum 5 shot 4" without the vents on it more frequently and more easily to find at good prices than I'd carry one with .44 Spcl Corbon rounds. A buddy of mine has the 2" and it slides in and out of my 40" waist on my 36" waist jean pockets.

If you want the round to stay alive than get yourself a Smith 625 or M21/22 I can't remember which right now, and get yourself a box of 50 every month at the range.

Phil DeGraves

November 3rd, 2008, 02:05 PM

I have a S&W 624 which shoots great for me. Also a M29 and a M24-3. Love all of them. Prefer the Spl cartridge to the Magnum because it is easier to use a speedloader with the shorter cased specials. Would be even easier with the Russian cartridge, but I don't have enough brass for that.
I was reloading the other day, shot them off and got very inconsistent results. After examination, found that I had about a dozen balloonhead cases. Larger case capacity = less pressure. Weeded out all the balloon heads and fixed the problem.
I'd heard about those, but had never seen one before (or so I thought). The brass must be ages old. Headstamps were REM-UMC and WRA. Went through my brass bucket. Must have about 100 or so. Anyone else run into these?

Stainz

November 3rd, 2008, 06:27 PM

Well, since my first reply in this thread, I have had some changes. My 6.5" 24-3 was sold - and my 6.5" Heritage 24 was sold. I bought a new 6" 629 (SKU 163606) and replaced my 629MG with a new 4" 629 (SKU 163603). My 296 & 696, nearly six years from new here now, persist. The 296, a 2.5" AirLite hammerless larger sibling to the 642, rides most days in a Mika's pocket holster in my front pocket. The 696 is just fun - as are the 629s, which don't know they weren't built for .44 Specials and Russians. I do have some wood grips for them, as well as two S&W .500 Magnum Hogue grips for those days when I feel the need to launch real Magnums. In that case, I always clean the chambers first - with a chamber brush, which is a bit larger in OD and considerably longer - made for chamber cleaning. My .44 Russians and Specials do leave residue behind which can cause a possibly disastrous pressure spike by impeding the opening of the longer case's crimp.

My carry ammo was the Speer #4427 bulleted 200gr .44 Special GDJHP Blazer - until one of those Al cases split in my 696 - and the local 'Academy Sports/Outdoors' chains more than doubled it's price. You can get the same bullet in a new Starline case from Georgia Arms for less - and gain brass, too (#GA44SC). They are ballistically equivalent, making 800-805 fps from my 2.5" 296, 840 fps from my 3" 696, and 875 fps from my 4" 629. Speer reports reliable full opening of the GDJHP by 800 fps incident in ballistic gelatin. I keep them in #CA44 HKS Speedloaders for the 296 (&696), and the #29 HKS Speedloaders for tmy 629s - perfect defensive ammo for CCW and home/car defense.

So, if you cannot find a decent 'real' .44 Special revolver, just buy a 629 - capable and easily cleaned. My current '.44 Specials':

http://s171.photobucket.com/albums/u307/Stainz_2007/IMG_0712.jpg

Don't forget the .44 Russian case if you reload - beautiful cases from Starline, etc. They feed from the CA44 & 29 speedloaders - not as well as the Specials & Magnums, but not bad, either.

Stainz