.44 Special Loads for Blackhawks

I just picked up a slightly used Ruger Flat Top Blackhawk in .44 Special for a knock around pistol that I can also use for deer, etc. Today after work I had time to do a bit of load testing and thought I'd post it here since it seems .44 Special +P type data is hard to find.
I took these loads directly out of Handloader #236 which had an excellent article on the .44 Special including tons of data. The loads here were all safe in my Blackhawk and I had zero pressure signs. Even with the hottest load the case would drop right out of the (filthy) chambers after a little nudge from the ejector rod.

All loads used Starline brass, CCI 300 primers, except the AL2400 loads which used a WLP. The bullet was a home-cast 260 gr. SWC with a BHN in the 11.5 range.

6.5 gr. Unique- 868 fps
7.5 gr. Unique- 957 fps (e.s.=20)
8.0 gr. Unique- 1002 fps (e.s.=18)
8.5 gr. Unique- 1051 fps (e.s.=24)

The above loads left a little lead ahead of the forcing cone, so I cleaned the pistol after testing them then fired these:

16.0 gr. AL2400- 1122 fps (e.s.-102)
16.5 gr. AL2400- 1189 fps (e.s.- 69)
17.0 gr. AL2400- 1218 fps (e.s.=29)

The last three loads left NO leading near the forcing cone but a negligible amount near the muzzle.

The pistol has been pretty darned accurate to the point that I never shoot it at 25 yds. with 50 and usually 100 being where most of the testing is done.

The 6.5 gr. load is a very nice general use load that's really quite accurate:





The 7.5 gr. load I'm guessing would probably work nice for deer at shorter ranges and was quite accurate.

The real surprise was the last load. It was .5 grs. shy of Elmer Keith's load of 17.5 grs. but nevertheless ran 1218 fps which is REAL close to the original .44 Magnum ballistics. The best part of that was it quite accurate:


I really don't see much use for this load unless I decide to try the .44 on my next elk hunt.

35W

murf said:

are those shots taken off-hand, or bench rested? nice shooting, by the way.

nice grips. would like a set like that for mine (it has the flat black plastic ones).

i worked up a load for a lbt style 300 grain lead gas checked bullet. does just under 1000 fps through the chrony. accurate, too. shoots high, though. sights won't go down far enough to shoot poa at 25 yards. five inches high is the lowest that load will go.

will stick with the 250 grain keith bullet at 875 fps.

murf

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Thanks...Oh, they're benchrested. I like the grips too, they came with the pistol as did the plastic ones. I think tose wood grips can be found fairly easily on the auction sites.

The article I mention in the OP has a load for a 300 gr. bullet. I'll check on it for you.

Regarding the high point of impact, mine was doing the same thing. I took the rear sight off and removed .010" of metal from the under the very rear of the sight. This helped tons but still at its lowest setting it's high with some loads. I plan to remove another .010" soon.

35W

MAybe we can keep this thread going as we work up more loads. Honestly, all I ever use is older powders and I'd like to see others results from powders such as Power Pistol, Tightgroup, etc.

35W

MovedWest said:

Careful with your loads Whelen. Not to sound preachy, but remember that's a 44spl, not a magnum. I have a hot 44spl load with 8.3gr of Unique under a 200gr XTP that is over pressure, but I only have magnum guns. I know 8.5gr of Unique with a 260gr is way beyond that.

Ruger has a great reputation for strength, but that's only for the magnum revolvers AKAIK. Please be careful and make sure you note that some of your loads are over max pressure when you post.

-MW

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.... thought I'd post it here since it seems .44 Special +P type data is hard to find.

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I thought I made that clear.

The Ruger .357 Magnum and .44 Special share the same "mid-size" frame since 2005.

Uh...no. The original .44 Magnum firing the gas-checked 240 grain LSWC would have delivered close to 1450 fps from that 5.5-inch barrel.

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You are absolutely correct. What I should have said was "...ran 1218 fps which is REAL close to current .44 Magnum ballistics." This would've been a more accurate statement because with the exception of specialty ammunition such as Core-Bon and Buffalo Bore, the final load I tested was well within 100 fps of practically all factory .44 Mag loads with their 240 - 250 gr. bullets.

Although that Ruger is a good bit stronger than the 1873 SAA revolvers that Keith worked up his loads in...and a limited amount of that ammunition probably won't blow it up...it's still a medium-framed Blackhawk. A steady diet of it is very likely to bend it eventually. I'd use it on a "need only" basis.

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"Bend" it? How would 25K PSI class loads bend this revolver frame? That'd be the same frame on which the .357 Magnum, running roughly 40% more chamber pressure, is built.

There is little that you can do with a 260-grain cast bullet at 1200 fps that you can't do with the same bullet at a thousand besides do it at a little longer range. Beyond a certain point, more velocity serves mainly to flatten trajectory. If you need more killing power at reasonable hunting ranges, what you need is more bullet rather than more speed.

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Again, you are correct, but evidently you missed the last sentence of my post.

It also begs the question: With ballistics such as these, who really needs a .44 Magnum?

35W

rcmodel said:

Here is a great read on the .44 Spl and the various classes of guns with pressure limits.

http://www.goodrichfamilyassoc.org/44_Special_Articles/Brian Pearce on the 44 Special.pdf

The New Blackhawk is a Class Two, 22,000 PSI gun, same as a modern Colt SAA.

rc

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I have the hard copy of that magazine RC, and it was the basis for my load development. If you'll look on page 41 he puts the Blackhawk in the 25K catagory.

Anyone with the ability to compare apples to apples might. You're comparing maxed out specials against mid level mags.

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Not at all. I'm comparing pineapples to pomegranates.

If you'll read my post again, you'll see I'm comparing my results with .44 Special handloads to .44 Magnum factory loads of similar bullet weights, excluding specialty loads, as they are very similar. Which to my way of thinking means if it can be done with one of these Magnum factory loads, then can likewise be done with a Special handload.

35W

James2 said:

No doubt in my mind that you can load the 44 spl brass right up to full magnum pressures.
Not a smart thing to do though since the 44 spl guns were not made for that kind of pressure.
Why do you need a Magnum? So you don't blow up your 44 Spl trying to make it a magnum!

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See Post #10. Specifically the response to the fourth quote, then re-read the OP and pay attention to the final statement of that post. Then have a look at the *.pdf article RC so kindly made available in Post #12 and note that my upper end loads are 25,000 psi loads...a FAR cry from .44 Magnum pressures.

The intent of the thread was for folks who might be interested in loads for their .44 Special. If the content doesn't interest you or just plain frightens you, you don't have to read it.

35W

murf said:

35 whelen,

i'm going to try and put a white line horizontally on the rear sight, sort of like the lines on a front sight for long distance shooting. that way i can "have it both ways" for my 300 and 250 grain loads.

i'll let you know how it goes.

oh, i have the handloader articles for loading reference. handy for that ruger 44spl. and it's capabilities.

lipsey's just brought out another flattop in 45 long colt/45 acp. the frame is identical to the 44spl flattop except, of course, for the larger holes in the barrel and cylinder. the acp cylinder is rated at 23,000 psi (+p pressure) so, the 44spl cylinder, having smaller holes and more metal, should be able to "handle" the 8% increase in pressure.

what i'm getting at is not to worry about stretching frames, end shake, whatever. the gun will handle it with ease, in my opinion.

murf

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Yes, let me know how it goes with the rear sight.

You might try taking some of the rear sight off as I described in another post. Midway sells those rear sights and they're pretty inexpensive and very easy to remove and reinstall.

I don't worry in the least about trashing the pistol with these loads. I'll likely use the 6.5 gr. of Unique load for every day stuff and the 7.5 gr. load for hunting deer and hogs.

I like to think of a handgun such as this .44 Special as an automobile. For example, I know that my pickup will do 110 mph because I tried it. That doesn't mean I'll drive it that fast even if I could. Likewise, I know that my .44 Special will easily drive a 260 gr. bullet over 1200 fps. Does that mean I'll shoot these loads on a day to day basis? Of course not, that'd be pointless, but knowing that capability is there if and when I need it is nice!

35W

Oh yes mav, I knew without a doubt you were a 44 Mag owner when I read your first post. When the subject turns to loading the Special to its full potnential, the Magnum owners are easy to spot because their heinies are always the reddest

35W