.44 Magnum Recoil

The DA frames hurt me more to shoot than the SA frames due to the grip design. If you don't mind a single action I would look hard at those as most find them more pleasant to shoot. I find my .454 SA much more pleasant to shoot then my .44 DA's.

I can finish a whole box of AE or Remington out of my Redhawk 5.5" with the stock grips. Web of hand or wrist might be a little tender but nothing major. Think the weight of the gun pretty much absorbes alot of the recoil.

I reload and shoot 240 grain 44 magnum with AA#9 or 2400 shoot with Ruger SBH or 29-2 Smith. Stout enough to be enjoyed..

Thewelshm

The PMC loads are a little more mild and easier on the hand.

I can't speak to factory loads, as I have never purchased .44 ammo in the store.
But I only load within the parameters of published data, so I figure that's probably close to factory.
My gun is a 4 5/8" Super Blackhawk.

I will tell you a 240 grain Keith style SWC and 22 grains of 2400 are a handful. They're not fun for me.
But the .44 magnum is one of those cartridges that not everyone can shoot well. To me, this is where the recoil gets to be prohibitive.
I shoot Skeeter .44 Special loads or just a 240 grain bullet and 10 grains of Unique. They hit with authority, but you can go shoot several cylinders without developing a darn flinch.

I enjoy shooting factory 240 grain loads with my Ruger Vaqueros (regular and Bisley). The recoil is just part of the fun. I don't shoot 250 rounds in one session but 50 to 100 is OK for me.

Didn't care for 44mag till I tried a Taurus 6.5 barrel ported. The 7 barrel Blackhawk not ported isn't bad either. Shooting 240 JSP. 320 too much IMO.

Mr. Mosin said:

I have a buddy who owns a Ruger Super Redhawk, with a ~10" barrel. I forget the specifics, but his "pet load" is a 320grn bullet over a max load of H110. I've shot several rounds, and this has absolutely soured me on anything ".44 Magnum". So... how does this monstrous load compare in regards to recoil and pain level versus factory .44 Magnum from a 4" Mdl 29 or 4" Redhawk ?


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Significantly. I have the 4.2" barrel version of the regular Redhawk and shoot a similar load. (310 grns over a max load of H110.) If I buy some factory 240 grn magnum loads, it is a much lighter recoil that is more easily controlled. 200 grain loads even lighter recoil. In any event, a better grip helps with recoil sensitivity and control of the gun regardless of what loads you're shooting.

Arkansas Paul said:

I shoot Skeeter .44 Special loads or just a 240 grain bullet and 10 grains of Unique. They hit with authority, but you can go shoot several cylinders without developing a darn flinch.

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I was shooting 7.5 grns of Unique with a 200 grn projectile as a practice round, but I've since switched to Clays. Cleaner burning and I can use less powder (4 grains.) That's a really mild combo, but I still end up with a flinch-I think because the gun is so heavy.

Im comfortable running 240s over a max charge of h110 out of my SBH, but the same bullet 500fps or so slower out of my 44 special GP100 is about as much fun as I want.

Can't say without specific load data.

Handloaders can download it to whatever they want. A big, fat heavy bullet is still a freight train even if it is a slow moving freight train.

I've never shot (nor plan on shooting) monster loads. factory ready on the shelf stuff is just fine for me. in my pencil bbl 6" 629 with the 240gr. pills are enough to ruin any thing's day they hit. as mentioned above, the S/A guns to handle the recoil better than the D/A. guns do.

240gr bullet over 24gr H110 out of my 9 1/2 inch Ruger SRH 44 mag is stout but manageable.
210gr bullet over 22gr H110 out of my 7 1/2 inch Ruger BH 41 mag is unpleasant.

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You need to shoot an S&W 460 S&W XVR to get the 44 Magnum in perspective.

I have 2 S&W 500 mags. One 8.375" and one 4". Someone gave me a box of Buffalo Bore 440gr. I fired one and gave the rest away. I prefer my handloads which I control obviously. At least I fired the BB out of the long barreled S&W. Brutal.

What was your grip like? If you're not a handgun hunter who needs to practice fast follow-up shots for dangerous game, there's nothing but downside in trying to death-grip a wheelgun chambered in .44 Mag. or .454 Casull and keep the gun as flat as possible. There's just absolutely no need for it. (Not saying that's what you were doing, but that's a surefire way to find the shooting experience unpleasant.) I keep my elbows, wrists, and hands fairly loose and let those beasts jump around and dissipate their recoil energy in controlled fashion. Not much fun otherwise.

Mr. Mosin said:

I have a buddy who owns a Ruger Super Redhawk, with a ~10" barrel. I forget the specifics, but his "pet load" is a 320grn bullet over a max load of H110. I've shot several rounds, and this has absolutely soured me on anything ".44 Magnum". So... how does this monstrous load compare in regards to recoil and pain level versus factory .44 Magnum from a 4" Mdl 29 or 4" Redhawk ?

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The short version is that a full load of H110 with a 325 grain bullet is going to be about 22 grains, for about 1400 fps. The typical FedeRemingChester 240 grainer is going to run about 100 fps less and produce about 1/3 less recoil. I'm getting old enough that I no longer enjoy .44 Mag recoil of any sort, but I can manage the 240 grain loads and utterly despise the 325s.

Since I have aged, I'm not as interested in shooting full power ammunition anymore in any of my magnum handguns. But, that does not mean that I won't or cannot shoot magnum ammunition.

There is a skill involved in shooting full power magnum loads. I shoot enough full power ammunition to remain current with the effect but I'm not interested shooting a steady diet of magnum loads as when I was competing in IHMSA competition.

Since I reload and shoot mostly at paper targets, I'm happy with mid level loads in my magnum revolvers.

Recoil is subjective. 300g LBT gas checks at near max 2400 loads (18.8g) are sweethearts out of my Ruger SAs. They're accurate, with less blast, and more of a push than max 240g loads, even in my 3.75" barrelled Lipsey's Bisley Super Blackhawk. In fact, I prefer that gun, because my 6.5" Blackhawk has cheese-grater plow grips that require shooting gloves for any serious load.

I have done max loads of W296 (same powder as H110) in 240g, but not 300g. They are a whole step up from 2400 in sinus-clearing concussion. They're exhilarating and very accurate in my guns, but not really whole-session loads for me. I could shoot boxes of the 2400 300g GC, if they weren't so expensive. My typical range fodder is mid-level loads with plain 240g hardcast bullets.

I would put non-boutique factory loads at about my range fodder level. If you could light off the monstrous loads (no physical limitations), unpleasant as they were, there is no reason not to buy a .44 mag and enjoy shooting it with factory loads. Better yet, start reloading once you can get components.

A lot of gun writer ink was spilled in the late 1920s into 1950s about the effectiveness of a "44" caliber ~250 gr SWC lead bullet at a reported 1200 fps. History shows this lead to the now famous 44 Mag.
My own experience with a similar load on deer and hogs-critters to around 400 lbs is quite positive. This is the most common size critter most of us routinely hunt. This loading generates around 800 fp energy.
While I very much respect Remington for introducing the 44 Mag, I think they Magnamized it too much.
From my perspective, in a hunting revolver - loads exceeding that approx 800 fp level become much more difficult to effectively shoot. Perhaps reflective of the success of the original loading ?
Thoughts ?

They don't have to hurt. I have a SBH, SRH, and a 629. It's not painful or even unpleasant to shoot them with factory loads.

Like the other poster said, I don't grip them super tight.

A smaller lighter 44 magnum would be more of a challenge, I think.