Cheapest 44 mag?

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Good used Super Blackhawk is hard to beat ..
Mild to Wild ... Crazy simple , unparalleled dependability ...

I bought a used Ruger SBH because I wanted a tank to handle anything from mild to wild. Just for shooting not hunting or bears.
If I had a pissed off bear coming at me the last thing I’d want is a handgun that wasn’t 100% reliable because I wanted to save a few dollars.
 
You don't need a 44 mag for bear defense. I'd upgrade the ammo for what you have. I OWN 44 magnums and leave them at home in bear country. You are far more likely to need the gun for 2 legged predators and I choose my outdoors carry guns with that in mind. In the extremely unlikely event of needing to stop a bear standard rounds like 9mm, 40, 45, 10mm, and 357 mag work just fine.

I tend to carry a compact 9mm or 45 if not in bear country. In bear country a G29 in 10mm

No special ammo used in most of these cases and yet they worked 96% of the time.

https://www.ammoland.com/2019/08/ha...r-attack-73-cases-96-effective/#axzz6YEeesaNO

If it makes you sleep better at night invest in some of the better Buffalo Bore or Double Tap ammo. This stuff is expensive, but you aren't going to shoot a bunch of it. Two boxes might last a lifetime.

https://www.wideopenspaces.com/alaska-man-kills-charging-brown-bear-with-a-9mm-pistol/
https://www.buffalobore.com/
https://doubletapammo.com/

For defense purposes shots are going to be close. Precision shots aren't needed and it may take multiple hits. You need something small enough that you will actually carry it and not leave it in the car or pack. Where magnum revolvers come into play is if you're hunting and taking longer shots where precision is important.
 
I would be curious about the OP's area of operations- OH or ID...

We live in bear central, and the question isn't about a hypothetical bear encounter, but how many per season are you going to experience. In our mountainside home, the bedroom windows are at grade, making unexpected entry by a bear a very valid scenario. My nightstand gun is a 4" 629 No Dash with night sights and Pachmayr Presentation grips.
 
You don't need a 44 mag for bear defense. I'd upgrade the ammo for what you have. I OWN 44 magnums and leave them at home in bear country. You are far more likely to need the gun for 2 legged predators and I choose my outdoors carry guns with that in mind. In the extremely unlikely event of needing to stop a bear standard rounds like 9mm, 40, 45, 10mm, and 357 mag work just fine.

I tend to carry a compact 9mm or 45 if not in bear country. In bear country a G29 in 10mm

No special ammo used in most of these cases and yet they worked 96% of the time.

https://www.ammoland.com/2019/08/ha...r-attack-73-cases-96-effective/#axzz6YEeesaNO

If it makes you sleep better at night invest in some of the better Buffalo Bore or Double Tap ammo. This stuff is expensive, but you aren't going to shoot a bunch of it. Two boxes might last a lifetime.

https://www.wideopenspaces.com/alaska-man-kills-charging-brown-bear-with-a-9mm-pistol/
https://www.buffalobore.com/
https://doubletapammo.com/

For defense purposes shots are going to be close. Precision shots aren't needed and it may take multiple hits. You need something small enough that you will actually carry it and not leave it in the car or pack. Where magnum revolvers come into play is if you're hunting and taking longer shots where precision is important.

Underwood 10mm is available and under a dollar a round in some cases. Maybe right at a dollar a round. They have the full power loads and heavy hardcast bullets.

I have some of it and some buffalo bore i should do an informal side by side test on.
 
If I were buying a new 44 right now, it would be a Taurus raging hunter. If it were for bear protection I would likely go with the 4” but if you plan to hunt with it at all then I would go longer. With a gun that large, 2 inches of barrel doesn’t make a lot of difference as the gun will be open carry.
 
You don't need a 44 mag for bear defense. I'd upgrade the ammo for what you have. I OWN 44 magnums and leave them at home in bear country. You are far more likely to need the gun for 2 legged predators and I choose my outdoors carry guns with that in mind. In the extremely unlikely event of needing to stop a bear standard rounds like 9mm, 40, 45, 10mm, and 357 mag work just fine.

I tend to carry a compact 9mm or 45 if not in bear country. In bear country a G29 in 10mm

No special ammo used in most of these cases and yet they worked 96% of the time.

https://www.ammoland.com/2019/08/ha...r-attack-73-cases-96-effective/#axzz6YEeesaNO

If it makes you sleep better at night invest in some of the better Buffalo Bore or Double Tap ammo. This stuff is expensive, but you aren't going to shoot a bunch of it. Two boxes might last a lifetime.

https://www.wideopenspaces.com/alaska-man-kills-charging-brown-bear-with-a-9mm-pistol/
https://www.buffalobore.com/
https://doubletapammo.com/

For defense purposes shots are going to be close. Precision shots aren't needed and it may take multiple hits. You need something small enough that you will actually carry it and not leave it in the car or pack. Where magnum revolvers come into play is if you're hunting and taking longer shots where precision is important.

Usually I just kinda pass these threads by but I have to reply to this one.

That's terrible advice and even the link you posted literally said that all 44 magnum instances were successful. Most of the smaller calibers don't exactly stop the bear, they just scared it away. Wounding the animal because a couple ounces of gun was too heavy is crappy all around for you and the bear.

Not every 44 mag weighs 4 tons, mine weighs 25oz in fact.

Using enough gun is a good idea. It's a black and white question that a lot that a lot color with some odd stuff.

I do agree that you also have to deal with 2 legged threats, but it's not like a 44 magnum is useless in this situation
 
Gave up on the shotgun, eh? Cheaping out on something you are trusting to save your life if needed doesn't seem like a well thought out plan.
Neither does buying some fancy rig that costs 5 grand, but I guarantee that a top of the line revolver could be procured with a lot of custom features for that price. To save your bacon you simply need a gun that works reliably and hits where you want it to. That doesn’t really take much. Brings me back to a day I had with a friend of mine who liked to make bets to make things fun. We usually ended up owing the other dinner somehow but on one particular day he brought out a Python and was talking it up. I quickly put that python to shame with a Taurus 689. At that time we were talking $250 gun vs $2500 gun. No snobbery, no bragging, the python is a great gun, but functionally that one is no better than that same Taurus. Cheaping out is not usually a good thing, but if we are real honest then a lot of times it makes sense. Do we really need that nice new Cummins powered Ram, or would the 93 s10 still pull the lawn mower trailer?
 
I trust my life with a Taurus Tracker 44 whenever I go off the beaten path in Arizona. I purchased it because I wanted an inexpensive, reliable 44 that was light enough to carry on long hikes and accurate at 10-20 yards. It's never fired a single round of factory ammo, just reloads, and mostly full power magnum loads. It's proven itself to be 100% reliable through more than 300 full power rounds, which is more than I can say for my S&W 500. My 500 had a trigger lock-up within the first 50. Even the mighty Redhawk isn't infallible, just ask my SiL. His Ruger lost the barrel before it reached 100 rounds, split right where it meets the frame. To this day he still insists it was the ammo. Yes he's an Idiot.
 
What's the cheapest 44 mag out there? Looking for something for bear defense for camping. Probably wont shoot it alot.

I picked up a Ruger Alaskan in .44mag, used, with this sort of thing in mind. I personally I wouldn't buy a Taurus for this purpose. Just-good-enough isn't where it's at for me, for this application.

That said if I really thought I had to defend my camp against a bear, I'd take a pump shotgun full of slugs. YMMV.
 
If you are looking for a .44 Magnum that you don't intend to shoot very often but still be accurate with, I recommend a lever-action carbine over any revolver. Handguns require practice. It isn't optional.
 
If you are looking for a .44 Magnum that you don't intend to shoot very often but still be accurate with, I recommend a lever-action carbine over any revolver. Handguns require practice. It isn't optional.

100%

A 44 magnum requires time and training to get good with it, the lighter the firearm gets, the larger the learning curve. I am, by admission, not a rifle guy and my Henry Big Boy carbine in 44 mag was much easier to get used to.
 
100%

A 44 magnum requires time and training to get good with it, the lighter the firearm gets, the larger the learning curve. I am, by admission, not a rifle guy and my Henry Big Boy carbine in 44 mag was much easier to get used to.


As the owner of a 329pd......can confirm the learning curve
 
As the owner of a 329pd......can confirm the learning curve

Exactly, I have a very heavy Super Redhawk with a scope that takes a large amount of the sting out of a hot 44 magnum load...and it is nothing compared to a 329 (truth be told, I'm really intimidated by one of those, but I'd like to shoot one). It's not a magnum, but my 44 special Bulldog at 19oz is one that I still have not mastered...and may never with as little as I shoot it.
 
Exactly, I have a very heavy Super Redhawk with a scope that takes a large amount of the sting out of a hot 44 magnum load...and it is nothing compared to a 329 (truth be told, I'm really intimidated by one of those, but I'd like to shoot one). It's not a magnum, but my 44 special Bulldog at 19oz is one that I still have not mastered...and may never with as little as I shoot it.

I originally bought it to be a 44 Special only but I'm trying it out as a magnum. Some of the recoil is..... horrible. Its hard to really shoot it as much as needed to master it's trigger and such with the ammo shortage and it's recoil but I'm slowly getting it.

It absolutely loves Underwood 255gr 44 specials though so far
 
Taurus Tracker 5 shot .44 is for a new revolver. IMO it's also practical considering it's a 5 shot, which means the cylinder is smaller and it weighs 35oz. The Ruger Redhawk is nowhere near 35oz.
I fly fish several times a year in mountians areas where bear encounters are possible and wanted something a little bigger than my .357. Looked around and and finally got the tracker .44 because of the weight ,carried a lot shot a little about 400 rds a year for the last 8 years with no problems. The cylinder is short so you have to watch overall lenght of cartridges 300 grains is about the heaviest I have found to fit and not all of these fit. Mostly shoot hard cast 250 keiths and 270 flat nose. I hope if things open back up to take it to Alaska 2021 for a couple of months . When fishing its in a hill people kit bag or Alaskan guide chest rig.
 
I fly fish several times a year in mountians areas where bear encounters are possible and wanted something a little bigger than my .357. Looked around and and finally got the tracker .44 because of the weight ,carried a lot shot a little about 400 rds a year for the last 8 years with no problems. The cylinder is short so you have to watch overall lenght of cartridges 300 grains is about the heaviest I have found to fit and not all of these fit. Mostly shoot hard cast 250 keiths and 270 flat nose. I hope if things open back up to take it to Alaska 2021 for a couple of months . When fishing its in a hill people kit bag or Alaskan guide chest rig.

My dad has my 44c now, it's basically a snubby Tracker, and his best luck has been with 300gr CastCores.
 
I fly fish several times a year in mountians areas where bear encounters are possible and wanted something a little bigger than my .357. Looked around and and finally got the tracker .44 because of the weight ,carried a lot shot a little about 400 rds a year for the last 8 years with no problems. The cylinder is short so you have to watch overall lenght of cartridges 300 grains is about the heaviest I have found to fit and not all of these fit. Mostly shoot hard cast 250 keiths and 270 flat nose. I hope if things open back up to take it to Alaska 2021 for a couple of months . When fishing its in a hill people kit bag or Alaskan guide chest rig.
If you're gonna be in Grizzley territory a revolvers is the best option for a handgun. If it was black and brown bear, I'd feel more than adequately armed with a 10mm.
 
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