44 mag vs. 45 colt

If you handload, (or select your factory ammo and firearms carefully) they are essentially equal.

Take your pick.

HOT Hodgdon 45 colt loads are only for some firearms. 45 Colt (Ruger, Freedom Arms & T/C only) Note: Not all Rugers.

If comparing maximum loads in both 44 mag & 45 Colt. The 44 is my choice.

You can get a 45 colt in a smaller frame and handier single action like a vaquero or similar if that matters. I prefer 44 but I'm a handgun hunter. The Blackhawks are pretty heavy and just clunky. Excellent guns though. do have a few 45 but for no real reason other than to hold the safe down. I dont remember the last time I fired a 45 colt.

As far as a lever gun, I cant see much difference

In the big frames like the Ruger Redhawks and large frame Blackhawks and the Thompson single shots, they're functionally identical.

If you get the same caliber in both a pistol and rifle you get to play the game of trying to find a load both like.

I have and love them both in the platform match-ups you mentioned.

Only major difference in my estimation between the two is .44 mag brass will give you longer serviceable life if you lean towards the hot end of the load spectrum. .45 Colt brass was not designed from the git go as a magnum round.

The .45 Colt is an excellent cartridge in it's own right, much like the .44SPC, but if you want Magnum-level power, just get the .44.

Charlie98 said:

The .45 Colt is an excellent cartridge in it's own right, much like the .44SPC, but if you want Magnum-level power, just get the .44.

Click to expand...

I've got the levergun (marlin) and blackhawk in .45 colt , that said I agree with charlie98 , if you want/need magnum go .44.
I have arthritis so I'm not even the least bit interested in more recoil in whatever caliber. The first thing I did with the blackhawks was put Hoague grips on them and I load to the light side in .45 colt. The cylinder for the .45 colt blackhawk looks brand new, the .45auto cylinder for the same gun has had many thousands of rounds through it and it looks like it

Back in my younger days, when I wanted maximum velocity out of everything, I would load .45 Colt Ruger-only loads for my Vaquero. I realized how dumb that was.. pushing the .45 Colt past what it was designed for, even given reliable loading data for it. I now have a .41MAG for that kind of stuff. I would say the same thing about hot-rodding the .44SPC, even in a .44MAG firearm. Use the tool that was intended for the job.

I've been shooting and reloading the 44 Mag for about 25 years. I've got...um....several 44 Mag handguns and shoulder guns. I have put many thousands of rounds through various Rugers, Smith's, and one lonely Taurus M44 that has done yeoman's service for over 20 years.

If I were to do it over, I would do it in 45 Colt.

But, then I wouldn't own a beautiful Ruger 44 Carbine.

I have a SBH in 44 magnum and a SBH Bisley in 45 Colt. I enjoy loading and shooting them both. It all depends on what you want to do.

With handloads they are basically a toss-up. I've had many revolvers, both single and double-action in both calibers, and the .44s are consistently a little more accurate, and there is a wider selection of bullets available. Stay with the .44. Now if you just have to try something new, then get a .41 magnum.

You already gots the 44... Get another 44.

45 Colt won't get you anything new

not if you use a 454 casull handgun for the 45 colt load. you might want to look into that if you plan on shooting a lot of heavy loads. your 629 s&w revolver is not as strong as any revolver chambered in 454 casull.

luck,

murf

murf said:

not if you use a 454 casull handgun for the 45 colt load. you might want to look into that if you plan on shooting a lot of heavy loads. your 629 s&w revolver is not as strong as any revolver chambered in 454 casull.

luck,

murf

Click to expand...

460 is even better but he said 45 colt vs. 44 magnum

In terms of energy, there's not much difference between the 44 Mag and 45 Colt Ruger only loads. As stated, bullet selection is a bit better for the 44, as are price and availability. But in terms of bullet diameter, the step from 44 to 45 is bigger than the step from 41 to 44 (if that matters to you).

I know you said 44 Mag vs 45 Colt, but the 454 is generally available in the same size guns as the 44 Mag. So the 454 represents a sizable step up in power in the same package size as the 44 Mag.

I need some explanation on how 44 bullet selection is better than 45.

Last I looked at Brownells or Midway, there were twice as many 45 bullets than 44 in the catalog.

68Dave said:

I’m thinking I want single action to load for,

Click to expand...

I have both a Super Blackhawk 44 Mag and a Blackhawk 45 Colt. The larger framed Super Blackhawk with full-house 44 Magnum loads is a lot easier on my 72 year-old wrist and elbow than the Blackhawk with "Ruger Only" 45 Colt loads.
In our younger years though, my wife and I were way into backpacking, and I carried the Blackhawk with "Ruger Only" 45 Colt loads. I wanted 44 Magnum power (for grizzlies and sasquatches and such) in a smaller, lighter package. Nowadays, I'd just carry my Smith Model 69 - it probably wouldn't handle a steady diet of full-house 44 Magnum loads, but we never ran across a grizzly or a sasquatch in our backpacking years anyway.

44 brass is dirt cheap and available everywhere.
But it appears that 45 jacketed bullets are a little cheaper. You can use "revolver" or "pistol" bullets since COAL almost doesn't matter in revolvers.

If you plan on getting a lever gun and a revolver there is only one choice. 45Colt.

The SAAMI min groove spec on 44mag rifles is .431" which in my experience ruins any chance of great accuracy with the common .429 - .430" pistol bullets.

Loaded hot, the 45Colt can meet and surpass the performance of 44mag and the "weak brass" mentioned above hasn't been true for decades. Modern 45Colt brass is every bit as strong as 44mag brass.

earlthegoat2 said:

I need some explanation on how 44 bullet selection is better than 45.

Click to expand...

In jacketed bullets there are more offerings suitable for high power (bullets with cannelures) in 44 Mag than for 45 Colt (Ruger Only) loads. In the case of cast bullet moulds, there are similar numbers of bullet options with crimp grooves.

If you add bullets intended for the 45 Auto, the options of both jacketed and cast are greater for the 45 caliber. But if they cannot be roll crimped they will be limited to lower power levels in the 45 Colt. So if one is interested in mostly light plinking loads, there would be more bullet options for the 45 Colt.

I personally use plated 45 Auto bullets taper crimped into 45 Colt cases for plinking loads. Such a combination can offer a slightly lower cost jacketed/plated bullet option than available for the 44 Mag. But for high power loads, jacketed bullet options in 44 Cal. are greater, as well as being lower in cost in some instances.

.308 Norma said:

In our younger years though, my wife and I were way into backpacking, and I carried the Blackhawk with "Ruger Only" 45 Colt loads.

Click to expand...

That's actually what I loaded the Ruger-only loads for in my Vaquero, as well as my brother's Winchester Trapper. I call my Vaquero my 'knock-about' pistol, and loaded with Ruger-level 260grn JSP's, there is very little it can't handle in the mountains of Colorado, or out on the NV desert. These days I carry my 4" Smith 58, however... there is something to be said for a double-action revolver.

I've wondered this myself over the years and it's impossible to get a straight answer from the Internet Gun Community. I'll attempt to cut thru it and give you the best answer I can.

In terms of power, they're about equal, but if you're gonna go above the 14k PSI limit for .45 Colt then you're stuck with a Ruger or a BFR for revolvers, for .44 Mag as long as it's chambered for .44 Mag, you can shoot .44 Mag from it. I have a .45 Colt Redhawk that also shoots .45 ACP... it's probably my favorite revolver and I've read that they can eat 50k PSI loads all day.

I've been trying out loads for the .45 ACP to see how much I can push it. Right now 5.4gr of Bullseye will push a 225gr lead bullet to 840 fps, that's with a decent jump to the throat and the gap sucking some energy. My goal with the .45 ACP in the Redhawk is to get to 1000 fps with a 230 grain jacketed bullet and I see no reason the Redhawk can't handle that.

Hot .45 Colt tho, I have no need to load to 50k PSI even tho the Redhawk can take it. If I want more power than 14k PSI, I use published data and IDK of any published data that goes much above .44 Mag pressures.

Case life with the .45 Colt... it depends on the brass you use. Apparently Starline has tested and advertises that their .45 Colt brass can handle .44 Mag pressures:

https://www.starlinebrass.com/45-colt-brass

Our .45 Colt brass has been tested to .44 Magnum pressures in gun systems suitable for such loads. last with Ruger/Thompson Center loads that go beyond 14k PSI.

Click to expand...

Other companies I severely doubt their .45 Colt brass was built for anything more than 14k PSI.

Accuracy I can't speak much to as I've never shot .44 before. I can say that with standard pressure .45 Colt loads, the case volume is so large that it can cause inconsistency with the power burn and ignition, but if the .45 Schofield case is used, given the case volume is less and the amount of air is reduced, it shoots more consistently and accurately. With higher power loads, I see no reason the .45 Colt can't be as accurate as .44 Mag.

In a rifle I see no difference between .44 and .45 Colt, but I've been trying to find out how well .45 Colt levers cycle when using bullets that weigh 300 grains or more as those would be longer than normal and I can't get a straight answer on that either. With .44 Mag, it seems they're able to cycle anything from 200 grain loads to 300+.

What I like about .45 Colt is it can shoot the same bullets as .45 ACP, so when it's panic time your available selection is greater. I also like that if I want to make a load that uses two round balls, I can use the Speer or Hornady muzzleloader balls that I already have for my .44 percussion revolvers. The balls are also about 20gr heavier than the .433 balls, so that's an extra 40gr of lead being put down range with each trigger pull.

For a revolver, especially if you get a Ruger that's able to shoot .45 ACP, there's a lot of reasons to get .45 Colt. For a lever action, IDK.

Hooda Thunkit said:

I've been shooting and reloading the 44 Mag for about 25 years. I've got...um....several 44 Mag handguns and shoulder guns. I have put many thousands of rounds through various Rugers, Smith's, and one lonely Taurus M44 that has done yeoman's service for over 20 years.

But, then I wouldn't own a beautiful Ruger 44 Carbine.

Click to expand...

I have been shooting and reloading the 45 Colt for close to 40 years.
If I were to do it again I would go with the 44.
More factory ammo choices, more firearms availability, and 44 special!