44 Magnum Recoil

[RDCL]

I've had many years shooting my model 29 Smiths.

My first time shooting a 44 mag. at an indoor range...the blast & kick was a bit of a shock to me but I got used to it really quick. I mention indoor range because the little cubicle walls you are standing in makes the cuncussion, fireball & blast seem MUCH worse than outdoors.....even with earmuffs on.

The talk of injured wrist and hammers in foreheads is just myth. Anyone whom would actually let a handgun hit them in the forehead needs to find a different hobby.

....BUT....injuries due to recoil of a smith model 29 ARE possible! Many times in the early days I've had my thumb knuckle gouged & bloodied from the cylinder release latch digging in! In later years I learned how to hold the gun in such a way that I no longer went home with a bloody thumb.

Russ

 

[ArmedBear]

If you shoot a long-barrel Super Blackhawk, make sure you have clearance above you. The muzzle will end up well above the top of your head (but still out in front of you of course).

 

[skoro]

I don't own a .44 mag, but a pal does. It's a Ruger Blackhawk, and I've shot it a number of times. It's REALLY loud, but the recoil isn't nearly as bad as I was led to believe. Sure, it's a little more than .357 rounds out of my steel k-frame S&W, but not THAT much more.

The one that stings my hands is a lightweight snubby firing .38+P. After a cylinder of that stuff, I feel like I've been holding an angry wasp.

 

[Tamlin]

I used to be recoil-sensitive (at least, I thought I was). But now, knowing what's coming, I LIKE it! There is nothing like firing off a cannon blast from a 4" .44 magnum (or a .357). Big Grin! Snubbies, however, are a different story. Shot a Rossi .357 snubbie - hated it.

 

[AStone]

Good article on .44 mag here by Craig Boddington, who followed Elmer Keith in writing that column.

Here's the main point I took from it:

Heavy loads like this change the recoil picture considerably. I shoot my .44 a lot, but I don't shoot it much with the heaviest loads because it takes just a few of them to peg out my fun meter. However, I do shoot them, and I strongly recommend you do if you're planning on hunting with them. Because of the more violent muzzle flip of heavier loads, my point of impact rises dramatically as I move up the power scale, so it's important to sight-in carefully with whatever load you're planning to hunt with.

But I don't use the heavier loads more than I have to. I want my .44s to remain fun to shoot.

 

[BCRider]

Shot about a box of factory Magnums over the last 6 months and about 3 brands of them. I've come to the conclusion that the factory loads I shot were a bit over the top and smacked my wrist and hand to where they hurt after a cylinder's worth. In other words the grin went away fast.

With reloads tailored to shoot fast but build the pressure slower with a slower burning powder I may change my mind. And in truth I'm sure such loads are out there. But as far as factory .44's go I'm not keen on them. At least not the brands I've shot.

 

[CajunBass]

I had a Ruger Super Blackhawk years ago. I didn't shoot it a lot with full house magnum loads, but rather with a lighter handload, but even with the "hot" stuff the recoil wasn't all that bad.

The worst thing about it was the squared off "Dragoon" style trigger guard on the Ruger. That thing HURT. Once I switched the grips over to rubber Pachmeyer ones that covered that trigger guard, and were more hand filling the gun was plesant to shoot.

Wish I still had it to tell the truth.

 

[LTR shooter]

Shooting revolvers of similar size and weight like my 6" 686 357 mag and 6 1/2" 629 44 mag there really is no compairison in felt recoil firing magnum loads in each. Say a top load 158 XTP in the 357 and a 240 XTP in the 44. The 44 recoils more plain and simple. Although the 629 is not harsh by any means to most experienced revolver shooters. The 686 feels somewhat mild in compairison.

Firing my old 5 1/2" Super BlackHawk 44 and my current 4 5/8" Blackhawk 357 , again the 44 will deliver far more felt recoil.

Perhaps the most dramatic difference I ever experienced between 357 and 44 recoil was with my TC Contender using 10" barrels. The 44 was downright painful from round one where the 357 caused no discomfort at all after firing a couple of metallic silhouette matches.

 

[AStone]

LTR, that's very useful. Thanks. Great to get a comparison like that.

I had a Ruger Super Blackhawk years ago. I didn't shoot it a lot with full house magnum loads, but rather with a lighter handload, but even with the "hot" stuff the recoil wasn't all that bad.

Cajun, pardon my potentially stupid question: did it shoot .44 spl also?
Assuming so, but the Ruger site makes no mention (on SW site, they'll specify both).

 

[CajunBass]

Cajun, pardon my potentially stupid question: did it shoot .44 spl also?
Assuming so, but the Ruger site makes no mention (on SW site, they'll specify both).

Yes, it'll shoot 44 special, just like a 357 will shoot 38's. I just put up 44 special loads in 44 magnum cases. (I found a bunch of them at the range "back in the day".) It was a hoot to plink with. I used a 240 gr cast lead bullet. It was years ago, and I forget the powder I used.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

I shot a tuned S&W Model 29 w/6" barrel in the '70s and found the recoil very managable. I owned a Ruger Super Blackhawk w/Herters grips,again very managable. I currently own a Taurus M44 w/6" ported barrel and neither I nor my wife even notice the recoil.

 

[oak1971]

I have (4) 44 mag revolvers the latest a 3 inch 629. I am not a big guy, and I have no problem with recoil. It is there, but just keep a good grip and don't freak out.

 

[jad0110]

Out of a 5.5" Redhawk, 44 Mag recoil is not bad at all IMO. It is definitetly there and will get your attention, but I don't find it to be painful.

 

[lobo9er]

i dunno its a 44 mag it kicks but whatever buy one and buy a lever gun to go with it i think we all here could manage the recoil if we wanted to heck sawed off shotty is managable why wouldn't a 44 be?

 

[paochow]

I find that my Desert Eagle .50 recoils less than my M29 and Super Blackhawk. I'm guessing it is the slide dampening the recoil, but I find I can shoot more rounds before the flinching sets in. Haven't shot the .500 yet, just got it last weekend.

 

[Clarence]

The grips on a revolver make a huge difference in how the recoil is felt. With full-house loads none of them are pussycats, but to an experienced shooter they are manageable.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

IIRC, in Bill Jordan's classic book "No Second Place Winner" there is a photo by Elmer Keith of a little 7 year old girl shooting a large handgun one handed. The caption reads " Who the Hell Says a 44 magnum KICKS?" I gave my copy to my son-in-law when he graduated the academy so maybe someone could look it up to verify?

 

[Sam1911]

IIRC, in Bill Jordan's classic book "No Second Place Winner" there is a photo by Elmer Keith of a little 7 year old girl shooting a large handgun one handed. The caption reads " Who the Hell Says a 44 magnum KICKS?" I gave my copy to my son-in-law when he graduated the academy so maybe someone could look it up to verify?

Heh! I've posted pictures of my little 7 year old daughter shooting mine. With .44 Specials, and in a pretty decent isosceles stance rather than one-handed but same idea.

-Sam

 

[Confederate]

Just keep your mouth shut while you're firing it. That way the fillings won't fall out on the ground. Single action fire it first, then DA if you must.

 

[friscolatchi]

Nice thread - learning alot
From my experience, 38 from a 13 oz snubby - not bad and very manageable back on target quickly. 357 from the same gun - Jeckle and Hyde - hold on! brutal but doable.
38 from a 4" K frame very nice - sweet and accurate. 357 158's more recoil, but manageable no flinching. not back on target as quickly. accuracy as good as the 38.
44 sp in a 6.5 N frame feels softer but as stout as the 357 in above mentioned handgun.
44 mag - for me, a relatively inexperienced shooter, a bit more difficult. The X frame grips smoothed it out but still not where I would like to be. In summary, the 357 out of the snubby MP340 is far more violent then the 44 mag from the 629 6.5 with the x frame grips. IMHO, it is as if there is an incremental difference in felt recoil from the above mentioned guns. However, the 340 with 158's is the stoutest. It's hard to get through a box of 50. note, all of the above are factory loads.

 

[myg30]

Ditto above what he said !Tarus 605 .357 hurts, rugerblackhawk 44 no hurt !
Big n heavy no hurt much!
Lite weight, hurt like hell !
Next time at the range ask to shoot someones big bore once, you'll get hooked !!

 

[sw282]

I started shooting 44s in the 70's. My first was a 6" M29. Nice gun. I have owned many of them.The most Brutal was a TC w/10" Octagon barrel. Next was a SBH 10 1/2" with 2X Leupold. Most pleasent a M29 8 3/8" and a SBH 7 1/2". I also own 629 Mt Gn and a M24 3" 44 SPCL Lew Horton. I got rid of the 2 10" guns and traded away the 6" one. Of the ones left I like the 8 3/8" M29 the best. The Mt Gn the least. That 3" 24 is nice to carry and shoot. It has Smiths small laminated service grips. 8gr of Unique and a 240gr Speer SWC are NICE. THE hottest 44 ammo I ever shot was some 180gr Super Vel. Velocity was off the charts. I killed several deer using that ammo. A friend of mine got a chrono back in the late 70's. 4 rounds avgd 1803fps. After the ammo was no longer available I tried duplicating load using Sierra 180gr JHP and MAX manual load of 32gr of WW296. I never could get within 100fps of that Super Vel speed.

 

[Stainz]

Nem,

Here are my 4" & 6" current production 629s sporting wood grips. They are fine for anything up to the occasional .44 Magnums. By anything I mean, well, look at the three rounds at the bottom. They are a .44 Russian, .44 Special, and .44 Magnum. Physically, they differ in length. Ballistically, they feature a 240gr LSWC at 730 fps, 240gr LSWC at 820 fps, and 240gr JHP at ~1,200 fps; 'poof', 'bang', and 'BOOM! All measured from the 4". Just always, during a shooting session, start with the longer-cased .44 Magnums and go to shorter lengths. The carbon/lead buildup at the case mouth on the Russians and Specials can get under the crimp of the higher pressure/longer cased Magnums and slow their bullet release, resulting in a dangerous pressure spike. A chamber brushing, at least, before going back to Magnums - a proper cleaning would be best.



Now, if you want to hunt - with 'real' .44 Magnums, and I stay within SAAMI spec's as I feel if you need more, get a more stout caliber, the first purchase should be the Hogue made-for-S&W .460/.500 Magnum grips. They pad that backstrap - great recoil aid. You can also remove that rear sight, one screw, and install a Weigand, etc, scope rail - blue Loctite those screws - and mount a handgun scope (Weaver H2 2x28 - served well for years on my 7.5" .454C SRH!). The 180gr UMS SJHP are hot - and fly relatively flat from 50-100 yd. A 2X scope isn't much help at 100yd.



The HKS #29 Speedloader in the first image has the Georgia Arms 200gr Gold Dot .44 Specials loaded - ~875 fps from 4" - the same bullet/ballistics as the Blazer 200gr GD .44 Special loads, except cheaper and you gain .44 Special brass. To be honest, the 6" 629 is more fun with iron sights, which it reverted to within a few weeks last fall.

You have to reload to really enjoy the .44 Magnum. You can load wimpy to wow in Magnum cases. At either end, it's fun - and capable of lots of hunting.

Stainz

 

[AStone]

Stainz, thanks for that advice, esp. the idea of grips.

Yes, a buddy and I are going to get into reloading soon;
going to set up the equipment at my studio/shop for common use.