.44 magnum stopping power? Also what is .44 special?

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Hellbore

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I can't seem to find any information about one-shot stopping power of .44 magnum. I find lots of data about 9mm parabellum, .45 ACP, .40 S&W, .357 Magnum, and .38 Special, but I never see any figures about .44 magnum. I am buying a .44 magnum revolver "just for fun" as well as for defense against black bears, and I know it is effective for this... but I want to know if it is also effective for use as a home-defense gun or CCW (don't laugh, it would be under a coat).

Also, what's the deal with .44 special? I know that in a .357 magnum revolver you can shoot .38 special if you want. Does this hold true with .44 special, can you shoot .44 special out of a .44 magnum revolver?

Thanks for any info :D
 
Yes, you can shoot .44 special out of a .44 mag. .44 special has the same diameter bullets, but a shorter case. If you handload, you can get almost anything you want out of a .44 mag case from very light target loads to very heavy loads, and there's little need to buy .44 special. If you're buying commercial ammo, .44 special makes a nice target load (depending on what you buy) for plinking.

Also, I don't have any human stopping power stats, but my (fairly lightly) handloaded 240 grain jacketed soft point dropped a 200 pound 8 point buck in his tracks at 50 yards. So it definitely has potential as a defensive round.

:)

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I think 44 mag would be almost overkill for a ccw. Seems like you might have a higher chance of getting the bullet to pass through and hit something else you didn't want it to. I think it'l put whatever down you want to go down without a doubt though.
 
The 44Mag is too much for SD, it recoils too much for rapid second shots and penetrates too much. You could load a 240 gr SWCHP to about 900 fps and you'd get an excellent SD round. You could also use 44 special rounds .There are some very good SD rounds available for the 44 special now.
 
Just to second what was already posted......

I think you will find out why a 44 mag is not the best for home defense after your first trip to the range.

I can't imagine touching off a 44 mag inside a house in low light conditions. You will be blind and deaf after the first shot. It would be like holding a flash-bang in your hands.

Overpenetration is the next concern. The round will most likely keep on going thru the bad guy and still have a fair amount of energy left for whatever it runs into next (but would still ruin the bad guy's day)

Having said that there are some good self defense loads in .44 special. So stick to the .44 mags out in the field and .44 specials for the home.

Enjoy the new revolver. I used to have a S&W 629 with 8 3/4" barrel and a 1.5 power scope on it (so long ago it seems). It was set up to be used as a hunting rig but ended up as a range queen. But let me tell you, it was a blast to shoot not to mention it was quite the tack driver.
 
Hellbore,

If I were you I'd completely ignore so-called "one shot stop" statistics. They are fairly worthless and the methods used to arrive at the statistics are inherently flawed. With good HP ammo all of the modern service calibers (9mm to .45) have pretty similar performance records in the real world.

brad cook
 
re. the one-shot stopping statistics, I think you are right, I seem to recall this being the case when I was researching the .40 S&W caliber. I found a deal on a CZ40B for only $250 but I hadn't heard much about .40 S&W (this was a few years ago). I was worried about whether .40 S&W had good enough stopping power, but when I asked about it, the replies here pretty much put my mind at ease. I now think I wouldn't begin to feel under-gunned with a .40 S&W, .45, .357 mag, or 9mm.
 
Good info above. Get a gun chambered in .44 Mag but carry .44 Specials in it. I bought a 329PD last year and with .44 Special it's a real nice shooter, and extremely light.

I touched off exactly ONE round of Magnum in this revolver and won't do it again unless I am hiking in bear country, then it will be stuffed with Silvertip Magnums.
 
I think 44 mag would be almost overkill for a ccw. Seems like you might have a higher chance of getting the bullet to pass through and hit something else you didn't want it to. I think it'l put whatever down you want to go down without a doubt though.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but I have to disagree.

My normal carry caliber is the trusty .357 magnum, since it's available in compact, easily concealed revolvers. When I carry openly, I often pack my pre-agreement Smith & Wesson model 629 with three-inch barrel, which I keep loaded with full duty .44 magnum rounds.

Modern jacket hollow point bullet design largely eliminates the worry about bullets passing completely through bad guys—assuming one puts the bullet where it belongs, which is to say: squarely in the center of mass. A shot to the fleshy part of a leg could, indeed, pass through and keep going, which could injury an innocent bystander. That's equally true of the .357 magnum, the .38 special, the 9 millimeter, et cetera.

The three most critical factors in self-defense ammunition are bullet placement, bullet placement, and bullet placement. I believe if you can't control the .44 magnum—or any other round, for that matter—you should carry something else.

All that saidâ„¢, one of the reasons I like the .44 magnum for self and home defense is that if you're up against two criminals, the second is likely to be thoroughly intimidated by the blast that stopped the first.
 
All that saidâ„¢, one of the reasons I like the .44 magnum for self and home defense is that if you're up against two criminals, the second is likely to be thoroughly intimidated by the blast that stopped the first.
Click to expand...

Especially if it blows through his friend and into him.

:evil:
 
To answer your original question specifically:

44 Magnum Caliber:
One Shot Stopping Success: 76-90% (Actual)
Recommended Cartridges:

Winchester "Silvertip" JHP 210 grains 90%
Federal JHP 180 grains 89%
Remington SJHP 240 grains 88%
Winchester JHP 240 grains 84%
Federal JHP 240 grains 80%


The blast and kick of this powerful caliber make it less than optimal for self defense. Penetration is 12 to 14 inches. In addition to the top two recommended rounds, consider the Cor-Bon JHP, 180 grains.

Keep in mind that a gun chambered for .44 Magnum is also capable to shooting the .44 Special. The reverse is not applicable.



Unlike many others, I subscribe to the idea that the real world one shot stop numbers are better than whatever theorectical mumbo jumbo is in second place. The one shot stop numbers were never meant to be a statistical exercise. They are simply a report of what has happened on the times that only one torso hit with the round occured in real life. You may draw your own conclusions about what this means. There are too many variables in real world shootings to do much of a statistically "pure" analysis, but I think it is significant when 360 out of 400 people shot once with a round stopped the actions for which they were shot, regardless of how many were shot multiple times for whatever reason. Everyone is welcome to their own opinion, but that is mine.

Roll Tide
 
I carry a .44 Magnum for SD (S&W 629, 4").
I carry the 240-gr Hydra-Shok bullets. They are rated at 1180 fps from a 6.5" barrel. From my 4" it runs 1030-1050fps.

Now people trust a 230-gr bullet at 850 fps (950 for +p) from a .45 ACP, I don't think a bullet 10 grains heavier and 100-200 fps faster is going outside the realm of self-defense. Now the Hydra-Shok is a light load for the .44. Now way should you carry one fo the full-power hunting loads (for one thing, it'd be less effective because they are designed to open up slowly, unlike a defense round, and won't fully expand in a human).
 
Elmer Keith was a big fan of the .44 Special and Magnum. Do a Google search on him, real interesting.
 
Currently I do not own a .44mag. But when I did I had a lot of fun with it. Shot .44 specials mostly though. Fire a cylinder full of stout .44mags and you'll see the light. It's a great round that can fill many roles. For self defense purposes it would do quite well if you use lighter loads. The key thing with using a .44mag or self defense is the same regardless of the cal. you decide to defend yourself with...PRACTICE. Beyond that I'd say that the only down side to using a .44mag for self defense has already been mentioned. Slow follow up shots.
 
You should check out the books by Marshal and Sanow. Stopping Power, Street Stoppers. etc. I found them to be very informative and might give you another perspective on the one shot stop. They also have a web site stoppingpower.net which has good forums.
 
Black hills made a run of .44 Special with a 250 Gr Kieth bullet doing about 950 fps. Thats what is loaded in my 696. I am convinced, in Texas anyway, that I will not be attacked by anything, 2 or 4 legged, that I am undergunned for. A 9mm Might expand to 50 caliber, but, that .44 won't shrink. A good friend of mine claims the real world of stopping power can be broken down to: Poke a hole. Poke it all the way through. Poke the biggest hole you can. When I see videos of some of the crazies out there, and, see some of the nuts out there, and as fat as people are getting here in the US, I'm not convinced that 10-12 inches of penetration is always best. As a matter of fact, in my SP-101 I am strongly considering going to the old 158 GR lead Semi Wadcutter. I dunno....

....I may decide tommorrow that its too hot to carry a big gun and find myself walking around with my Kahr PM9 and making an argument for 115 Gr HP....
 
sgt127: Where did you find that Black Hills ammo? I've looked for it and haven't been able to find it.
 
If you can comfortably carry the gun and shoot it accurately you can use it for a carry gun. Personally, I like shooting a 44 magnum and shoot it more accurately than I can a .357 or a 9mm. It's a round I like a lot.
 
Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch fame recently coerced S&W into making a "new" .44 Special Revolver specifically as a personal defense gun (NOT CCW). The nay sayers aside, the .44 special is much more reasonable against two legged threats than it's mag c????erpart. All that said, you should be comfortable and reliable with your firearm of choice. I feel that the well respected accuracy of this round has a large part to do with the fact that these guns are made with a full frame, with large grips, and they weigh enough to help stabilize the gun.
You'll surely be able to get more bullets fired with an auto when pressed for time, but if you can make that first one count...
 
Z_infidel

I found it at Cheaper than dirt. Bought a box, liked it, went back and they were all gone. I'm hording the remaing 25 rounds. I think Georgia Arms makes a good .44 Special, gotta check them out. Sorry...Wish I had bought them all now...
 
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