Looking at a .44 Special, but ammo availability concerns me

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minutemen1776

minutemen1776

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I used to handload, and quite a bit. But I don't now. Between family, work, and a half dozen other commitments, I don't foresee getting back into handloading for another few years. Right now, it's hard enough to find time to shoot. So again, handloading is not an option for me in the short term.

All this is a prelude to my latest dilemma. I really want a .44 Special revolver that I'm looking at right now. Having loaded .44 Special in the past, I know it's a grand old cartridge, but it's mostly a roll-your-own endeavor. I cannot recall when I last saw .44 Special on the shelf at a gun store, and online options aren't plentiful either, at least as far as I can tell. So... are there any good options for shooting .44 Special with any regularity that don't involve handloading? I'd really like to get this revolver, but I hate thinking that it will just sit in my gun cabinet waiting on a quieter phase of my life with more free time.
 
I have bought both .44 Spec. and Mag regularly in the last 6 months. I haven't had a problem. I buy all ammo online.
 
I reload but I did buy a box from a local guy that sells from his house before I got brass to reload. His 44spl costs more than 44Mag! I was suprised!
 
I don't reload (yet) but just recently bought a Charter Arms Bulldog.

I got some ammo from ammoseek.com, they have .44 special on there for about $0.50 per shot. Not cheap, but it'll hold me over till I can set up for reloading.
 
It's a classic case of time vs money. The reality is that if you don't get back into reloading for time reasons then you'd better have a lot of spare cash to use for buying ammo. Otherwise you'll have a nice gun to use as a curio on your desk or hung on the wall.

The good news is that if you're that hard up for time that you can't get to the range too often at least buying your ammo will stretch out for a while. Just don't try to shoot fast to make up for lost time when you ARE at the range.... :D

And yeah, I'd suggest having it shipped in from somewhere that has it at reasonable prices. Even with shipping the prices on those links above seem pretty decent.
 
Does anyone have any experience with the LAX loads? The price is pretty good, and you get new Starline brass. It would be nice to stockpile some good brass for when handloading becomes more feasible.
 
I haven't had any trouble finding factory ammunition in .44 Special, and I am pretty close to the end of the supply chain. It is fairly expensive, but it is available. If I was down in the Lower 48 and could order ammo online, I don't think it would be a problem at all. As it is, it is far more cost effective to me to reload, but sometimes I don't make the time and buy factory Winchester.
 
I just got a shipment of LAX .44 specials today.

250 rounds, came with a plastic ammo can. It was cracked on one side though, with rounds poking through. The ammo looks good... nice and shiny, Starline brass. I got the 240 grain FMJ loads.

My Charter Bulldog seems to have a timing issue in double action, so it's back to the mothership. I sure wish I could shoot it, but hopefully it will be back soon. The nice lady on the phone said turnaround time of 7-10 days, that's pretty cool.
 
Much as I love the .44Spl, it'd be hard to justify without handloading. Not only due to cost but the limited utility of available factory loads.
 
Limited utility?
Between 240gr fmj @800fps
and the speer gold dot 200gr load
and the selection of Buffalo bores offerings...

It is better handloaded though!
 
I would have to agree with your concern in the opening post. I like the .44 special & have several but if I could not reload I would not want a 44 special. Yes, you can find factory ammo sometimes, but it will cost you an arm and a leg when you do. If I was restricted to factory ammo I would stick to the super common handgun calibers like 357, 38 special, 9mm, 40 S&W and 45 acp. If you shoot much in no time at all you will spend more than the price of the gun on ammo. Say you buy some of the cheapest bare bones .44 special factory ammo you can find. Lets say it is 34, 35 bucks a box for fifty. 650 rounds or so of that ammo could come close to buying a new blackhawk in .44 special. If you buy premium ammo the cost will be nearly double that. That is about three or four range sessions for me. Course, if you are only going to shoot 20 rounds once or twice a year ammo cost matters a lot less. Just depends how much you see yourself using it or how deep your pockets are.
 
I really like the 44 spl, but if I did not reload I would opt for a 45 acp revolver.
 
I have the Blazer 200 gr Gold dots in mine also have the winchester silver tips. But if time got tough. I would use my 240 gr cowboyloads . That big old wadcutter give a belly ache :eek:
 
My LGS always has .44 Spl in stock. A friend of mine gave me some loads he had until I started loading for it.
Seriously, you can't find a day every few months to knock out a couple of hundred rounds reloading?
 
I'm not a reloader, and very much enjoy shooting my 44. Like most, the 44 is only one of several (or many) guns that gets use, so it's not like I'm burning through a lot of that ammo.

There are folks that wouldn't flinch on spending $1,000 on a scope or other accessories to their guns, but would actually make a gun decision based on ammo costing a little more per round?????

Get the gun you want and shoot it as you can afford. Don't buy a 45acp instead like some are suggesting. You will regret it. I have both calibers, and like both calibers, but they are not the same. Buy what will make you happy. You will shoot it more and will be more likely to keep it.
 
Limited utility?
Between 240gr fmj @800fps
and the speer gold dot 200gr load
and the selection of Buffalo bores offerings...
Click to expand...
That's what I said. Factory loads, other than Buffalo Bore, are where the .44Spl's capability begins. Most factory loads use crap or expensive bullets. Nobody wants to plink with Gold Dots. An FMJ is useless for anything else. Factory lead bullets are soft swaged. You have to get Buffalo Bore to get a decent cast bullet. A handloader can match original ballistics with 6.0gr Unique. Beat it and come close to the Buffalo Bore load with 7.5gr Unique. Or beat the Buffalo Bore load with the 1200fps Keith load. Not to mention Brian Pearce's 300gr data. All the while spending about $7-$8 per 50rds. Tell me again how much those Buffalo Bore loads are? They are over $84/50rds. I shoot untold thousands of the 950fps Skeeter load a year. Let's be modest and say, 2000rds. That's $3360 buying Buffalo Bore. In handloads, it's $280. Factor in the thousands of .32H&R, .38Spl, .38-40, .44Colt, .44Mag, .45Colt, .480Ruger and now .500JRH, that Buffalo Bore money would probably pay for all my shooting for all handloading cartridges all year. With money leftover.

Bottom line, the .44Spl is a handloader's cartridge. If you're shooting factory loads in the .44Spl, you're not getting much out of it and you're paying way too much for ammo. Which probably means you're not shooting much.

This is nothing new, it has always been the case in all of the cartridge's 108yr history.
 
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Sadly, the grand old big bore has fallen by the wayside in the last 10 years. The magnums and the bottom feeders have overtaken it and there just isn't enough interest to justify a lot of factory ammo production. That translates to expensive.

For those of us who hang in there with it, reloading is still an option. New Starline brass is available and it's excellent stuff.

A 240-250 grain lead SWC and 6.5 grains of Unique is a nice, accurate load that beats the old factory 246-grain LRN round for power, and it doesn't beat up the guns. Stepping up to the "Skeeter" standby with 7.5 grains of the same powder brings it to a respectable level of punch on a par with the old .41 Magnum "Police" load. Not exactly the Hammer of Thor, but no weak sister, either.
 
CraigC, I understand that hand loading ANY round will save $$$. No one questions that. Some don't have the know-how, equipment, or TIME even if you did have the equipment. I generally rotate my handguns when target shooting, so no, it's not 44 each time. My 44 (Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan) is even more fun to shoot with Mag loads.

I don't see people avoiding .308, and it's an expensive cartridge, as are many others. I could shoot cheap 9mm or 7.62X39 all day long for less, but that's kind of missing the point??

It's kind of like saying, do you ever take your car into the shop? If your appliances break, do you call someone? If so, why not learn it on your own and do it yourself?

I'm sure hand loading is fun, and maybe I'll get into it some day. In the meantime, it's ok to have fun with factory loads, and there are good ones out there. Choosing a caliber gun should be WAY more than considering the cost of ammo (purpose of firearm, fun factor, etc.).
 
I'm sure hand loading is fun, and maybe I'll get into it some day.
Click to expand...

It comes recommended. It's a fascinating aspect to the whole shooting experience...and saving money is actually a secondary consideration for me. I like being able to try something new without investing in a whole portion of factory ammo...whatever the number it's packed in...just to see what works best.

Then, there's the whole thing about being able to roll your own should your caliber of choice becomes suddenly scarce...which we've seen happen.

Toss in pouring your own bullets, and you're in for the long haul. Instead of reloading so you can shoot more, you'll transition to shooting so you can reload.

And therein lies madness.
 
.44 special can be had for about $0.50 per shot if you look hard enough.

I plan to take up reloading for .44 special soon, but in the interim this is fine. Sure it's more expensive than nine mil, but it's also a heck of a lot more effective too. I've a Charter Bulldog, and once it gets back from customer service, I'll shoot it to get nice and familiarized than probably run a box or so every month. I won't be shooting it near as much as my .38s and .357s, because of ammo cost, but luckily the gun feels VERY similair to my S&W 642- same manual of arms etc. etc. but the Charter has that big .44 hit I've been craving in a CCW piece.

OP, I DO think the .44 special is too expensive to buy factory ammo IF you are planning to shoot a lot of it. This however, is a personal thing. That $0.50 per round might be chump change to you, IDK. But, if you plan for it to be an occasional shooter, I wouldn't avoid .44 special at all.

Hopefully, I'll get to churnin' out my own .44 special someday soon, but in the meantime I'll enjoy my Charter Bulldog and shoot it enough to be comfortable carrying it, and looking for deals on .44 special factory ammo.
 
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