Nice-metering powder for hot .44 Magnum?

[Shmackey]

I'm looking to load some hot (not "Ruger only" but almost) .44 Mag rounds and wondering what the go-to powder is for progressives. You could say I want the .44 Mag equivalent of Power Pistol/Longshot/AA7 in 10mm. There are powders that will get you a little more velocity, but these are still right up there and easy to use too.

Bullet will be 240 and 300 JHP.

 

[Mike 27]

I use 296 with great results. Recoil is manageable enough to shoot full power loads all day out of my SBH Hunter. I usually run 265gr Hornady's over it.

 

[blarby]

Really can't go wrong with h-110.

Just. Cant.

It meters like Jesus himself poured it from the heavens into your hopper, and causes the bullets to fly out the end of the barrel like Gabriel chasing Sin.

Ya, its that good

I'm not kidding.

If you want it hot and perfect, there really is no other alternative IMnshO.

 

[buck460XVR]

W296/H110......same powder. Great stuff for .44mag and jacketed bullets. IMR4227 does not give as much max velocity, but it too meters very well and performs very well in .44 mag, especially in long pipes.

 

[hentown]

AA#9 has been/would still be my choice!

 

[JLDickmon]

W296 - used it
A2400 - use it
that new 300MP looks good, but I haven't tried it yet..
N110 - use it a LOT (love that progressive burn rate)

 

[Walkalong]

H-110/W-296 for the best velocity.

AA #9 if less than absolute top velocity is required.

Enforcer is worth a look.

N-110 is great stuff, but I don't know what the top velocities will be. The Viht PDF is misleading.

 

[highlander 5]

296/H110,AA No 9 and Li'l Gun

 

[blarby]

See, h-110 is so important, walkies even said it twice

*edited*

Aww, thas no fun, you made my post invalid !

 

[codefour]

I tried the new 300-MP.. Great velocity. But it was DIRTY..! The dirtiest magnum powder I have ever used. I loaded 23.0 grains over. 240 grain hard LSWC.. I did get 1250 fps out of a 4 inch Ruger Redhawk. I was 2 or 3 grains under max IIRC..

I am going to go back to H110.. I got better velocity with 300-MP by it took for ever to clean it.

I wonder if 300-MP would be cleaner if I loaded it hotter.??

Anyone else have any 300-MP experience.?

 

[mdi]

Me too. For me W296/H110 has a too narrow load range. AA9 or WC820 are a bit more forgiving...

 

[Bula]

W296-H110 for cast heavies (310 grainers) and 2400 for 265g and below.

 

[CraigC]

H110/296 are great for maximum loads but there is no flexibility. I prefer 2400.

 

[blarby]

No flexibility ?

I use it from 22 to 27 grs, behind 200- 290 gr bullets.

 

[papaairbear]

I use 2400. It wasn't as sooty as 296 in my 629. I have a pound of H-110 but haven't tried it yet.

 

[blarby]

If you find you don't like it, I'm in the wet state too... I could take it off your hands for you

 

[Shrinkmd]

2400 and 300MP for me, although I shoot cast 240gr. There was a handloader article on 300mp in the last year or so which gave load data for lead with 300MP. It duplicates factory, but you need to get close to max otherwise the numbers are all over the place.

Funny, I didn't find 300MP any dirtier, but shooting lead, I wouldn't know!

 

[336A]

2400 would be my pick, it is the most versatile magnum powder out there IMHO. Case in point my Third Edition Lyman Pistol & revolver hanbook shows this data for 2400 and H110 using 240gr and 300gr JHP bullets.

240gr JHC 17.5gr - 19.5gr (2400)
22.5gr - 23.5gr (H110/296)

300gr JSP 15.7gr - 17.5gr (2400)
19.6gr - 20.5gr (H110/296)

This clearly shows 2400 to have more flexability in powder charge weight compared to H110/296. However keep in mind most powders won't burn cleanly until you hit a certain pressure curve. So at the lower end of the loading spectrum 2400 may not burn very clean. 2400 may not be top dog in the velocity department but it is a hard powder to beat due to it's flexability.

Where H110/296 really shines is when it is paired with heavy for caliber bullets. However I think of late heavy for caliber bullets are way over rated anymore. Elmer Keith got by just fine with his 250gr 429421 SWC. That is a hard bullet to stop and a darn accurate one to boot.

 

[BCRider]

As I understand these things the H110 requires Magnum primers as well to ensure a good start and burn. Or am I all wet on that understanding?

On the other hand 2400 seems to be fine with plain large pistol primers. So that might be a small factor.

I tend to prefer the 2400 since for me the big bore loads are just for fun. And the 2400 produces even bigger fireballs than the H110....

 

[blarby]

You are correct BC- you are going to get very mixed results using h-110 without magnum primers.

.

 

[CZ57]

Enforcer is worth a look.

Enforcer is definitely worth a look. It will duplicate velocities of H110/W296 and it can be downloaded much lower than H110/W296. www.ramshot.com Check out the data at Ramshot or if you have a Lyman Pistol & Revolver III, you'll find some very good loads.

 

[4895]

Hodgdon's HS-6 or Alliant's Bluedot are alternatives to H110/W296 if you don't want absolutely MAX loads. You will save a bit on powder as well and won't have to use "Magnum" primers that H110/W296 need.

 

[CraigC]

No flexibility ?

I use it from 22 to 27 grs, behind 200- 290 gr bullets.

Uh, yeah! It has a narrow pressure range, it can only be run in higher pressure cartridges and only with magnum primers.

2400 can be used in the .38Spl, .44Spl, .45Colt (standard and "Ruger only" pressures) AND the .357Mag, .41Mag, .44Mag, .480, .475's and .500's. It has a much broader operating range and runs on standard primers. It's good for at least 90% of H110's velocity at the upper end. Which is why I recommended it over H110/296.

Do people really get to be so in love with a powder that they can't look at it objectively???

It wasn't as sooty as 296 in my 629. I have a pound of H-110 but haven't tried it yet.

H110 and 296 are the same powder. No difference. So if you've tried one, no reason to try the other.

 

[dgod]

I Highly recommend 17.3 Grains of Bluedot, extremely accurate, and 16-18" of fire outthe barrel.

Ihave used it with everything from 180 gr JHP to 300gr Hornady BTSP's. Excellent match. Try a few, you'll see it is a Tack Driver combination out to about 125 Yards.

Good Luck
Dan

 

[ArchAngelCD]

W296/H110 or AA#9 will both do a great job in a progressive press because Ball powders meter like water.