Powderpuff 44 Mag Load Anyone?

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TenDriver,

This is not difficult at all. Just use 6.0gr of either the Bullseye or 700X powders you have with whatever cast or plated bullet you decide to use.

Don
 
19.5 gr of IMR4227 will push a 240 jacketed at about the same pace as 10 gr of Unique.
 
I shoot a ton of 200 gr lead bullets thru my various 44 mags. Sorry you can't find any 231 at this time as that's what I've been using. Several of the posters have suggested alternate powders that might be available.
 
I use a cast lee 240 grain on top of 11.0 grains of blue dot and a rem 2 1/2 primer out of my super Blackhawks hunter. Travels around 1000 fps. Recoil is light enough for my little sister to shoot up all my ammo in a weekend.
 
Load Very subsonic 44 mag for a friend using 215gr leads SWC's over 4 grains of Unique.

Its for a suppressed, full length rifle- and none of them have never not exited the bbl.
 
I've found 6.5 grains of RedDot or 7 grains of W231/HP-38 with a plated Xtreme 240 gr to be pretty mild. Can't remember what the starting loads are, so maybe lower is OK.

They sell a 200 grain, too, but in my experience, loading the same bullet to lower velocity gives a WAY smaller change in POI than loading a lighter bullet. I'm not interested in adjusting my sights often, so I'd only drop the bullet weight if I needed to dedicate that gun to ultra-powderpuff use for a long while. If you want to go that way and use your existing powder, Hodgdon shows 4.5 grains of TiteGroup as the .44 Special starting charge giving 850 fps for a 200 grain lead bullet. You could go up a to 5 grains if you are nervous about too little oomph, but I would shoot those in .44 Mag brass. The 200 RNFP has rather small bearing surface, and the plated bullets are pretty soft, so I'm guessing the lead data is OK.

Xtreme shipped fast on my orders, so I'll bet you could have these loaded up by Wednesday!
 
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Favorite .44 Mag light loads

My old favorite was 8.0 gr of Unique or Universal Clays behind a 240 gr Laser Cast SWC. I also loaded some very mild loads using 5.5 gr of Titegroup with a 200 gr RNFP cast bullet for cowboy action shooting. Very mild and accurate at closer ranges. Titegroup was recommended due to it not being position sensitive in a case. You also get a lot of loads out of a pound of powder.
 
Lite 44

Try Titegroup with a 180 or 200 gr cast bullet. It is like shooting 38 wadcutters in a 357. Leaves a burn mark on the mouth of the case, though. Data is from Hodgdon web site
 
Bringing an oldie back.

I'm thinking of trying one at a time flea fart loads, somewhere along the .22 CB level. I've thought about dropping down down in the 2.0 gn range of Bullseye, but only if the powder can be safely reduced. I would be on the lookout for squibs obviously, and no one else is going to be shooting these.

Mainly looking to piss off an armadillo in an area I've got to be quiet in.
 
You might be able to shoot that load, but my money would be on sticking a bullet with that light of a charge.
 
My favorite .44 magnum plinking load is 5.7-5.9 grains of Bullseye under a 240 grain LSWC bullet. I can shoot three or four dozen of those out of my 5 1/2" barrel Ruger Super Blackhawk with no pain and lots of smiles per round at distances from 10 to 50 yards.

This weekend I ran out of Bullseye and loaded a couple dozen using that same weight of Titegroup for the first time. I hope to find out Thursday how they shoot.

5.0 grains of Bullseye felt way too light even for me with the 240 grain LSWC in the .44 magnum. I found that 5.5 grains was not as accurate as the 5.7-5.9 grain loads.
 
Loaded three test rounds and got my wood dowel ready. Started off at 2.0 of 700X, then 2.6, and finished at 3.0. The 2.0 round got a roll crimp because I forgot to adjust the die (just wanted to take the bell off the mouth). If I even decide to try it, I'm going to start with the 3.0 load and run the dowel through the barrel after the shot.

My main concern is pressure idiosyncrasies due to the ridiculously low charge weight. Apples to oranges comparison, but I have fired some very light 700X loads in 9mm with success.
 
700X is a good one to try as it burns fairly well at really low pressures, but in the big .44 case vs a 9MM case there is a lot of room to roll around in. Your FPS will vary greatly with the powder against the bullet vs against the primer.

A low charge weight test. Remember, the .45 Auto case is a lot smaller than a .44 Mag case.
 
6 Grains of Red Dot with a 240 grain lead projectile is a starting load and should give you what you are looking for.Bullseye will also work as will Clays.
 
I too had the same recoil issue. I got lucky and found a Lee 429-162 mold. I cast and loaded up some with help from this thread. I used 5.0 to 7.0 gr win 231 (which i know you are having a problem getting ) .
I learned the 5.0 gr was bordering bullet stuck in barrel, so I moved up to 6.0 as a minimum. I did find 7.0 gr was most accurate @ 25yds. Have not finished testing yet.
IMHO, I would go with the lightest bullet available (for least recoil). I like cast, but you may not. I did a thread earlier "wussy cat 44 mag loads" (or something close to that) with full data might want to check.
Good luck, Catpop
 
Just tried the 2.0 gn load, sounds like a 22LR. No noticeable recoil out of my Rossi 92. No clue on the velocity, but louder than I wanted.

I didn't bother shooting the heavier loads for the time being.
 
Thanks!

I'm not too worried about that, just trying to make minimal noise. I doubt I can get them quiet enough without sticking a bullet so I'm off the flea fart project. It was pretty nice making a no recoil, 22LR sounding round out of the 2 gn charge though.
 
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