Will A Taurus 44Magnum Last To 1K Rounds?

[Mr.Revolverguy]

STORY TIME
When I got this revolver some 16 years ago I purchased a Taurus M44 revolver. It was very affordable and I have this thing of cheering for the under dog I also have a bit of OCD. The OCD does me well in the safety of reloading and tracking data, even in my log book I have the receipts of the firearms stapled to the round count pages. In all honesty I did not realize I was this close to 1000 rounds through the Taurus M44 until I took it out to clean it one day.

I typically clean my revolvers prior to being put away in the safe but for some reason this one was not clean and I could not remember the last time it was at the range. That’s where the log book comes in, a quick glance and I realize I am only a few cylinders away from 1000 rounds. Had I listened to the internet back then when this thing was purchased it never would have made it past 500 rounds without blowing up in my hand and severing some fingers. Taurus has been thru many changes as a company and yes there is no denying they have had some quality issues, though I do believe they have worked very hard to turn this around. Taurus’s new CEO on his first day two years ago announced he would fix their customer service. It is great to know you have a dependable company that stands behind their product but it is even better to not have to use them and I have not with this 44 and hope to never have to.

A good friend of mine sent me some 260gr Zombie green cast and coated freedom pills, Ford Blue Freedom Pills along with some 275gr Fury soft point jacketed and what better way to surpass this 1000 round barrier, than prepping for zombies.

 

[gotboostvr]

I had a Rossi marked Taurus Tracker in 44mag.

I put a couple hundred rounds of 240gr 44mag through it, plus a bunch of 200gr bullets over unique.

Never thought it wouldn't make it to 1k.

 

[entropy]

Yes. Shooting the loads you show in in that chronograph chart, it should last a lot more than 1000 rounds.

 

[a2x4bbl]

Well over 2000 . All 240 gr XTP’s over WIN 296 .

 

[Buckeye63]

I owned a Tracker in 44mag … 4 inch barrel , I ran a bunch of rounds through it .. I never keep a round count on anything.. so I don’t know how many
But after 8 years of ownership Id say .. alot more than a thousand rounds not counting 44spl rounds
My cousin owns it now … he never mentioned any problems with it … its his sidearm he carries while hunting…

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I have a Tracker in 357. It has many many rounds through it. In both 38 special and 357 mag. It keeps on going.

 

[wcwhitey]

There is nothing sub par in the materials, nor is the design or construction inherently weak. Taurus like several others seem to be suffering from quality control in assembly, fit and finish at times. Worst I would be concerned about is going out of time. I am not familiar with the powder bullet combinations you are loading but they do not appear excessive.

 

[Slamfire]

Will your Taurus blow its top strap before 1000 rounds?, it all depends on how hot you load your rounds. Hot dog your reloads and you could be missing parts before 1000 rounds.

This guy was posting in a thread where a Ruger 44 Magnum had blown its topstrap.


Fatique Life of 4140 steel

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?150409-Ruger-om-44-convertible&highlight=convertible

Just a few thoughts on this. For Background I am a mechanical engineer with a heavy background in failure and fatigue.

I wonder if I could request a high quality photo of the fracture zone of the cylinder? I am specifically interested in the grain structure of the bolt notches.

I put fort the following.

1) Firearms in general (the type we plebeians can get our mits one) are not designed for infinite fatigue life.

2) The Factors of safety used in firearms design are in line with low end of fatigue requirements (usually less than 10,000 cycles).

3) One of the funny things about fatigue is that each time you push the material past its original design point, you lower its expected life.

4) I am looking at this as an older gun with an unknown number of rounds through it. but based on its age a substantial round count seems likely.

5) When these firearms are designed it is generally preferable for something else to go before the cylinder lets go and takes the top strap. Generally this takes the form of the gun wearing loose or the barrel wearing out. But they are designed to handle X rounds at standard pressures.

6) I see alot of folks calculate the strengths of Rugers, but these calculations are only ever performing an evaluation on a straight static pressure basis. This is wrong when trying to determine if a load is safe.

I attached a couple of marked up figures for your perusal




This poster is showing that given over pressure rounds, it is not unexpected if the cylinder blows at an average of 650 rounds.

Whether your Taurus blows all depends on whether you are the type of person who is a risk taker, has a sense of invincibility and invulnerability, and does not have a good sense of risk. I have met these types on the range, one guy was loading his Ruger 44 Magnum Bisley four grains over max, and thought because the cases extracted easily, that meant it was safe. He was totally clueless about the pressures in the cylinder.

Now if you want your Taurus to last forever, load to 44 Special levels. I know a 2 times Bullseye Pistol Champ and 10 times PPC champ, I asked him about barrel life. His Hart barreled S&W K frame revolver still shot under two inches at 50 yards with 600,000 rounds of 148 LWC and 2.7 grains Bullseye. There were probably some higher pressure loads in the mix. He had with various high mileage (hundreds of thousands rounds) S&W K frame pistols, replaced worn out extractor stars (which probably meant meant new hands and cylinder stops) and he had broken a firing pin. That is sort of the difference in lifetime between hot dog rounds, and soft target rounds.

I cannot vouch for the Quality Control of all Taurus pistols, but I am impressed with the machining in my Taurus 38 Special lightweight. Very precision machining, and I hope it means, good quality control on materials and processes. If Taurus buys certified steels, has their heat treatment processes tightly controlled, there is no particular reason why your 44 Magnum ought not go 30,000 to 50,000 full power rounds without a problem. You will probably experience nerve damage in your wrists before the pistol has a problem.

I can recommend a powerful load, that is on the low end of 44 Magnum: a 240 grain Lead with 8.5 grains Unique. That pushes a 240 at 1000 fps, and is both accurate and powerful. But if you want the most muzzle blasting, highest recoiling rounds, well have at it, just keep them under max.

 

[Pat Riot]

You should be fine with those loads. They appear well within SAAMI margins for pressure.

If concerned do some frame to cylinder measurements. Measure and record current cylinder gap and end shake, then occasionally remeasure and document over time. If you see movement, verify the manufacturer’s specs and if it becomes a concern find a gunsmith that can help.

If there are other measurements that could help I am not sure what they might be. Perhaps someone else can chime in.

 

[Hooda Thunkit]

I have a Taurus M44 that I purchased used about 20 years ago. I got it from a friend that needed to raise some cash - paid $250 for it.

He had fired maybe 400 - 500 rounds through it since he had bought it new. I have since fired another 1000+ (estimated; I have kept track of rounds fired in only one of my firearms).

I have never had any troubles with it, and don't anticipate any.

 

[Mark_Mark]

You guy make me want to get a .44 mag!

 

[TTv2]

I'm not a .44 guy, but Taurus is the only company that makes a .44 I want and that is a 5 shot Magnum. S&W has the Combat Magnum, but I get queesy at the thought of $900 for a 5 shot L frame, plus I wouldn't plan on shooting thousands of full power rounds anyway.

Not saying that the Taurus wouldn't last if I did, but it wouldn't be something that would steer me away from the brand.

 

[.308 Norma]

I did not realize I was this close to 1000 rounds through the Taurus M44 until I took it out to clean it one day.

It will probably last to 1,000 rounds. I think I'd be flinching with every shot from 1,001 rounds and counting though because I'd be afraid that Taurus was going to blow up.
Seriously, I have a Taurus Tracker 41 Mag that not only quite a bit older than your Taurus M44, but has also seen well over a thousand rounds - and many of those rounds have been serious, imagined grizzly bear stopper rounds.
I also have a little Taurus snubby 32 H&R that I wear tucked behind my right hip anytime I'm outside working around our acreage here. It's old too, and has probably seen as many rounds as any revolver I've ever owned. What's more, I don't take very good care of it. About all I do is blow the dust out of it whenever I remember.

 

[The Glockodile]

...serious, imagined grizzly bear stopper rounds.

Manly, hypertactical warrior rounds!