heaviest big game bullets in 44mag

[mickbr]

Fellas what do you consider the best bullets out there for the most thump in 44 mag. Barnes does its 300 grain buster but I think a hardcast would be even better as you can push it faster at the same pressure. I believe there are even heavier bullet weights that work well in 44 as well. I know buffalo bore loads their 340grain, is there a bullet or mold matching this projectile?

[GunnyMack]

Heaviest I've used is the 300gr XTP . My Ruger carbine just barely stabilized these with the slow twist. However it went clean through a rather large boar, leaving about a 3/4" hole on the far side. The pig walked maybe 15 yards and fell over. Also my carbine was intermittent about shucking an empty and feeding another with the big bullets but any other loads it's as slick as snot.

[AJMD429]

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300 grains here also, JSP's. Seem to work ok in my Marlin 1894's, and my Ruger 96/44 and 77/44. Theoretically they should stabilize better in the 1:20 twist of the Rugers, but I didn't see any difference (no obvious keyholing out to 100 yards, which is as far as I typically shoot). They made big holes all the way through whitetails. Generally I have been using more 240 mg though, as I bought more of them in bulk, and am used to reloading for that bullet. It doesn't seem to lack anything the 300 grain ones do in my personal use.

[JimT]

Experimented with the 320 gr. SSK hardcast in two Redhawks (a 5 1/2" and a 7 1/2") and a 10 1/2" Super Blackhawk years ago. They were the heaviest we wanted to run. Pushed them to 1500 fps ... which I do not recommend. Shooting some of those out of the Blackhawk split one of the grip panels. 1400 fps was much more pleasant and easier on the guns. 1300 to 1350 fps were the best. Accuracy was great out to 300 yards and they penetrated like crazy!

[Bronco]

I cast my own 300 grgc lfn hard cast! Out of 7 1/2" Redhawk ...1350 fps, out of 24" Marlin ..1750fps.

[Grizz]

My redhawk load is BTB 405Gr TC gas checked hard cast. It penetrates like the early 45/70 carbine rounds, and has penetrated 13 jugs of water from a different redhawk. It drilled straight thru demonstrating great stability. This round will lock up a blackhawk, as Doug found out.

This bullet was designed for the 444 to overcome the frangible pistol bullet problems, and were delivering dime sized groups for someone on the bt forum.
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44-405+325.jpeg

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Left is BTB 44 325 WLNGC. Center is 44 305+ plain base. Right is BTB 44 405 WLNGC.
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The center cartridge is the one I hunted with in Alaska with the 10" SBH. I fired hundreds of these that were cast by a friend, and made lots of meat. The left one is the replacement for the supply chain shortage of the home made bullets. The 405 is the load I developed for the Redhawk. It made about 1050fps, [IIRC], from a different 5.5" Redhawk.
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405s are also loaded in 45s and 45/70s . . . https://n4lcd.com/calc/ you can plug in the numbers and get a good notion of how the 405 class bullets rank from those three diameters. BTW, diameter does not affect the energy numbers.

The Redhawk with the 405s is much less unwieldy than Blaine's 45/70 10" BFR shooting 525 Gr BTBs . . .

My pistol load is reduced pressure, easy recoil, perhaps less than the standard 44 mag 240s. I use BTB because it is the best alloy I have found for the purpose.

† grizz

p.s. that 405 at around 950ish penetrates doug fir firewood rounds just like the 45/70 heavies, shooting with the grain. it's not necessary to punish the gun to get the performance i'm after . . .

[LeverGunner]

My redhawk load is BTB 405Gr TC gas checked hard cast. It penetrates like the early 45/70 carbine rounds, and has penetrated 13 jugs of water from a different redhawk. It drilled straight thru demonstrating great stability. This round will lock up a blackhawk, as Doug found out.

This bullet was designed for the 444 to overcome the frangible pistol bullet problems, and were delivering dime sized groups.
.
44-405+325.jpeg
.
Left is BTB 44 325 WLNGC. Center is 44 305+ plain base. Right is BTB 44 405 WLNGC.
.
The center cartridge is the one I hunted with in Alaska with the 10" SBH. I fired hundreds of these that were cast by a friend, and made lots of meat. The left one is the replacement for the supply chain shortage of the home made bullets. The 405 is the load I developed for the Redhawk. It made close to 1100fps, [IIRC], from a different 5.5" Redhawk.
.
405s are also loaded in 45s and 45/70s . . . https://n4lcd.com/calc/ you can plug in the numbers and get a good notion of how the 405 class bullets rank from those three diameters. BTW, diameter does not affect the energy numbers.

The Redhawk with the 405s is much less unwieldy than Blaine's 45/70 10" BFR shooting 525 Gr BTBs . . .

My pistol load is reduced pressure, easy recoil, perhaps less than the standard 44 mag 240s. I use BTB because it is the best alloy I have found for the purpose.

† grizz

p.s. that 405 at around 950ish penetrates doug fir firewood rounds just like the 45/70 heavies, shooting with the grain. it's not necessary to punish the gun to get the performance i'm after . . .

Wow, that's wild. I've never seen or heard of anyone running a 400+ bullet in 44 Mag. What powder and charge is used in that, if you don't mind sharing.

[tray]

I was once a heavy for the caliber devotee. I had a 378 grn Keith I loaded for my revolvers and a 405 gn swc for the rifles. I read an article by Glen Fryxell on a bullet he designed for his 444 TC Contender and was inspired to try to design one for myself. I ended up with a 290 grn swc that was shorter than some commercial 265 gn bullets. It gave me more room for powder and a lot more speed with plenty of bullet weight for energy. I use it in both revolvers and rifles. It is my go to bullet for all but extreme targets. I am comfortable using it on animals up to and including moose size game. For a factory design type bullet I like the looks of the 280 grn LFN by LBT if one can be found.

[Grizz]

Wow, that's wild. I've never seen or heard of anyone running a 400+ bullet in 44 Mag. What powder and charge is used in that, if you don't mind sharing.
[/quote]

2400 is the only powder I've used for that one. It was a load that ran 28k Cup in Marshal's gun. It was his lowest pressure tested load. I never saw any reason to change it. His recommended load ran 38.4k Cup. I'm kicking myself that I never got a 44 H&R barrel for the stiffer load. :D LOL

There was a lot of verbage and a few fun facts on the old btb forum. Some of those conversations may still be around.

https://n4lcd.com/calc/ >>> it is a worthwhile effort to plug in numbers, weight and velocity, and see how they compare for same weight bullets in the three calibers, .439, .454, and .459, and then cross-reference for 50 and 100 yard velocities.

grizz

[tray]

I was using 680 for my revolvers. It was a Bowen built Redhawk with a Dan Wesson shroud over a Douglas barrel. The case did not have a lot of room for powder so it was not a problem with over loading that powder using a bullet that size. It was pleasant to shoot and would penetrate way more than I had expected.

[Grizz]

I was using 680 for my revolvers. It was a Bowen built Redhawk with a Dan Wesson shroud over a Douglas barrel. The case did not have a lot of room for powder so it was not a problem with over loading that powder using a bullet that size. It was pleasant to shoot and would penetrate way more than I had expected.

thanks for the info. do you have a photo of your gun? it sounds interesting. yeah, the penetration factor is a smile-maker.

[Bronco]

I like the looks of the 280 grn LFN by LBT if one can be found.

That's the one I have. but after lubing and adding a gas check it weighs 300 grs.

[wvfarrier]

The heaviest I have used was a 340 hard cast flat nose. It left a hole the size of a 12g slug. The sound it made was crazy, like a mallet smacking a side of beef. The deer actually made a "oof" sound and fell over stone dead.

[Grizz]

The heaviest I have used was a 340 hard cast flat nose. It left a hole the size of a 12g slug. The sound it made was crazy, like a mallet smacking a side of beef. The deer actually made a "oof" sound and fell over stone dead.

Yup, satisfying for sure.

[Rimfire McNutjob]

MBW makes some of the old LBT bullets. Here's a link to one of the heavies.

[JFE]

Most of the cast designs that are greater than 300gr tend to be designed for revolver use. Revolvers have faster twist barrels. Ruger’s SBH has quite a long cylinder and can utilise long heavy pills that utilise the entire cylinder length.

If you’re using a levergun you’ll likely have a slower twist and LOA restrictions. These generally limit you to 300gr and ideally a wide diameter (0.432-0.433”).

[Grizz]

Most of the cast designs that are greater than 300gr tend to be designed for revolver use. Revolvers have faster twist barrels. Ruger’s SBH has quite a long cylinder and can utilise long heavy pills that utilise the entire cylinder length.

If you’re using a levergun you’ll likely have a slower twist and LOA restrictions. These generally limit you to 300gr and ideally a wide diameter (0.432-0.433”).

this is exactly why i switched to 45/70, there was no way to get the carbines to feed longer bullets, much less stabilize them. a carbine that could deliver a 405 gr 44 bullet would duplicate the original 45/70/405 ballistics

that slow twist barrel is still being built today, is it some kind of a conspiracy?

[JFE]

[/quote]
this is exactly why i switched to 45/70, there was no way to get the carbines to feed longer bullets, much less stabilize them. a carbine that could deliver a 405 gr 44 bullet would duplicate the original 45/70/405 ballistics

that slow twist barrel is still being built today, is it some kind of a conspiracy?
[/quote]

You could possibly tweak a Win 1894 in 44 mag to accept a longer cartridge but you would likely still have a slow twist barrel to deal with. As you say, the easy option for using heavier pills in a rifle is a 45/70.

SAAMi has two 44 magnum specs, one for pistols and one for rifles. They are so different you’d think they were two separate cartridges. The rifle spec has a slower twist, a larger groove diameter specs and a long throat.

[tray]

I no longer have the Bowen Redhawk. I gifted it to my nephew. He is young enough to still see the sights. I have a hard time with my old eyes now days. I still have some custom 44s but I mainly use scoped rifles for hunting. I will always keep some handguns and shotguns, but for hunting game it is scoped long guns only. I enjoy that he loves the gun as much as I did.

[CraigC]

The old Beartooth 355gr is my favorite. At standard pressure using the upper crimp groove, they'll run over 1200fps out of a revolver. Did a really good job on an 1800lb longhorn I tested them on. Using the lower crimp groove and more H110 than any manual would suggest, I got them to 1350fps out of the SRH and a custom long cylinder Bisley.

Actually the Barnes Buster, along with others like the Grizzly Punch (defunct) and the Lehigh solid copper WFN, are going to be a better penetrator. Cast bullets are pretty much guaranteed to deform on heavy stuff. The copper and bronze solids do not deform at all. We dug Punch bullets out of a 2000lb water buffalo that could be reloaded again.

I had Jack Huntington rebuild this Bisley .44 with an oversized six shot cylinder and octagon barrel, just for pushing the cartridge to the limit. I've often thought if there was a little to be gained by reaming it for a 1.4" case and trimming .445 brass to length.


Recovered bullets show only a slight flattening of the nose.



Some of the newer 1892's have a standard 1-20" twist bore. I've also talked to Jack about modifying one to feed the heavyweights but never followed through with it.

[Grizz]

Fellas what do you consider the best bullets out there for the most thump in 44 mag. Barnes does its 300 grain buster but I think a hardcast would be even better as you can push it faster at the same pressure. I believe there are even heavier bullet weights that work well in 44 as well. I know buffalo bore loads their 340grain, is there a bullet or mold matching this projectile?

https://www.garrettcartridges.com/44mag45colt.html >>> an article by Ashley Emerson that pertains to your question. some good stuff on Randy's web site. Also some good stuff on Shooters Forum.