The ammo companies, however, were really worried about what would happen to some of the older handguns with this new high-pressure .44 load. As my interest in handguns blossomed, I, too, … The warmest loads I put through the .44 GP100 were a 255- gr. The main thing is you’ll have to load your own ammo to take advantage of that. bullets right at 1,150 fps. Two things could happen if one would shoot a 44 special load in the gun. This coincides nicely with Ruger … Hodgon only shows HP38 for the .44 special loads. Below, are two loaded rounds. But in 1956 Keith's efforts culminated in the introduction of the .44 Magnum. Latest. Keith pestered the ammo companies to bring out heavier .44 Special loads, but there was a fear that such powerful loads would blow up an older, weaker revolver. While this powder is supposed to be ideal for 9mm, .45 ACP and .38 Special, I was in the process of developing a .44 Special load using Oregon Trail’s Lasercast 240-grainers for my Ruger GP100, with the Smith & Wesson 629 in there so I could compare speed from a three-inch barrel versus a five-inch. Also a few early Bisleys were fitted with FLUTED cylinders in .44 caliber. SWC is loaded compared to the JHP in the same weight. One was the load just didn't have enough pressure to operate the action and it would not eject the empty case. Rimfire Power. I’d already tested IMR Red and IMR Target, so when the Winchester … I want more thump than specials offer, but less recoil than magnums. Markets and manufacturing methods change, needs and tastes change, old favorites disappear and new favorites emerge. The fun is in the fact that I can use one powder, Unique. The Ruger GP100 .44 Special is a sizable, powerful-looking gun. flavor, and now SIG Sauer has a 200-grain .44 Spl. I have two .44 Specials, a Ruger GP100 and a Ruger Blackhawk flat top Bisley. I have made up a couple of special Ruger .44 Magnum Blackhawks with 4-3/4” barrels making it an absolutely exceptional Perfect Packin’ Pistol. V-Crown JHP. Accordingly, they decided to lengthen the cartridge, once again, and manufacture a new … … Ruger made about 25,000 of the standard barrel lengths while the 7-1/2”and 10” lengths are quite rare with about 1,000 each being made. by Jeff Quinn. I began loading for the .38 Special and .45 Colt, and then as I added a real bench-mounted loading press graduated to other sixgun cartridges, most notably .44 Special, .44 Magnum and .45 ACP. V-Crown JHP. December 20, 2016 . But the most important factor we have found here is there is very little difference in strength between a fluted and non-fluted cylinder. Since .44 Specials were so hard to find, Skeeter Skelton in the 1970s led the way introducing conversion of .357 Three Screw/Old Model Blackhawks and the S&W Highway Patrolman to .44 Special while urging both companies to bring the .44 Special … I have unique, and I know I can use any amount of it from "special" max loads to the "magnum" starting loads in magnum brass with data respective to … Ruger's Jeff Quinn Memorial GP100 44 Special … Introduced … Nothing in the firearms world is more consistent than change and it is an interesting process to watch. Great article. 3-9) Heavy .44 Special loads using the NEI 260 Keith bullet show why .44 Special . The Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 Magnum is the top of the line and a little bit nicer gun than a standard Blackhawk, anyway. Lately Ruger has produced some special run of guns in .44 Magnum chambering that again have the fluted cylinder feature. If you reload there isn’t a much more versatile revolver cartridge. My first centerfire handgun was a Smith & Wesson Model 27 in .357 Mag. They will also start using the same adamant language in their next manual about the loads being used as shown. Hornady started offering its Critical Defense load in a 165-grain .44 Spl. Our test guns are both S&Ws: a blue M24-3 made in 1983 and a stainless M624 from 1986. Any modern .44 Special should be able to take much higher pressures than the factory pressure of 15,000 psi. Just settled on 231/HP-38 for light and HS-6 for a bit more steam, while maintaining accuracy. I like to load the .44 Special using moderate amounts of powder thus providing a very economical cartridge to use any time in any .44 Magnum. For any loads … As others have said, Ruger, through Lipsey's, has done a superb job with these Flat Tops. Im using magnum brass 240 grain cast bullets and hornady 240 grain xtp's occasionally. If you are considering the Ruger Super Blackhawk or Redhawk as a decent piece for field protection then you will probably be using a 4 1/2 inch barrel version in a shoulder holster (a good rig that I … But Buffalo Bore, Corbon, and DoubleTap offer some very potent .44 Special loads I would not hesitate to carry for defensive use. Gun Reviews. I want to make some 44 special+P loadings for my SBH. It can also handle very light .44 Special-level loads and everything in-between. Click pictures for a larger version. It is true that one can buy 44 Magnum ammunition that is loaded a lot heavier than Elmer’s heavy load and one of the best is Randy Garrett’s 44 Magnum penetrator loads. Ruger arrived on the sixgun scene in the early 1950s but didn’t produce a .44 Special with the early .357 and .44 Magnum Blackhawks. Note how light the PMC 240-gr. The Sentry 12: A New Kind of Shotgun. I would defer to Hodgdon data for the .44 Special, although my deep seated loads in mag brass approximate COL for .44 Special. This Ruger GP100 1761 in .44 Special represents a recent resurgence of the .44 Magnum’s parent cartridge. Even though both of these bullets weigh the same, one might expect significantly different terminal results. 2016 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the introduction of the Ruger GP100 double-action revolver. Elmer Keith’s custom Colt single action was used to develop his heavy 44 Special loads in the late 1920s, and for a long time the 45 Colt cartridge was accused of being weak. I don't know why. What certainly catches your eye: that big, unfluted cylinder. However most were unfluted roll marked cylinders. photography by Jeff Quinn & Boge Quinn . More Gun Reviews. Hornady loads a 165-grain FTX bullet in .44 Spl. loads. When the 44 magnum Ruger carbine was introduced, it had heavy springs to keep the magnum round from beating it to death and was recommended to be shot with jacketed bullet loads only. The versatility of the cartridge, along with its capability of handling less-expensive .38 Special ammo is what lured me to this revolver. For lead bullets near 900 FPS, I recommend a GC (Gas Check), the little copper bottom on the lead bullet as below (5th item from left). It’s well executed, with no rough edges or gross tool marks. CCI 300 Large Pistol or Winchester's WLP primers work well for .44 Special handloads. and it was a done deal. Only 500 Jeff Quinn Memorial GP100s will be produced. Because we have a new, strong, modern revolver now it seems only reasonable to investigate loads for the 21st century. Change may not mean a positive … There is no question that a .44 Magnum can handle high pressure loads, as that is what it was designed for. Ruger’s trim and handsome .44 Special Flattop Blackhawk is a near ideal combination of power and packability for the trail. Ruger scaled up the original Blackhawk to accommodate the much larger and more powerful Magnum cartridge, and any plans for a .44 Spl. By Bryce M. Towsley. Ruger GP100 Five-Shot 44 Special Double-Action Revolver. As with the old .45 Colt, there are plenty old & beautiful .44 Special revolvers which must NEVER be fed bumped up loads. So, just like .38 Specials can be fired in a .357 Mag. conversions on Three-Screw Ruger .357 Blackhawks are so popular; this . This is a stainless .44 Special, with a Gordon Logan front sight and grip panels by Gary Reeder: This is the limited edition made for the Shootists 25th Anniversary, but wearing replacement grip panels, and an undercut front sight by David Clements: All times are UTC .44 Special Loads with … Everyone who has a Ruger Blackhawk or Freedom Arms single-action revolver realizes the roots of these modern guns go back to the Colt Single Action Army. 43-10) Whether shooting Skeeter’s load or the standard .44 Special load, this 3 rd Generation Colt Single Action does all anyone could expect. The "Skeeter" load of 7.5 grs. This load also provided the best group … Range Life. My tightest five-shot cluster, measuring 1.44 inches wide, was produced by the Black Hills 200-grain JHPs. The Ruger .44 Special cylinder is not countersunk and measures 1.6120 inches in length, so overall cartridge length should be held to 1.637 inches. It is evident that the lightly loaded CCI Blazer 200-gr. The Guns of James Bond: Roger Moore . Factory 44 Special loads with 240 grain lead bullets are already pretty docile if not downright pathetic. Since the .44 Special Ruger GP100 has a 3-inch barrel and adjustable sights, I measured its accuracy by firing five-shot groups in single-action mode with each load from a bench, using a sandbag rest for support, at 15 yards. I bought the Ruger 44 special Bisley flat-top with a 5.5″ as well. Buffalo Bore also loads a 255-grain Keith-style bullet at around 1,100 fps, which qualifies for entry level into .44 Mag. This is a Ruger Firearms enthusiast's forum, but it is in no way affiliated with, nor does it represent Sturm Ruger & Company Inc. of Southport, CT. FAQ: Last visit was: Mon Feb 22, 2021 4:23 am : It is currently Mon Feb 22, 2021 4:23 am: Board index » Ammunition, Gunsmithing, & Reloading » Factory Ammunition and Reloading. Blackhawk were promptly abandoned--until recently. The warmest load I have fired in both is the Skeeter Skelton load of 7.5 grains of Unique with a 240 grain cast bullet. The GP100 has plenty of cylinder length for 250-grain hard-cast Keith loads. BTW, #26 has been "put to bed" and we can start looking for it next year. hard cast bullet at over 1,000 fps and 180- and 190-gr. Gold Dots loads are equivalent in .44 Special and .45 Colt, having only 4 ft/sec difference in average velocity. revolver will readily accept .44 Spl. Champions Of The .44 Special Incidentally, the chamber mouths on the Lipsey’s/Ruger .44 Special are a uniform .431″. Springfield … of Unique in a 44 Special case and a 240-250 grain bullet is sometimes slightly over SAAMI specs but it doesn't worry me in modern guns. I mostly baby the 44 specials with the “Skeeter” load or lighter with the exception of the Ruger, it has had many “Keith” loads through it. FN Awarded U.S. Army Contract for the M249 SAW . .44 special will do just about anything you would use a revolver to do, especially in a super strong Ruger. Both are N-frames with trim 6 ½ … Here's my review of the Lipsey's Exclusive .44 Special Ruger Flattop Bisley. July 12, 2017. Out of this 3″ Ruger GP100, I am comfortable with Hornady’s Critical Defense .44 Special load too (specifically designed for use in short barreled revolvers). The changes will appear in #27. In fact Hodgdon has started doing what Winchester does with their 296 data: listing only one load at maximum pressure in the appropriate cartridges. country. Barrel is a 4.2" (4" nominal) half-lug configuration, unique to date among Ruger GP100 44 Special variants. revolver, a .44 Mag. Sponsored Post. He was just trying to get the ammo companies to manufacture a .44 Special factory load that would duplicate his handloads. Range Life. All the sixgun cartridges followed the recipes set down by Elmer Keith and my .45 ACP loads were dictated … The power level of the .44 Special in today’s terms pales in comparison not only to the .44 Magnum but also to more recent cartridges like the .454 Casull, .475 and .500 Linebaugh and many others. pair was done by Hamilton Bowen. As we consider modern loads with pressures compatible with the special Ruger revolver let me begin with a note of reason. As of this writing, the New Model Black- hawk .44 Special is a Lipseyk exclusive (PO Box 83280, Baton Rouge 708M; 1-800-666-1333; or … Special Serial Number range of JQ-001 through JQ-500. It seems to be fairly well entrenched in the classification as a personal-defense round based on what I can find in current factory loads, but then it has rarely ever been loaded … This al- lows enough room for some bullet "creep" problem.'" A factory .44 Special +P would be a great designation. He had bought a Ruger Flat Top in that caliber and found it to be accurate, hard-hitting and manageable. Mike Although the stainless-steel revolver features the Ruger family brushed satin finish, it’s a working gun look, without much fine polish. Trying to make even these wonderful .44 Specials perform like .44 magnums defeats most of the kind and gentle purpose of having a .44 Special… If you have a lightweight .44 or older gun, always start with 10% less than amounts listed above, and work up to the full maximum loads. I never had to label the boxes of my reloads as I only had one load for each cartridge. For this assignment, a Smith & Wesson Model 629 with a 4-inch barrel was used, … My favorite revolver cartridge hands down.