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Old March 15, 2006, 07:47 PM   #1
sodflyer
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Quick question on reloading .44 mag

Hi, My first post here.. Just picked up reloading and started out on my .44 mag's I picked up some Accurate No.7 powder alcong with cci primers and some cheap 240g swc bullets. Now reading as much as I could through the manuals and a little online I loaded 100 of them this past weekend with 15.8 grain loads. Now being new to this I am asking is this ok? as I have not fired any yet.... also DO I CRIMP as well or just leave as is with no crimp after seating? I am going to start reloading my 357's as well with the #7 and swc bullets this weekend as well. Thanks for any information on this Jeff.
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Old March 15, 2006, 09:32 PM   #2
Leftoverdj
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That's a reasonable starting load. How well it'll work depends on the bullets you bought. Commercial cast bullets vary a LOT. Try them out, but check for leading as you shoot.

Whether to crimp or not depends on what you are going to shoot them in. If it's a pistol, crimp them. They can work their way out under recoil and tie up a revolver. If it's a rifle, probably not, or a slight crimp.
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Old March 15, 2006, 11:29 PM   #3
Ben Shepherd
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Crimp them firmly. That powder likes a lot of case tension.

Couple things:

Get at least 2 loading manuals, and read them cover to cover(not the data, just ALL of the how to stuff.)

Get a pair of safety glasses-and WEAR them.
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Old March 16, 2006, 11:07 AM   #4
sodflyer
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Ok, Thanks... even after reading both of the manuals I have on reloading it seems like they both say different things kinda. Like the one that cam with the kit said NOT to crimp the 44 mag.... But I will tonight! These reloads are for a Ruger super redhawk 44 mag and a ruger 100? .357 both stainless revolvers... I love shooting them but I don't want to screw anything up Jeff.
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Old March 16, 2006, 03:00 PM   #5
Calhunter380
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I always use a heavy crimp. I also use H110 which usually calls for a heavy crimp. I've been using the 240gr nosler sporting handgun bullets with h110 with great success. A rule of thumb that I usually follow is the slower burning the powder the heavier the crimp. If you are shooting 44 mags out of a lever or anything with a tube fed magazine you really need a good crimp anyways to prevent the bullets from being pushed in from the recoil.

Calhunter
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Old March 16, 2006, 09:42 PM   #6
speedy8084
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Crimp...

I have 2 manuals...definately Crimp heavy, but dont go baserk! I too load a Ruger 44 mag with Hodgdon H110 23 grains...I have shot it with 23.5 and it is a real palm buster....For target practice use 5.5 grains of clays(Hodgdon).
The recoil is smooth and the report is similar to a 45 acp...I love shooting clays powder, but load both types practice just so I can keep in practice on my home defense skills....

PS get some shooting gloves you palms will thank you,,,,,
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Old March 16, 2006, 09:59 PM   #7
Rivers
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I believe you'll find AA#9 to be superior to AA#7 for .44 Mag reloading. Also, be sure you understand crimping. You need to roll-crimp into a cannelure. If you don't know what that means, then please look it up in one of your reloading manuals.
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Old March 19, 2006, 04:44 AM   #8
sodflyer
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What bullets are you using with the Hodgdon H110 powder? primer? Thanks! Jeff.
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Old March 20, 2006, 03:34 PM   #9
azredhawk44
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Quote:
What bullets are you using with the Hodgdon H110 powder? primer?
All bullets! Any magnum primer.

H110 and Win296 are two of the funnest powders for magnum shooting. The fireball that comes out of the barrel is great! And dang, but do they roar.

I favor about 23-23.5gr of H110 under a good jacketed 240gr bullet like a Hornady XTP. For a 300gr bullet like the Sierra JSP (Cartridge OAL of 1.740"), about 20.5gr of H110 sends it along quite well. I use Winchester primers with no issues.
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Old March 20, 2006, 08:32 PM   #10
Rivers
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I'm probably missing something. What's the value of a huge fireball?
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Old March 21, 2006, 02:20 PM   #11
AlaskaMike
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He didn't say it was valuable, he said it was fun. Achieving your desired velocity for a given load is valuable; big fireballs and loud booms are fun.

Mike
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Old March 21, 2006, 03:47 PM   #12
sodflyer
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When I bought the reloading equipment earlyer this month I bought the primers as well... I really did not know that primers were different..... so with that I picked up the CCI primers for large handguns... plus I think it listed them in one of the manuals I was looking at that minute. So you can " make " them have a fireball or a loud boom without dumping a bunch of powder in the case? how? thanks Jeff.
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Old March 21, 2006, 03:55 PM   #13
azredhawk44
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Quote:
So you can " make " them have a fireball or a loud boom without dumping a bunch of powder in the case? how? thanks Jeff.
Jeff -

The fireball comes from a slow-burning powder like H110 or Win296 not completely burning before the bullet exits the bore.

Shorter barrels are more prone to this than longer ones.

My redhawk has a 5.5" barrel and with 23-ish grains of H110 and a 240gr bullet I tend to get a large fireball and loud bark from my gun. Technically, it's a waste of gunpowder (as Rivers pointed out).

But it looks cool later on in the evening. I've seen a 454 Casull with about 4 feet of flame coming out the end of an 8" barrel.

Only powders in similar nature to H110 or Win296 will do this. Titegroup, Unique and other fast burning powders will probably not leave a fireball.
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Old March 21, 2006, 04:12 PM   #14
sodflyer
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Ahhh... I see I have a ton of things to learn yet Thanks Jeff.
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Old March 21, 2006, 04:28 PM   #15
azredhawk44
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In addition, Unique and Titegroup will not achieve the same velocities as H110 or Win296. I don't have a loadbook in front of me, but a guess would say H110 under a 240gr bullet would give me about 1400fps, but Titegroup under a 240gr bullet will only give me about 1200fps. Just guesses, I don't have a chronograph to prove this, but load books will generally agree with their printed data.

Hence, H110 is a higher powered powder. But, because it burns slower, will leave behind a fireball in shorter barreled weapons.
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Old March 23, 2006, 07:24 PM   #16
AlaskaMike
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Heck, it puts out a nice fireball from my 6" Anaconda!

Mike
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Old March 23, 2006, 07:41 PM   #17
Rivers
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Well, there's certainly value to fun! Just wondered if there were some reason other than the obvious?
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Old March 27, 2006, 07:49 AM   #18
MADISON
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Which gun are you shooting?

There are S&W loads and there are Ruger loads...
You can not duplicate a factory load because the powders are completely different.
I loaded up 2,000 roounds with 21.0 grains of 2400. My Smith & Wesson would not take it so, I bought a redhawk. The Redhawk fired them without even burping. Stay mid-range!
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Old March 27, 2006, 11:59 AM   #19
joneb
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Do'nt over crimp this can deform the case mouth, which can cause chambering problems. Consistant roll crimping requiers uniform case lenght. You can crimp a case without the bullet and powder , then bell it again.
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Old March 28, 2006, 09:31 AM   #20
sodflyer
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Well I shot my pwn reloads for the first time this past Sunday I can say I was a bit leary about pulling the trigger at first but all went well. I was using my first loads with the 240 grain SWC bullets, CCI 300 non mag primer, and the 15.8 grain loads with the #7 powder. Although we had some 40-50 mph wind gusts that made it hard to get steady on the target I managed to hit our homemade rocker target at 110-120 yards 4 times... I thought that was pretty good for not sighting in my gun yet... it's shooting abit high and to the right. anyway Thanks For all of your input! this is getting fun Jeff.
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Old March 28, 2006, 08:05 PM   #21
Al Norris
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I think it is pretty standard Jeff. Before I began reloading, I would have no problem shooting the ones my son loaded up, nor with a couple off other people I knew. But when it came to my first loads... Hesitation was present.

Now I don't think twice about it.

I currently shoot between 100 and 200 yds, and various distances in between. I plan on getting an elk this next season. Went hunting last season with my son, but we didn't see a thing, except deer, and they were out of season in the unit we were hunting!

My pet load for this is a LaserCast 240g RNFP over 24.5g of H110 and CCI350 primers. Pretty stout load, but shoots real well. Oh! the fireball is great at dusk or dawn!!
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