Just a question please

KEYBEAR · December 12, 2020, 01:20 PM

Can a Revolver of high quality built to chamber any standard Round up to be rechambered ??? Case in point a 44 special to 44 Mag and what needs done . I have a 44 SP and would like to shoot 44 Mag only .

ballisticxlr · December 12, 2020, 01:49 PM

Not always but sometimes. It's not usually about strength as length. If the frame is long enough to take the longer, more powerful round (and it's strong enough which I'll assume for now) then it's as easy as run a finish reamer into each chamber. Some revolvers have a very long forcing cone and a shorter than normal cylinder which is only as long as the standard power chambering and so would prohibit that kind of change without also changing the barrel and/or cylinder out

You can do anything that there's room and strength for. What it takes depends on what you're doing. When I was young and into big bore revolvers my dad started me out on a Ruger Super Blackhawk in .44mag. then we had it converted to .454casull and when I was bored with that we had it converted to .475Linebaugh which would later be slightly shortened and called the .480Ruger. Going from .44 to 45 and then to .475 required changing all kinds of stuff including the hand, cylinder and barrel and made a wrist torture device out of an otherwise useful .44mag.

stinkeypete · December 12, 2020, 02:43 PM

In most cases the simple answer is "no, not economically. Buy a .44 Magnum, it will be cheaper."

Most important reason is the frame of most all .44 Specials can not handle the increased pressure of .44 Magnum. It's something like 14,000 psi vs 38,000 psi or double the pressure must be withstood.

The only thing I can think of that might come in .44 Special that could handle the pressure is a Ruger single action. Some old, some new, all are rare and you would be crushing it's collector's value at a cost of $300 to $1000 to you. You could find someone to trade guns with you even-up, costing you nothing.

Why change? .44 Special is far cooler then .44 Magnum!

KEYBEAR · December 12, 2020, 02:45 PM

Thaballisticxlr thanks just my thought . I bought a Freedom Arms Revolver on an auction (not on line) . The revolver has a 4.5/8 barrel and is in 44 Special i Shoot 44 Mag about all the time . It should be easy to fix i don,t care for the 44 special as i am setup for the 44 Mag and do reload .

As most know the 44 Special is a firearm for ladies . Being as i have 44mag,s and load for them i do not need a special for any reason .

stinkeypete · December 12, 2020, 02:48 PM

A Model 97 can't handle the pressure but call FA and see what they say.

It's a very sweet revolver. Someone will love it.

All you need is new brass, absolutely all of the other reloading components are the same. You might want different bullets, maybe not.

Colorado Redneck · December 12, 2020, 11:46 PM

Lady's firearm? Huh? That there's funny...

ballisticxlr · December 13, 2020, 10:48 AM

OP, I'm not recommending you do this but, one could in theory cut and ream out .44mag brass to .44spl length and then just load it hotter than the hubs of hell. If your FA revolver is strong enough (I've only ever handled their .454 Casul guns which are tanks). It's well known that when the .357mag and .44mag and .454casul were being developed that their developers would just load insanely hot .38spl, 44spl and .45lc. This is exactly how I developed my proprietary ".45 Cinderblock".

**44 AMP** · December 13, 2020, 02:05 PM

Call Freedom Arms, and see what they say.

Remember its not JUST the size of the gun's frame & cylinder, its also the heat treating they receive and sometimes, even the alloy they are made of that makes the difference between a gun suitable for magnum pressures and one that is not.

Quote:

OP, I'm not recommending you do this but, one could in theory cut and ream out .44mag brass to .44spl length ...

There is no reaming involved in shortening the .44Mag case 0.125" (1/8")

IF Freedom Arms says your .44 Special is not suitable for conversion to .44 Mag, then that's it. Period. Sell or trade the Special for a magnum. Don't convert it.

KEYBEAR · December 13, 2020, 03:51 PM

ballisticxlr Problem got fixed traded the 44 SP for a as new 454 .

**Aguila Blanca** · December 13, 2020, 04:45 PM

I once came into possession of a .44 Magnum cylinder for an Uberti SAA clone. It was too large, both in length and in diameter, to fit into a .45 SAA frame. That tells me that at least one modern maker thinks the .44 Magnum is powerful enough that it needs more metal around the bores to withstand the pressure.

KEYBEAR · December 14, 2020, 11:14 AM

I have a long time older friend i am trading with . He has a FD Mod. 83 in 454 and can not really shoot it anymore . The only thing is it is a longer barrel then i like but that will be taken care of . It will be a 45 LC only and i am good with that .

**4V50 Gary** · December 14, 2020, 09:05 PM

Back in the late '70s and early '80s, Smiths were trying to meet the demand for Model 29s by boring out and chambering Model 27s and rebarrelling them. S&W warned against it though.

December 12, 2020, 01:20 PM	#1
KEYBEAR Senior Member Join Date: January 11, 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,059	Just a question please Can a Revolver of high quality built to chamber any standard Round up to be rechambered ??? Case in point a 44 special to 44 Mag and what needs done . I have a 44 SP and would like to shoot 44 Mag only .

December 12, 2020, 02:43 PM	#3
stinkeypete Senior Member Join Date: July 22, 2010 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,292	In most cases the simple answer is "no, not economically. Buy a .44 Magnum, it will be cheaper." Most important reason is the frame of most all .44 Specials can not handle the increased pressure of .44 Magnum. It's something like 14,000 psi vs 38,000 psi or double the pressure must be withstood. The only thing I can think of that might come in .44 Special that could handle the pressure is a Ruger single action. Some old, some new, all are rare and you would be crushing it's collector's value at a cost of $300 to $1000 to you. You could find someone to trade guns with you even-up, costing you nothing. Why change? .44 Special is far cooler then .44 Magnum! __________________ My book "The Pheasant Hunter's Action Adventure Cookbook" is now on Amazon. Tall tales, hunting tips, butchering from bird to the freezer, and recipes.

December 12, 2020, 02:45 PM	#4
KEYBEAR Senior Member Join Date: January 11, 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,059	Thaballisticxlr thanks just my thought . I bought a Freedom Arms Revolver on an auction (not on line) . The revolver has a 4.5/8 barrel and is in 44 Special i Shoot 44 Mag about all the time . It should be easy to fix i don,t care for the 44 special as i am setup for the 44 Mag and do reload . As most know the 44 Special is a firearm for ladies . Being as i have 44mag,s and load for them i do not need a special for any reason . Last edited by KEYBEAR; December 12, 2020 at 02:57 PM.

December 12, 2020, 02:48 PM	#5
stinkeypete Senior Member Join Date: July 22, 2010 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,292	A Model 97 can't handle the pressure but call FA and see what they say. It's a very sweet revolver. Someone will love it. All you need is new brass, absolutely all of the other reloading components are the same. You might want different bullets, maybe not. __________________ My book "The Pheasant Hunter's Action Adventure Cookbook" is now on Amazon. Tall tales, hunting tips, butchering from bird to the freezer, and recipes.

December 13, 2020, 04:45 PM	#10
Aguila Blanca Staff Join Date: September 25, 2008 Location: CONUS Posts: 18,460	I once came into possession of a .44 Magnum cylinder for an Uberti SAA clone. It was too large, both in length and in diameter, to fit into a .45 SAA frame. That tells me that at least one modern maker thinks the .44 Magnum is powerful enough that it needs more metal around the bores to withstand the pressure. __________________ NRA Life Member / Certified Instructor NRA Chief RSO / CMP RSO 1911 Certified Armorer Jeepaholic

December 12, 2020, 01:49 PM	#2
ballisticxlr Member Join Date: April 25, 2020 Posts: 83	Not always but sometimes. It's not usually about strength as length. If the frame is long enough to take the longer, more powerful round (and it's strong enough which I'll assume for now) then it's as easy as run a finish reamer into each chamber. Some revolvers have a very long forcing cone and a shorter than normal cylinder which is only as long as the standard power chambering and so would prohibit that kind of change without also changing the barrel and/or cylinder out You can do anything that there's room and strength for. What it takes depends on what you're doing. When I was young and into big bore revolvers my dad started me out on a Ruger Super Blackhawk in .44mag. then we had it converted to .454casull and when I was bored with that we had it converted to .475Linebaugh which would later be slightly shortened and called the .480Ruger. Going from .44 to 45 and then to .475 required changing all kinds of stuff including the hand, cylinder and barrel and made a wrist torture device out of an otherwise useful .44mag.

December 12, 2020, 11:46 PM	#6
Colorado Redneck Senior Member Join Date: January 6, 2008 Location: Northeast Colorado Posts: 1,993	Lady's firearm? Huh? That there's funny...

December 13, 2020, 10:48 AM	#7
ballisticxlr Member Join Date: April 25, 2020 Posts: 83	OP, I'm not recommending you do this but, one could in theory cut and ream out .44mag brass to .44spl length and then just load it hotter than the hubs of hell. If your FA revolver is strong enough (I've only ever handled their .454 Casul guns which are tanks). It's well known that when the .357mag and .44mag and .454casul were being developed that their developers would just load insanely hot .38spl, 44spl and .45lc. This is exactly how I developed my proprietary ".45 Cinderblock".

December 13, 2020, 03:51 PM	#9
KEYBEAR Senior Member Join Date: January 11, 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,059	ballisticxlr Problem got fixed traded the 44 SP for a as new 454 .

December 14, 2020, 11:14 AM	#11
KEYBEAR Senior Member Join Date: January 11, 2012 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,059	I have a long time older friend i am trading with . He has a FD Mod. 83 in 454 and can not really shoot it anymore . The only thing is it is a longer barrel then i like but that will be taken care of . It will be a 45 LC only and i am good with that .

December 14, 2020, 09:05 PM	#12
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 21,832	Back in the late '70s and early '80s, Smiths were trying to meet the demand for Model 29s by boring out and chambering Model 27s and rebarrelling them. S&W warned against it though. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*