December 31, 2020, 03:03 PM | #26 |
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4198 and RL-7 are the go-to powders for .444 Marlin.
Others can work, but those work the best. RL-7 is preferable if you start working with heavies (330+ gr). RL-10x is the only powder I recommend not using in the cartridge. It was a filthy mess, due to the pressure level, and performance was very disappointing. (3-5" groups at 100 yd, from rifles proven to be capable of far better.) I wasted a lot of bullets testing that powder.
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December 31, 2020, 03:14 PM | #27 |
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I had really good luck with IMR 4895 and 240-265gr pills. In the end it was entirely too much gun for the itty bitty California blacktail deer and even the black bear. It now sits untouched next to a dozen other guns I never shoot.
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December 31, 2020, 04:41 PM | #28 |
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Thanks for the recommendations. No joy with AA 1680? That one pops up a lot--plus I have a lot of it.
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December 31, 2020, 06:07 PM | #29 |
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I haven't tried 1680. I don't think I have any, but do have several powders that are slight derivations of the same parent powder (Explosia D.063). I reserve those for .300 Blk and .475 Tremor.
All of the testing that I have done came back to the same three powders that were always recommended to me, anyway: H4198, IMR4198, and RL-7. One caveat that I guess I should put forth: I don't play with light bullets in .444 Marlin. Powders that do better at the light end are out of my experience range. I run Hornady 265 FPs as my lightest bullet, and generally play in the 275-310 gr range.
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December 31, 2020, 06:18 PM | #30 |
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I have some 4198--not a lot--I'll try it out.
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December 31, 2020, 06:44 PM | #31 |
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i have a tc custom shop 375 jdj rifle (24" barrel), one of the best calibers for a single shot(444 necked down to .375), simple to make. just run the lubed 444 case into the .375 jdj size die and you are ready to load full power loads from the start(no fire forming to form). with 51 grs of H-4895 for 2300 fps with a 220 gr hornady, i think i can get to 2500 fps as 51 grs doesn,t show any pressure at all. it comes close to the .348 win lever action in power.
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January 1, 2021, 02:17 AM | #32 |
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Sounds interesting eastbank, 375 is a nice bullet (I have a 375 ruger rifle).
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January 1, 2021, 02:40 AM | #33 |
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.44 ALPEN
I made a comment elsewhere about this old wildcat, but it seems fitting to mention it here. I've got an old (1960-70?) magazine, I think a "Rifleman" where the author developed a wildcat .44, using a 300 H&H case and .429 bullets. Chambered the creation in a '98 Mauser action, and called it the .44 ALPEN, useful from Alaska to Pennsylvania. One of his problems, as I recall, was finding suitable .429 jacketed bullets, as all that was available commercially at the time .429's at 240 grains. He was hard casting heavier designs, perhaps Keith type and others. His other issue was headspace, which he solved using the belted H&H case. I've not seen the magazine in my archives for a long time.
The rimmed .444 case, and the heavier .429 bullets of today, would solve all (well most) of his problems. I don't believe the .444 had hit the market when the article was written, not sure about that. The belted H&H case headspaced on the belt, and would stack and feed from bolt rifle box magazines, something the .444 might be challenged to do reliably. |
January 1, 2021, 02:59 AM | #34 |
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In my break-open single-shot CVA the case appears to headspace on the rim and rifle's "non extractor."
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January 1, 2021, 07:51 AM | #35 |
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I opted for a CVA Hunter in 44 MAG. It seems to shoot all bullet weights very accurately but best of all is Hornady Lever-evolution ammo. For hogs, I load Speer 270 grain soft tip for maximum penetration.
Jack
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January 1, 2021, 10:34 AM | #36 | |
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Quote:
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January 2, 2021, 02:44 AM | #37 | ||
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Quote:
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January 2, 2021, 05:29 AM | #38 |
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I've never had the pleasure of working with Mauser actions Scorch--so I didn't know whether or not it could be done. Can you run bullets like the cutting edge's at full case length--and I assume longer COL? That's pretty cool.
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January 2, 2021, 07:42 PM | #39 | |
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Quote:
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January 2, 2021, 09:06 PM | #40 | |
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Quote:
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January 4, 2021, 04:34 PM | #41 |
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maximus
After almost 3 weeks the postal service still doesn't know exactly where my 444 dies are (mailed priority)--but they assure me they are somewhere on planet earth and will someday be delivered. Meanwhile, the cutting edge bullets I ordered Friday afternoon where delivered today. Go figure.
I do have 44 mag dies, so I figure I could at least get an approximation of what a 444 marlin cartridge might look like with a Maximus bullet. You can get the bullet to fit without trimming the case length--but then you need to trim the neck inside to take pressure off the drive band which is crucial to sealing the bullet in the bore well. I decided to go ahead with trimming the case length to 2.07" which is still a bit longer than what hornady recommends for their 265 ftx so that the drive band is outside the neck when seated to a COL of 2.848." Keep in mind this is a "hypothetical" idea at this point and I do not in any way recommend that it is a safe or useable configuration.
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January 4, 2021, 10:49 PM | #42 | |
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Looks spicy.
I haven't tried any of those, since I don't really shoot the single-shot any more. Quote:
How the hell do you know that, if you don't know where it is? Are you just lying to everyone, and you happen to know that it's actually sitting in an intentionally-stashed semi-trailer somewhere in New Jersey?
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January 5, 2021, 12:34 AM | #43 |
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That looks exciting! Not being limited to lever action pressures, you could get that moving right along!
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January 5, 2021, 02:20 AM | #44 | |||
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Quote:
Quote:
CE makes points for the bullets but unfortunately they were out of them for the .429. Quote:
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January 5, 2021, 05:05 PM | #45 |
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First attempt at a test did not go very well. The first low end charge left the muzzle at around 2240 fps--it was one which I had seated the drive band into the case neck. The next one of the same charge weight with the drive band outside the neck went screaming out the muzzle at just over 2,500 fps. The 3rd shot didn't go anywhere at all--the genix primer was a dud and failed to ignite even though it had repeated solid firing pin hits. When I pulled the cartridge--the bullet was left in the chamber so it was game over for now. I'm not exactly sure how to crimp a cutting edge bullet with the drive band outside the case mouth.
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January 5, 2021, 06:37 PM | #46 |
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Do you have to crimp for a single-shot? I wouldn't think it to be absolutely necessary myself but maybe I'm overlooking something.
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January 5, 2021, 06:58 PM | #47 |
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A 300 grainer at 2.500 fps puts you in 375 H&H territory, over 4,000 ft-lbs!
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January 5, 2021, 07:20 PM | #48 | ||
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Quote:
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January 5, 2021, 07:26 PM | #49 |
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Ah gotcha
I suppose you could turn down the expander and leave yourself with a bit more grip on the smaller shank. Of course that would mean you'd have to buy another expander for anything of a standard size.
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January 5, 2021, 08:09 PM | #50 | |
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