44 spl +p loads

[gunney 67]

Does anyone have any good 44 spl. +P loads that are safe to shoot from a mdl.696 S&W with 3" bbl. I will be carrying it as a back-up for elk hunting in a couple of weeks. Prefer 200 or 240 gr jacketed if possible. Thanks

[drail]

I have met several guys who have done damage to a 696 from running hot loads in them. I don't know how many they fired but they managed to crack the forcing cones and S&W has no more barrels for this gun. I have been shooting mine since they first hit the market and it is holding up very well. I generally run 200 to 215 gr. bullets at about 850 to 900 fps. Anything over this level is not going to gain you anything and will accelerate wear on the gun. It's only a 3 in barrel after all. If you feel you need more power then I suggest using a .44 mag. or a .45 Colt. I think the 696 is one of the greatest models ever produce by S&W and I use it for daily carry but I plan to make it last as long as I can. You might be surprised how powerful a 200 gr. Gold Dot hollowpoint is. Good luck on your hunt.

[drail]

I just thought I might add the hottest loads I have run in my 696 are a 250 gr. Keith SWC over 6.5 to 7.0 gr. of Unique. I have also used 14.5 to 15.0 gr. 2400 over a 240 or 250 gr. bullet and I do believe it is perfectly safe but I would really limit the number of times you do this. I really do think that a 200 gr. bullet is a much wiser choice for these guns.

[joneb]

I will be carrying it as a back-up for elk hunting

Back-up for what ? Will there be griz where you are hunting ?

[drail]

I would imagine as back up for "whatever". You never know what you're going to run into anymore. Last year in Chicago the city police encountered and shot a large cougar INSIDE the city limits. I'm sure they didn't expect to see a big cat in Chicago. That would meet my qualification for "whatever". It was autopsied and they determined it came down from Canada through the Dakotas and wandered into town. I live in Indiana and we have big cats moving into this area too. Ranchers in Illinois have been reporting finding large parts of calf carcasses 30 feet above the ground in trees. I have also seen packs of feral dogs on my property.

[zeke]

maybe not officius plus p loads, but slightly hotter than most factory. The original Speer Blazers 200 gdhp got 900 fps from same 696.

200 GDHP, Fed 150 primer, Starline brass, 696
8.8 gr V V-N350 for about 925 fps
7.8 gr unique for about 925 fps

180 xtp/Rem 180 sjhp
9.0 grain unique for about 1020 fps, probably more penetration with xtp

210 Rem sjhp
7.5 gr unique for about 900 fps

[Al Norris]

Let's be clear about this. There is no +P designation for 44 caliber. Either S&W specials or magnums.

SAAMI specs for the .44 spec are 15.500 psi. Remember, Elmer Keith destroyed quite a few guns, while he developed what is now known as the .44 magnum.

Please keep in mind that your pistol was not designed for high pressure loads. Get a magnum revolver, if you insist on using over-pressure loads. Better for the gun and definitely better for your own safety.

[CraigC]

How many .44Spl's did Elmer Keith destroy?

Personally, because of the thin forcing cone, I wouldn't go any hotter than the old Skeeter load consisting of a 250gr cast bullet over 7.5gr Unique for 950fps.

[Slamfire]

I have shot thousands of 6.5 grains Unique and 7.5 grs Unique with a 240 L bullet. I find the 7.5 grains load to give me all the recoil I want in my N frame. It is a heavy load.

6.5 grains Unique is the maximum load in most reloading handbooks. Elmer Keith recommended the 7.5 grs load in his book “Six Guns”, but this load is not for something on the level of a Charter Arms Bulldog. It is for N frames, or the new Ruger Flattop 44 Spl.

4" M624     			
					
240 LSWC Valiant  6.6 grs Unique thrown,  lot UN364 3/9/92 Mixed cases, Brass WLP
T = 70 °F  4-Apr-09
		 			
Ave Vel =	859.6				
Std Dev =	21.7				
ES =	77.85				
High = 	878.4				
Low=	800				
N =	10				
					
240 LSWC   7.0 grains Unique,   Midway cases, WLP (brass) 	
T= 45-50 °F 15 Dec 2002
					
Ave Vel =			902.8		
Std Dev =			21.49		
ES =			81.76		
Low = 			859.8		
High = 			941.6		
N  = 			33		
					
					
240 LSWC  7.5 grs Unique thrown,  lot UN364 3/9/92 Mixed cases, Brass WLP
T = 70 °F	4-Apr-09
		 			
Ave Vel =	965.8				
Std Dev =	23.15				
ES =	65.28				
High = 	986.3				
Low=	921				
N =	12

[Tom Servo]

Some interesting thoughts on the matter here.

I've got a 696, and I find the 200gr Gold Dots at ~870ft/s to be more than adequate for free-range two-legged predators. As far as more serious stuff, I'd probably move up to an N-Frame.

[Maromero]

Better to download a mag than hotrod a spl.

[gunney 67]

Thanks to all who replied. We will be at the junction of 2 wilderness areas for about 2 wks on the Salmon River. There ARE bears and wolves in this area. I have a wolf tag. But I don't think that we need to make excuses to pack a favorite handgun for a couple of weeks in the great outdoors, do you? I only wish I could take them all. So much steel and so little time!

[Unclenick]

Pick up one of these. Eat the extra 4 oz. of weight and be safe.

[Al Norris]

Originally Posted by gunney 67

We will be at the junction of 2 wilderness areas for about 2 wks on the Salmon River.

Sawtooth to the South and Frank Church to the north. Hunted up around Elk Creek several years ago.

[gunney 67]

Aw, now why did you have to go and show me that, Unclenick? Now I have ANOTHER gun I can't live without! Actually we'll be at the intersections of the Gospel Hump and Frank Church Wilderness Areas. Plans are to hunt elk and fish for steelhead in the Salmon River. Sounds like too much fun for an old fat boy, but I'm really stoked anyway.

[joneb]

I've loaded up to 7.0gr of Unique with 240gr LSWC with Fed 150 primers for my 696, I backed down two 6.8gr. but shoot it rarely. I have trouble throwing a consistent weight with Unique so I weigh each charge when at the upper end

[AlaskaMike]

I thought I was familiar with all S&W revolvers, but the 696 is a new one to me. Based on its appearance, it looks like a 5 shot L frame--is that right?

Mike

[CraigC]

I find the 7.5 grains load to give me all the recoil I want in my N frame. It is a heavy load.

Most would consider this a moderate load. It is a very common every day working load for a great many .44Spl fanciers. Works well in a great many .44 sixguns, including the 696.

Better to download a mag than hotrod a spl.

I see the safety police is out in full force.

Remember, Elmer Keith destroyed quite a few guns, while he developed what is now known as the .44 magnum.

It's funny because discussions about the .44Spl inevitably lead to Elmer Keith references and there is ALWAYS a snide remark about how many guns he blew up. Most folks must've never read much Elmer Keith because I have all his books except his shotgun book and his autobiography and the only sixgun I ever remember him talking about destroying was an old .45Colt SAA that he loaded with a modified .45-70 bullet at 300gr with as much blackpowder he could stuff in the case. Thus began the myth of weak .45Colt brass.

[mavracer]

I thought I was familiar with all S&W revolvers, but the 696 is a new one to me. Based on its appearance, it looks like a 5 shot L frame--is that right?

yes