I am considering selling

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 01:16 PM

I went out to my home "falling plate" (actually swinging plate) set-up to shoot 100 rounds of .44 Special. Wow...at 77 I am no longer up for the recoil. After 10 or so rounds, I had enough of the recoil. The load was only 4.1 grains under a Keith-type 250 grain home-cast bullet (the last of the NRA formula lubed bullets, have switched to Powder Coated bullets).

The 4.1 grain Red Dot load is considered a mild load, but I just cannot take that much recoil anymore.

I will have to mull it over. I have 650 loaded rounds, six HKS speed loaders, a .44 Spl. Dillon 550b set-up.

I hate coming to the point where I have to deal with parting with this beauty.

https://uniim1.shutterfly.com/ng/ser...006176/enhance

HighValleyRanch · March 11, 2021, 01:47 PM

Try glove or a rubber grip that wraps around the backstrap. Then make up your mind.

stinkeypete · March 11, 2021, 01:56 PM

That’s a real beauty. Getting old isn’t for sissies. To my mind, .44 Special is far far under appreciated, as are lovely wood grips.

**Aguila Blanca** · March 11, 2021, 02:18 PM

Try some Hogue or Pachmayr shock-absorbing grips, perhaps? Not as pretty as those beautiful wood grips, but the cushion grips might allow you to keep shooting.

lee n. field · March 11, 2021, 02:31 PM

"What he said." -- yes, try different grips.

I read, elsewhere, that .44 Russian is a compatible possible step down from the .44 special. Maybe worth looking for.

(Yeah, I know. .44 Special is hard enough to find.)

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HighValleyRanch

Try glove or a rubber grip that wraps around the backstrap. Then make up your mind.

I have a golf glove that I have sewn padding into the web between my thumb and index finger...not much help. I issue seems more to be old hands that no longer can take the recoil.

zeke · March 11, 2021, 03:18 PM

Decided to shed the nice looking wood grips and keith heavy bullets long time ago

200 gn rnfp at about 800 fps with houge rubber bantams. If you want to take pics, just switch them back. BIG difference in recoil between 240 and 200 gn bullets while using rubbers. Am not hunting any game, and 44-40 power loads are fine for target/vermin.

696's are a personal favorite

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 03:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lee n. field

"What he said." -- yes, try different grips.

I read, elsewhere, that .44 Russian is a compatible possible step down from the .44 special. Maybe worth looking for.

(Yeah, I know. .44 Special is hard enough to find.)

As a hand loader, I already have access to .44 Russian strength loads. The 4.1 of Red Dot is likely within that range.

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zeke

Decided to shed the nice looking wood grips and keith heavy bullets long time ago

200 gn rnfp at about 800 fps with houge rubber bantams. If you want to take pics, just switch them back. BIG difference in recoil between 240 and 200 gn bullets while using rubbers. Am not hunting any game, and 44-40 power loads are fine for target/vermin.

696's are a personal favorite

At this stage in life, it makes little sense for me to look for lighter weight .44 bullet molds.

HighValleyRanch · March 11, 2021, 03:26 PM

Yes, you should be commended for still actively shooting at 77.
Getting old sucks. But maybe it does make sense to look for a lighter bullet load just to keep that beauty going. Isn't that the advantage of a revoler, to be able to shoot power puff loads. Look for some trail boss cowboy loads.

ciwsguy · March 11, 2021, 03:36 PM

Short barreled .44 will give considerable recoil. Suggest get a .44 magnum lever gun for those rounds. If the revolver no longer is suited to you, suggest sell it and get a .44 lever gun. Henry makes a nice one. recoil is relatively mild in a lever gun because there's more mass and recoil shouldn't be too bad. My Marlin .44 lever gun with light hand loads doesn't kick much at all.

Two bits.....
ciwsguy

74A95 · March 11, 2021, 03:38 PM

What if you could cut the recoil to half or less? Can you handle that?

some quick numbers:
250 gr bullet
4.1 reddot
600 fps
= 3.3 ft pounds of recoil from a 36 ounce gun

150 gr bullet
3.0 reddot
~ 600 fps ???
1.2 ft pounds of recoil from a 36 ounce gun

lighter bullets: https://www.mattsbullets.com/index.p...index&cPath=70

That recoil would be less than what a 38 spl wadcutter produces.

**4V50 Gary** · March 11, 2021, 03:40 PM

Rubber grips and reduced charge loads?

If it's hurting too much, go to 38 special. Mel Tappan admitted that a lifetime of shooting magnums crippled him. I always kept that in mind.

gwpercle · March 11, 2021, 05:13 PM

I'm 71 now and find myself shooting a lot more 38 Special than anything else .
The 45 acp has always been a favorite until all the bending over and chasing empties all over the floor started to get to my bad back ... same goes for 9mm ... bending over and over just gets me down .
Hey ... not a thing wrong with a nice 38 Special ... 2.7 grains of Bullseye under any cast bullet is a lot of fun and the empties are left in your hand... Model 64 S&W ,with Millet SP-1 red dot sight ... Love it !
Eyes got old so had to get the SP-1 red dot ... sweet !
Gary

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ciwsguy

Short barreled .44 will give considerable recoil. Suggest get a .44 magnum lever gun for those rounds. If the revolver no longer is suited to you, suggest sell it and get a .44 lever gun. Henry makes a nice one. recoil is relatively mild in a lever gun because there's more mass and recoil shouldn't be too bad. My Marlin .44 lever gun with light hand loads doesn't kick much at all.

Two bits.....
ciwsguy

At my age and health, I do not consider it wise to buy green bananas let alone add to my gun collection.

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gwpercle

I'm 71 now and find myself shooting a lot more 38 Special than anything else .
The 45 acp has always been a favorite until all the bending over and chasing empties all over the floor started to get to my bad back ... same goes for 9mm ... bending over and over just gets me down .
Hey ... not a thing wrong with a nice 38 Special ... 2.7 grains of Bullseye under any cast bullet is a lot of fun and the empties are left in your hand... Model 64 S&W ,with Millet SP-1 red dot sight ... Love it !
Eyes got old so had to get the SP-1 red dot ... sweet !
Gary

Most of my shooting is now is with one of my old K38's with 130 grain bullets and 2.7 grains of Bullseye (or equivalent). But I have a lot of .44 Special rounds (650) that I wanted to shoot up because of the lack of small pistol primers.

dahermit · March 11, 2021, 06:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 74A95

What if you could cut the recoil to half or less? Can you handle that?

some quick numbers:
250 gr bullet
4.1 reddot
600 fps
= 3.3 ft pounds of recoil from a 36 ounce gun

150 gr bullet
3.0 reddot
~ 600 fps ???
1.2 ft pounds of recoil from a 36 ounce gun

lighter bullets: https://www.mattsbullets.com/index.p...index&cPath=70

That recoil would be less than what a 38 spl wadcutter produces.

I went through my lot of .44 Special loads and found that I have some loaded with 3.0 Grains of Bullseye...so when I get the 4.1 grain loads of Red Dot used up, I will not likely use Red Dot again.

74A95 · March 11, 2021, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dahermit

I went through my lot of .44 Special loads and found that I have some loaded with 3.0 Grains of Bullseye...so when I get the 4.1 grain loads of Red Dot used up, I will not likely use Red Dot again.

Okay, but that's not the point.

If you could load ammo with 1/2 or less recoil, would you keep the gun?

If not, sell the gun and be done with it.

Pathfinder45 · March 12, 2021, 01:02 AM

That same load out of a normal size Super-Blackhawk would be very kind to you.

ciwsguy · March 12, 2021, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dahermit

At my age and health, I do not consider it wise to buy green bananas let alone add to my gun collection.

I look at it this way....
1) you can’t take it with you
2) keep doing your thing as long as you can
3) enjoy the shooting sports as long as you can, even if it’s a 22

I’m mid-60s and am becoming more recoil sensitive. The last 30-06 I shot knocked the rocks loose in my head and it took 6 months to recover. I don’t shoot my M1 Garand anymore and early-willed it to one of my daughters. Could have sold it, but chose to keep it in the family.

ciwsguy · March 12, 2021, 09:51 AM

Sorry, not sure what happened with dupe post

dyl · March 12, 2021, 11:43 AM

Sorry to hear it. You know you don't have to sell it, if you don't need terminal performance. You could load rounds just over squib power.

Or... Devil's advocate here, you could get ANOTHER bigger heavier revolver that soaks up recoil even more. Are we getting any more stimulus checks soon?

rock185 · March 12, 2021, 12:20 PM

dahermit, I'm not far behind you age wise, and have experienced similar in my tolerance for recoil. Recently, I has out shooting a 37 ounce 10MM revolver loaded with 165 grain ammunition producing approx. 1325 FPS in this particular gun. Having shot my share of .41 and .44 Magnum, and .454 Casull, I would have considered recoil from the 10MM unremarkable even 5 years ago. Anyway, trying different grips on this revolver, I came across the Hogue Tamer Monogrip. These have what they call a "Sorbothane" insert inside the top rear of the grip. These are relatively inexpensive, and certainly nothing to look at as compared to the wood grips in your photo, but they do actually work. Might be something to consider before selling that nice revolver...

Grizzly2 · March 12, 2021, 01:03 PM

If you could try a few of those lighter 150 grain cast bullets you could easily pull those 250s out of the cases and replace them with the lighter ones just to give it a try.

I used to shoot something similar in my .45 Colt sa and they are nice light loads very similar to light .38 specials.

Just take the die out and run the case up and grab the bullet with slip joint pliers or something. Lower the arm and out it comes. They make a tool for that also that may not mark the bullet up much and also there are the cam lock dies that do the same thing maybe even easier. So much easier than an inertia tool for us guys who don't particularly want to hammer 650 rounds.

T. O'Heir · March 12, 2021, 01:38 PM

No Red Dot cast 250 load on Alliant's site. No Red Dot loads at all for anything but a cast 200. That alone might fix the felt recoil issue though.
I'd be thinking Pachmayr grips and changing the load, like 4V50 Gary says. It might be an idea to have the thing ported too. That might be more trouble than one would think given that everything is closed.
Loaddata.com says most manuals have jacketed bullet loads for only the .44 S&W Special.
One of the lads, here, says, Alliant's 1995 manual showed 8.8 is the MAX load for a gas checked 250. Means 4.1 is way below minimum. Don't have any current Alliant data myself.
https://thefiringline.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=599767
"...you can’t take it with you..." That's why I want a pyramid. snicker.

March 11, 2021, 01:16 PM	#1
dahermit Senior Member Join Date: October 28, 2006 Location: South Central Michigan...near Posts: 6,501	I am considering selling I went out to my home "falling plate" (actually swinging plate) set-up to shoot 100 rounds of .44 Special. Wow...at 77 I am no longer up for the recoil. After 10 or so rounds, I had enough of the recoil. The load was only 4.1 grains under a Keith-type 250 grain home-cast bullet (the last of the NRA formula lubed bullets, have switched to Powder Coated bullets). The 4.1 grain Red Dot load is considered a mild load, but I just cannot take that much recoil anymore. I will have to mull it over. I have 650 loaded rounds, six HKS speed loaders, a .44 Spl. Dillon 550b set-up. I hate coming to the point where I have to deal with parting with this beauty. https://uniim1.shutterfly.com/ng/ser...006176/enhance

March 11, 2021, 01:47 PM	#2
HighValleyRanch Senior Member Join Date: July 15, 2005 Posts: 4,066	Try glove or a rubber grip that wraps around the backstrap. Then make up your mind. __________________ From the sweet grass to the slaughter house; From birth until death; We travel between these two eternities........from 'Broken Trail"

March 11, 2021, 01:56 PM	#3
stinkeypete Senior Member Join Date: July 22, 2010 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,292	That’s a real beauty. Getting old isn’t for sissies. To my mind, .44 Special is far far under appreciated, as are lovely wood grips. __________________ 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.

March 11, 2021, 02:18 PM	#4
Aguila Blanca Staff Join Date: September 25, 2008 Location: CONUS Posts: 18,459	Try some Hogue or Pachmayr shock-absorbing grips, perhaps? Not as pretty as those beautiful wood grips, but the cushion grips might allow you to keep shooting. __________________ NRA Life Member / Certified Instructor NRA Chief RSO / CMP RSO 1911 Certified Armorer Jeepaholic

March 11, 2021, 02:31 PM	#5
lee n. field Senior Member Join Date: October 12, 2002 Location: The same state as Mordor. Posts: 5,568	"What he said." -- yes, try different grips. I read, elsewhere, that .44 Russian is a compatible possible step down from the .44 special. Maybe worth looking for. (Yeah, I know. .44 Special is hard enough to find.) __________________ "As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven. "

March 11, 2021, 03:18 PM	#7
zeke Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 1999 Location: NW Wi Posts: 1,671	Decided to shed the nice looking wood grips and keith heavy bullets long time ago 200 gn rnfp at about 800 fps with houge rubber bantams. If you want to take pics, just switch them back. BIG difference in recoil between 240 and 200 gn bullets while using rubbers. Am not hunting any game, and 44-40 power loads are fine for target/vermin. 696's are a personal favorite

March 11, 2021, 03:26 PM	#10
HighValleyRanch Senior Member Join Date: July 15, 2005 Posts: 4,066	Yes, you should be commended for still actively shooting at 77. Getting old sucks. But maybe it does make sense to look for a lighter bullet load just to keep that beauty going. Isn't that the advantage of a revoler, to be able to shoot power puff loads. Look for some trail boss cowboy loads. __________________ From the sweet grass to the slaughter house; From birth until death; We travel between these two eternities........from 'Broken Trail"

March 11, 2021, 03:36 PM	#11
ciwsguy Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2008 Location: KY Posts: 302	suggest a .44 magnum lever gun Short barreled .44 will give considerable recoil. Suggest get a .44 magnum lever gun for those rounds. If the revolver no longer is suited to you, suggest sell it and get a .44 lever gun. Henry makes a nice one. recoil is relatively mild in a lever gun because there's more mass and recoil shouldn't be too bad. My Marlin .44 lever gun with light hand loads doesn't kick much at all. Two bits..... ciwsguy

March 11, 2021, 03:38 PM	#12
74A95 Senior Member Join Date: November 26, 2016 Posts: 1,564	What if you could cut the recoil to half or less? Can you handle that? some quick numbers: 250 gr bullet 4.1 reddot 600 fps = 3.3 ft pounds of recoil from a 36 ounce gun 150 gr bullet 3.0 reddot ~ 600 fps ??? 1.2 ft pounds of recoil from a 36 ounce gun lighter bullets: https://www.mattsbullets.com/index.p...index&cPath=70 That recoil would be less than what a 38 spl wadcutter produces.

March 11, 2021, 03:40 PM	#13
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 21,831	Rubber grips and reduced charge loads? If it's hurting too much, go to 38 special. Mel Tappan admitted that a lifetime of shooting magnums crippled him. I always kept that in mind. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

March 11, 2021, 05:13 PM	#14
gwpercle Senior Member Join Date: November 30, 2012 Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana Posts: 1,752	I'm 71 now and find myself shooting a lot more 38 Special than anything else . The 45 acp has always been a favorite until all the bending over and chasing empties all over the floor started to get to my bad back ... same goes for 9mm ... bending over and over just gets me down . Hey ... not a thing wrong with a nice 38 Special ... 2.7 grains of Bullseye under any cast bullet is a lot of fun and the empties are left in your hand... Model 64 S&W ,with Millet SP-1 red dot sight ... Love it ! Eyes got old so had to get the SP-1 red dot ... sweet ! Gary

March 12, 2021, 01:02 AM	#19
Pathfinder45 Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2008 Posts: 3,224	That same load out of a normal size Super-Blackhawk would be very kind to you.

March 12, 2021, 09:51 AM	#21
ciwsguy Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2008 Location: KY Posts: 302	Sorry, not sure what happened with dupe post Last edited by ciwsguy; March 12, 2021 at 09:56 AM.

March 12, 2021, 11:43 AM	#22
dyl Senior Member Join Date: October 31, 2009 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,310	Sorry to hear it. You know you don't have to sell it, if you don't need terminal performance. You could load rounds just over squib power. Or... Devil's advocate here, you could get ANOTHER bigger heavier revolver that soaks up recoil even more. Are we getting any more stimulus checks soon?

March 12, 2021, 01:03 PM	#24
Grizzly2 Member Join Date: September 5, 2017 Posts: 88	If you could try a few of those lighter 150 grain cast bullets you could easily pull those 250s out of the cases and replace them with the lighter ones just to give it a try. I used to shoot something similar in my .45 Colt sa and they are nice light loads very similar to light .38 specials. Just take the die out and run the case up and grab the bullet with slip joint pliers or something. Lower the arm and out it comes. They make a tool for that also that may not mark the bullet up much and also there are the cam lock dies that do the same thing maybe even easier. So much easier than an inertia tool for us guys who don't particularly want to hammer 650 rounds.

March 12, 2021, 01:38 PM	#25
T. O'Heir Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 12,453	No Red Dot cast 250 load on Alliant's site. No Red Dot loads at all for anything but a cast 200. That alone might fix the felt recoil issue though. I'd be thinking Pachmayr grips and changing the load, like 4V50 Gary says. It might be an idea to have the thing ported too. That might be more trouble than one would think given that everything is closed. Loaddata.com says most manuals have jacketed bullet loads for only the .44 S&W Special. One of the lads, here, says, Alliant's 1995 manual showed 8.8 is the MAX load for a gas checked 250. Means 4.1 is way below minimum. Don't have any current Alliant data myself. https://thefiringline.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=599767 "...you can’t take it with you..." That's why I want a pyramid. snicker. __________________ Spelling and grammar count!