.357 max to .445 SuperMag

[Patriot_Precision]

Curious if anyone here has built a .445 Supermag off of a Super Blackhawk. 357 Max frame. I know United Sporting Arms made a few Sevilles in .445 and they were 5 round. I have a .357 Max cylinder blank but its a 6 round. The Dan Wesson .445 is a 6 round. Do you think a stretch frame Blackhawk cylinder would hold 6 .445 safely?

 

[contender]

I don't know of anybody with one myself.

Your question would be for the custom gun builder to answer. If you are the one planning on doing the build,, then I'm no help at all.
Personally I hate seeing .357 Maxi's redone because we have so few of them. But that's just MY personal opinion. Your gun, your call.

 

[the_leper_colony]

Paging @Hvymax ...

 

[RoninPA]

Contender said it right "Your gun, your call". Personally, I would never change a thing with my .357 Maximum and I think most Maxi owners would agree.

 

[GYJ44]

I think the problem is the length. I long thought a .445 would be awesome for heavy bullets at higher velocities than the .44Mag is capable of. Until I got one. In reality, getting another 100fps doesn't yield much and there's virtually no data for bullets heavier than 300gr.

IMHO, the Max literally exists to be made into something more useful than a .357.

 

[flyer898]

Why not use a Dan Wesson as a starting place? I have a DW .357 Supermag with a 6" barrel - it is a massive revolver.
I wonder what a .445 Supermag necked to .357 would be like? Sort of a bigger .357/.44 Bain & Davis.
Does anyone know the cylinder diameter on the DW .445 Supermag?
I checked the dimensions on my DW .357 Supermag cylinder and my Ruger .357 Maximum cylinder
DW 1.775 diameter, 2.085 long.
Ruger 1.730 diameter, 1.930 long
The measurements are inches.

 

[BULL'S-EYE]

Oh, it's been done.

https://americanhandgunner.com/handguns/sixguns-of-ben-forkin/

 

[flyer898]

Thanks for that article. Why am I not surprised. I am keeping my eyes open for a DW .445 Supermag.

 

[Bigbore5]

Don't waste your time or money. Buy a 6-shot BFR that will stand up to 50,000psi loads all day, then load with available Redhawk data that meets or surpasses 445 performance. Less investment. More strength. Plus doesn't waste a Maximum.
Or if you just want more performance for real, buy the 6-shot 454 or the 475 Linebaugh, both of which far exceed anything what the 44 can do, no matter how you load it.

 

[contender]

"IMHO, the Max literally exists to be made into something more useful than a .357."

Shooting a .357 Maxi with a 195 grn Bradshaw/Martin bullet,, out of a Maxi at the 1400 fps velocity, getting 3"-4" groups at 100 yds is mighty useful! That easily exceeds the .357 Magnum all day long.

 

[el caminero]

Something between winchesters '92 and '94, for a 357 max, would be a great companion piece to a sbh max, seville, or dw, but if done would probably just be a lightweight'd chambering of the 500 s&w bighorn armory model 89. Which wouldnt be so costy if ruger were to make it....they bought marlin, and once had their own levergun before that...
Hmmm...the rossi 92 has been done in 454 casull, the 94 has been done in 44 mag, so maybe just 357 max into a "regular" 92 could be made to work. Same weight bullet as medium 44s and 45s, smaller diameter, better penetration, if thats what you want. For bears, for instance, it seems penetration into the core beats footpounds expended outside the core. Or maybe i just read too much. Havent seen a live bear since i was a kid, and all dad was armed with was a leica...

 

[GYJ44]

Don't waste your time or money. Buy a 6-shot BFR that will stand up to 50,000psi loads all day, then load with available Redhawk data that meets or surpasses 445 performance. Less investment. More strength. Plus doesn't waste a Maximum.
Or if you just want more performance for real, buy the 6-shot 454 or the 475 Linebaugh, both of which far exceed anything what the 44 can do, no matter how you load it.

Even at 50,000psi, the .44Mag can't match the .445. Not that it needs to.

"IMHO, the Max literally exists to be made into something more useful than a .357."

Shooting a .357 Maxi with a 195 grn Bradshaw/Martin bullet,, out of a Maxi at the 1400 fps velocity, getting 3"-4" groups at 100 yds is mighty useful! That easily exceeds the .357 Magnum all day long.

Still just a .357 and a grossly overweight one at that.

 

[Bigbore5]

Even at 50,000psi, the .44Mag can't match the .445. Not that it needs to.



Still just a .357 and a grossly overweight one at that.

Yes. And so is a 35Rem. People far too quickly dismiss the 357 who haven't used it on larger bears and African plains game.

I've had two Dan Wesson supermags in 445. It's mostly hype. 100-150 more fps. Not any difference in the real world over the magnum. It's nothing like the difference between the 454 and 45C..

 

[RoninPA]

Still just a .357 and a grossly overweight one at that.

I have one and I really don't notice the weight, and I love to shoot it especially with the 195 grn Bradshaw/Martin bullets and load I got from Contender. I actually found new brass at two different gun shows at decent prices so I stocked up. Just need to get some more bullets because I don't cast my own.

 

[seasterl]

It's nice to see so many comments on one of my favorite cartridges. I remember shooting a round in IHMSA using a TC Encore with 15" MGM bull barrel with a 445SM and 220gr Sierra FPJ bullets, tweaked trigger, and BoMar rear sight. It rivaled my XP100 7BR in consistency, but recoil was not negligible. I eventually sold it, but converted a Ruger No.1 into 445SM, and like it better for this cartridge. I cannot imagine this in a SA Blackhawk frame! I would much prefer a 375SM (or 357Max) in this frame and mate a custom barrel and cylinder with the idea of accurately firing a .375 cal bullet of your choice. You'll get a better BC, sectional density, and down range accuracy and performance compared to a 0.4295" slug. Of course, I think a lot of us would lose interest in the project by the time it would take any competent gunsmith to actually complete the project! LOL! Just my $0.10 worth coming from my experience with a custom 445SM "handgun" that was really cool for a while,… until it wasn't.

Edited: corrected one minor typo

 

[GYJ44]

Yes. And so is a 35Rem. People far too quickly dismiss the 357 who haven't used it on larger bears and African plains game.

Like the .35Whelen, the .35Remington is a rifle cartridge, utilizing much heavier bullets at much higher velocity. Apples and oranges.

 

[Robb Barnes]

I took the middle road less travelled and turned my 357 max into a 5 shot 414 Supermag. Why? Grins and giggles.

 

[Hvymax]

Paging @Hvymax ...

It will work in a Super Redhawk just fine. The .445 was made for the extra long cylinders of the Dan Wesson and Super Redhawk. Pretty much the 44 Magnum +P+

 

[Ale-8(1)]

Every one that gets converted into something else just makes mine more valuable.

 

[GYJ44]

It will work in a Super Redhawk just fine. The .445 was made for the extra long cylinders of the Dan Wesson and Super Redhawk. Pretty much the 44 Magnum +P+

The .445 is way too long for the Super Redhawk.

It's not the .44Mag +P+. Pressure is similar, it just has greater case volume. It still outruns 50,000psi loads in the .44Mag.

I've given thought to having my oversized six shot .44Mag Bisley reamed for a 1.4" case. That combined with dual crimp groove bullets and a caseful of H110 might approach the .445.

 

[Bigbore5]

Like the .35Whelen, the .35Remington is a rifle cartridge, utilizing much heavier bullets at much higher velocity. Apples and oranges.

It is a primarily rifle cartridge, but in a Contender or BFR, it's performance is on par with the Maximum, yet people overlook that. It's considered a fine cartridge for up to elk, even with the inferior rifle bullets versus the wide meplat handgun bullet, yet the consensus amongst people who have not used the maximum is tainted by the undeserved view of the magnum being insufficient.

 

[GYJ44]

It is a primarily rifle cartridge, but in a Contender or BFR, it's performance is on par with the Maximum, yet people overlook that. It's considered a fine cartridge for up to elk, even with the inferior rifle bullets versus the wide meplat handgun bullet, yet the consensus amongst people who have not used the maximum is tainted by the undeserved view of the magnum being insufficient.

Like I said, it's still just a .357 and grossly overweight for the cartridge. For big game, the .357 does not lack for velocity, it lacks for diameter and mass.

 

[el caminero]

Like I said, it's still just a .357 and grossly overweight for the cartridge. For big game, the .357 does not lack for velocity, it lacks for diameter and mass.

Its not for big game, in the hands of the average hunter. It is however far more effective than a broad arrow on the same game in bowseason, which i think is a risky thing

 

[contender]

"For big game, the .357 does not lack for velocity, it lacks for diameter and mass."

I guess that the whitetails & mule deer taken with it, one shot kills were all a figment of imagination for the several hunters who have used the .357 Maxi to hunt with. But my imagination tasted pretty darn good!

I know of other hunters who have used the .357 Maxi on elk, & such, very successfully. The .357 Maxi can easily be a good big game hunting caliber. With the right bullet, and in the hands of a skilled handgunner.

And I live in NC. We have some pretty big bears here. If I were to happen upon one while carrying my .357 Maxi, with the Bradshaw/Martin bullet,, I would not feel under gunned. But I would use all my skill to assure proper bullet placement or I'd pass on a shot. But I do that anyway, no matter what caliber I'm using.

It's safe to say we disagree (politely) on the ability of the .357 Maximum. No further comments are necessary as it'd be fruitless to try & change either one of us.

 

[GYJ44]

"For big game, the .357 does not lack for velocity, it lacks for diameter and mass."

I guess that the whitetails & mule deer taken with it, one shot kills were all a figment of imagination for the several hunters who have used the .357 Maxi to hunt with. But my imagination tasted pretty darn good!

I know of other hunters who have used the .357 Maxi on elk, & such, very successfully. The .357 Maxi can easily be a good big game hunting caliber. With the right bullet, and in the hands of a skilled handgunner.

And I live in NC. We have some pretty big bears here. If I were to happen upon one while carrying my .357 Maxi, with the Bradshaw/Martin bullet,, I would not feel under gunned. But I would use all my skill to assure proper bullet placement or I'd pass on a shot. But I do that anyway, no matter what caliber I'm using.

It's safe to say we disagree (politely) on the ability of the .357 Maximum. No further comments are necessary as it'd be fruitless to try & change either one of us.

Oh I know people have used it. Douglas Wesson wanted to go after the great bears with the .357Mag. I just prefer something bigger.

 

[contender]

See,, I KNEW we could politely disagree and understand each other.

Oh,, and for my personal preferences on Elk or Bear,, in a revolver,, I like the calibers to start with a 4. (.41 mag, .44 mag, .45 Colt, .454, or .480!)
I can appreciate the larger mass & such as well.

 

[el caminero]

"Use enough gun"
ymmv

 

[ready05]

 

[ready05]

Bowen built, 6 shot, 445 Super Mag, 7.5" Shilen barrel, shooting 300 gr TCFP lead, one ragged hole at 50 yards benched.

 

[unspellable]

Picking up a DW 445 would be a lot simpler than trying to convert a Maximum. Also, the SuperMag cylinder is about 1/8 inch longer. Many standard 445 loads would be too long for the Maximum. I have a DW 357 SuperMag. My regular 357 SuperMag loads will not chamber in a Maximum.
I gave passing thought to a 357-445 but I think it would be pointless, the 357 SuperMag is already at the point of diminishing returns in a revolver.