I was reading the post about the 44 special and wondered (this has probably been talked about many times before) just what can the 44 special do that at 45 Colt can't?
44 special or 45 Colt
- Thread starter Fox Mike
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Get a Ruger Redhawk chambered in 45 COLT and roll your own. Then the answer to your question is nothing!
Equivalent cartridges depending on the gun.
A .44 magnum you shoot specials in might give you a bit more uploading power if you want than a .45 colt in a weaker revolver (like a Judge).
Then again you can get stout .45 colt guns that’ll meet or beat the power of a .44 magnum. Fr’ instance my marlin can be shot with heavy .45 colts if desired some of which the ballistics approach low end 45-70 power.
Although my favorite .45 colt loadings to shoot are 8-ish grains universal under a 255 grain Keith.
A .44 magnum you shoot specials in might give you a bit more uploading power if you want than a .45 colt in a weaker revolver (like a Judge).
Then again you can get stout .45 colt guns that’ll meet or beat the power of a .44 magnum. Fr’ instance my marlin can be shot with heavy .45 colts if desired some of which the ballistics approach low end 45-70 power.
Although my favorite .45 colt loadings to shoot are 8-ish grains universal under a 255 grain Keith.
It can create smaller holes than the 45 ...
Not when using Black Powder of which it was designed for.
Yeah cuz that's what everybody's using now, right?
GasGuzzler
Hawkeye
I'd pick a .45 Colt over a .44 Magnum 10/10 times so don't bother me with the .44 Special.
KurtC
Single-Sixer
It can fit into a GP-100. Ruger hasn't yet figured out how to do that with the 45 Colt, but I'm hoping they do.
What revolver is the OP using and wanting internet ”expert” permission to over pressure a 44spl. The 45LC in a strongly built modern gun is a no brainer for power if you load your own.
The other consideration is are you buying off the shelf ammo? Buffalo bore, Underwood Arms and a few others make some very nice ammo if you want power. BB is my choice.
The other consideration is are you buying off the shelf ammo? Buffalo bore, Underwood Arms and a few others make some very nice ammo if you want power. BB is my choice.
OP
I am not talking about a 44 Magnum; I am speaking of the 44 Special
OP
What are you talking about? I said nothing about 'owning' either, or over-pressuring. I also said nothing of using reloads. I asked a simple question. What can one do better than the other.
JackBull
Hunter
Since the 45 Colt beats the 44 mag, per John Linbaugh, not much. The only advantage is that the 44 can be built on a GP frame.
It’s a little tricky because even with the .44 special it comes down to the type of gun being used. Both .44 special and .45 colt in standard pressure commercial loadings are wayyyy under loaded in deference to older guns being out there. Either can be safely loaded to heavy (sort of +P loading but no official +P designation really exists for these calibers) in certain modern firearms (underwood and buffalo bore make these rounds commercially). Even the historic skeeter load (.44 special with 245 grain boolit on top of 7.5 grains unique/universal) is a sort of +P round for some guns.
So all things being equal I’d say there’s no significant difference between them. Given a choice I’d prolly go with the .45 colt but I have and shoot both.
Not a damn thing!
jgt
Buckeye
Don't know, don't care. I picked the 44 about 1968 after trying all the others. Never had cause to regret it. A lot has changed since then. I'm still fine with my choice. To me it appeared like most people over that time period chose from taking a poll from other shooters or from their favorite gun writer. It really does not matter as long as a person is satisfied with their choice. I'm a reloader. I wanted to have a lot more options to create ammunition. I wanted to cast and swage jacketed bullets and make my own gas checks. I wanted to have the best tools I could purchase for case prep and handling. I could not afford that if I had all the calibers I owned at the time. So, I picked one centerfire rifle and revolver caliber and one gage shotgun. I was ok with standard and magnum cartridge in the same caliber. i. e. 44 special, 44 magnum, and 444 Marlin. Also 30-06 and 300 WM. I would not have had space or funds to do that otherwise. I have been just fine with my choice. The thirty caliber rifle has good enough bullet selections to cover what I hunt and so does the 44. I still had the 22 rimfire choice available and took advantage of that option when it was appropriate. I lusted after the fifty caliber guns when they became a viable option but by that time I was too old to start gearing up for yet another caliber. I'm in my eighties now and have already began giving away guns to relatives. I'm fine dancing with who brung me.
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codebreaker
Single-Sixer
I have revolvers chambered in both. I don't see that there's much difference between the two cartridges.
Seems a lot of folks have an irrational bias against the .44's that is completely disconnected from reality.
Except it doesn't. The .44 magnum has a 50-100fps velocity advantage over all bullet weights.
A platform half a pound lighter isn't a significant advantage?
So over-pressuring the .45 is "a no brainer" but not the .44?
My popcorn budget has gone up a considerable amount since joining this forum! 
I had these converted from 357 to 45Colt. I saw no reason to go to a 44 special since I already had Supers that I could shoot 44 special or download 44 mag to 44 special.
As said above the .45 vs the .429 Special ... The .45 makes a bigger hole. What you can 'do' with the cartridge will depend on the gun and the loads. Obviously with a bigger bullet you can load heavier bullets in the .45. My general purpose bullets are 240gr vs 255gr. I 'hear' people using even 200gr for the .44 Special as standard... That said, I like them both but tend to enjoy my .45s more. Neither is more accurate than the other. I don't know why, but I found the .44 Special to like more 'powders' than the .45 Colt. Ie. It was hard to find a bad load when handloading the .44 Special. Of course that could just be the 'test' guns that I was using. Finally, the .44 Magnum revolvers in my collection are gathering dust as I prefer the .44 Special cartridge to the .44 Magnum cartridge now that .44 Special only revolvers are available. Really a personal preference on which you use. I like my .45s.
Meplats on .45's are sometimes bigger, sometimes not. The .44 tends to penetrate better. No critter will ever know the difference.
There's no bullet weight applicable to the .45Colt that can't also be used in the .44.
There's no bullet weight applicable to the .45Colt that can't also be used in the .44.
But .44 is not .45 and never will be.
It's as simple as that.
I have both and have found that my 44 Specials seem to be a bit more accurate. Tier II 45 Colts hurt my old hand a little.
GasGuzzler
Hawkeye
Did you read my post you quoted?
It might come to that if the current powder situation keeps cratering.
JackBull
Hunter
My bet is Linebaugh has more experience in this than you do.
gyj44 , you took what I said completely out of context and failed to recognize the differences between a modern 45LC and an old manufacture one.
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