44 special

[cworetired]

I see where alot of folks use a load for the 44 special of 7.6 of Unique but none of my manuals list this for a 250gr lead bullet. What am I missing? This will for my new Ruger 44 Special. Thanks all

 

[Hobie]

That would be 7.5 gr. Unique. The Skeeter Skelton load. Works a treat in both my Lipsey's FTs and FA97.

What are you missing? :wink:

 

[Rainman]

You won't find that load listed in manuals for fear folks will use it accidentally in older, weaker frames. 7.5 grs of Unique was Skeeter Skelton's personal favorite as noted above.

Brian Pearce wrote an excellent article in a recent Handloader on the 44 Special using the new flattops and the load was fine for such a strong frame. My Lipsey's 4 5/8" loves it.

Dan

 

[dougader]

So I have been loading 45 Colt for years and I'm familiar with the
"Ruger/Contender Only" loads for that caliber. These separate loadings are seen in many of the printed reloading manuals from the major publishers.

I don't know squat about anything in 44 Special and have never loaded anything except 44 magnum for my brother-in-law.

I haven't seen separate data for 44 Special in any loading manuals like you see for 45 Colt, although I do have the above-mentioned Handloader article about the 44 Special that Brian Pearce put together.

So tell me, please, which guns are good to go with "Skeeter's Load" or similarly warm loadings of 44 Special. Is it a "Ruger Only" proposition or are there other revolvers in 44 Special that are safe for similar "heavy" loads. I assume any 5-shot, like a Freedom Arms gun, would more than handle Skeeter's load....

 

[ChuckS1]

Doug, 7.5 grains of Unique would be fine for any N frame S&W or, like others have said, the mid-size Ruger frame. I don't own a Colt SAA in this caliber, but I would think this would be fine in the Colt SAA in .44 Special.

In both my Lipsey's and my S&W pre-24, this is a very accurate load at 25 yards. having said that, I don't find it all that pleasant to shoot for extended periods for punching paper.

 

[dougader]

Would a recent manufacture Uberti made Colt-clone be ok with this or not?

 

[dogdays]

Try the Trail Boss Powder, great for punching paper and accurate. I like the way this powder fills the cases. I use the reloading data from the Trail Boss manual, mostly Cowboy loads.

 

[twobisquit]

Has anyone tried 7.5 of Universal with a 240 swc? It was a little more accurate and cleaner than Unique for me. I am curious if anyone has compared the FPS against Unique.

 

[Sonnytoo]

7.5 grs of Unique was Skeeter Skelton's personal favorite as noted above.

Brian Pearce wrote an excellent article in a recent Handloader on the 44 Special using the new flattops and the load was fine for such a strong frame. My Lipsey's 4 5/8" loves it.

Dan

Dan is talking about HANDLOADER issue 260, June 2009, available from Wolfe Publishing. Skeeter used it with Lyman 429421 mould (250-grain cast) at 960 fps for one inch @ 25 yds. My favorite article on the .44 Special by Brian Pearce is the August 2005 No. 236 available from the same pub company. Tons of loads; many guns and models categorized for safety within certain psi-pressured loads. Well worth the $8.
Sonnytoo