.44 magnum Blackhawk

G

GI Joe

New member
Good afternoon. Against my better judgment, I bought a Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk in .44 magnum caliber this week for $389 (not including tax) brand new. It is stainless steel and has a 7 1/2" barrel. I say "against my better judgment" because my GP-100 in .357 mag stings my hand a bit but not too badly. I figured that with the current political climate, I may as well buy one while I still can. I have a few questions:

1. How much difference in recoil will I feel shooting .44 magnums (in 7 1/2" stainless steel barrel) from .357 magnums (6" stainless steel barrel)?

2. How much or little do I lose shooting .44 specials rather than .44 magnums through the gun?

3. One of the gun store owners told me that .44 magnums are not much more effective than .357 magnums in stopping power because much of the energy is wasted as the cartridge exits the barrel. Is this true?

This is only my 2nd post on this forum and I am new to firearms in general so I hope you'll bear with me. Great forum by the way. Thanks and have a nice day.
 
1)Recoil is a subjective thing, the differing shapes of the grips will effect what you feel nearly as much as the caliber difference. You may prefer the grip shape of the Blackhawk and find it more comfortable to shoot than your GP-100.

2) Typical .44 special load w/240gr JHP: 725 feet per second velocity, about 275 foot pounds of energy.
Typical .44 magnum load w/240gr JHP: 1375 fps, about 1080 fpe.

3) Not quite, .44 mags aren't as effective as .357 mags because of the energy wasted as the BULLET exits the TARGET. Once the bullet goes through your target, any remaining energy is wasted, since it wasn't transferred into the target.

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Cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war.

[This message has been edited by Rex Feral (edited June 10, 2000).]

[This message has been edited by Rex Feral (edited June 10, 2000).]
 
GI Joe. Rex is quite right. Felt recoil with the single action style handle is different, because the grip is allowed to slide back in the hand as the gun recoils.
I don't know if it is still available, but Remington used to load a lighter .44 Mag. load at about 1,000FPS.
I used to shoot .44 Specials in My 629 S&W(very pre-agreement with pinned barrel)but got tired of scrubbing out the cylinder so that full length mags would chamber. Worked up a good reload with mag brass that does the same thing. :)
If you reload for your .357, then getting dies and loading for the .44 will be no problem. If that is the case, E-mail me and I'll pass the load on to you. I do not put load data on forums.
I think you'll like your Super B. I have four of them, including an old model.
Paul B.
 
A friend of mine was working as a Forrest Ranger a few years ago when he came upon three men in the woods. He had interrupted a serious drug buy. Seeing his uniform the three men went for their guns, two 9mm automatics and a 12 gage shotgun. My friend was armed with an Old Model .44 Magnum Superblackhawk with which he ws quite good. He shot all three men with 240 grain soft point loads and killed all three. In this case at least, stopping power was more than adequate.
 
I have used a Super Blackhawk in .44mag, and .44 spe. I would reccomend for your sake that if you are not to comfortable with tht .357, you might not want to shoot .44mag a lot. Its a little hot for regular shooting. But .44special is great for reagular shooting. Not too much recoil. Pretty accurate. But if you wanna have some fun shooting "exotic" targets, .44mag is fun.
 
Congrats on a fine gun purchase,I bought the same gun a while back.If after shooting the magnum rounds through it and you find it to much you can always buy some Hogue rubber grips that will ease the recoil quite a bit.The recoil is not bad in the 7 1/2 barrel version ,it is when you get down to the 4 5/8 barrels that have a lot more kick to them and can be uncomfortable to shoot.I have found the super blackhawk to be the most accurate gun in my collection .I`m able to shoot 3 inch groups with it off hand @ 50 yards. I cannot do that with my other handguns.Some of my favorite loads put a 240 gr. wadcutter at around 1250 fps, which i find is great for target loads and even hunting, and is a lot easier on your hands than the heavier loads.
As mentioned earlier the 44 is quite a bit more powerful than the .357,it is just to much power for use in self defense,It is better suited in the hunting fields.

killer45auto
 
On the flipside of Killer45Autos' post, I have a 7.5inch barreled Super Blackhawk that I utterly despise.
I can outshoot it with EVERY other handgun I own, and that includes a Ruger P95DC.

The recoil even with very hot loads isnt prohibitve, but out of my .44 Redhawk it feels quite a bit milder using the same ammunition.

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Big Guns again
No speakee well
But plain.
--H.C
 
I can't say that I've ever heard that a .44 Mag isn't nore effective than a .357 Mag. I would understand that point if we were referring to two-legged beasties (supporting Rex Feral's point) but I don't see self defense mentioned on your original post. The 44 Mag. will kill Whitetails and Muleys smartly, and pribably limits on elk, whereas a .357 Mag would be at it's limit with a Whitetail IMHO, but won't waste energy on two-legged types (after the two legged target, the .44 Mag is still looking for more meat to tear up). You have yourself a fine hunting and trail handgun.
 
Killer45Auto. I think I have to disagree with you one one point. I have Super Blackhawcks in both thr 7.5 inch barrel, and my hiking version with the 4 5/8s inch barrel. I can't see any difference, really, in the recoil of either revolver. I havethe Flattop .44, on old model Super B, a Bicentennial Super B, A Bisley Super B, and the shorty Super B. The flattop and the Bisley seem to recoil a bit more than the others, especially the flattop, but as I shoot 245/250 gr. cast lead and .300 gr. cast lead at top velocities in all of them, I really cannot tell much difference in the kick. The 4 5/8's is definitely a lot more uncomfortable to shoot because of how much louder it is, but with ear protection, it just does not seem to kick that much more.
Paul B.
 
I should mention that any firearm I own is a possibility for defense, although not necesarily in the home. I will probably shoot .44 specials in it initially and if I get pretty comfortable then work up to the magnums. Incidentally, I bought the gun mostly because I just wanted to have a .44 magnum. Call me stupid or greedy, but I just had to have one.
 
To Paul B,all of my rounds through the 4 5/8 barrel have been in 45 long colt loaded up to max levels.Which is funny because this gun is supposed to have less recoil at max loads than the 44 does.I can tell you the same round in my friends 454 casull are not bad at all,its just in the vaquero that it becomes a handfull.I myself was quite amazed at the differance between the shorty 45 and the long barreled 44 ,perhaps you are correct in the fact that they are similar between the 2 in 44.
 
You'd be advised to do most of your shooting with the .357, until you are more experienced.
Don't fire a single shot in practice or play without ear protection, and you won't develop an incurable flinch.
And don't be afraid of the recoil of your .44.
Most of the discomfort experienced by unschooled .44 shooters is caused by a rigid hold and determination to 'fight the recoil' with locked hand, arm and shoulder joints.
The SBH has a different recoil from the GP...more an upwards roll. The back of the trigger guard may give your middle finger a shrewd whack, it's something to get used to. I find that a firm but not desperate grip, and 'soft' wrists and elbows, makes .44's more comfortable to shoot.
The .44 is much more effective than the .357...and concern about 'wasting energy by penetration' is bunkum. The best performance of any load is total penetration PLUS upset, for a large wound channel that goes clear through.
Plan to reload for the .44...you can almost have your cake and eat it with a nice hollowpoint or cast lead solid at about 1000 fps, and the recoil in the SBH will be indistinguishable from .357 full loads in your GP.
--slabsides

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If they take our guns, I intend to let my hair grow long and acquire the jawbone of an ass.
 
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