BOUGHT A RUGER SUPER BLACKHAWK TODAY.MY FIRST .44 MAG HELP!!!!!

You'll be fine, the .44 ain't that bad. Wear good hearing protection and don't feel like you gotta shoot the whole box of ammo your first time out. Save your shell cases. If you get bit by the .44 bug you'll eventually want to handload for it. The .44 Mag is a good one to learn reloading on. About 2/3 of my .44 Mag handloads are loaded to .44 Spl pressure level. They're funner to plink & practice with and use the same 44 Mag brass I use for hunting loads.

I do disagree with the one Gent about the grip. I think the stock Ruger grips are great. Sam Colt designed that grip (though the Ruger is slightly different) for the 1851 "Navy" blackpowder revolver, the same grip was used on the classic 1872 Peacemaker (aka Single Action Army - SAA) and it's been with us ever since. People call it the "Plow Handle" grip. It's designed to roll in your hand, not recoil back into the hand's web. IMO no other firearm balances, or can be thrown from hand to hand as naturally as the SAA.

All handguns are designed to be held. The SAA's was designed to be handled. -- Kernel
 
Shooting .44 Specials can be misleading. I don't think they will build you up for the magnums. The specials are like big 38's. One way is to find a friend that reloads .44, and ask him/her to load some up gradually. The only round I fired that seemed to be in between were the Blazer .44magnum brand. Those are good starters to get the feel of what 44 MAGNUM can do.
 
So did you shoot it yet? Inquiring minds want to know ...

I had a chance to shoot a friend's Super Redhawk a few days ago. This was my first time trying to shoot a .44 and I loved it!!!

The first shot hurt my hand because I didn't have a secure grip, though. I'd left just a little wiggle room at the butt of the gun and ... well, let's just say I won't do that again. Second shot I took a more secure grip and -- oh man! I loved shooting that gun.

Our buddy just put a good scope on his and that was fun too. The durn thing was so heavy it did take a lot of muscle strength to hold steady; obviously would take some practice but that's the fun of it.

We shot a bunch of magnum rounds and some russian rounds. The russian rounds were quieter and more controllable but the magnum rounds put out a shock wave I could feel clear up into my sinuses and down to the soles of my feet. Wasn't nearly as much fun to shoot the russians but as I said, they were quieter and felt more "normal" to me.

So ... what did you think?



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Pax

"Is there anything wrong with a woman preferring the dignity of an armed citizen? I don't like to be coddled and I don't like to be treated like a minor child. So I waive immunity and claim my right -- I go armed." -- Longcourt Phyllis in Beyond This Horizon by Robert Heinlein
 
I also have a ten and a half SBH. But I recently replaced the original wood grips with rubber Hogues. I agree with Kernel that the stock grips permit the gun to "roll" rather than direct the recoil back into the palm. As usual there are pros and cons to both approaches. With the Hogue grips I can reacquire the target more quickly - given that I can absorb the more direct recoil.

I found 3D's blue box {new 240 grain LRN "cowboy" loads} made for a rewarding afternoon's target shooting where I could concentrate on and develop accuracy. They have about 530 ft lbs muzzle energy which is half of the 1036 ft lbs of Remington's 180 grain semi-jacketed HP. My felt recoil with 3D's cowboy loads was similar to what I received from my Ruger P90 shooting Russian 230 grain steel case FMJ's from J&G (which worked well as I repeatedly kicked soda cans down the range at 20 to 35 yards).

The massive weight of the long 44 no doubt offset the additional 200 lbs of energy compared to the lighter 45. After 50 rounds at 25 yards and 100 yards, I switched to the Remington FMJ's to feel how the new grip handled the recoil and to determine the difference between the cowboy loads and "real" .44 magnum loads. The first round delivered a wallop (though easily absorbed} - likely due to increased backpressure as it cleaned the lead out of the bore. This felt difference was also due to it following the lighter loads that I had gotten used to. Successive rounds felt similar after I adjusted to the expected recoil. Maybe next weekend I'll put the stock grips back on and compare both loads again.

One other observation: At 100 yards both the .44 cowboy loads and the .45acp had that noticeable delay between discharge and the thump of the bullet hitting the back berm (easily heard through my Silencio Magnums in case somebody thinks I wasn't protected). The 1600 fps Remington loads, OTOH, hit the berm with no "noticeable" delay after discharge.

Overall, I'm pleased with 3D's "cowboy" loads and would rather shoot them than drop down to .44spl. Any other suggestions are appreciated. BTW, Yes I saved my brass for eventual reloading. (Nice thing about the steel case .45 - no chasing brass and thus I could have fun kicking cans).
 
Great gun. Just, please, use it for paper or hunting. This a terrible choice for home defense etc. You will end up killing your neighbors kids and their neighbors kids too. This is NOT a home defense weapon, despite what you may think of Clint Eastwood movies.
 
45automan, don't let anyone tell you that a 44 Magnum is a terrible defense cartridge against human targets. Penetration is determined by bullet construction, and many expanding bullets in 44 caliber demonstrate no more penetration than do many hardball ammo types in 45 ACP. A 44 Magnum single-action revolver isn't the best choice of action for defensive shooting, but it is hardly a bad choice if properly loaded.

Best regards, Randy Garrett www.garrettcartridges.com
 
I fired it today for the first time and all i got to say is WOW!!!!! The muzzle blast was the worst but recoil was manageable. I only fired about 25 rounds so i'll try more later,thanks for all your help guys, 45automan
 
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