Light load for Winchester 94 in .44 Mag?

R

RobW

New member
I am looking for a light load for paper-punching and plinking.

I would like to use .44 mag brass, 200 - 240 grain lead flat-noses, loaded to 800 - 1000 fps.

Can I use the .44 mag brass instead of .44 special?
Can I use W 231 or do I have to use a slower burning powder?

My books show me some 44-40 and 44 Special-loads that don't exceed 15,000 psi. Would the use of .44 Mag brass be on the safe side?
 
It sounds like what you are looking for are "cowboy" loads. Mosey on over to the web sites of Hogdon , Winchester, and even that Swedish powder maker that starts with a V. Look for cowboy loads for the 44. They are nice and gentle.

You can also go over to the SASS website and do a search for 44. You will find many references and loads. The 240 bullets are better for very light loads due to better bullet resistance in very low pressure loads.
 
Rob,

I used to load light rounds for my model 94 trapper and model 29 smith using 240 gr lead swc bullets and unique powder at around 850 fps. I used mag brass and had no problems at all. Hornaday has loads for the 44mag using lead bullets in its manual, thats where I got my info. These loads are fun to shoot and were very accurate.
 
I was too lazy to reset my powder measure, one time, and loaded some 250-grain lead SWCs in my .44 Mag with 5.8 grains of 231--my IPSC load for .45ACP. Worked just fine in a RedHawk. It "hit" a bit harder than the .45ACP on fall-down steel plates.

Try maybe six or eight grains of 231...Check a loading data book before going up a whole bunch. 900 ft/sec from a long-barrelled pistol would run 1,000-1,100 from a carbine, I imagine.

FWIW, Art
 
Many thanks for the input. It helps a lot. After skimming 6 gun-shops I could find a box of .44 Special Cowboy loads. They are a delight to shoot at my regular sessions (150 - 200 rounds). The problem I had at the weekend with the .44 Spec. is that this shorter rounds had some problems once in a while to cycle in the chamber reliably. I suspected something like that at the beginning so I thought using the .44 Mag brass would be the best idea.

Again, many thanks, I'll follow that path.

Rob
 
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