Why so many .44 mag/special recomendations?

I didnt mean this to be a caliber war. I LOVE the .44 mag. I just see so many talk about how awesome it is while not telling people (the 90% asking) that dont handload that the ammo is far more expensive and not as practical as they make it seam. They always bring up the 44 special but never bring up the fact that it is nearly impossible to get. At least in every last gun store in my area over my lifetime. Which i really dont get because i know more people with 44s than 357s so you would think they would be everywhere!

This is mostly regarding posts from people wondering what to chose. Maybe it is because handloaders are more into "it" and tend to be a greater percent of the forum.

Again i say this from a guy that loves the 44 more than anyone. But not being a handloader, it ended up being a non brainer with the 357.

I appreciate all the responses on both sides. Keep it comming! I didnt mean to bash anyones sides, just my take on a lot of posts i have seen where people make it seam "hey the 44 is the way to go and hey it has 2 options like the 357 so you just HAVE to go with the 44" without the other considerations mainly involved with price and availability.

And yeah i do agree the mag loads for the 44 are in supply. I see them lots over other calibers right now, but probably because it costs an arm and a leg!
 
I don't mind a caliber war, that's when you find out why people like a variety of cartridges.

Not sure where your are, but most gun-shops carry 44 spl, its just they don't stock large quantities, like 22 LR or 9mm para. I know of 4 gun-shops in my area that carry 44 spl, but they don't carry much, because everybody wants to be Dirty Harry, and consequently, buy the hotter stuff. You'll just have to relocate to SE Michigan. We understand that when you shoot a dangerous assailant with a 44 spl or a 44 Mag, they pretty much fall down the same way.

As for handloading, I started years ago because I was shooting obsolete firearms and no-one carried ammo for them, ie Lebel rifle and revolver cartridges. Well handloading obsolete cartridges is a lot harder than handloading 44 spl, especially when you have to make your own brass. OTOH the 44 spl is a very easy handload.

As for the attributes of the 44 spl cartridge, I handload just about everything out there, and I can say with complete objectivity, the 44 spl is the finest all purpose revolver cartridge ever devised by the mind of man.

There you go, unbiased truth.
 
As a reloader, I acquire Magnum brass, shoot them until the case mouths split, and then trim them down to Special length...
 
Why so many .44 mag/special recomendations?
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Why not? :)

I can say with complete objectivity, the 44 spl is the finest all purpose revolver cartridge ever devised by the mind of man.
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:) Well .... Since we are talking about the .44s here, the .44 Spec does all that ever needs doing in my neck of the woods too. Load it up from 700-1200fps depending on the revolver. Good to go. My everyday use load is the 1000fps Skeeter load. Of course, there is another caliber that tops it in my opinion... but not part of this conversation on why .44s :) .
 
Speaking of 44 Specials, what's the story on the Ruger Blackhawks I'm seeing sprinkled around the auctions? Cowboy Action pistols or what. They look nice and priced cheaper than the mags. Any problems with them?
 
The polls where I usually see the .44 recommended are usually one of two types.

First, the "If you could only have one handgun, what would it be?" threads, typically because a handloader can load .44 for just about anything handguns can reasonably do.

Second, the "What is the minimum handgun for boar hunting?" or "What is the minimum handgun for defense against bears?" threads.

I rarely see any .44 recommended in more general polls or query threads.
 
After buying my 1st 629 and making a few observations I sold all of my 357's and didn't own one for years. I only bought another when I ran across a nice old model 28 that I just had to have.

When I compared the 4" 629 to the 4" 686 and Ruger GP-100 I found the size diffence to be neglible. The 44 Mag is 1 oz heavier, 1/8" thicker through the cylinder and fit in the same holster. With factory grips it was a little larger, but there are enough aftermarket grips to make that a non-issue.

With light 44 mag loads or hot 44 Special loads it is my opinion the 44's are a better man stopper. It is a fact that they generate less recoil and muzzle blast than full power 357 loads. I find them much more enjoyable to shoot, and not that much more expensive. If I want to just punch holes in paper on the cheap I have 22's. I rarely shoot full power 44 mag loads, but if I need or want to I can beat anything a 357 can do by a wide margin.

It is true that there are a lot of small snub 357's much smaller than possible in a 44. But these guns make no sense at all to me. A 2"-3" 357 will have less velocity than a G-26 shooting 9mm ammo and still be larger, heavier and with 1/2-1/3 the ammo.

I buy all of my handgun ammo from these guys.

http://georgia-arms.com/ammunition.aspx

Ammo prices:
38 specials $13.50/50 rounds
357 mags $22.50/50
44 mags $23.00/50 -$2.50 brass credit= $20.50

They don't load 44 Special, but do offer a 44 Special equivalent load in 44 mag brass for $21.00/50-$2.50 brass credit= $18.50

They also buy back my 44 brass @ $2.50/50 which reduces the cost by another $2.50 for each 50 rounds I buy. The brass credit for 357 is only $1/50 and $.50/50 for 38. After the brass credit 44 mag is cheaper for me to shoot than 357 mag, and not that much more than 38.
 
Speaking of 44 Specials, what's the story on the Ruger Blackhawks I'm seeing sprinkled around the auctions? Cowboy Action pistols or what. They look nice and priced cheaper than the mags. Any problems with them?
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Not a thing wrong with them, they're excellent sixguns. They're also built on the same mid-sized platform as the 50th anniversary model. Which was based on the Old Model .357 frame size. Which makes them smaller and swifter handling than their large frame brethren. Even if the weights are not too dissimilar.
 
On my 21st birthday (1982) I went to a Gibson's in Stillwater and bought a Ruger Security Six, six inch, stainless. I bought one box of Federal 125 grain Magnums. I bought one box of .38 Special wadcutters. And I bought a Lee Loader and some dippers. For probably ten years, those two boxes of factory ammo was all the factory ammo that gun ever saw. If you buy a centerfire revolver, you need to buy reloading stuff right there on the spot. The Lee Loader used to sell for something like $15. It is slow to be sitting on the kitchen floor hitting each case into the sizer with a hammer but it sure as heck works. And I never would have been able to really learn to shoot it otherwise.

So yeah, .44 Special is the same way. If you see a gun you like, pick it up. Just get the reloading stuff at the same time. They go together!

Actually, I still follow that advice to this day. When I bought a Marlin Guide Gun in 45-70, I bought the brass, bullets, and dies at the same time. Never bought any factory ammo. I could probably list out half my guns that have never fired any factory ammo. I don't understand how people who like to shoot can just buy loaded ammo. You are doing it wrong!!!

Gregg
 

Reloading the .44 Magnum

Unlike many other cartridges, the .44 Magnum is actually three cartridges. Run at the sedate and low pressures of the .44 Special, it is both a soft-shooting load and a thumper. A 240-grain lead semiwadcutter loaded to only 900 fps posts a power factor of 216–beyond all but the top-end .45 ACP +P loads.
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