Got a new Blackhawk, seems to be more picky than the other 44's. I would like to get it going this week. I have 190gr, 250gr, and 275gr Lead bullets and 300 gr XTPs.
I have Titegroup, Bullseye, Unique, Universal, 2400, H-110, 296, possibly HP-38... but i don't see it right now.
I'm also real low on Large MAGNUM Primers.
Either Special or Mag brass.

Would prefer something over 900fps, and grouping nicely so I can hunt with it out to at least 50yds.
I've have tried several things already. I actually think this last round of testing, The bullets are jumping crimp on the heavier loads. I need to duplicate some of the loads, take the calipers to the range and just check it.
Books i'm using is the Lyman Cast 4th edition, and Lyman 48th & 50th.
Just wondering if anyone has some pet loads I can look at.

Thank you Gentlemen.

Reposted because this forum gets 5-6 times the traffic of the loading forum, sorry.

My go-to 44 mag load is 18.5grs of 2400 under an Oregon Trail 240gr cast lead semi wad cutter. They give over 1200fps from my 4-5/8 SBH with reasonable recoil, and better accuracy than I can usually take advantage of. The bullets are .431 dia..

My Remington 788 .44 Magnum gave incredible accuracy with Hornady 240gr. XTP's and H 110. Three shot cloverleaf groups @ 50 and 100 yds., sighted 1" high @ 50yds. shots were right on @ 100yds..

Have you conducted your due diligence and measured your chamber throats to determine both size and whether they all match? Barrel groove diameter means nothing, as long as it's the same size or smaller than the throats. Don't laugh, wouldn't be the first time Ruger sent a revolver out the door with a barrel larger than its throats. Knowing throat diameter allows you to make an intelligent decision regarding bullet diameter, and that'll effect accuracy and leading.

Good chance it's not an issue, but when wonky results happen then it's time to address the minutiae.

THIS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Thought has crossed my mind, I priced gauge pins. Then I priced renting the throat reamer and pilots, and considering I have 5, 44's. I think I will rent the tools and check them all.

However, this doesn't help the present. Would jacketed bullets fair any better? I haven't tried the XTPs yet.

Second question, I am suspicious of the crimp because the first few in a 5 shot group will be very close, then the next will drift up and up. Leading me to believe the bullets are moving out, lowering pressure and changing POI up. I can check this next trip to the range... just would like to hear your opinion on if that is likely.
These were heavy doses of 2400, 21-22gr under 250gr cast.

I pulled my 2400 data from Lyman, started at 20gr and went to 22gr, later read Keith used 22.5gr... 22gr was getting rowdy.

10.0gr Unique under the 250gr bullet should get you around 1050 fps ballpark.

That's pretty much my go-to load for 44 Mag any more, but with a 240gr bullet.

my standard go to rule of thumb for Max loads h110/296
for nice light plinking loads unique.
most of them between stuff 2400


and I generally load 240s or 300s
if you're wanting to get just over 900 FPS I would probably try unique first but it looks like you already have so guess I'm not much help..

I use a LBT 260 gr WFN hard cast bullet over 10 grains of Unique. Just under 1100 fps, if my old memory’s serve me. 😬
It’ll kill anything you want to kill with plenty of penetration and great accuracy too. I rarely ever “catch one” in a feral hog. And they’re usually DRT if I do my part on bullet placement.

I used to load them up with a maximum load of WW-296, and try to push them to 1400 fps.
Got tired of the recoil on my arthritic hands and the punishment of my ears. 🤠

Anything over 900fps. I have tried Unique, but I used 7, 7.5gr under 250gr cast in a SPL case and 11.5, 12, 12.5gr under a 190gr cast hp with a Mag brass.
May just need to try a little more under the 250gr in a Mag case judging by responses. I haven't tried the Universal at all, but I hear it's pretty much the same charge weight as unique and groups may get better or worse. Looks the same on a burn chart.

I'm after whitetail, they aren't going to catch [bleep], but a case of dead.

A rough idea of throat size can be made by dropping bullets of known diameter through the chambers to see if they catch in the throats.

Then the load I mentioned will do everything you need. And then some. 🤠

You don't need gauge pins to check throat diameters (although they are nice). Simply drive a soft slug through from the front, any kind of soft lead as long as it's a skinch bigger than the throat, then mic it. Repeat in the rest of the throats. A proper diameter lead bullet should be able to pass through a throat with moderate thumb pressure.

Same rule applies to jacketed but obviously you're at the mercy of the bullet manufacturers, not much you can do about it if they're too small (but sizing down if too large can be done with a Lee push through die).

Montana Marine’s load of Unique is a winner in both my Blackhawk and S&W mod 69.

H110 has been my standard for jacketed .44 loads for a couple of decades. An article on primers in the 2015 Hodgdon Annual revealed that H110 did very well with standard LPs, though cold weather might change that. I use them all the time with no issues at all. Certainly they’re fine for 2400 as well as faster powders.

If you have a Hodgdon manual, take a gander at the data for 240gr Noslers and H110. The staring load is only slightly slower than the max load, but the pressure is much lower.

To be clear... you just recommended subbing in Large Rifle primers?

Agreed. Pretty much my go to 44 load also. Shoots well and plenty of power for anything I need to do with a 44

That 10gr Unique load under a 240gr also gives 1285 fps from my 20" Rossi carbine.

Another vote for 10 grains of Unique under a good 240-250-grain cast bullet.


Okie John

I use Unique in my practice/plinking loads, 7.5gr. under a 200gr. RNFP lead cowboy bullet. Step it up to 9.0gr. if you want a little more omph, still an enjoyable load to shoot.

You're getting good advice above. 10 grs of Unique has taken a lot of deer for me over the years, as has 21.0 grs of 2400 with both using LP primers. You don't need a magnum primer to light either one, you're just increasing pressures. Deer aren't hard to kill & 10 grs of Unique with a 240-250 gr cast bullet is an easy shooting load.

I did but in error. Just fixed it. Good catch.

I can’t even claim they’re close together on the keyboard….

I’ve used 8.7 grns of Titegroup with 240 grn cast bullets which I’ve chronographed at just over 1,000 fps. It’s a good accurate load with mild recoil.

I wonder how much gnashing of teeth (or rejoicing) is blamed on powders, powder charges, brands/types of bullets, etc. when in reality it's the fit of the ammo that's responsible?

A few suggestions.

One thing to do is to go get a LEE roll crimp die. It will be easy to see the roll crimp on the case, and generally speaking tends to improve accuracy, especially at longer ranges. If it was a .45 Colt, then checking throats may be something to worry about, but in my experience and observation it is rarely an issue with .44 Mags and .44 Specials, unlike the .45 Colt, where it is fairly common to have cylinder throats reamed for uniformity.

You may want to put a red dot on your gun. No matter how you feel about them, they can aid greatly in getting top accuracy out of a handgun. The difference in group sizes between using iron sights and ones used with an RDO equipped gun are substantial. I have had a couple times when I questioned a load that I shot with irons, went back and shot it with an RDO equipped gun and the difference was quite substantial.

The red dot allows you to be far more precise:













As far as the load goes, your 250 or 275 grain cast bullets along with 10 grains of Unique should be a good place to start. That should produce solid accuracy in any decent .44 Magnum.

On the subject of crimping. I have the seating die seat up to crimp at the end of the stroke. Would I be better off to seat, then try crimping separately, before buying another die.

I have a Burris Fastfire 3 with 3moa on it. I agree with all of your points.

I may switch it back over to the S&W 69 and try that for the upcoming deer season.

I ordered some 240xtp just in case.
I'm not to fond of the 300gr loads in that damn Smith.

Crimping separately in a different stage is always a good idea, especially if you are using cast.

It's always best to seat & crimp in two separate steps, you can do it with a 3 die set but it's a real pain changing your dies all the time. Much better to just buy a roll crimp die as Mackay suggested.

For deer, there really is no reason for 300 grain slugs. A good 240-250 grain will sail right through any deer and keep going, with a proper load. Plus the lighter recoil will aid in precise shooting, as I don't know a single person who shoots a harder kicking gun better than one that recoils less.

Keep your loads in the 1000-1200 FPS range and you will be fine.

I would focus on a single powder.

Say Unique, Titegroup, Longshot, or W231/HP-38.

Don't fiddle with trying 3 of one powder and 3 of another.



Pick something like Titegroup, and load it up in 3/10 grain increments from whatever starting point you choose. When you see good groups (not just one, but a few good groups), confirm it. Take a bunch out and validate that your load is indeed a good one and not just one or two good groups.

Great advise.

I would add CFE Pistol into the mix.

The fiddling with powder made me chuckle. I have a friend that showed up with 8 loads of different powders and bullets for his 45 Colt at the range. I just shook my head.

I'll add another vote. 240 WFN from Montana Bullet Works over 10 grains of Unique has been accurate as heck in a pile of 44's.

Make sure your expander die is 3 to 4 thousandths less than bullet diameter . That is very important in preventing bullet jump especially after firing 2 or 3 shots

Op asked the same question in the handgum loading area.
I was called beginner for suggesting the same as you had advised.
Some SheriffJoe dip chit
Anyways some of my Blackhawk cyl have very tight throats.

You may want to put a red dot on your gun. No matter how you feel about them, they can aid greatly in getting top accuracy out of a handgun. The difference in group sizes between using iron sights and ones used with an RDO equipped gun are substantial. I have had a couple times when I questioned a load that I shot with irons, went back and shot it with an RDO equipped gun and the difference was quite substantial.


This is excellent advice. I know we all think we’re deadly marksmen, but when we’re shooting at live stuff, we need to be as precise as we can so we can make clean kills. Optics allow us to hold close and call our shots. Of late I’ve been buying OR autos, which make it easy to use optics, and there’s a lot of holster support for them as well. With irons I can bear down and do fairly well at closer yardages, but there’s always some uncalled flyers. With a red dot on an accurate piece like my .22 Victory, I feel like fuggin’ James Bond (I ain’t!). Just remounted a FF3 on my 620, and I’m pretty sure it will stay there now since I have other carry options (mostly with optics).

I think it's probably a safe assumption that the groove diameter of your barrel will be around .429", but until you find out the throat diameters of the cylinders, we're all just guessing as to why you can't get the accuracy you want. Finding the diameter is as simple as seeing if a bullet of know diameter will drop through the chambers, or even removing the cylinder, placing it on a soft workbench top, and driving a lead bullet through one of the chambers, then measuring it with a micrometer.

I took this buck with a 240gr XTP over 22.5gr of H110 from my 29-2, 12yd shot, He dropped like a rock. Took a doe last year with the same load from roughly the same distance. She ran about 20yds and dropped, her heart was blown apart, she was dead and just didn't know it.

Great buck and 44!

Been shooting 8.5-10.0 grains Unique for 90% of my 44 shooting for twenty-plus years now. Its easy on the gun and shooter, and an easily capable load for anything in the lower 48 that doesn't bite back.

Thanks, I prefer to take my deer at close range with the bow but the older I get the less I like tracking the dang things. With the .44 and open sights my personal effective range, as far as shot placement, is roughly the same as with archery tackle, but there's no tracking necessary.