The Inimitable .44 Magnum
BY Herschel Smith
1 year, 11 months ago
I love it too. They also bring up what we’ve discussed so many times before, i.e., the virtue of having a handgun and carbine in the same caliber, getting higher muzzle velocity out of the carbine than the handgun.
And by the way, I’m still waiting on that invitation to a hunting trip with Ryan.
On January 3, 2023 at 12:12 pm, RomeoCharlieWhiskey said:
Regarding the lever/revolver combo choices, although the .44 Rem Mag is impressive, I prefer the .357 S&W Mag because cheaper feed & less kick. If money is no object, my preference is the pair chambered in.460 S&W Mag, assuming procurement of the limited & beautiful Big Horn model 90.
On January 3, 2023 at 1:09 pm, Latigo Morgan said:
One of these days, if I ever get mad money, I’m going to build an AR-15 in .44 Automag. I figure it would just be a barrel. Starline still makes brass, so making my own ammo won’t be an issue. Mags would probably be the same as the 458 SOCOM.
That would effectively give me a .44 Mag AR-15, except I wouldn’t have a compatible revolver..
The biggest investment would be having the barrel custom made.
On January 3, 2023 at 6:59 pm, xtphreak said:
@Latigo Morgan
Not sure why, unless you got a .44 Automag to pair with it.
The rim diameter for the .44AMP (designated name for the cartridge the .44 Automag shoots) is 0.470″.
You’ll probably need a custom bolt as the.458 SOCOM & .450 Bushmaster both use a 0.473 rim diameter.
You’re giving up shell length (.44AMP @ 1.298″ / .458 SOCOM @ 1.575″ / .450 Bushmaster @ 1.703″) & diameter.
The biggest issue in my mind, is that the .44AMP, .450Bushmaster & the .50 Beowulf all are stuck with using pistol bullets with limited choices.
The. 458 SOCOM uses the same bullets as the .45-70, .450 Marlin, .450 NE, .458 Win. Mag., .450 Rigby, .458 Lott, .460 Wby. Mag. loads approaching light .45/70 level. Lots of weight & type choices, cast lead, HP, JSP, FMJ, monolithic, bronze dangerous game from
At pistol velocities, say 1000 fps, you can throw a 600 gr bullet out of a .458 SOCOM.
250 gr SP @2,150 ft/s 2,565 ft⋅lbf
300 gr HP @1,900 ft/s 2,405 ft⋅lbf
325 gr FTX @1,860 ft/s 2,496 ft⋅lbf
405 gr JFP @1,600 ft/s 2,322 ft⋅lbf
600 gr (39 g) RN @1,000 ft/s 1,336 ft⋅lbf
just sayin