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Author Topic: Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads  (Read 1275 times)

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Offline Sixgun

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« on: February 18, 2003, 04:39:36 AM »
I got my Rossi 92 in 44 mag for shooting cowboy silhouette last winter.  I have been shooting very light loads with cast bullets to meet the requirements of not doing damage to the targets at my range.  This weekend I decided to load some hotter loads for shooting at the turkeys and rams.  I loaded a charge of 10gr titegroup under a 240 gr cast bullet and stepped out the back door and shot into my test range.  I had a very hard time extracting the case.  I went back and loaded the same case with 9 gr of titegroup and stepped out and shot it.  The case totally seperated and only 1/2 of it came out.  I extracted the rest, which came out very easy with a chamber brush.  

I went back and loaded a medium load of AA9 and shot it.  It had hard extraction and a bright ring around the case, in a different spot from where the other one seperated.  I backed it down one grain at a time and finally got good results (easy extraction) at 16.5 gr of AA9.

I checked each case that was hard to extract and there was a crack on the inside of the case, all the way around on each one of them.

Now the question, what am I seeing?  Excessive head space?  How can that be in a rimed case and does this mean that the frame is streched?  Can it be fixed?  If you have any ideas please help me out.  

Thanks, Sixgun

I am posting this on the reloading forum also.
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You can only hit the target if the barrel is pointed in the right direction when the bullet leaves the barrel.

Offline ricciardelli

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #1 on: February 18, 2003, 05:48:11 AM »
My first impression is that 10 grains of Titegroup is not a good load for a .44 Magnum rifle.  Actually, I don't really think I would use Titegroup in a .44 Magnum rifle load.  In a handgun it is okay from 9.0 to 10.0 grains.

What do you consider a "medium load" of AA-9?
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Offline Sixgun

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #2 on: February 18, 2003, 05:54:37 AM »
I don't recall what the book said for a max load of AA9 with a 240gr bullet was.  I started at 18 and worked down 1/2 gr at a time to 16.5gr.  I was useing the laser cast book.  It seems like the max was 20 gr but I am not sure.  I do remember that the 16.5 load was the minimum load listed.  

Sixgun
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You can only hit the target if the barrel is pointed in the right direction when the bullet leaves the barrel.

Offline John Traveler

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #3 on: February 18, 2003, 06:56:20 AM »
Sixgun,

Those hard case extractions and separations you described are definite indications of excessive headspace.  You can get away with shooting mild loads in a pistol caliber lever rifle with slightly excessive heaspace because the straight case stretches a little when fired.  With mild chamber pressures, the case chamber wall "cling" is light.  With higher magnum pressures, case wall cling is greater, resulting in the stretched and cracked case.

There isn't much you can do to fix the excessive headspace in the M92 design except to set the barrel back and re-chamber.  A new breech block may help.  Better yet, avoid firing hot magnum loads in your rifle.

Back in the 1960's and 1970's, before they became choice collectibles, lots of original M1892 Winchesters were converted from .25-20/.32-20 to .357 Magnum and from .38-40/.44-40 to .44 Magnum.  It was fairly common to encounter stretched frames, excessive headspace, and swollen chambers from firing hot handloads.  The modern Browning and Rossi reproduction M92's are made of better quality steel and shouldn't have these problems.
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Offline Sixgun

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #4 on: February 18, 2003, 07:12:28 AM »
I was told that the Rossi 92 was strong enough to stand stout handloads and didn't figure that these loads would be any kind of a problem.  I did get this gun used and it may have had some abuse before I got it.  I had heard about the problems that they had convering the old 92s to 44 mag and checked into it before I got this gun.  

I got this with the intention of useing it for Cowboy Silhouette and for a saddle gun for use on black bear and deer.  If I can only shoot light loads in it I will think about fixing it or getting a different gun.

Sixgun
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Offline ricciardelli

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #5 on: February 18, 2003, 09:07:48 AM »
Before you go spending a whole chunck of change on either fixing the old 92 oir buying a new rifle, buy a box of factory .44 Magnum shells.  Fire them and see if oyu have the same extraction problem.  If you do, it's time for a new gun, if you don't, it's time to check-out your reloading technique...
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Offline Questor

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #6 on: February 18, 2003, 09:20:25 AM »
I agree with rickardelli (sp?). Either that or make up a standard full-power load like 23 grains of Win 296, CCI magnum primer, and a 240 grain jacketed bullet.  If it fails, there's something wrong with the gun.
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Offline Sixgun

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Trouble with my 44 mag Rossi loads
« Reply #7 on: February 18, 2003, 04:41:52 PM »
These are some good ideas.  I think I will either get some factory stuff and see what it does or try the 23 gr of 296 with a jacketed 240gr bullet and see where it goes.  

Thanks for the help guys.  I'll let you know what happens

Sixgun
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You can only hit the target if the barrel is pointed in the right direction when the bullet leaves the barrel.
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