44 Magnum Dumb Question on common load and velocity

[rimfire]

I am curious about one of the most common loads and calibers out there.

I shoot 44 mag in several guns and trying to come to terms with velocity is interesting.

Specifically, when you ask about a 240 XTP load with 296/H110 you very commonly hear 24 grains of powder, the CCI350 primer and a tight crimp.  This was my normal load for years.  I think GB and others tout the same load.  Deer hated it.  Velocity...from various sources I see velocities listed as anywhere from 1300 fps to 1575 fps for this load in a 7.5" revolver. 

John Taffin writes that he uses the Black Hills load with this same bullet at around 1350 fps as a great whitetail load.  He then says you can use 24 grains H110 to dupe this load in a 7.5" revolver.  Really?  Black hills actually says their load is less than 1300 fps, but they do not say what barrel length so I ignore this info really.

I don't get it.  When I chrono this load from my FA 83 44 mag 7.5" I get an average of 1562 fps. 

I know every gun is a law unto itself, and the FA has a smnaller barrel to cylinder gap, but does the velocity really vary this much from a 7.5" revolver...if I use from 1300 fps up to 1575 that is a 21% velocity variation and that does not seem reasonable.  Are different chronos really measuring that different?  Are people mis-measuring their powder that much?  Is it variations from a bad crimp?  Due people use standard primers and think they used magnums?  I am going to play with this load in 4 revolvers my friends and I have soon and try and get some insight, but am curious what you guys would say.

In the end I plan to try a load of 22.5 grains behind this bullet and see if I get at least 1350 fps for a load that is friendlier to my poor wrists.

[Graybeard]

Wal Barry I do feel your pain. Like you I've seen velocity numbers all over the spectrum claimed for loads like 24.0 Grains of W296/H110 and a 240 grain bullet. Most of them I seriously doubt based on my own chrono results.

I once ran a test on max loads of W296/H110, 2400 AA9 and one other I now forget. I loaded them all in new brass used same primers and crimped all the same rather heavily. I shot them in my S&W 29 with 10-5/8" just to make sure I got the maximum velocity a revolver was gonna deliver.

Many folks were reporting velocities of 1500 fps and more for some of these loads in their 7.5" Ruger guns. I never even came close to that and I think only one pushed the 1400 fps mark with most coming in from 1250 fps to high 1300 fps range. Somewhere that report is posted in an old thread but I'd have no clue where to look for it and finding it in my manually kept data here would take more time than I'm gonna devote to looking at this time.

I've run 24 grains of H110/W296 with various 240 grain jacketed and cast bullets over my Oehler chrono so many times I've lost count of them. I most often see numbers under 1300 fps from my loads with that charge. I've seen a few over the 1300 and up to around 1350 fps but seldom more.

I've used 22.5 grains also with plain base cast bullets but seldom got great accuracy at that lower level.

If you want a milder load that is accurate dump H110/W296 and go to 2400 or one of the 4227s. With them you can usually get velocity ranges from around 1000 fps up to around 1250 fps with 240s and great accuracy by varying the charge weight. I've found 2400 especially to be very forgiving of charge weights below maximum levels unlike the ball powders.

[ccoker]

what do you think of HS-6?

[rimfire]

Really...under 1300 fps with 24 grains?  My chrono shows 1562 from my FA, and I have chrono results from another person that revealed 1529 from a 7.5" Redhawk.  I guess your gun shows that this big swing is possible.  Sometimes I would like to line up 2 chronographs and do a comparison test.

[Graybeard]

In effect that's what my chrono does. It's the 35P with proof channel.

[cwlongshot]

  Your freedom arms is a step above. YES you will definitely be able to attain higher velocities from it compared to just about all other guns. Definitely all factory chambered Colt, Rugers and Taurus's!! You nailed a big one in the cylinder gap, two others are the better quality barrel and tight chambers.

CW

[Catfish]

I have cronoed loads with a max. charge of Win. 296 and the Serria bullet from a couple of different guns, but all revolvers. With my 3 screw Ruger the velocity was about 1250 fps. as I rember. It had a 7 3/4 in barrel. With my El Dorado 10 3/4 in barrel the same load was just over 1,400 fps. Had it been from a chambered barrel without the jump it would have been higher. That is way I always look to see what the gun and barrel lenth  of the test gun was.

[ccoker]

I just got a S&W performance center 44 with a 6.5" barrel and working up loads for
I have been told that it should have a tight cylinder gap and get higher velocity than the Ruger I had

anyone care to comment on that?

[rimfire]

Funny...but my chrono actually quit working yesterday.  Oh well.  Who knows what my new one will say.

Anyone know if Shooting Chrony will fix them?

[Graybeard]

They wouldn't or couldn't the one I had and it was brand new and never worked from day one. I did finally get my money back tho but man what a hassle.