Preasure signs in 44 mag.

[cobrad]

I just bought a 44 and have dies, etc, on the way. I have loaded rifle cartridges for three decades, but never handgun rounds. Are the preasure signs similar? I don't plan to load over what is suggested in my manuals, but hope to load max charges with heavy bullets.

[Graybeard]

If you see a pressure sign that is in fact a REAL HIGH PRESSURE SIGN you're already so far beyond safe that it's ridiculous. Just stick to published reloading manual data and don't venture off into the internet data realm and you'll do fine. There is data floating around on the internet that must surely be up in the proof load range, real blue pills for sure.

[Questor]

If you're using data-- without component substitutions--  from the major data suppliers you won't run into high pressure situations.  Using pressure signs today is more a warning that you have really made some kind of a serious mistake in loading and need to discard your dangerous ammo.  Owning a bad scale or caliper may help you to make bad ammo.

[mikemayberry]

If what you are asking is do the primers distort and the brass split, the answer is yes.  While I have loaded about a thousand .44 mags using mid range loads, I have not had this happen yet.  But from others' writings and teachings, the answer is yes -- the evidence will be on the brass and the primer.

Hope this helps!

Mike

[ajj]

Typical pressure sign in a bolt rifle is heavy bolt lift so you obviously won't have that. Some of the old magazine articles occasionally suggested that you were OK as long as you had easy extraction. As Graybeard hints, when you have straight-side revolver cartridges sticking on extraction you are already way over the safe limit. As for primer reading, it's of limited usefulness and then only when you have a lot of experience with ONE particular primer in one particular gun, having read a lot of them starting with loads known to be light and working up. That is, a flattened primer may be a safe load and a normal looking primer may be a dangerous load. So, to answer your question, you don't get the same pressure signs in rifles and revolvers. Use the slower powders when you go for max published loads.