44 Magnum for HD?

[Firepower!]

Hi
How many of you use a 44 Magnum for HD? What are your views on using it for HD? I understand that folks living in the cities and apartments might not be too comfortable using it, but for the rest of us, especially those in 'far away' lands, it is a one heck of an option. I have added SW 629 to my Ruger SRH for such purpose as it now sits in the drawer loaded in my house out in the country. The only other handgun I use for HD is G21 when in city and Stichken in country.

If you use 44 for HD, what is your set up like? Why exactly have you chosen 44? Have you considered something even bigger?


Thanks

 

[Haifisch]

I rotate my pistols so they dont get lonely.
Depending on the night, a bad guy will get... 10mm, .45ACP, .44 Magnum, .475 Linebaugh, or .500 Magnum.

 

[Venom1956]

I cringe at the thought of .44mag going of inside a room without hearing protection... I even shy away from .357 for that reason.(I like my hearing) I keep .38spl(+p if you must), 9mm, 40S&W, or the all powerful .45ACP

 

[49willys]

My hearing is the last thing I am thinking of when I am putting a bead on a bad guy trying to steal my flat screen.

 

[azredhawk44]

Unless there's toothy-hairy critters that require .44 style penetration that can break into my house, I keep my HD handgun in the 2-legged defensive cartridge list.

.38sp, .357mag, 9mm, .357sig, .38super, .40, 10mm, .44sp, .45acp.

 

[Venom1956]

My hearing is the last thing I am thinking of when I am putting a bead on a bad guy trying to steal my flat screen.

That made me smile... A television can be replaced, your hearing can't.

Unless it was the only viable option at the time I would prefer something else, was all I meant by that. If I or a family member was in danger of course I'd use it.

 

[SIGSHR]

In No Second Place WinnerBill Jordan said that while it is unlikely that someone clobbered with a 44 Magnum would need a second shot the possibility that he has a partner in crime must not be overlooked. He says the 44 Magnum is too much, too hard to control. Plus what distances are are we talking about-1015 feet?

 

[Firepower!]

I believe that if hit with 44 inside the house distance, the BG is doomed to hell pretty quickly. As per controlability, practice, practice and practice.

 

[Tom Servo]

I believe that if hit with 44 inside the house distance, the BG is doomed to hell pretty quickly

Particularly with handgun ballistics, nothing is certain. I'd want the ability to make follow-up shots, and I'm not sure .44 Magnum is conducive to that.

Consider a hot .44 Special load in the same gun, and you've still got an excellent self-defense loading.

 

[zxcvbob]

Nope, but if I did I think I would use .44 Specials, or .44 Magnum "cowboy" ammo loaded with lead RNFP bullets. Preferably soft lead so it can expand or deform a little, but .429 is a pretty big through-and-through hole even if it doesn't. And you don't want it to have a lot of energy left when it exits the other side of the BG.

 

[Spammy_H]

If you had to buy the .44 Mag, load it with .44 Special - it is ballistically equivalent to the .45 ACP, and you will be able to get off a 2nd shot w/out having to pull the gun back down from over your head.

The concerns about .44 Mag for HD are as follows:

*Overpenetration - you're more likely to get a through-n-through on the BG, and through the wall behind him (interior or exterior).
*Sound - Anything supersonic (above ~~ 1100 fps) will ring your bell and you will sustain permanent hearing damage, especially when shooting indoors w/o hearing protection
*Recoil - you won't be able to do a double-tap to COM effectively

If you like revolvers, and have to have a .44 Mag, load it with .44 Special for HD, and leave the Magnum cartridges for hunting four-footed game and the range.

I personally think that the .45 ACP (or .44 Special, in your case) is the ideal HD round - plenty of mass, energy, relatively slow moving, less likely to overpenetrate, manageable recoil, and has historically made plenty of BGs permanently unhappy.

 

[Webleymkv]

I use a .44 Magnum for HD. Mine's a S&W 629-6 with a 4" barrel. It is loaded with Speer 240grn GDHP and wears a set of Houge Rosewood Laminate grips. Here are my thoughts on a .44 Magnum for HD:

Penetration: any handgun will penetrate the interior walls of modern homes and any handgun which meets the FBI's penetration criteria also has the risk of penetrating completely through an adult torso. For this reason, I think overpenetration is an issue best addressed by tactics rather than ammunition.

Noise: any handgun will be loud enough to cause permanent hearing damage. I figure if it will damage my hearing anyway, I might as well use the most effective cartridge.

Retention: I don't care for long barrels on self-defense handguns. A long-barreled gun is just too easy for someone to take away from you. Personally, I like no longer than a 4" barrel on a revolver meant for HD. I also like the heft of the N-Frame as it can make a formidable impact weapon if necessary.

Recoil: Recoil is rather heavy and that might be an issue for some. I can, however, hit my target multiple times with respectable speed out to fifteen yards. Recoil is manageable enough for me to feel confident with the revolver for self-defense.

 

[twhidd]

Ah c'mon you guys. Don't we all remember Dirty Harry. When asked what he carried that cannon for. He replied "because I hit what I aim at".

But in all honesty, my home defense guns are a S&W 686 and a Model 15 both loaded with 38+P's. I also have a Winchester 1300 behind the bedroom door loaded with buckshot.

 

[markj]

Ah c'mon you guys. Don't we all remember Dirty Harry. When asked what he carried that cannon for. He replied "because I hit what I aim at".

After a shooting competition against the guy played in starsky and hutch harry said he used 44 specials for better control

 

[Brian48]

I have that movie (Magnum Force). In that scene where he was talking to David Soul, Rob Urich, Tim Matheson, and the other no-name guy, Clint was saying was that he used .44 Specials for better control during practice and competition. For street use, he still used magnum loads.

 

[spamanon]

My hearing is the last thing I am thinking of when I am putting a bead on a bad guy trying to steal my flat screen.

... which is why you think about it before hand. There is no way I would use my .44 magnum in the house (I don't like it when my ears bleed) unless it was a last resort. First I would have to run out of .45 acp and then .40 ammo.

 

[Tom Servo]

It's not just the report that bothers me, but the muzzle flash. If it's 3:00 in the morning, and I've still got the sleepy-eye goo, I don't need to be blinking afterimages out of my vision while the dogs are barking and I'm trying to look for accomplices.

Maybe there's folks better at it than I am. But they say it takes a real man to know his limits, and when it comes to limits, I'm a sissy girly man.

 

[grubbylabs]

I just got a 329 PD 44 mag in a scandium "Air Weight" revolver and even with some hot 240 grn loads it comes back to target fairly quickly, not as fast as my 45, but it is not as bad as some of you are implying. I am considering changing this to my carry gun since it carries so light and comfy.

 

[Old Grump]

I have a Ruger Super Blackhawk in 44 mag but for social work it is loaded with 44 spcl. Same size hole, a lot more accurate, easier to get a second shot and at house distances boogerman won't know the difference unless he is wearing level III body armor.

 

[EnoughGUN]

I have actually fired a 44mag outside with no hearing protection and my buddy who was with me was equally stupid in deciding "lets see what this thing sounds like with no muffs on". I'll tell you what, you better hot the target with the first shot because you are going to be 100% usless for several seconds. The second I pulled the trigger we both dropped to out knees. It feels not unlike being punched in each ear with a rail road spike.