Sometimes, perhaps - - But not this one, IMO
ZWolfgang, you reference a certain load: Speer 200 gr. Gold Dot JHP .44 Spl, advertised at about 875 fps and 340 ft. lbs. energy, in a 6" barrel. I think this is one of those loads offered to provide decent performance and controlability from the "belly gun" class of .44 Spls. I question how well it does this, as it can be expected to drop well down into the 700s in a short Charter Bulldog or the like. Now, a 200 gr .429 dia. bullet at 750 (+/-) is respectable compared to a "standard type" .38 Spl from a 2", but it's still not a barn burner.
While I have NOT chronographed the Speer light bullet load, I doubt you'd see much over 900 fps in a 16" barrel. Due to barrel friction and other factors, you might very well see
lower velocities from a 20" barrel.
I submit that the greater performance of the
magnum cartridges from carbine length barrels is from the more traditional heavy bullet loads, powered by huge charges of slow burning powder, in the 2400/W296/H110 range. Typically, this type load, from a short barrel, leaves unburned powder on the surfaces below and forward of the muzzle. Fired from a long barrel, they burn a lot more of the powder, with far higher velocities. Using loads tuned for short barrels with faster powders such as Unique, Universal, W231, or Bullseye, there won't be nearly as much gain in the long barrels.
To realize the gains you mention with the .44 Spl, I really believe that you'll need to go to handloading. The more traditional 240 to 255 gr. LSWC bullets, stoked by slower burning powders,
a la the writings of Elmer Keith and Skeeter Skelton, will undoubtedly show a more significant increase through a 16- to 20-inch barrel.
A word of caution is in order here - - Many "Classic" heavy .44 Special loads are now considered to be FAR in excess of safe pressures. I'm thinking particularly of some mentioned by Keith in his fine old book,
Sixguns.
Also, since the Gold Dot bullet in this round is, presumably, designed to expand well at 875 fps (muzzle), is it likely to perform less well (over-expand on impact) when pushed to higher velocities?
The GDHP is said to perform well over a pretty wide range of velocities. If by "pushed," you mean handloaded to much greater velocities, you might want to explore the lighter .429 Hornady XTP bullets. IF you mean the Speer factory load from a longer barrel, I don't think it would come anywhere near "blowup" or fragmentation in game.
Another poster elsewhere has found with the chronograph that the .44 special round typically picks up about 300fps when fired through a carbine barrel vs. a pistol. Of course there is a commensurate increase in energy as well.
Taking that poster's statement at face value, the key is WHICH .44 Spl round, and fired from WHICH barrels? Remington's website shows their "traditional" .44 Spl load as a 246 LRN at 755 MV with 310 fpe from a six-inch test barrel. See - -
http://www.remington.com/ammo/ballistics/pr/results.asp?cal=17
I dare say this modest (but quite accurate) old load, if fired from, say, a 2" Bulldog Pug, probably wouldn't greatly exceed 600 fps. It
might well do over 800 from a carbine. Some of Keith's hot loads would no doubt show even greater differences, though
I just flat would NOT fire 'em through a lightweight Charter.
ZWolfgang, I don't want to come across as a naysayer, and I certainly mean no personal offense to you. I've done a fair amount of experimentation with different loads over the past few decades. I've run down some interesting trails. If most of them led to dead ends, well, sometimes the journey is really more fun than reaching the destination.
Best of luck to you - -
Johnny
