.44 Russian/.44 Mag

[German Jim]

Will a .44 Russian work OK in a revolver that shoot a .44 Mag?  I was looking at some specs and the base of the Russian is like .001 smaller that the .44 Special or .44 Magnum.  Would that .001 difference be of any concern?

[Blackwater 53393]

My .44 Russian ammo worked fine in several different .44 magnum pistols.  It was a little clunky in my Winchester ‘92 in .44 mag, but once it chambered, it fired and hit at point of aim reliably.

 

 

 

Edited February 5 by Blackwater 53393

[Rooster Ron Wayne]

Absolutely  ! 

I shoot everything in 44 caliber .

Russian in a shorter 44 Special. 

Special is a shorter magnum. 

Cycling my or may not be a issue is certain action types. 

But it will shoot. 

Rooster 

[Abilene, SASS # 27489]

That .001 bigger rim diameter will make no difference.  The 44 Russian, Special, and Magnum are essentially the same except for length.  Now, the smaller rim diameter (.483) of the 44 Colt could cause some extraction issues in some guns like rifles or top-breaks, but it could still be fired in most if not all 44 Special and Magnum guns.

[Thunder Creek Kid]

I shoot em all the time in my 44 mag rugers. 

[John Kloehr]

I shoot .44 Russian out of my .44 Special revolvers. Was presented to me as a hot tip for this sport.

 

This as after I eventually collect the brass will be to reload with APP and make more smoke. Was told the Russian case size will work well with APP, and meet more than minimum required power factor.

[Smokin Gator SASS #29736]

The Russians and Specials are great for black powder loads without using fillers to reduce the load. They work for smokeless to of course.

[Jonathan Slim Chance]

Yes, they work fine.  I even use them in my Smith and Wesson 629 in full moon clips (converted cylinder, of course).

[Trailrider #896]

Back in the day, a cartridge that was the same as an original one was sometimes referred to as "long". For example, there was a .38 Short Colt's and the longer cased version called .38 Long Colt's. By the same token, the .44 Special could properly have been called ".44 Long Russian", and the .44 Magnum called ".44 Extra Long Russian".  Rim and base diameter ahead of the rim are basically the same; the only difference being the case length (and hence the OAL being different, when using the same bullet).  Just for grins, you will sometimes see me refer to the .44 Magnum as ".44 Extra Long Russian" or ".44 XLR".  The only thing you may have to do if you shoot a bunch of the shorter cartridge in the magnum chamber is to clean out the chamber thoroughly or you might have trouble chambering the longer cartridge.

[Muley Gil SASS # 57795]

History:

 

S&W brought out the .44 American, which had an outside lubed bullet, like the .22 Long Rifle. The Russian liked the top break S&Ws, but didn't like the outside lubed bullet. An cartridge with a bullet encased was developed and called the .44 Russian.

 

In about 1907, S&W lengthened the .44 Russian case and called it the .44 Special.

 

In the 1950s, Elmer Keith went to S&W and Remington and asked them to load his heavy .44 Special rounds. In 1956, S&W and Ruger brought out revolvers chambered in the .44 Magnum, which is a lengthened .44 Special.

[Bailey Creek,5759]

The 44 Russian is the 44 Mag's Grandfather.