Full house .357 and .44

[Wraith]

Anyone have a tested full house load for .357 mag or .44 mag? I have a pet load for .357, 125 grain HP with 9.3 grains of Unique, that runs 1252 fps out of a 2" barrel but want something to test the limits of my new N frame. Also looking for something good to run through the .44 mag.

 

[Dawico]

Unique usually doesn't give the highest speeds, but is nice because it can be loaded in almost any handgun round. I don't have any loads in particular, but 2400, Bullseye, and Blue Dot are usually loaded far faster bullet speeds. I have never loaded Bullseye, but usually hear of guys double charging with it so be careful. 2400 is very dirty so I stay away from it. Check your manuals, yes more than one, to get better speeds with these powders. Your N frame, if 7 or 8 shots, doesn't have real thick cylinder walls. I'd stay with published loads. I do with mine. I like my fingers and face just the way they are.

 

[Wraith]

I guess I need to start looking for some 70's reloading manuals before they were dumbed down for the average reloader. This is a 6 shot N frame so it should take anything I throw at it which is exactly why I picked it up. The Unique is what I had around from loading .38 and my .357 load came from that. Unfortunately I had tons of extra time, access to free range time, and a chronograph when I started loading.
My buddy that helped me said back in the day him and a friend used to dump powder on a table, drag a shell through it, tap off enough to seat a bullet, then shoot them at night to see how big a flame it'd throw, in N frames of course.

 

[Rifleman55]

I have used 20 gr of 2400 with a cast 250 gr Keith style bullet, that load will get your attention. Yuo can use H110 also but I don't know what charge weight. Skeeter Skelton liked 10 gr of Unique with the same bullet, he did not like heavy recoil. Elmer Keith used 22grs of 2400 back in his day, Don't use that load, modern 2400 burns a bit faster and pressures will be too high. These days I use 18 grs 2400, That and the 250 gr hard cast bullet will do the job.

 

[MadMo44Mag]

After many years of shoot mag loads in both these calibers and trying every powder out there I found that for 44mag you have two choices - Alliant 2400 and Alliant Power Pistol.
As for 357 mag IMR 4227.
If you need specific data PM me and I'll share my pet loads

 

[robocop10mm]

You want screaming velocity and manageable pressure? Look no further than W-296. Do not reduce loads with this powder, it likes to have the available space full. It is my powder of choice for .357, .41 and .44 Mag hot loads. In the .41 it will launch a 170 JHC at 1600 out of a 6" M-57