3844 Heavy Duty Loads

Pointed lead bullets with a covering jacket (Winchester Metal Point) were also loaded to higher velocity in the 38/44 S&W made a 38 Special revolver on the 44 frame, hence the 38/44 moniker In fixed sight trim, this was the Heavy Duty After 1956, the HD was called the Model.

3844 heavy duty loads. There were what was called 38 Special Hi Speed loads that were midway or so in power between 38 Special and 357 Magnum loads developed for the 38/44 both Heavy Duty and Outdoorsman, about 10 FPS with 158 grain bullets instead of 850 for 38 and 1400 or so for 357 for the revolvers. Buffalo Bore Ammunition offers a3844 load in its Heavy38 P Outdoorsman Buffalo Bore is famous for firstclass loads that maximize the caliber, and this is no exception This load is consistent, accurate, and powerful For heavy frame38 revolvers still in use, or the357 Magnum revolver, this is a fine load. Smith & Wesson 38/44 Heavy Duty, built on the large Nframe originally intended to fire 44 Special Around the same time period, heavy bullets were tried to increase the performance of the standard 38 Special against auto bodies.

Highpressure38/44 loadings of the38 Special cartridge represented a transition between conventional38 Special ammunition and the new more powerful357 Magnum ammo Revolvers were manufactured from 1930 to 1941, and after World War II from 1946 to 1966 until competitively priced357 Magnum revolvers became widely available. The specific handguns meant for this use were Smith & Wesson’s Heavy Duty (later, Model ) and Outdoorsman (later, Model 23) and Colt’s SAA and New Service A load that duplicates 3844s is 110 grains of Alliant 2400 with 150to 158grain SWC, RN or RNFP bullets. 38 Special High Speed loads for the 38/44 Outdoorsman My reasoning is that I had a 357 Magnum, and surely, it should be able to take the 38/44 loads in 38 Special cases easily as that was a factory loading once upon a time I researched 38/44 data and came up with the reference All of the loads listed were for the Lyman #, ,.

The S&W 357 Magnum was made with the same cylinder length of the 38/44 Heavy Duty, and if the was loaded into Magnum brass, and crimped in the crimp groove, the overall cartridge length was too long to function in the relatively short cylinder. S&W advised me when I was still in high school in the early 1960's that these high velocity loads wouldn't blow up a M&P (Model 10), but that if very many would be fired, their 38/44 Heavy Duty or Outdoorsman were the appropriate guns to use I have never seen a 38/44 load at 1400 FPS;. The 135 grains of 2400 loads in 38 Special cases previously referred to were generally only safe in a S&W 38/44 Heavy Duty or Outdoorsman which were Nframe guns This is the frame used for the M27 and M28 (also Registered and NonRegistered Magnums) early 357 magnum revolvers.

I'm looking forward to comparing them side by side, shooting my 38/44 hand loads (a 158g @ ~1125 fps) I've read about the smoothness of the older long action, but then I've also read about the improvement in the short action Model of 1950 As soon as the desert cools down enough to enjoy a day at the outdoor range I'll start the journey (smile. The38/44 Heavy Duty was the only S&W revolver qualified to safely handle the new loads It was introduced in 1930 with a fixed sight, 5inch barrel, blued or nickeled finish, and walnut stocks,. That's 357 Magnum territory.

In response, Smith & Wesson introduced the large frame 38/44 Heavy Duty in 1930 It was based on the 44 Special Smith & Wesson Triple Lock revolver and was made with a 5inch (13 cm) barrel and fixed sights The following year, Smith & Wesson began production of the 38/44 Outdoorsman with a 65inch (17 cm) barrel and adjustable sights. There were what was called 38 Special Hi Speed loads that were midway or so in power between 38 Special and 357 Magnum loads developed for the 38/44 both Heavy Duty and Outdoorsman, about 10 FPS with 158 grain bullets instead of 850 for 38 and 1400 or so for 357 for the revolvers. 0About a year ago I finally tracked down a late '40s S&W 3844 "Heavy Duty" in really nice shape I've been meaning to load some replica original 38 High Velocity loads for it and I tracked down some 2400 and stout brass Now I need to select a bullet I feel that I want a jacketed or semijacketed bullet so I don't have to worry about leading.

I have used the heavier load in heavyframed 38s and still use it occasionally It is for use only in 38/44 sixguns, but it’s best to use it only in 357 Magnum sixguns For most of my 38/44 loads I prefer 1 to 125 grs of 4227 It is mild shooting and accurate, extremely so with the RCBS #KT. In response, Smith & Wesson introduced the large frame 38/44 Heavy Duty in 1930 It was based on the 44 Special Smith & Wesson Triple Lock revolver and was made with a 5inch (13 cm) barrel and fixed sights The following year, Smith & Wesson began production of the 38/44 Outdoorsman with a 65inch (17 cm) barrel and adjustable sights. None of my manual show it I now load both 38 and 357 and wonder if the 38/44 load was somewhat.

3844 HighVelocity Loads reloading data with 25 loads Using bullets from Speer Jacketed Hollow Point, Sierra JHC, Winchester Silvertip HP, RCBS SWC cast, Lyman HP cast, Speer Gold Dot HP, Hornady XTPHP, Cast Performance FNPB, Lyman cast, Lyman cast, Cast Performance WFNGC Powders include Alliant, Hodgdon, Accurate. The S&W 357 Magnum was made with the same cylinder length of the 38/44 Heavy Duty, and if the was loaded into Magnum brass, and crimped in the crimp groove, the overall cartridge length was too long to function in the relatively short cylinder. The 38/44 heavy duty The new revolver was developed by fitting a cylinder and barrel bored for the 38 Special cartridge to the "four screw" 44 caliber (later "N") frame It was discovered that the additional weight was quite effective at modifying the new cartridge's recoil characteristics.

My first 3844 was a Heavy Duty (M) in excellent condition although it had been carried extensively on duty and used successfully in nearly a dozen gun battles My other 3844 is a mintcondition Outdoorsman (M23) which, astonishingly, I purchased unfired for a mere $100 at a yard sale!. Introduced in 1930 with a 5inch barrel and fixed sights they called this gun the3844 Heavy Duty Remington developed a new38 caliber load called the HiSpeed to complement this fortified. The load is put together with Keith's # over 135 grains of Hercules #2400 in 38 Special brass with standard primers This is a Heavy Duty Plus P Plus Plus load and only for use in 357 Magnum revolvers and heavy frame 38 Special revolvers such as the Colt Single Action and Heavy Duty Smith & Wesson.

THE SMITH & WESSON 38/44 HEAVY DUTY The first 38/44 Heavy Duty was shipped from Smith & Wesson on 2 April 1930 This model was built in response to law enforcement's requirement for an arm that would shoot a high speed round which could penetrate car bodies and bullet proof vests. Model Marked Heavy Duties 38/44 Heavy Duty Model Marked Heavy Duties The Model pictured at top was shipped March 11, 1963 to Roy Harper Hardware, Pueblo Colorado for the Pueblo Police Department The 9 gun shipment was configured with 4 inch barrels, blue finish and magna grips. Should one desire to revisit Keith's 38/44 Heavy Duty loads, this bullet can be loaded over 1 grains of 2400 in a 38 Special case for approximately 10 fps (this load should only be fired in Nframe 38s, or 357 Magnum revolvers).

Before Smith & Wesson came up with the 38/44 Heavy Duty and the adjustable sighted version, the 38/44 Outdoorsman, Colt already had two revolvers capable of handling Elmer Keith's heavy 38 Special loadhis # Keith bullet of around 170 grs over 135 grains of #2400namely the Colt Single Action and New Service. In designing the TripleLock, Smith & Wesson set out to create a largeframe wheelgun that could fire morepowerful loads Based on earlier swingout cylinder doubleactions, such as the 32 Hand Ejector, 38 Military and Police and 38 S&W Special, the new revolver was beefed up, especially in the frame, to handle the company’s newly designed 44 Special cartridge, which was based on. THE 38/44 handloads of times past are extremely accurate in almost all heavy duty38's and 357 revolvers as a matter of fact I tend to shoot the 38/44 in all my 38's and 357 sixguns, even the Jframes;.

The 3844 cartridge was a soupedup version of the 38 Special, loaded in the same case, and S&W introduced these Nframe revolvers to handle these heavy loads There is significant collector interest in these postWWII transitional models, and this section will be expanded in future editions. 0About a year ago I finally tracked down a late '40s S&W 3844 "Heavy Duty" in really nice shape I've been meaning to load some replica original 38 High Velocity loads for it and I tracked down some 2400 and stout brass Now I need to select a bullet I feel that I want a jacketed or semijacketed bullet so I don't have to worry about leading. As a result, Smith & Wesson introduced its 38/44 Heavy Duty revolver in 1930 Some 38/44 loads used a special metalpiercing bullet at 1,125 fps, as opposed to the 755 fps of the standard 38 Special loading To take the hotter load, the NFrame revolver—normally chambered in 44 Special, 45 Colt or 45 ACP—was chambered for the new.

38/44 smith wesson for sale and auction Buy a 38/44 smith wesson online Sell your 38/44 smith wesson for FREE today on GunsAmerica!. The 38/44 Heavy Duty was the only S&W revolver qualified to safely handle the new loads It was introduced in 1930 with a fixed sight, 5inch barrel, blued or nickeled finish, and walnut stocks. If you can find a copy of the October 06 Handloader there is a great article on the 3844 loads by Brian Pearce, the best article I recall seeing on it I cast my own bullets for it particularly # hollowpoints at around grains of 2400 or a 170 grain cast # SWC with around 1125 grains of 2400.

Before Smith & Wesson came up with the 38/44 Heavy Duty and the adjustable sighted version, the 38/44 Outdoorsman, Colt already had two revolvers capable of handling Elmer Keith’s heavy 38 Special load — his # Keith bullet of around 170 grs over 135 grains of #2400 — namely the Colt Single Action and New Service. "New" 3844 Heavy Duty S&W Jump to Latest Follow 21 39 of 39 Posts Prev 1;. The 3844 High Velocity loads were cataloged as having a 6inch test barrel velocity of 1125 fps with the 158grain bullet, intended only for the Colt New Service, Official Police and S&W Heavy Duty (Nframe) revolvers Both lead roundnose and “metal capped” versions were offered.

S&W advised me when I was still in high school in the early 1960's that these high velocity loads wouldn't blow up a M&P (Model 10), but that if very many would be fired, their 38/44 Heavy Duty or Outdoorsman were the appropriate guns to use I have never seen a 38/44 load at 1400 FPS;. The 38/44 Heavy Duty was the father of the 357 Registered Magnum which appeared in 1935 I am always interested in acquiring collectable 38/44 Heavy Duties Send me any Heavy Duty questions you have and I'll answer them if possible Please contact me at heavyduty3844@yahoocom. The 3844 High Velocity loads were cataloged as having a 6inch test barrel velocity of 1125 fps with the 158grain bullet, intended only for the Colt New Service, Official Police and S&W Heavy Duty (Nframe) revolvers Both lead roundnose and “metal capped” versions were offered.

Before Smith & Wesson came up with the 38/44 Heavy Duty and the adjustable sighted version, the 38/44 Outdoorsman, Colt already had two revolvers capable of handling Elmer Keith's heavy 38 Special loadhis # Keith bullet of around 170 grs over 135 grains of #2400namely the Colt Single Action and New Service. That's 357 Magnum territory. Needless to say, it is no longer unfired.

First 2 of 2 Go to page Go. 357 vs 3844 loads Jump to Latest Follow 1 5 of 5 Posts David Lapell · Registered Joined Jan , 09 · 3,421 Posts Discussion Starter • #1 • Oct 29, 10 I have been tinkering with some 357 loads in the form of a 162 grain hardcast bullets, mould # vs some 172 grain cast bullets # loaded in 38 Special P brass. Nonetheless, the new 38/44 Heavy Duty proved popular Meanwhile, noted gun writer and ballistician Phil Sharp had been experimenting with highvelocity 38 Spl loads, and finally convinced.

Loads for 38/44 Heavy Duty and Outdoorsman I understand the 38/44s were designed for heavier loads than the 38 special Some of the guns apparently have been modified to take 357 Has anyone worked up modern equivalent of the old 38/44 loads?. When the 3844 loads were introduced in the 1930s, there was no industry standard pressure for the higher velocity loads The P designation was not standardized until 1974 The S&W Heavy Duty, Colt New Service and Official Police revolvers of that era were deemed OK for use with the higher velocity loads. The No was a different animal from the3844 Heavy Duty doubleaction S&W’s new Heavy Duty could handle much hotter38 Special loads than were generally available That’s why, in 1931 RemingtonUMC, Winchester and Western stepped up to the plate and rolled out a new breed of highvelocity, highpressure38 Special.