WB
Back in the day it was the SBH vs the M29
Friday, July 05, 2024, 08:03

The 240 gr. was the standard. Everyone knew the S&W would need attention (after several thousand rounds) before the SBH. Recoil would eventually shake things loose and wear a bit. Nothing a little maintenance would not fix.

Then I personally think it was folks like Larry Kelly and JD that got the heavy bullet thing in .44 cal. going. Kelly was running all over the world with a .44 Mag. killing critters. They came up with a truncated nose 270 gr. at first, then it got a little wild. I still have several boxes of their plain base SSK 330 gr. Truncated flat nose. It's a bit difficult to load those where they don't recoil harsh! But they were hunting bullets, not intended to shoot thousands through the guns. I run them about 1200 fps and they will shoot clean through a treated power pole!

Ruger came out with the Redhawk in 1979 (nobody saw them till 1980 and later - except Elmer Keith or Bob Milek). Guys were going 300+ gr. on their .44 Mags. It was rough on even the RH. Enough Ruger came out with the "Super" RH. I understand the biggest wear issue (back then) seemed to be the junction of the frame and barrel threads. The Super has this area way overbuilt and threaded area doubled. This and the early issues with thread lock compound really created fun for some gunsmiths working on Super RH.

If you shoot a few dozen heavy loads it unlikely will not present any problems other than a sore palm. It's rough on everyone. But if you want to shoot hundreds (!) it sure helps to have something specifically addressing the rough treatment. Just me remembering and my views. I was a teenager back then and really was excited about it all.