Anyone here load Marlin 444?
 

I am having a hard time finding bullets to load. Can I use some of my 240 grain speer pistol bullets or is that a no-no? I just bought a 444 die and have not loaded anything yet. If you do load them what is your favorite recipe or load? Also some powder recommendations. Thanks

RE: Anyone here load Marlin 444?
 

According to my Speer manual you can use any sort of pistol bullet for the .44 mag. One of the problems with this cartridge is lack of real bullets designed for it.

RE: Anyone here load Marlin 444?
 

Yep. The .444 is an odd duck. When first introduced, it was loaded with 240-grain, .44 Magnum pistol bullets launched at a much higher velocity than that for which they were designed. The results were often less than satisfactory, to say the least. Later, Hornady introduced their 265-grain .429" bullet, which I understand was designed specifically for the .444. However, even this bullet, (IMO), is a bit on the light side for something that is .429" in diameter. It is in the same category as the 300-grain .405 Winchester load-too light for the size game for which one would expect such a large-bore to be used! To be an elephant gun, the .405 needs a 400-grain bullet; so does the .444.

But, you can't use a 400-grain bullet with most .444's-they didn't make the twist (1-38"!!) fast enough! This is its' major shortcoming.

So my choice was the .45/70 instead of the .444. IF you have a .444 with a 1-38" twist, you are pretty much limited to bullets of no more than 300 grains or a little more. Blunt bullets could be a little heavier, like 320 grains or so. While the 240-grain pistol slug will work for broadside lung shots on deer, I would use a cast flatnose gascheck bullet of 300 to 320 grains for the bigger, heavier game if I had to shoot it with a .444. Even the 300-grain bullet only has a sectional density of .233, not much more than a 150-grain .30 caliber bullet (.225).

RE: Anyone here load Marlin 444?
 

The Hornady 265 gr. was made specifically for the 444.

RE: Anyone here load Marlin 444?
 

I haven't started reloading for my 444 yet but plan to once i finally get everything built and set up.
But there are a number of good bullets that you can use in the 444 Marlin.

Hornady 265 grain
Hornady 300 grain XTP
Swift A-frame 280 and 300 grain
Barnes 225 grain XPB
Nosler 250 grain partition HG
Sierra300 grain sports master
Speer 270 grain Gold dot flat point

And a wide variety from Beartooth Bullets. http://www.beartoothbullets.com/bulletselect/index.htm

They also have a good article about loading their bullets in the 444 Marlin. Go to the Tech notes link, then scroll down to the link titled ".444 Marlin- Americas most versatile Big-Bore" Parts 1, 2, &3.