Unique in.44 magnum

[DannyT]

Does anyone have experience with unique powder and .44 magnum?

I’m looking to download it for gallery rifle shooting at 25 metres, so not using the full charge as listed in reloading manuals.

It’ll be with 240gn rnfp bullets.

If anyone has some actual experience with this combination it would be great to know the charge weight, as a starting point.

Thanks.

Regards,
Danny.

[Thegreg]

I use Unique in .44 mag, it’s the powder I’ve had the best results with. The Lyman manual is a good reference but from memory I did my testing from around 7.5gr to 9.5gr, and settled about 8.6 iirc.

Cheers
Greg

[DannyT]

I use Unique in .44 mag, it’s the powder I’ve had the best results with. The Lyman manual is a good reference but from memory I did my testing from around 7.5gr to 9.5gr, and settled about 8.6 iirc.

Cheers
Greg

That’s great info, thanks for the reply.

[thisisdonald]

ive used unique, red dot, bullseye and Nc320 (tin star) in .44 , all with good results
if its for gallery at 25m you dont need huge loads, so you should look at what powder is bulkiest but still meters well with whatever powder thrower you are using - if you use one at all.
currently im using testing red dot for a new .357 with good results. it amazes me how low an extreme spread I can get with powder. on recent load tests over only 7 shots ive been getting standard deviation of about 9 fps across a few different powder weights. Im putting it down to the powder thrower and the lee factory crimp die. Im using an old redding powder thrower.

[clueless]

I have been using 8 grains of unique for years with a 240 grain cast bullet am getting 1/2 inch groups at 20 yards on a good day.. pokey enough to justify owning a .44 but mild enough not to annoy others on the range and within limits for my club

[Thegreg]

That’s a good point that Donald brought up about the crimp. I’ve found that crimping some rounds makes absolutely no difference to consistency/accuracy but both my .44 mags have been extremely sensitive to it. Since moving to copper plated bullets I bought a Redding taper crimp die which does a superb job. To kee your crimps consistent make sure you trim your brass to one uniform length.

Cheers
Greg

[DannyT]

Thanks for the replies.

I use a an rcbs powder thrower which seems to be very consistent.

I also use a Lee factory crimp die, rather than seating and crimping in one go. I read somewhere that this method works well; it certainly works for me so far. I’ve had cloverleaf groupings at 25 metres, rested.

I have Unique, GM3 and RS12, so looking to see which one is the best for my role and loads

[loiner1965]

6gns is a soft load but i use between 8-9 gns with excellent results....tinstar is excellent too and cleaner

[DannyT]

6gns is a soft load but i use between 8-9 gns with excellent results....tinstar is excellent too and cleaner

Thanks for the info, would you recommend starting at 6gn and gradually work it up to around 9gn, taking note of the groups and speeds?

Regards,
Danny.

[loiner1965]

Thanks for the info, would you recommend starting at 6gn and gradually work it up to around 9gn, taking note of the groups and speeds?

Regards,
Danny.

Try 6.5 and work your way up but most use between 8-9.5 gns of unique…..
They say it’s a dirty powder but I do find it more smokier than tin star but I have 2 tubs of unique lol

[DannyT]

Try 6.5 and work your way up but most use between 8-9.5 gns of unique…..
They say it’s a dirty powder but I do find it more smokier than tin star but I have 2 tubs of unique lol

Thanks, will do.