44 mag accuracy with 180 gr bullets?

[J A XSP]

i dont shoot a lot of pistols in .44, but have experimented a good bit with the .44 in various long guns, including a ruger 77/44, a 'tender carbine, an H&R handy rifle, and a Win 94.

i had mixed results with 180's, but found i could mnake 200gr XTP's shoot about as well as 240's. I also found that the usual H110/296, etc didnt show best results with the lighter bullets, and i had way better luck with AA9, Ramshot Enforcer, and Longshot...that was especially true when loads were at or near minimum starting levels.

Now that I think about it. Most of the times I've tried 180s it's probably been with H110. That stuff just loves plenty of pressure to burn cleanly and consistently. Only non "non-magnum" powders I have are TiteGroup and HS6 those might prove to be useful with the lighter bullets.
The 200s may be a good compromise, as well. I suspect that the stubby nature of the lighter bullets in that caliber might have a little to do with the accuracy so something slightly longer might be prone to holding true a little further down the range. They're the same price as the 180s and available at Midway right now.