Bulk 44 Mag Ammo

Overview of .44 Magnum Ammo

Developed by Elmer Keith, Phil Sharpe, and Smith and Wesson in 1955 and introduced alongside the Smith and Wesson Model 29, .44 Magnum was for decades the most powerful commercially produced handgun cartridge in the world. It fires a .429-inch diameter bullet in weights from 180 to 300 grains at muzzle velocities of 1,100-1,600 fps, producing 900-1,600 ft-lbs of muzzle energy depending on load and barrel length. That energy level puts full-power .44 Magnum loads firmly in hunting territory for deer, black bear, and hogs at handgun distances, and makes it one of the most capable bear defense cartridges available in a revolver platform.

An important compatibility note: revolvers chambered in .44 Magnum safely fire .44 Special ammunition, which uses the same bullet diameter but a shorter case at lower pressure. Shooting .44 Special in a .44 Magnum revolver is a practical way to reduce recoil and cost during range sessions. The reverse is not true: .44 Magnum should never be fired in a firearm marked .44 Special only.

Popular .44 Magnum Brands We Carry

• PMC .44 Magnum Ammo: 240gr TC-SP (44D) in 500-round cases for range training and hunting, plus 180gr JHP (44B) for defensive and hunting applications at some of the lowest per-round pricing we carry in this caliber.
• Magtech .44 Magnum Ammo: 240gr SJSP (44A) in 1,000-round cases. Brass-case, boxer-primed, reloadable. One of the most affordable .44 Magnum hunting and defense loads available in bulk.
• Federal .44 Magnum Ammo: Hydra-Shok 240gr JHP (P44HS1) for defensive and hunting use, and American Eagle FMJ for range training.
• Sellier and Bellot .44 Magnum Ammo: 240gr SJHP (SB44C) in 600-round cases. European brass-case quality at competitive bulk pricing.

Best .44 Magnum Ammo for Specific Uses

Why Buy .44 Magnum Ammo from BulkMunitions?

• In stock and ready to ship. We only list ammunition that is physically in our warehouse. No backorders.
• Next-business-day shipping from our Knoxville, TN warehouse on orders placed before our daily cutoff.
• Bulk pricing on the most popular .44 Magnum loads. PMC 240gr TC-SP in 500-round cases and Magtech 240gr SJSP in 1,000-round cases deliver some of the lowest cost-per-round pricing available for this caliber.
• We tithe 10% of profits to Christian-based, 2A-supporting organizations every quarter, and our customers vote on where it goes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I shoot .44 Special in a .44 Magnum revolver?

Yes. Every .44 Magnum revolver safely fires .44 Special ammunition. Shooting .44 Special is a common and economical way to practice with less recoil and at a lower cost per round. The reverse is not safe: .44 Magnum must never be fired in a firearm marked .44 Special only. Browse our .44 Special ammo selection for practice loads compatible with your .44 Magnum revolver.

Is .44 Magnum good for deer hunting?

Yes. A 240gr soft point or hollow point load from a 6-8 inch revolver barrel delivers adequate energy for ethical kills on deer and hogs inside 75-100 yards with good shot placement. From a lever-action carbine, velocity increases substantially, extending practical range to around 150 yards. Use a quality expanding bullet rather than FMJ for hunting. The Magtech 240gr SJSP is one of the most affordable and reliable hunting loads we carry in this caliber.

What is the difference between .44 Magnum and .44 Special?

.44 Special and .44 Magnum both fire the same .429-inch diameter bullet, but .44 Magnum has a longer case loaded to significantly higher pressure, producing roughly 2-3 times the muzzle energy of standard .44 Special loads. All .44 Magnum revolvers accept .44 Special for reduced-recoil practice, but .44 Special revolvers cannot safely chamber or fire .44 Magnum.

More About .44 Magnum Ammo

The development of .44 Magnum grew from decades of experimentation by Elmer Keith, a cowboy, rancher, and firearms writer from Idaho who spent much of his career pushing the limits of what large-bore revolver cartridges could do. Keith had long loaded .44 Special cases with heavy bullets and maximum powder charges well beyond factory specifications, achieving velocities and energies far above anything Winchester or Remington loaded commercially. His goal was a revolver cartridge powerful enough for reliable performance on deer, elk, and black bear at handgun hunting distances.

In the early 1950s, Keith's work attracted the attention of Remington and Smith and Wesson. Remington standardized Keith's heavy load in a lengthened .44 Special case, creating the .44 Remington Magnum cartridge. Smith and Wesson developed the Model 29 revolver to chamber it, and both were introduced simultaneously in 1955. The cartridge exceeded the performance of any previous commercially produced handgun round, and Keith's long-sought goal of a practical handgun hunting cartridge was finally realized.

The cartridge's cultural moment came in 1971 when Clint Eastwood's Inspector Harry Callahan described the Smith and Wesson Model 29 as "the most powerful handgun in the world" in the film Dirty Harry. That scene drove extraordinary civilian demand for both the revolver and the cartridge and introduced .44 Magnum to a generation of shooters who had never considered handgun hunting. While the cartridge has since been eclipsed in raw power by .454 Casull and .500 S&W Magnum, its combination of genuine hunting capability, manageable recoil relative to larger magnums, and broad platform availability in revolvers, lever-action carbines, and semi-automatic pistols like the Desert Eagle has kept it one of the most popular large-bore handgun calibers in continuous production.