Perhaps this should be in the Gunsmithing forum, but I am interested in what can be considered a safe chamber pressure for a Stevens 44. I have a 44 and a 45 on a 44 frame, both in .22LR, but am trying to establish a safe and accurate load for a 44 in 25-20 SS. Seems like I have read somewhere that .22 LR produces about 18,000 psi, and am thinking this establishes a baseline, but would like some informed feedback.

Joe....that makes sense. When I reload I only have the components for that rifle/load on the table. AND double check loads with a flashlight before finishing. Pete

Skalkaho--When I load cases at the bench,and am interrupted,I either pour powder out and start again or I have a dowel which is marked when case is filled with given charge--if case mouth and mark don't match  up,I start over--never had a problem.  Fritz

slumlord44 wrote on Mar 10^th, 2011 at 8:39pm:


You hit the nail fairly on the head !  

There was a highwall blown to smitherines on the forum and in the journal recently. I've seen one Hepburn cracked down the side.  Heard of an Aydt that was wrecked recently.   
 
I was at Etna Green when a Ballard was double charged and didnt let go. Bent the parts inside.   

               Joe.   

Wish joeb33050 had offered me his Ballards !    Hervey Lovell and R.K. Sedgley didn't think they were all that weak.   Both built 22-3000 Lovells on Ballard actions.  

slumlord44 wrote on Mar 10^th, 2011 at 8:39pm:

I believe you're correct on the BP.
From what I've seen, strong actions such as 1885 W, Stevens 44 1/2, Hepburn, DeHaas, Martini, etc may/will be damaged with a double charge, but won't damage you.
As far as 22 Lovell on a Ballard, small area case head and a lot of luck. Anyone shooting smokeless 45-70 on a balloard is courting disaster.
The question started about a 44, and I gave my opinion. An old and pretty good gunsmith gave me his opinion about the 44, including the ones with the "almost lockup raised bit of metal" thing. Good for 22RF, only.
As far as throwing powder charges safely, 
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Good luck,
joe b.

joeb33050 wrote on Mar 11^th, 2011 at 5:39am:


You must not have seen the highwall that came apart like a hand grenade. Dont know how you could have missed that!  It was a miracle the shooter and people around him were not injured.   

                  Joe. 

Exactly so.  Trouble with 44s is that they aren't consistent.  Sometimes you find one where the breechblock bears firmly on the shoulders behind it when it's closed.  This makes the force resolution path somewhat like a Ballard, and they'll take more pressure that way, because the metal is loaded in compression.  But far more often than not, the shoulders don't bear at all, and then all the thrust is  transmitted to the pivot pin.   In which case there's a stress concentration in the angle between the leg to the pivot pin and the face of the block. There being no appreciable radius there, and it being a tension load, cracks will form and spread.  

The number you want to think about is not pressure, but thrust on the breech face.  Roughly, the thrust is pressure per unit area, so a small cartridge like the Stevens quarterbores can work at higher pressure than a .32-40 and still stress the action less. The area ratio is about 1.75:1.   That 4227 load calculates to about 12K psi in Quickload.  The same thrust in a .25-20SS would take 20K psi to generate.   

However, I'd still keep to about 15K psi with the .25-20SS unless I could X-ray or at least ZyGlo the breechblock for cracks.   Regardless of powder choice, loads at that pressure will yield 1300-1400 fps with the 85 grain cast bullet, and you can have fun with that.   If you want to shoot jacketed, or higher velocity, use a stronger action, IMHO.  I used the .25-20SS in a 44 1/2 as my go-to chuck rifle for some years, which it did admirably, but at something like 35K psi.