Gentleman
Could any of you tell me anything about the Ruger Model 96/44 magnum rifle. There is not much about this rifle on the net. The little I have been able to gather is that the cartridge holder limits the use of heavy bullets because it doesn’t have the length to fit into it. Wonder how it would work with the cast bullets.

30-30 Man

Gentleman
Could any of you tell me anything about the Ruger Model 96/44 magnum rifle. There is not much about this rifle on the net. The little I have been able to gather is that the cartridge holder limits the use of heavy bullets because it doesn’t have the length to fit into it. Wonder how it would work with the cast bullets.

30-30 Man
My dad uses that rifle and its a neat little gun. As far as cast bullets--I have shot the Federal Castcore 300gr. bullets through it without any problem. But be ready for a lot more kick as compared with the 240gr. and the bullet drop if you plan on shooting very far after sighting in with the lighter bullet.

The Beartooth 280gr WFNGC is reported to work, I sent a couple to someone here on the sight to make dummy rounds to check for functioning.

If you can't kill it with that, probably need to break out the .458 Win Mag... or the Dixie slugs!

Thanks for the info

30-30 Man

It seems the max bullet weight that fits in the magazine is 300 grains. I hunted with a 96/44 for 2 seasons and found the ergonomics to be less than steller. I also encountered feeding problems with the magazine, but the one I used was a prototype. It shoot ok, not great, but that might have been because of the shooter, not the rifle. The one I had had a Weaver V3 mounted on it. Neat little scope but not very useful. The midsection of the gun is much too thick, as is the forend. It does not feel good in my hands. I would take my Marlin 336A over it any day.

I have one that I use for hogs, with a 1.5 to 4.5 Bushnell up top. I love it. SWC bullets don't feed well, the shoulder often hangs up in the mag or the throat. You can seat the shoulder into the case and roll crimp over it, which helps, but you still get the occasional hang up. I've loaded up some 205 grain RNFP cowboy type pills, which feed perfectly. My gun will shoot around 2 to 2 1/2 inches with the scope on 4.5 power, off a bipod with my 240 grain Sierra JHC loads. I find it a very fast gun into action, especially for running shots (most hogs I shoot are on the run, and generally cop it up the butt....). My rifle had a small stock crack behind the receiver that I'm told wasn't unusual in the old semi auto carbine with heavy loads. A friend I hunt with also has a 96/44 and he hasn't had this problem. Lever throw is very short and smooth, a fingertip action if you have bigger hands. Recoil and report in field conditions is negligable, but noticable while sighting in. The heaviest pill I've loaded is the 300 grain Hornady XTP, just a few test loads that were fine in use. The magazine cannot be removed with the lever closed, you need to at least partially open it if you want to put in the fresh one. The mag only hold 4 rounds, which isn't enough sometimes. The rifle uses the standard Ruger mounts.

http://www.rugerforum.com/

I've akso had good accurasy with Hornady 300 grain XTP. No feeding problems at all.

Try 44 Special ammo sometime for fun. Zero recoil and quiet report. A great teaching tool for new shooters.
TR

I load cast pills to around 1000 fps and they are top fun, no need for earmuffs and bugger all kick. Tops for rolling bunnies too!