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The .45 Colt round can be loaded to not only reach .44 mag. power, but in a strong revolver like the Ruger Blackhawk or Redhawk (if you can find a Redhawk in .45) can even slightly surpass the .44Mag. in power.
There used to be an article at Sixgunner.com by John Linebough on this very subject. Mr. linebough worked up what he felt were safe, but much more powerful loads in Ruger revolvers, then sent samples of his loads to the H.P. White Laboratories for pressure testing. These loads put out more power than the .44 mag. at less pressure.
You have to take into account that at the time of his experiments, .44 Mag. ammo was loaded to about 40,000 PSI. Current .44 Mag. ammo is now loaded to about 35,000 PSI because the original loading were beat the good old S&W 29 and 629 up, as the old 1905, or is it 1908 lockwork could not stand up under the pounding of the original ammo. This makes the properly loaded Colt .45 in a Ruger revolver even more attractive.
An article by Ross Seyfried stated that his favorite walkabout handgun was a properly loaded, IE hot, Ruger Bisley with 5.5" barrel in .45 Colt. I already have a Ruger Bisley in .44 magnum which I find a lot more comfortable to shoot than my Super Blackhawk in the same weight and barrel length. I have shot one of Linebaugh's loads in a Ruger old model Blackhawk with 7.5" barrel and I was impressed with the load. I have since bought a 5.5" Ruger Bisley but have not yet had time to load up and try the loads in that gun.
The only drawback is .45 Colt ammo is underpowered and a tad pricey. Second, a Linebaugh type load is strictly a handloading proposition. If the new Bisley proves out, I'm thinking my 4 5/8" Super Blackhawk will be relegated to safe queen status. It's a weird gun. it's a Super Blackhawk, but has a standard Blackhawk grip frame from the factory. It's accurate but a bit painful to shoot with full power loads. it's been my carry gun when hiking up in the nearby mountains due to problems with mountain lions, black bears and occasional two legged varmints.
My take is, if you're a handloader, go witht he .45. If not, go witht he .44, especially if you need the extra power.
Paul B.
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