Hi Mike , while I read Foodaddy`s question (somewhere on this page) something similar came to my mind ! I traded a Bullberry barrel , 15" with brake , for almost nothing and I thought : what the hell it`s worth the barrelblank ! It was a 445 Super Mag. and someone rechambered it to 444 Marlin and then someone else srewed it up completely ! The cone in front of the chamber has deep scratches and actually you can see the peeled off material protruding into the bore ....!It`s gone , but like I said it was a bargain! So what ? Rechamber to an even longer case (based on the 9,3x74 R ) this is absolutely senseless , like you already said ! Will it be worth the effort/costs to cut off the block and reweld it , including a new chamber ? And if your answer is yes , how much will it be and is there a case between the 445 Super Mag. and the 444 Marlin ? Maybe a wildcat with a fatter case dia. to give it a shoulder ? If you don`t hear from me , it is because I`ll be on vacation for the next 3 weeks , but the topic might be interesting for all the others too ?! Thanks a lot in advance , J�rgen

Jurgen,
I'll do like I do with email and insert replies after specific points you make. Look for the >>>>>> in your message body below.

Hi Mike , while I read Foodaddy`s question (somewhere on this page) something similar came to my mind ! I traded a Bullberry barrel , 15" with brake , for almost nothing and I thought : what the hell it`s worth the barrelblank ! It was a 445 Super Mag. and someone rechambered it to "444 Marlin and then someone else srewed it up completely !

>>>>>> I don't know how good your grasp is of American jargon, but screwed up is roughly equivalent to "botched." Botulism is a bacterial infection, disease. I don't know if it is original or not. I may have picked it up from someone else along the way, but I refer to your condition as needing "Botchalism Repair."

The cone in front of the chamber

>>>>>> "Cone" tells me that you have a very short throat.

has deep scratches and actually you can see the peeled off material protruding into the bore ....!

>>>>>> Which means the throat section of the reamer was dull and did not cut cleanly. Happens in the best of families from time to time. In fact, if you were to examine a number of new chambers through a borescope, to some extent you will find a certain amount of burr on the ends of the lands in a fair percentage of barrels. Usually a few shots will knock them off, but if they are severe they won't readily go away.

It`s gone ,

>>>>>> Not so fast. 1) .444s in Contenders should have a longer than standard throat in my opinion a) for accuracy and b) to drop the pressure a little for a better margin of safety to the frame. Rethroating may fix it entirely. 2) A few firelapping rounds may clean it up also. It depends on how badly burred it is.

but like I said it was a bargain!

>>>>>> May still be. The throat is a main factor in accuracy, and with my throating, it should be a tackdriver like all the rest of the .444s I've done over the last 20 years or so.

So what ? Rechamber to an even longer case (based on the 9,3x74 R )

>>>>>>>>>That is a possibility.

this is absolutely senseless , like you already said !

>>>>> Not necessarily. You may not have to extend the chamber much at all to clean up the mess, and while it would increase the chamber volume, it may not be so much after all, especially if it saves a barrel. For us on this side of the pond, the cost of the brass makes such a fix not very cost effective. But for you, it would be more reasonable.

Will it be worth the effort/costs to cut off the block and reweld it , including a new chamber ?

>>>>>> The brake has more value than the barrel blank, most likely. The two combined may make it worthwhile. Talk to Virgin Valley about the cost of cutting off the old lug (which you DO want to save..... don't throw it away) and making another barrel out of it. However, I think you will find the cost rather high, especially compared to simply getting a factory .44 Mag. Hunter barrel and rechambering it. I do the .445 SM rechambers for $45. The cost to redo your barrel with a new lug will cost you as much or more than the cost of a good used factory barrel and rechambering.

And if your answer is yes , how much will it be and is there a case between the 445 Super Mag. and the 444 Marlin ?

>>>>>> There are several. Don Bower necks up .356 Win. brass to .44, which is a good round, and SSK has had a shortened .444 for years. To me and most others, the simplicity of using standard unaltered .444s and being able to shoot factory ammo make the .444 Marlin more appealing.

Maybe a wildcat with a fatter case dia. to give it a shoulder ?

>>>>>> No. Never go larger in diameter than you have to! Each time you increase the diameter of a chamber, you have to drop back on maximum allowable pressures. Take the .45/70 as an example. Its case head is only about .035" larger than a .444 Marlin. .444 operates at and is fine in the Contender at its 44,000 +/- psi pressure level. Step up to a .45/70 size chamber diameter and you have to drop back over 10,000 psi to about 32,000 psi maximum. Pressure over time is what gives velocity. You need all you can get of both to get performance. In the case of .44, you might as well drop back to a standard .44 Mag and hot load it to the same pressure as the .444 Marlin. It would probably be faster than a .44 coming from a fatter case.

If you don`t hear from me , it is because I`ll be on vacation for the next 3 weeks

>>>>>> Have a good vacation!

, but the topic might be interesting for all the others too ?! Thanks a lot in advance ,

>>>>>>> I'll copy this and send it to your mail here. It will probably be gone from this page by the time you get back.

Mike