The 44-40 Winchester (44 WCF) was introduced by Winchester in 1873 in their Model 1873 lever action. The '73, "the gun that won the West," was the first truly successful repeater, and its 44-40 cartridge was quickly adopted by other manufacturers, including both Colt and Smith & Wesson in revolvers. Using a .427-inch bullet, the standard load features a 200-grain bullet at about 1100 feet per second, producing 588 foot-pounds of energy. This is not a lot of power, but the 44-40 was probaby the most popular sporting cartridge of the 19th Century, accounting for untold amounts of game. It remained the most popular chambering in the 1892 Winchester, and was a common chambering in both rifles and handguns at least through the 1940s. The growth in Cowboy Action shooting has revived it; the 44-40 has less recoil than the 45 Colt, and serves as a common chambering for rifles and revolvers. Ammo is readily available and it is chambered to numerous reissues and reproductions.
