. 44 Russian The . 44 Russian , also known as the . 44 S & W Russian , is a black - powder center - fire metallic revolver cartridge developed by Smith & Wesson in 1870 . The . 44 Russian design marked the first use of an internally lubricated bullet in modern firearm ammunition . Development history . In the early 1870s , General Alexander Gorloff , the military attaché assigned to the Russian Embassy in Washington , D . C . , approached Smith & Wesson about the possibility of negotiating a military sales contract for the purchase of a large number of Smith and Wesson Model 3 revolver s for the Imperial Russian Army . However , Gorloff had some reservations about the standard . 44 S & W American chambering of the pistol which , similar to today ’ s . 22 long rifle , had an externally lubricated heeled bullet . Gorloff correctly recognized that such ammunition tends to pick up debris and contaminants which erode the bore when fired , so a qualification of the purchase contract was that Smith & Wesson develop an internally lubricated version of their . 44 round . Smith & Wesson did so by reducing the diameter of the . 44 bullet to . 430 and adding lubrication grooves to its base . This evolutionary improvement became an archetype , influencing future cartridge designs . With improved firearm metallurgy available , Smith and Wesson increased the bullet weight of the new cartridge to 246 grains while retaining a heavy 23 grain black - powder propellant charge which almost equalled that of the . 44 American and produced a muzzle velocity of roughly 750 ft / s . As a result of these changes , the . 44 Russian generated a much higher chamber pressure of 12 , 000 copper units of pressure ( CUP ) compared to the older . 44 American round which generated only 6 - 8 , 000 CUP . To prevent the new high - pressure ammunition from being fired in . 44 American revolvers with disastrous results , the overall cartridge case length was increased by . 02 in to 0 . 970 in . In addition , the cylinder design of the No . 3 revolver had to be changed from the straight bored . 44 American configuration to a stepped arrangement which was . 457 in at the rear of the cylinder to accept the case , and narrower from the case shoulder forward to give a tight fit for the smaller bore . 44 Russian bullet . In 1872 , while in the US , Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich visited the Smith & Wesson factory to review the progress of the Russian order . The American gun maker made him the gift of an engraved presentation Model 3 valued at more than $ 400 , a princely sum of money . The Duke was also feted with a US Government - paid buffalo hunting trip with Buffalo Bill Cody and US Generals Philip Sheridan and George Armstrong Custer , where he was impressed with Cody ' s adeptness with firearms . Over 131 , 000 S & W Model 3 revolvers were eventually sold to the Russian Army . In addition to the S & W made revolvers , Belgian , Spanish and German made copies were adopted by several European countries and were used until the 1920s . The . 44 Russian chambering became a hit in the domestic market as well , gaining a reputation as the first American revolver cartridge offering inherent accuracy . In time it set many records , eventually becoming known as an established target round , enabling skilled shooters to achieve groups at ; notable for the time and still impressive today . Successor designs . The . 44 Russian was the precursor for two very important later handgun cartridges which were based on its design , the . 44 Special in 1907 and the . 44 Magnum in 1956 . Current loadings . A number of ammunition companies still manufacture . 44 Russian ammunition : Additionally , Starline Brass makes new , unprimed cartridge cases in . 44 Russian for handloaders .