Hunting with the .44 Mag

[TonyW]

OK, wasn't sure where to put this so please move if necessary.

I'm looking to do some whitetail deer hunting this fall with my .44 Mag T/C Contender. I've got the 14" hunter barrel for it. My question is - what is a good commercial load for this purpose. I'm considering the Hornady 240 grain XTP or the Winchester 250 grain Platinum. Thanks.

 

[Jackal]

The Platinums will tear a deer apart and deffinately get the job done.

 

[LeonCarr]

For strictly whitetail deer, the Winchester White Box 240 grain Jacketed Soft Point or Federal American Eagle 240 grain Jacketed Hollow Point are excellent deer loads, and priced right also. For hogs or bigger stuff, go with the Hornady XTPs or Winchester Platinum.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[Grumulkin]

Get some cartridges with bullets made out of lead and/or copper. Then use the ones that give the best accuracy in your gun. Deer are not a particularly hard target; any 44 Magnum bullet will work (shotshells and Glasser Safety Slugs excepted).

 

[JackOfAllTradesMasterAtNone]

I'll have to agree- Shoot what's accurate in your pistol. I personnally don't like any of the XTP line. (But I do use many other Hornady bullets in my reloads)

Yes, the Winchester White Box JHP should do the trick. If you don't reload, then just try a few brands/weights to find something that's suitibly accurate.

-Steve

 

[keano44]

Wow! That's the first negative opinion I've ever seen or heard about Hornady XTP's. But, to each his own, I guess. Personally, I love'em. Very accurate and the 240's in .44 magnum have been used in my own handloads to take deer and hogs.

 

[redneck2]

There must have been some problems with some XTP's, maybe the first ones out. Owner of our gun shop really hates 'em. Had several customers that had bullets blow up. Flesh wounds and lost animals.

I have a friend that used a replical in 45LC to take a big buck. You're talking handloads that are maybe in the 850ish range. Hit the deer with an XTP. Main part of the bullet broke into 3 or 4 pieces, and the jacket split off and lodged under the spine. If he'd have hit bone instead of between the ribs he probably wouldn't have gotten the deer.

If they were all this bad, they wouldn't have the reputation they have now. Maybe they took the XTP (xtreme terminal expansion) a little too far at first. Dunno.

YMMV

 

[Al Thompson]

When they first came out (mid/early 1990's) I thought they were a bit hard. Hard enough to be brittle perhaps? In a .44 Mag, I'd use'em in a second.

 

[TonyW]

Thanks for the input guys, appreciate the info.

 

[S&Wfan]

Hi,

I once had an early TC in .44mag with the short octagon barrell (length about six inches or so). That dang thing killed at BOTH ENDS. A .44 mag doesn't kick too bad in most guns but that light, short little gun would nearly tear your thumb off.

My first and only season hunting with the gun, I had a big doe walk DIRECTLY in front of my little 10' metal ladder stand . . . and I mean RIGHT in front (two feet in front of the ladder).

I shot it with a Hornady 240 grain XTP factory load, and my extended hand couldn't have been more than six feet from the deer. At the shot, the deer took off. I never found it. NO BLOOD, no hair, NOTHING.

I searched for three hours. Nothing.

Two weeks later, another hunter in our club harvested a big doe eating leisurely in a food plot. When he skinned the deer, my 240 grain XTP bullet fell out onto the ground. It had deflected on a bone, rattled around inside the deer without doing serious damage. SOMETIMES STRANGE THINGS HAPPEN WHEN HUNTING.

Needless to say, I don't use XTPs anymore!!! Frankly, my .44 mag XTP bullet didn't have much time to build up speed within that five feet or so after leaving the very short barrel. Probably at 30 feet it would have done the job.

TODAY . . . AND FOREVER . . .

I now use the commercial Federal Castcore 300 grain ammo in a 6" barrelled S&W M29. IMHO, you don't need a hollow point to expand when the caliber is already .429 in diameter already . . . and the big, flat nose BLOWS through the deer with devastating results.

Also, it doesn't usually damage as much meat nearby.

Rare is a deer that runs at all now . . . and none go far if they do bolt. This round is effective at ANY range, including real close!

Hope this helps. I'm done with hollowpoints in .44 mag. This Federal load has never let me down . . . in about eight seasons now. Twice I've dropped three deer in rapid succession with this rig.

 

[Oldnamvet]

"Frankly, my .44 mag XTP bullet didn't have much time to build up speed within that five feet or so after leaving the very short barrel. Probably at 30 feet it would have done the job."

HUH? Bullets don't accelerate after they leave the barrel. Only ones I knew to do that were the old gyrojet bullets from back in the 60's.

 

[Steve in PA]

I've taken several deer with XTP's out of my SRH. Nothing wrong with that bullet.

 

[nygunguy]

White Box ??

I just shot a box of White Box through my SRH. Maybe I got a bad box but that was the filthiest, wimpiest ammo I've ever shot (except some .44 special).

I really like the American Eagle 240gr Hollow points for deer.

I've since put a new scope on my gun and am pretty close to being happy with the performance. With the American Eagle - The top target was done with 4 rounds shot off hand at 30-40 yards, just to see how well the bore sighting worked. I adjusted 8 clicks up (1 click=1/2" at 100 yards) and 4 clicks right and then shot the bottom target from a measured 100 yards on a bench rest with the scope on 6x. At that point I quit because I was tired and had a sore elbow from the recoil banging it into the bench - next time out I'll get a pad.

Pay no attention to the big holes, they're from a 12GA.

 

[jamz]

Here's a question that might merit it's own thread, but I've always wondered how bad the ears hurt after .44 mag discharges while hunting? I'm scared to try it.

 

[IllHunter]

How bad it doesn't hurt

After practice firing indoors with plugs and muffs, I never heard the shots fired in the great outthere. No hearing loss after the shot and I was tuned way up to hear the receptor flailing in the ditch. The coup de grace to said recepients' head was also painless to my eardrums. Navy tests proved I could hear an owl fart in a windstorm and I take care to protect that attribute.