45LC good enough for deer within 100 yards?

[NEW TO THE GAME]

I will start hunting this yr in south tx(brush country) so most if not all shots will be close to 100yrds both ways. I don't hear or read about too many people using the 45lc round for dear. I'm talking whitetails. Maybe some hogs too. Of course I talking a 45lc out of a carbine also. I suppose that would add some range. Is this a good option for me just not too popular or......? Why are the .357 mag and .44 mag more popular cartridges. My thing is I like the idea of carrying a side arm with the same ammo. Thnks.

 

[R.W.Dale]

With a hot modern firearm only load 45lc will bowl over Bambi with athourity out to 150 yds if you can make the shot.

With weak remchester or CAS ammo safe for 150 yr old six shooters not so much

posted via tapatalk using android.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I guess you can kill anything with a .22 rimfire if you happen to hit the animal in just the right place. To me the .45 LC would not be my choice for large game.

It is all in SHOT-PLACEMENT!

 

[USSR]

I shot a large doe (about 150#) with my S&W 25-5 in .45 Colt just five days ago. One shot and she was down and never got up again. My load: Starline brass, WLP primer, 18 grains of 2400 powder, and a hand cast 265gr SWC HP. Any 250+gr .45 caliber bullet going at 1,000+fps is more than a match for a whitetail. As to the reason the .357 and .44 Magnum are more popular, the heavy load .45 Colt is a handloading proposition, while good store bought ammo in .357 and .44 Magnum are readily available. I have shot several deer with a .357, and the .45 Colt has it all over a .357.

Don

 

[Owen Sparks]

The .45 LC factory loads are kept very mild to avoid liability.
It has been around since 1873 and there are plenty of antique revolvers in questionable condition that were made in the black powder era that will still chamber and fire it.
I would go with a .44 Magnum UNLESS you handload. In a strong modern Marlin the .45 LC can be loaded to do everything a .44 can do with a slightly larger bullet. It also has a slower rifling twist than the .44 and will stablize 300 grain bullets better. Unless you hunt big hogs you really don't need 300 grain bullets though. Standard weight 240-250 grain hollowpoints do just fine on deer and shoot a good bit flatter.

 

[mgkdrgn]

More than capable of getting the job done, with the right ammo. Handloading pays for it self -really- quick with 45 Colt. $1 each to buy (in a cowboy load) and $0.17 each to load (as a real thumper)

 

[valnar]

Thumper.....LOL.

 

[FSJeeper]

I use a Rossi 92 in 45LC in South Texas Brush country and the farthest shot I have in the brush is 100 yards max. I currently use Hornady Leverevolution factory ammunition with excellent results. For my use, this has turned out to be an excellent quick and handy brush rifle for feral hogs and the bullets perform excellent and always drop them in their tracks. I personally think the .45 LC is a 100 yard max cartridge in a carbine and if I needed to shoot farther I would use soething else. But within 100 yards this cartridge will do what you need it to any any South Texas game animal.

As stated before, most factory cartridge offerings suck but there are a few excellent ones being made with the most cost effective one being the Hornady round.

The potential of the .45 LC can't really be appreciated unless you handload. I am set up to develop my load in .45 LC and I will be using the Hornady bullets for sure becasue of my experience with their performance. I have not started handloading for it yet becasue the Hornady rounds I bought for the rifle are doing their job and when I am out I'll start developing the perfect load for my little carbine.

 

[huntsman]

If you go with a .45 look at the buffalo Bore stuff but if you can hunt with a rifle why not use a rifle cartridge? think .30/30 (because ammo is cheap) or .45/70 if you want nostalgia.

 

[303tom]

If you go with a .45 look at the buffalo Bore stuff but if you can hunt with a rifle why not use a rifle cartridge? think .30/30 (because ammo is cheap) or .45/70 if you want nostalgia.

I was going to suggest that, there is no pistol cal. rd. can match the .30-30, if you are going to hunt with a carbine use a .30-30.

 

[kludge]

Standard pressure .45 Colt loads will shoot through a deer (255gr LSWC @ 900fps from a 7-1/2" barrel). An 18" rifle barrel only makes things better.

Modern rifles chambered for .44 Mag can handle "Ruger Only" loads when chambered in .45 Colt. Ruger only loads will get close to .44 Mag velocity from a handgun. Add 200fps for a rifle and you can easily take deer at 100-125 yards.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

.45 LC/Carbine/100 and less yards? Yes and yes.

 

[jeepnik]

It done on a fairly regular basis. Fellow on another forum just took a fair sized buck with an iron sighted Blackhawk in .44 spl. All that is needed is good woodcraft, and patients.

 

[TexasPatriot.308]

I pistol hunt with a Ruger Blackhawk .45 colt with hot loads, and yes it is a thumper. fire off 6 rounds of this and see what your hand feels like. as far as hunting South Texas, I have hunted it for years and obviously you are not hunting senderos cause I have sendero shots that might be 500 yards or more. I love my .45 colt for hogs, prefer 300 grain Buffalo Bore and aint afraid to take a big pig at 50 yards with the 7 1/2" barrel revolver, I love the old Peacemaker type with todays updated ammo.(and yes, make sure your pistol will stand up to +P loads etc.

 

[bangaway]

I use a t/c in .45 colt with keith mold 454424, 260 gr. cast and 700 ft. pds energy. Goes through a whitetail at 75 yards. A rifle will do the same at farther distance. The .357 and .44 mag. have had rifles chambered for them a lot longer than the .45 colt has. They have had more time to get a following. Plus the word magnum makes a gun more desireable. I shoot all three and they mow down the game. Your question was will a .45 colt rifle take a deer at 100 yds? Sure will. Probably it will not go far either. Big blood trail. Have fun and bangaway.

 

[MistWolf]

I will start hunting this yr in south tx(brush country) so most if not all shots will be close to 100yrds both ways. I don't hear or read about too many people using the 45lc round for dear. I'm talking whitetails. Maybe some hogs too. Of course I talking a 45lc out of a carbine also. I suppose that would add some range. Is this a good option for me just not too popular or......? Why are the .357 mag and .44 mag more popular cartridges. My thing is I like the idea of carrying a side arm with the same ammo. Thnks.

Properly loaded, the 45 Colt is a better choice than the 44 or 357 Magnum and more than capable of of cleanly taking deer and hogs at 100 yards. It's easy to put together proper loads

 

[critter]

Last fall, I took a big ole whitetail doe at 50 yds with a .45 Colt from an iron sighted S&W M25 8 3/8" using handloaded 255 SWC's at about 900 fps MV. Complete pass through.

The .45 Colt from a carbine length barrel would be just wonderful for anything deer sized at 100 yds.

Go forth and enjoy!

 

[tahunua001]

a 45 long colt will kill anything in north america short of a bison within 100 yards...anyone that says that that a 45lc wont kill deer are the same guys that say you need a 357 or larger for home defense.

 

[BossHogg]

What makes that 45 Colt great for heavy brush areas is it won't redirect as easily as a smaller faster bullet sometimes do. That big ole slow bullet will pass through a small twig an keep on keeping on.

I use my open sight 7 1/2 in Blackhawk in the brush. Think I may get a carbine either single or lever in the future just can't make mind up which.

 

[mgkdrgn]

Thumper.....LOL.

Ya, those 250gr hollow points chugging down range at 2000+ fps make a real "thump" when they hit something meaty!

 

[Curator]

Bullet placement and bullet shape are important when using a pistol round to hunt White Tail deer and Hogs. There is no reason why you can't humanely harvest these game animals out to 100 yards with "normal" .45 Colt loads. "Cowboy" loads are usually downloaded a bit with light bullets and low velocity so I wouldn't recommend those. Factory 250-255 grain "flat-nose" loads rated at 850-900fps from a handgun will probably top 1200fps out of a 16" rifle barrel. This is a very effective hunting load with minimum recoil. I hunt Florida Hogs and White tail deer with a Rossi Puma in .45 Colt. I have a "scout-scope" mounted on mine (old eyes!) Any of these animals I can find in the cross hairs are as good as bagged. I do keep shots to 100 yards and under. Mostly bullets go straight through leaving a large exit wound. There would be a good blood trail if I needed it but rarely will they travel more than a few wobbly steps.

 

[Oxide]

Insert Obligatory "45 Long Colt does not exist, the cartridge is simply 45 Colt" remark.