undergunning? opinions please

[admiral]

for years i've been shooting 44 mag, 240xtp w/max load of H110. shoots o.k. and has killed several deer.

recently loaded up some w/17.5 grains of 2400 and a 200 gr xtp to reduce recoil (H110 & 240 combo not much fun to shoot).

this load shoots very well (5-shot 1.5", sandbagged @ 65 yards) out of my 10" contender.

do you guys think this load is sufficient for deer within 75 yards?

don't have a chrono but am guessing maybe 1100 or 1200 fps.

right now, i'm thinkin yes and will probably try it this year unless you guys overwhelmingly say otherwise.

thanks

 

[snuffy]

should work

Deer don't take much to kill them. A 200 xtp should be going faster than a 240, not slower as you stated. I'd guess you're pretty close on your estimate. But why not open the throttle a little, get some real speed out of it? Are these bullets the HP design or soft points? If they're HP then even at that lower velocity they should open okay, I'd just rather see them around 1400 to be sure of expansion.

 

[MachIVshooter]

do you guys think this load is sufficient for deer within 75 yards?

don't have a chrono but am guessing maybe 1100 or 1200 fps.

Wouldn't even be legal in CO. Minimum energy is 550 ft/lbs @ 50 yards. I guess I'm wondering why you are reducing them so much. With your estimated velocity figures, you are dropping below a 10mm from a 5" barrel (from my S&W 1006, I'm getting 1260 FPS with 200 gr. XTP's using IMR 800x). I carry this pistol with 180 grainers at 1406 FPS while hunting deer in case I jump one and canot get my rifle unslung quickly enough. I limit myself to 50 yards.

 

[pcf]

It should work assuming:
-You're hunting whitetail deer
-The deer are not wearing body armor
-You're good enough to make the shot, and responsible enough to pass when required.

Deer are not hard to kill.

I don't care for H110 because of the muzzle blast. Try VV N110, expensive, but a much cleaner powder with little muzzle blast. It will definitely cut down on percieved recoil.

 

[admiral]

thanks for the replies guys, i think i'll try it this year.

snuffy, you are right that the 200 grainer would outrun the 240 if the powder and charges were the same, but with the 200s i'm using a milder charge of 2400 instead of max h110. thanks.

 

[admiral]

oh yeah, these are the hollow point xtps....didn't even know there was a solid xtp.

 

[The Bushmaster]

XTP flat soft nose? Yup. Sure is...Give you greater penatration then the XTP HP's...