.44 Keith @1000 fps enough?

[Patrick L]

Before I begin, please don't laugh at my question. I have never been much of a deer hunter. The last time I shot a deer, Reagan was president. The last time I even tried, I think the first Bush was in. Back in the day, I used either a .30-06 or a 12 ga slug gun.

Based largely on reading Brian Pearce 's articles in Handloader, combined with the fact that a relative has purchased a chunk of property and is enthusiastically inviting the family to come hunt on it, I'm thinking about packing along the S&W .44 Spl, as well as a long gun. The property is such that opportunity to get a 25-30 yard shot at a whitetail is a real possibility.

Following Pearce 's advice on loading the .44 heavier than normal, but still within safe limits, about the best I've gotten out of my 4 inch Smith is an honest (chronographed) average of @ 1025 fps with a 240 gr Keith semi wadcutter (the classic 429421.)

Will this do the job on a typical NYS whitetail (I hear stories, but real deer shot around here go 120 - 140 lbs.) Or should I stick to the .30-06?

[Bula]

As long as you're able to put them where you want, that should do just perfectly. That load will absolutely and fully penetrate at the ranges you mention above.

[Wally]

I agree with Bula---placement/accuracy is far more important than velocity & energy.

[Wayne Smith]

A heavier boolit at that or just a little faster could penetrate a bison. I think you've got enough, just put it where it will hurt.

[oldhickory]

I use a S&W 629-3, (the revolver in my avatar) with that same boolit in .44Mag cases pushing it at just over 1100fps. I loaded it for accuracy, if a load with that boolit at 900fps were more accurate, I would use it.

As long as it shoots where you want it to, I think you have plenty of zip there for white tails at 50yds or so. A .44Spl, .44Mag, or .45Colt with a 250gr. Keith boolit at 900-1200fps should be sufficiant for any game animal in North America as long as you do your part.

[Lloyd Smale]

ive killed bear deer and boar with loads like that and theyve worked fine. I can tell little differnce between the killing power of loads like that then heavys going 300 fps faster!

[44man]

A good meplat and accuracy is all you need. Forget all the muzzle energy crap and go shoot some deer.

[KCSO]

That is the same load I used in my duty 44 years ago and I dropped everything from deer to a 1200 pound bull. My most interesting KILL was 5 kegs of beer that no one owned. That load will go all the way through a beer keg full of cold beer too.

[Hickory]

The first deer I ever killed with a handgun was with a S&W 586 during the first year it was legal to use a handgun here in Ohio.
The deer I killed was with the wrong ammo.
During that year I'd been shooting a lot of compitition at the local range, and when I went out hunting I put about 15 rounds in my hunting coat. The same hunting coat I was wearing to practice in, in the back yard.
When I loaded the gun I must of got a round that was loaded with 2.7 grs of bullseye with a Lyman 358156 bullet.
When the 8 point buck showed up a few hours later, I took the shot and broke down his both shoulders at about 35 yrds. he went down and never found his feet [hooves]
Shot placement is everything!

[S.R.Custom]

Getting ready for deer camp one year I packed up the wrong box of ammo... Missing when I got there was the box of 240 gr jacketed XTP screamers that usually get the task of bringing home the meat. In its place were the 975 fps SWCs I used in pin shoots... The shot I ended up taking was at 50 yards, and that buck folded up like he'd been hit with the fist of God. ;)

[AZ-Stew]

That is the same load I used in my duty 44 years ago and I dropped everything from deer to a 1200 pound bull. My most interesting KILL was 5 kegs of beer that no one owned. That load will go all the way through a beer keg full of cold beer too.

:groner: Why would you shoot 5 kegs of perfectly good beer???

You should have "confiscated" it (to keep it out of the wrong hands, of course), taken it home and "killed" it, along with some hotdogs and hamburgers, with some of your buddies.

5 kegs??? :killingpc :cry:

Regards,

Stew

[AZ-Stew]

Regarding the .44 load...

Practice. Learn to SQUEEZE the trigger, no matter how rattled you get. Hold the sights on a vital area... Voilà! Venison.

Your load is more than adequate for the job.

Regards,

Stew

[Bret4207]

It'll do for any NY deer I ever saw, even the big 250+ bucks.

[HeavyMetal]

Practise, practise, practise!

Make sure sights hit where they look, shoot in shade if thats where you going to sit hunt, bright light sight in and then shift to cover will move POI!

Load is just fine as long as you do your part!

[MtGun44]

You won't every recover a boolit if you are shooting deer with that load.

If you put your .430"+ diam very deep hole so that it passes thru something that the deer
needs right away, it will work just fine. Just like that great American philosopher
Harry Calahan said "A man has got to know his limitations." If you stay inside your
limitations, you'll do just fine. You'll be able to "eat right up to the hole", too.

That wart hog on the left couldn't stop the 429421 that I put thru his shoulder, altho
it was at about 1300 fps. The 300 fps won't make a whit of difference except on the trajectory
at very long ranges.

Bill

[KYCaster]

If shot placement is everything, where should hold for a one-shot-kill on a beer keg? Line up on the front band and one third down from the top? Through the bung???

What about a Texas Bung Shot????? Would that work?

:confused: I'm confused.....No, wait a minute, maybe I'm not.......

Jerry

[44man]

That hurt me, you should be reported to the F.O.A (Friends of alcoholics.) for the dastardly deed! :Fire:

[Bret4207]

Nothing gives you the joy that making a bunch of loud mouth, "I know my rights"/"Do you know who my father is?", drunken teenagers pour all their beer out on the ground before you take them home to Mom and Dad in front of God and the whole neighborhood does.

[S.R.Custom]

You're a better man than I...

Personally, I'd've confiscated the kegs, drank the beer, and got the money back myself for the keg deposits. "And if your parents have a problem with that, tell them to call me."

[Lloyd Smale]

hell i used to be one of those teenagers!
Nothing gives you the joy that making a bunch of loud mouth, "I know my rights"/"Do you know who my father is?", drunken teenagers pour all their beer out on the ground before you take them home to Mom and Dad in front of God and the whole neighborhood does.

[Larry Gibson]

Patrick L

As mentioned by most the load will do the job. I've shot several deer with just such a load (429421 over 16.5 gr 2400 out of a 4" M28 converted to .44 Special, velocity was right at 1050 fps). I'll only add 2 additional recomendations;

First, put the bullet into the heart/lung area. That is through a soccer sized ball low between the front legs against the brisket. Put the bullet through the soccer ball, regardless of the angle (penetration will be quite sufficient) and the deer is yours. Do not use the "behind the shoulder shot" as the deer will be just lung shot and most likely can travel a long ways before dying.

Second, continue to shoot a second or third shot if possible. Meat damage from any additional shots will be minimal with such a load and you can "eat right up to the bullet hole". Do not shoot the deer once and expect it to fall over dead.

Two and even three good, well placed hits with such a load is far more effective than just one shot. The first shot may kill the deer just fine but he may travel some distance and the tracking conditions may not be optimum. Multiple, well placed shots will cause faster death through faster bleed out and will also leave more blood out of more holes for better tracking. Far too many times I read of many who expect to only shoot one shot and have the deer "stopped". This just doesn't happen in the majority of cases. Granted many times you only get one shot but many times you may get two or even three shots (I have). I suggest you take those additional shots if possible. This is based on my experiences of course and others mileage may vary.

Larry Gibson

[Thumbcocker]

Your question as to the adaquecy of your load has been answered by others here who have taken a lot more venison than me so I won't go into that. Mr. Gibson has given you sound advice on the actually shooting of the critter.

Here are a few things that helped me with handgun hunting deer. Get some snap caps and dry fire the dog snot out of that revolver. Dry fire at a spot on the wall, a refrigerator magnet, or walk out in the yard and dry fire at birds on the feeder, rabbits, squirrels, flowers whatever makes a good target. Assuming you can do it without getting arrested. When dry firing try to make each shot like you are shooting at a critter.

The point is to make the revolver a part of your hand and become comfortable with it in all conditions. As far as the actual hunting you mentioned carrying the revolver along with a long gun. I did this for a few years and had occasions where I found myself in a mental bind trying to decide which gun to use while the deer wandered off. if you are in the long gun mind set the revolver is jut a four pound weight to pack around. When you are in a handgun mind set the world looks much different and setting up shots is a differnt proposition. I found that if I had the long gun along I used it as a psycological crutch.

Practice and dry fire enough to where you can get into the hand gun hunting mind set and leave the long gun at home. The venison will taste a lot better.

[FN in MT]

Also.....don't forget that your slug will sail merrily through the 1st deer with possibly enough poop left to wound/kill another. So be careful with anything beyond/behind your target. I know...common sense.... I just wanted to pass it along anyway.

FN in MT