? for you Ruger OA guys.

[Boz330]

Has anyone taken a deer with one? If so what was your impression as far as a humane kill? I might have a chance to pick up a NIB OA and was thinking about trying it on deer. Of course limiting the shots to 25 to 30yd.

Bob

[rodwha]

I have not used mine yet, but with a bullet and energetic powder (Swiss, Olde Eynsford, or Triple 7) these can better a typical .45 Colt load, and it's more than up to the task. Other powders leave it wanting for numbers, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't do well enough, but this I do not know enough about, but if a patched ball from a rifle that only has in the neighborhood of 300 ft/lbs at 100 yds but still gives complete passthroughs or is found on the off side just under the hide I'd think this would work similarly.

There's a fellow who uses his Walker with 2F T7 and prefers a ball as he says it gives a more wicked wound within 25 yds on hogs.

Here's video 1 of 6 by Mike Beliveau testing 2 ROA's with 3 projectiles and 2 powders:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WNYGs2_UZw

[koger]

I have taken 2 deer, cleanly with my ROA! One was a doe, #115 or so, at 30 yds. I double lunged her first shot, she took 3 steps up a steep bank and stopped, I put another between her shoulders, DRT! I helped a guy trail another deer up once, I had laid my rifle down, sure his deer was dead, when it jumped up about 18 yds from me in a thicket, and I placed a 210gr Lee conical between its ear and eye, DRT#2! The lee conical, cast out of pure lead, and a thin felt greased with wonder lube, over 35grs of #FFFG, will barely clear the cylinder, but sure packs a whallop!

[dilly]

I know a guy who hunts with his. He loves that gun and is a successful hunter.

[DIRT Farmer]

I used mine once to put down a deer. Not legal to hunt with here in Indiana. Complete pass through with a round ball and 35 grains of fffg

[winelover]

I took this buck at @ 15 yards with ROA and Lee 220 conical, last season. Load was 35 grains of Pyrodex "P" under a Wonder Wad. Used a lube cookie (Wonder Lube) over the boolit. Took out both lungs. Deer dropped in sight, about another 15 yards. BTW, cleaned the barrel and the only fired cylinder and kept it loaded till this past Saturday! Fired it, to unload, and the other five went off without a hitch!! Not a hint of corrosion!!! So much for the dreaded Pyrodex, destroying guns.

124491


Winelover

[dondiego]

Well..............you cleaned the stainless steel!

[rodwha]

I've seen a test done on a piece of steel in which a pile of Pyrodex, standard black powder, and Triple 7 were lit and left to sit in a humid garage for about 4 days. Pyrodex did much more damage than the BP did, and T7 was nearly pristine.

It doesn't mean much if you clean up soon enough afterwards. But I, myself, learned that Pyrodex can rust something fierce even overnight taking the advice of someone saying it wasn't that destructive.

[winelover]

Well..............you cleaned the stainless steel!

Well why wouldn't you? Stainless steel will rust / corrode. Just not as fast as non-stainless. One of the reasons I went with SS. Other reason is that the front sight is pinned and easy to swap out. You will come to realize that these guns wont site in with heavy loads and conicals, without a higher front sight. Blued ROA's front sight blades aren't pinned.

Winelover

[dondiego]

If you cleaned it, why would you expect your firearm to be destroyed?

[Outpost75]

Over the years I have killed a half dozen deer with mine, most were with .457 round balls cast 1:40 and all the Pyrodex P I could cram into the cylinder. Ball lubricated with Crisco. Velocity with 40 grains bulk measure and the round ball is about 1000 fps from a 7-1/2" barrel.

Blunt conicals such as the Lee 200 or 250-grain R.E.A.L. bullets also work well if run in soft alloy, such as 1:40 tin/lead and driven to full velocity with P or a premium grade of 3Fg so that you are approximating .45 Colt cartridge ballistics of 900 fps or more. If using heavier bullets you will need to put on a higher front sight. I have Hamilton Bowen target sights on mine, but I normally limit game shot with the revolver to 25-30 yards.