.44 mag whitetail pistol hunting

[Squrl78]

I have been pondering purchasing a .44 mag for a lot of years. And in this wondering mind, I also pondered deer hunting with it. I have finally purchased a 6.5”, .44 mag. And now I’m going to start loading for it also. I’m not a new reloaded btw. I have been loading about 15 years now. I am however relatively new to casting. I have dabbled in casting off and on for a few years now. And I successfully cast and shoot bullets for my .45 acp & 9mm. I have used it as a cost savings for lots of shooting. But now I have a gun I need to work on accuracy and killing power. I have lots of questions. How hard do I want my bullets for deer? What shape would be best? Should I just purchase jacketed soft points for hunting? Do I need a hard lube or will a soft lube work? I don’t know why; but I feel lost with this new caliber. For hunting loads I intend to use any of the following powder depending on availability. 2400, Enforcer, H110, & or W296. So velocities should be up. I also prefer not to gas check them if possible. I’m just unfamiliar with the process. I plan on buying the Lyman casting book tomorrow. And believe it or not, I’ll actually read it. Any help would be appreciated.

[richhodg66]

Something with a big meplat. I would think 250 grains or heavier, or thereabouts. I'd also think you wouldn't need them very hard provided you're sizing and lubing them correctly.

Never done it with a handgun but have used my cast .44 SWCs form an inline muzzle loader in a sabot to kill deer with and those big slugs have great terminal performance. I really think something like that RCBS 250 grain Keith or the Lyman 429421 and some 2400 will pretty easily put you together a good white tail load.

[Markopolo]

Well, get yourself a lee 310. It’s flat nosed and really thumps.. I use all of the powders you mention, and have settled for the most part on 110 for my handgun loads. Lube is dependent on where you live and what the temp is gunna be far as I am concerned. I have struggled with hard lubes that contain carnabula wax, and like something softer for our climate. But I imagine it would get down right mushy in the hot climates. Unless your gunna shoot brown bears, a softer alloy is always better if you ask me. Especially on deer. I highly doubt that a properly loaded lee 310 over a published normal load would do anything but make a very large hole all the way through. The 310 has a beginning diameter almost as large as most expanding 30 cal bullets with out expanding at all, so any expansion will be a pretty fat hole. Keep it fairly soft, and get you some deer meat!!! 2400 is my second favorite powder in the 44 pistol. Either way the 44 is a good choice. And Rich knows what he is talking about..

Marko

PS, Don’t shoot them in the shoulder if you wanna eat them.

[DougGuy]

The Lee C430-310-RF is arguably the best heavy for caliber boolit you could use for deer, and a mix of 50/50+2% is arguably the best alloy for a hunting boolit for use in a revolver, this alloy takes to Ruger rifling like a duck to water, it is quite accurate and doesn't lead the barrel if you use a soft lube.

It is a gas check boolit, but they are easy to install, nothing more needed than a Lee push through sizer will install the gas checks.

There are at least one or two "improved" versions of this Lee design on the forum, having deeper crimp grooves and a better fitting gas check shank really does improve it.

2400 and LilGun, also AA#9 are great if you don't want to go to the max load, H110 is for max power and should not be downloaded below the published starting weight.

If you want a large meplat but lighter than 310gr boolit, let me suggest the LBT 260gr WFN-GC, LBT 240gr WFN-GC, and also the LBT 240gr OWC-PB boolits designed by Veral, available through Montana Bullet Works if you don't currently cast. Ask them for these in their softer alloy and soft blue lube.

I use a modified collet style factory crimp die, I find it provides a tad more resistance against boolit movement, which does aid in good ignition and cuts my ES way down. Often enough with a roll crimp, especially with a softer alloy, it's easy for the boolit to jump forward with just the primer lighting off before the powder gets to burning good. This can be fairly inconsistent, dependant on neck tension, crimp, and the collet style crimp die minimizes this. This is also the ONLY crimp I would recommend for defense in dangerous game country.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?201449-Question-about-type-of-crimp-required&p=2239315&viewfull=1#post2239315

[Tripplebeards]

Just don't cast them too hard. I shot three deer last year with 80/20 alloy mix with pewter added. I ended up with a 15.4 BC. All three of my Lyman devastators were complete pass throughs and never expanded at 1750 fps Out of my 77/44. Two out of the three deer went a little over a hundred yards and the third one dropped where it stood and kicked around for a minute or so. I posted pics but can't find it on cast boolits for some reason. I'm going soft this year...really soft at 7.4 BC with the same boolit and velocity. I want an alloy that expands with a lot of kinetic energy transfer. Stay tooned.

[Thumbcocker]

I have had good success with 429421's but now use the NOE 265rnfp. I do not use gas checks. I have used 4227, 2400, and H110 and all made holes all the way through deer. I have used ACWW but currently water drop just because I think I get a hair better accuracy. Either boolit from 1000 to 1300 fps will shoot through a white tail long ways at 65 yards +. I prefer soft lubes. Ben's REd is current favorite. Size boolits to cylinder mouth diameter or a hair larger and test for accuracy. Don't fall into the trap of chasing velocity. Accuracy above all.

A good .44 magnum can be very accurate at ranges that totally boggle the mind of the 7 yard magazine dumping mall ninjas.

The Lee 310 is a good boolit but may cause you problems zeroing your gun because it hits very high. I could probably scar up a few 429421's and 265 rnfp's sized to .431 if you want some samples to try.

On my profile there are some pics showing the proper application of boolits to deer if you are interested in such things.

[DougGuy]

The Lee 310 is a good boolit but may cause you problems zeroing your gun because it hits very high.

My 7 1/2" SBH is set up for the 310 over 17.0gr 2400 if my memory serves me correctly, the load clocks 1180 - 1200 over a chrony but the rear sight would not go down far enough to sight the gun in with that load. I sanded down the sight blade until it was flush with the base, filed a new notch in the center, it is zeroed now at treestand distance.

[Markopolo]

That sounds like me.. I only shoot the 310’s out of my revolver. That’s it. I zeroed it to my load years ago. So no zeroing any more... lol

[richhodg66]

"7 yard magazine dumping mall ninjas"

Oh, man, I love that, LOL. No question about the types you're referring to, so descriptive.

[Tom W.]

The Lee 310 is a great boolit. I was at the range a few months ago and one of my buddies there asked me to bring my .44 and some of those loads. as he had never shot anything that heavy in a .44. There were silhouette targets @ 168 yards away, and once we found where they were we hit them with regularity with my SRH.
I load them with H110 and lube with Carnauba Red.

If you have a Smith you'll have to seat them to the top crimp groove, as they probably won't chamber if seated out a bit.

[megasupermagnum]

There is no reason to feel lost, the 44 magnum has power to spare on deer. Loading the Lee 310 with H110 (or similar) is one way to go. I've been working up to the recoil on my 44 magnum Redhawk for a while now, and I still can't get more than 6 shots of those off without fatigue. The recoil is harsh.

I'll go against the grain and say the better route is a lighter hollow point, especially since you say you want a plain base. There are plenty of options, but the tried and true is the Keith bullet (H&G 503 or clone), cast nice and soft with a lead/tin alloy. 16:1 is the classic, 20:1 works great, 25:1 can work too. You don't have to shoot these all that fast unless you want to, and recoil is on a manageable level for those of us who can't shoot our revolvers daily. A hollow point keith is in the 240-245 grain range.

While a harder solid bullet is obviously going to penetrate a LOT farther, so what? A hollow point 44 magnum will go through and through the chest of a deer at any reasonable angle, and cause a whole heck of a lot more damage inside. The only thing you cant do is shoot through the rump and expect to get to the lungs. A soild bullet will more or less make a "caliber size hole all the way through". That's not very big IMO, and I don't except deer running for the hills. Other than the rare tough animal, a hollow point through both lungs, that deer is going to go down inside of 50 yards, if they run at all.

[rking22]

Depends, to some extent, on how you hunt. You want to put a scope on it and reach out to 200yards or you like them close enough to touch? I like to shoot them at arms length, so I use the 240ish plains base soft and 1000 to 1200 velocity range. They kill quickly and will go thru any deer I have ever seen. If you are scoping it and want to reach out there, listen to someone else. But, be sure you can actually tolerate the recoil and shoot it well, cause deer are not armor plated. Better to put a 240 at 1000 thru the shoulders than anything thru the guts. Hollow points and lots of antimony are not to be trusted, keep them reasonably soft so they stay together, like bubble gum not, jolly ranchers, for when they hit bone.

[Paul D. Heppner]

243536

This one got a bad case of Lee 310, 21.5 H-110, Federal 150 at about 45 yards. He went 50 to 60 yards and crashed in sight. Slugs were water dropped right out of the mold and sized to .432.

Forgot to add, I use wheel weight material with a couple ounces of tin in a ten pound pot. I get a consistent 1200 fps out of my 5 1/2 inch Redhawk. I did in fact get a taller front sight without the silly red plastic insert. Actually had to raise the rear a bit off bottomed out to bring it in to a perfect zero.

[bmortell]

44mag really isn't hard to work with, that's the first thing I ever casted for and been working good since. ill just go through your questions.

Hardness: I like around 10-11 ish hardness for 44, so about air cooled ww. soft enough to expand but still be fairly strong.

Shape: pretty much anything with a flat point between .30 and .36, the closer the ogive is to going straight back the easier it is to expand, ie keith should expand easier than a rnfp all else being equal.

Jacketed: that would ruin the fun :)

Lube: ive been PC'ing for years but unless its very hard or soft you probably wont have much issue.

Powder: I like h110 2400 and 4227, h110 seems most efficient at top speed vs pressure signs but your kinda stuck going full ham with it, 2400 can go lower, 300gr and h110 seem like a great pair, if you can get used to the recoil.

Gas checks: ive never used one except rifle calibers, as long as your other factors are good and you got nice square base corners you should be fine.

if you been doin auto calibers fine something like 44 shouldn't be hard

[725]

I like the Lee 310 w/ some H-110.

[bluejay75]

I would say go a little lighter. Accuracy is the name of the game in pistol hunting. Most any boolit from 240-300s is going to kill the deer...but you have to hit it.

Lighter boolit, less recoil, more practice...translate to confidence when you pull the trigger. I am recoil shy and Unique is what generally rides with my pistol behind a number of boolits with a 280 grain being the heaviest it sees.

Wide meplat boolits WANT to expand so as long as you hit it...the boolit will do the rest whether it expands or not. For example, my alloy is 50:50 COWW:SOWW water dropped and expands nicely. The boolit in the photo accounted for 2 deer and 3 hogs this past hunting season. None moved from where they were shot. Its a 280 grain.

Nothing against the Lee 310, I own it and shoot it GC and without. One of the posts above has my H110 load in it in fact. But...this NOE mold is a fantastic mold. It will let you vary the seating depth to get the perfect fit in the cylinder. You will need a collet crimp die to crimp though.

243597

243598

243599

[trapper9260]

The Lee 310 is a great boolit. I was at the range a few months ago and one of my buddies there asked me to bring my .44 and some of those loads. as he had never shot anything that heavy in a .44. There were silhouette targets @ 168 yards away, and once we found where they were we hit them with regularity with my SRH.
I load them with H110 and lube with Carnauba Red.

If you have a Smith you'll have to seat them to the top crimp groove, as they probably won't chamber if seated out a bit.

For what Tom W. about the use the top crimp groove . there is 2 on that boolit .Just to let you know about it .I use the top one for my Marlin and the bottom one for my Red Hawk. I do not shoot many in the Red Hawk for how you do know how it will be.

[Ramjet-SS]

Hard to argue on the Lee 310. I actually like a compromise and run a 270 Grain WFN GC. The recoils is slightly less and from my little pistoli it is really accurate.

[megasupermagnum]

I would say go a little lighter. Accuracy is the name of the game in pistol hunting. Most any boolit from 240-300s is going to kill the deer...but you have to hit it.

Lighter boolit, less recoil, more practice...translate to confidence when you pull the trigger. I am recoil shy and Unique is what generally rides with my pistol behind a number of boolits with a 280 grain being the heaviest it sees.

Wide meplat boolits WANT to expand so as long as you hit it...the boolit will do the rest whether it expands or not. For example, my alloy is 50:50 COWW:SOWW water dropped and expands nicely. The boolit in the photo accounted for 2 deer and 3 hogs this past hunting season. None moved from where they were shot. Its a 280 grain.

Nothing against the Lee 310, I own it and shoot it GC and without. One of the posts above has my H110 load in it in fact. But...this NOE mold is a fantastic mold. It will let you vary the seating depth to get the perfect fit in the cylinder. You will need a collet crimp die to crimp though.

243597

243598

243599

That looks like a big enough hole to me! I couldn't have said it better. Perfect shots are what you should strive for. To do that, you need good practice. With strong recoil, you have to stop shooting so much sooner, if you ever feel comfortable at all.

[Markopolo]

That is why I just love my model 44.. it is ported, and really helps with recoil.. same load in my old Smith actually seemed to jar the bones in my wrist. The Model 44 is actually not bad at all...

8 little holes make all the difference..
243622

And add a laser, makes a good combo...

243623

I been carrying this for 20 years through salt and brush, blood and guts.. yes, it’s a Taurus.. it ain’t no tracker.. it’s a model 44. I highly recommend this gun. I know it not known to be popular, but this gun model is Alaskan Tuff, I trust my life to it and my skill with it from practice with the 310’s. I bought it cuz I didn’t want to use my sweet smith as an Alaska guiding gun when I was taking clients into the Bush. But the smith is no longer with me, but the Taurus is.. that speaks for itself..

Marko

[Squrl78]

243714

[sixshot]

I powder coat all my bullets & I can shoot them soft, even without gas checks. Last year I shot 6 animals with 6 different revolvers, 4 deer, one antelope & one elk. I did have gas checks on 2 of the bullets, the 327 on the antelope & the 357 Maximum on the Montana white tail at 117 yds. I gas check those 2 calibers because I lean on them pretty hard.
The other animals were taken with plain base powder coated bullets that were quite soft yet I never get leading & accuracy is always there. Recently 2 Texas gunsmiths wanted to try a few of my 44 HP's because they had a problem 44 magnum in their shop, it wouldn't shoot. Here's a target with that problem gun at 25 yds off sandbags. It measures 3/4", he did it twice in a row. Then they wanted to try some 150 gr HP's, plain base. They loaded them to 1600 fps & said they shot fantastic out to 100 yds. No plain base, lubed bullet will do that without leading. These bullets were probably about a 9-10 BHN.

https://i.imgur.com/FVy4Lmwh.jpg

Dick

[Blammer]

Here's my story and pictures and suggestions.

44mag Ruger Super Redhawk 7.5 brl.
240gr WW alloy 1200 fps, 18gr 2400.
bullet used was 429667

https://i.imgur.com/OlFJlDc.jpg

green line is path traveled. yes it went completely through.

https://i.imgur.com/oqzvUoS.jpg

my bullet selections.
https://i.imgur.com/HVpgKu8.jpg

[Blammer]

I would not feel under gunned with a 220gr bullet in the 44mag.

[Blammer]

I have also killed one with the NOE 300gr HP above, in my 44mag RSRH. It was overkill.

https://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/2012%20Deer/DSCN8826.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/2012%20Deer/DSCN8826.jpg.html)
https://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/2012%20Deer/DSCN8824.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/2012%20Deer/DSCN8824.jpg.html)

I was squirrel hunting with my two kids, took along the 44 as it was deer season. We were on public land.

45min after settling down to wait for a squirrel a deer runs over to us and stops broad side and looks away at about 40 yds distance. Kids got to watch old man shoot 4 times before he connected on the 5th shot. Deer kept looking away and standing there. Thank goodness for stupid deer. :)

[rking22]

Good thing you got him, wouldn’t want those stoopid genetics to polite the whole herd! Besides , he looks tasty;-)

[megasupermagnum]

Blammer, I'm glad you shared that. A 300 grain bullet loaded heavy in 44 magnum is more than most of us can handle. There's no shame in admitting it. Loaded to a lighter level so us mortals can keep all shots in the palm of a hand at 50 yards from a field position is so much more effective.

[sixshot]

Blammer, nothing wrong with getting in a little target practice before you kill it!! Nice job & an impressive array of bullet moulds! Sure wish I had kept my SRH, killed a couple of muleys & one elk with it.

Dick

[RED BEAR]

I really don't think it matters a whole lot i think any accurate 44 cal bullet at a decent velocity will do the job i might stay away from the very light 180 gr or lighter. I like h110 for my 44. I will agree with above the 310 lee can be a handful in a hand gun. I really think anything from 200 up should do fine . I myself don't hunt but i do load for family that does my brother likes a 250 keith style ahead of h110.

[bmortell]

I hit a deer with the lee .50 250gr "real" at 1300fps impact. it was a perfect lengthwise hit entering the lower windpipe and it didn't really expand just squished slightly, so representative of a solid. it made it to the last rib area so roughly 60%ish through. same weight in 44 would have better SD and should be able to go through more all else being equal. im in the more is better club, while I don't enjoy 300gr h110 loads in my family members 6 inch Blackhawk, when it came time to buy my own I bought a 9.5" SRH so that I can comfortably shoot any load I want without compromise, which is sort of my motto for a hunting handgun, longer barrel and more mass helps all factors except portability but regardless its gonna be much smaller than a rifle.

I guess my levergun design I broke my own rule, I set my external dimensions and im picky about the amount inside the case, so I ended up at 260-265gr final weight.

[T-Bird]

I like 429421 at 1100 fps from my mod 29 classic. I use 12 gr AA#5. ACWW. Easy on the recoil, (well, it's not like a 38 sp but not bad for a 44 mag), and extremely effective on deer-- and armadillos too for that matter! Only animals I've taken with it.

[Tracy]

Another vote for the 429421 the equivalent from any other mold maker. The classic Keith bullet, plainbase and cast of wheelweight metal or similar, driven at 1000-1200 fps. At this level it won't need to be heat treated, and pretty much any bullet lube (including liquid alox) will work. Easy to shoot, too.
Lots of different powders will work for that velocity range. I would stay away from H110/296/ Littlegun etc. and lean more toward 2400 or 4227 on the slow side, or as fast as T-bird's AA5 load.

[Squrl78]

243874

[Blammer]

yep, those look good! I'd use 'em!

[44magLeo]

I've used the Lyman 429421 in my SBH, ACWW or WDWW for a few years. It seemed a bit hard. I started adding pure lead for about a 50/50 mix. This softens the bullet nicely.
I tried loading it up toward max loads. Using 2400 I got as far as 21 grs. Not sure of velocity. No Chrono then. This load made one ragged hole at 25 yards.
It was a brute.
With loads of 17.5 grs 2400 shot almost as well, about 3/4 in at 25. Much easier to shoot.
Both killed deer just fine at reasonable ranges. Out to about 150 yds. was easy.
My light load was 8.5 grs Unique. I found from shooting both loads with the same sight setting one load was right on at 50 yds., the other at 100 yds. Just can't recall which was which now.
That gun left me back in the 80's.
I wished I had it back ever since.
I have compared down range ballistics from both a 250 gr Keith bullet and the Lee 300. The Keith hits just as hard as the Lee at most distances.
Leo

[Tripplebeards]

Hers my post from last year with the first deer I harvested with a 44 mag...

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?373867-First-deer(s)-with-cast-boolits!-Used-my-devastators!!!

I loaded up a good 150 or so of my softer,7.5 BH, sub MOA load load to try this year. I’ll see if going from 15.4 BH to 7.5 BH at approx the same velocity makes any difference for putting them down quicker.

[Grandpas50AE]

Me and most of my hunting buddies, and two older brothers, have been hunting Texas and Arkansas whitetails with the Lyman 429244 GC bullet since the mid 1970's - never lost a deer with this. Loaded with H110, and cast with a BHN of about 10 - 11 and a good lube (most of the ones I used back then were Javelina 50/50 lube), they pass all the way through. If the deer runs off, he doesn't go very far, and Stevie Wonder could follow the blood trail. Out of my mold, with the gas check and lube added, these bullets come out at 275 gr.

As you can see by the many posts above, there are several solutions in .44 Mag that work very well on whitetails. I usually try to shoot them just behind the front shoulder blade so as to not destroy much meat, but the shot presented to you in the field doesn't always afford that, so adjust as necessary.

[EMC45]

243874

Classy looking picture.

I like the 429-421 as well. Over 18gr. 2400 or 10gr Unique and it will kill.

[Beerd]

243714


243874

That'll do, Squrl. That'll do.

A meat making combo for sure.
..

[Ramjet-SS]

244143

Here is my setup for 44 mag yes that a full 6” barrel.

[megasupermagnum]

244143

Here is my setup for 44 mag yes that a full 6” barrel.

I think that would be really slick with some open sights, or a low profile reflex sight. With a big red dot like that, what are you gaining over a 10" barrel?

[Ramjet-SS]

I think that would be really slick with some open sights, or a low profile reflex sight. With a big red dot like that, what are you gaining over a 10" barrel?

Truth be told that sight is what I had I could easily put a reflex sight on it or even open sights. The ultra dot has some really good adjustable dots and it still handi light weight and maneuverable because no cylinder to add or loose velocity etc etc.. Its not for everyone I am ok with that.

[Tripplebeards]

Ramjet, I have two of the same ultradot matchdots adjustable from 2 to 8 MOA dot sizes. One on my Andaconda and the other on my browning buck mark 5.5” target pistol. I updated the Tasco PDP3’s from the late 90’s with these red dots. They’re excellent quality. It was to go to red dot competition sight with competition shooters for years...and I believe they still are if you google and research them. The new goofy reflex dots are garbage IMO. I’ll take A couple more ounces I’d weight and bulk to be able to see and find my crisp, clear dot at a fraction of a second. I have a few Leupold delta points that are junk imo. I’ve had both sizes of Gilmore dot tubes and was never a fan of them either. They have too much tint in the lenses so hunting at the last few minutes to hour of daylight is not an option. The tascos are the same. The originals from the early 90’s had no tint. Shooters that haven’t tried these type Of red dots don’t know what they’re missing.

Here’s the manufactures link. I should have tried the matchdot 11 in one of them but am so used to shooting the plain dot...

http://www.ultradotusa.com/ultradotdist2010_006.htm

Mega, you can adjust your dot sizes both in mine down to 2moa. I’m WAY more precise at 100 yards with it than open sights or reflex sights for that matter. Most reflex sights I’ve tried I have a lot of trouble finding the red dots in. Never the “tube” styles though. It also has an power knob to adjust the brightness of the dot which almost all reflex sight don’t being their automatic. If I turn the brightness all the way down it seems to shrink the dot diameter for Precision shooting. The dots in the tube type red dit sightsee are WAY more crisp and clear than most to all reflex type sights imo as well.


Bushnel and AT3 AT 50 make some small cheap versions. I tried a couple AT3AT 50’s that went back. Both 2 MOA dots looked like a starburst inside my dark house but we’re crisp in bright daylight outside. I tried a battery that was almost dead and could barley see the dot and it was crisp and clear. The company imo could resolve the issue by turning down the brightness, intensity of the dot at low power. AT3 tried to blame my eyes and said I needed corrected vision...I just laid lazek a few years ago and my dominant eye is 20/20. My cheap tasco red dots are crisp and crystal clear... it wasn’t my eyes, just the cheap, Chinese product that’s rebranded. For $75 they should be better quality...or just buy the exact same $40 Chinese bushnel branded one and live it with. There are some great torture tests on YouTube with both these cheap micro dots getting beat up and water dunked on ARs. For a price leader daylight red dot they do great.

[megasupermagnum]

I'm not ragging on the sight, what I like about that gun is that you get a 6" sealed barrel providing velocities that must be like an 8" barrel revolver if not faster, and it's in a package that looks no bigger than a 4" barrel Redhawk. I'm just saying, with lower sights and a hip holster, that thing would be sweet. With a big sight on it like that, it must be a chest holster ordeal, and at that point what are you gaining over the standard 10" barrel?

It doesn't matter either way, as you clearly have a very effective gun there. And if you like it, that's all that matters.

[Tripplebeards]

Yes, you have to get creative for holstering. My buddies give me static about the big bulky red dots as well till I outshoot them at twice the distance using them. They have their trade offs. There a lot of camo scoped pistol holsters on eBay for around the $25 mark. I love my big red dots. I harvested an 8 pointer back in the 90’s at 125 yards using one on my pistol. They definitely help me be a better shot when it comes to handguns.

I have a couple mounted on shotguns for turkey hunting as well. I’ve also used them in years past when WI had a zero magnification law for muzzle loaders. Heck, I have a camo tasco PDP2 mounted on my Browning into piston 22 cal pellet pistol I forgot about and another mounted on a Walter look alike bb pistol, Lol...love my red dots!

[reloader28]

My RCBS boolits look like Squrls. I think its a mislabled mold. Sposed to be a 245grSWC but it comes out between 260-265gr and has a bigger meplat.

With 21gr 2400 at 1250fps its WAAAY over kill for deer even thru the shoulders, but is very accurate even at 400 yds in my Vaquero so I stick with it. I'm running 15-16 BHN plain base with zero leading at .433

I like this load way better than my hot Lee 310gr except for bears

[Squrl78]

Mine must be super hard. I’m getting 240 after lubing with my mold. Sizing to .430 with zero leading also. I think this is a Keith bullet from how it's made though. Or a copy. It definitely has a long nose and huge metplat.

[Tripplebeards]

I size mine at .430 as well. I pc and GC them. No leading and 100 yard sub MOA groups at 100 yards with two different loads out of my 77/44. One sub MOA alloy is super soft at 7.5 Bh and the other is 15.4 Bh.

[Ramjet-SS]

I'm not ragging on the sight, what I like about that gun is that you get a 6" sealed barrel providing velocities that must be like an 8" barrel revolver if not faster, and it's in a package that looks no bigger than a 4" barrel Redhawk. I'm just saying, with lower sights and a hip holster, that thing would be sweet. With a big sight on it like that, it must be a chest holster ordeal, and at that point what are you gaining over the standard 10" barrel?

It doesn't matter either way, as you clearly have a very effective gun there. And if you like it, that's all that matters.

I got what you meant and I agree with your premise for sure.

I have a Trijicon reflex it’s great sight and certainly would reduce the package overall.

Yes I have several Ultradot sights have had some for years they are great quality and adjust to the 2moa is pretty darn good.

[white eagle]

ultra dot used to be my go to sight for red dot sights
but after literally destroying a couple on a 475 Linebaugh Encore
I will no longer use or recommend them
Have had on handguns and even a rifle before this happened,
another 475 Linebaugh as a matter of fact but the newest ones
can't take the recoil on the Encore or the 475L

[Tripplebeards]

ultra dot used to be my go to sight for red dot sights
but after literally destroying a couple on a 475 Linebaugh Encore
I will no longer use or recommend them
Have had on handguns and even a rifle before this happened,
another 475 Linebaugh as a matter of fact but the newest ones
can't take the recoil on the Encore or the 475L

I blew a lot of the Tasso PDP3’s out back in the mid 90’s on my Andaconda. I think three or four...I lost count. I’d just buy another one as they were cheap enough back then. I mounted an ultra dot on my andaconda last year and sighted it in. I saw it slid back in the rings on me, the same fate that kept killing my tascos. I ended up spraying some 3M adhesive on the inside of the rings this past winter and finally bought a wheeler tourque wrench to apply equal force to the mating screws. Hopefully that will be the end of my red dots sliding. In the past it always seemed like no matter how much torque I applied to my 44’s and 50 AE my red dots always slid eventually. I even had three scope rings on my 50 AE and it still slid. I believe the 3M adhesive will be the ticket.

[white eagle]

I think I have for the most part settled on a 250-260 gr Keith boolit as my main whitetail hunting boolit in the 44 mag pistola
have been all over the spectrum in weights and profiles and have found this style to be most accurate out of my 5.5" Ruger Redhawk
for alloy I use either 16-1,or either air cooled or water dropped ww alloy
also I powder coat all my boolits

[Norske]

I've only shot 3 antler less whitetail with a handgun. My first was killed with a 245 gr semiwadcutter, and she went about 100 yards before collapsing. 44 hole in,44 hole out. The second was shot with with a 240 gr JHP. Same result as the cast bullet. The last was shot with a 200 or 210 gr JHP. 44 hole in, much bigger hole out, great blood trail that lasted only 25 yards. All shots were broadside, hit barely behind the shoulder, and were done at less than 50 yards.

[kingrj]

I guess I have killed about 40 or so whitetails with handguns..most with a .44 mag using both cast bullets and jackted HP's...Any cast bullet with a large meplat works really well..No need for that bullet to expand. Hit right some run for 50 or so yards, some fall on the spot...Under penetration using a jacketed 200 gr HP was the only problem I have ever had using the 44

[curioushooter]

I've been recently thinking about getting back into 44mag. They reason why I left was those punishing 240 grain + loads stoked with Win296. It was ignorance that I only loaded it this way.
I've recently been turned onto Unique powder which looking at the data should be outstanding with about 215 grain bullet. I suspect a 429215 or 429215 HP would be just the ticket for deer, cast out of a softish alloy, and propelled with about 11-12 grains of Unique.
And it wouldn't be pushing to either one's hand or a cherished M29 or require a long barrel to get decent efficiency.

[curioushooter]

Also, I've had exactly zero problems with my Ultradot mounted on my contender in both 357 max and 375 Winchester.

[robinsroost]

I have several red dot scopes. The first was a Pro-point, with a 5mm dot, that is on my 1894 Marlin .44 magnum. I have a Millet 3mm tube on my 6" Ruger SBH Hunter .44 magnum, and the other 4 are holographic on 2 AR 15's and Ruger MKIII Hunter .22lr's. I like them all...…...robin

[Outpost75]

I would not feel under gunned with a 220gr bullet in the 44mag.

Agree!

I'd like to know on what planet these guys are finding these armor-plated deer that need 310-grain bullets? I've been killing'em with .44-40 handloads with 215-230-grain soft bullets of 1:30 tin-lead and either 18.5 grains of IMR4227 or 17 grs. of #2400 for many years. Velocity about 900 fps revolver, 1200 fps carbine. Fully adequate penetration, even on raking shots.

I use similar "medium velocity" loads in my .44 Magnums also. I don't live in grizzly country and the locals killed off and ate the mastadons and sabre-toothed tigers long before my time. Big Foot and The Moth Man are docile neighbors who don't cause trouble except when flat-landers moving in from the city torment them.

[curioushooter]

I've been killing deer with itty bitty 158 or 180 grain pills for some time. Have yet to have one not pass through.

[trapper9260]

I would not use 310 gr for deer like Outpost stated do not need it. I got for something else. I would use 240 to 255 gr for my 44mag. for deer. I know shot placement is what matters the most.

[NorthMoccasin]

I Agree with outpost 100%. 44-40 or 44 special with 200 to 220 gr at 900 to 1200 fs is plenty for any deer. I have also shot some with a 180gr 38-40. In my 44s i have settled on the Lyman 429215 hp cast of 95/2.5/2.5 alloy. It expands well and penetrates clear through on broadside shots.

[Three44s]

Well, I am not a deer hunter but I have been into the 44 and revolvers since the mid to late 90’s.

I have the Lee 310 mold and for the cost of the mold it is a dandy but I also believe it is serious over kill for deer or someone new to the cartridge. For a new to cartridge shooter a 310 gr bullet at any reasonable velocity is brutal. I like the dual crimp groove that boolit and seat my Ruger Redhawk loads in the rear groove and stoke the case with a full charge of H110. I consider it more of a bear load.

If I were going to hunt deer with one of my maggy 44s I would chose the RCBS 250K. It is plain based and weighs 255 - 260 gr. It is a great boolit and is IMO closer to a true Kieth than several other choices such as later variants of the Lyman 429421. Elmer Keith was very upset with Lyman when they failed to heed his objections as they gradually morphed away from his design. RCBS was handed original drawings and lobbied by some influential shooters to produce a mold and the “250K” is the result. If you have a HG mold of that ilk or a clone (503) then good for you as you are there but in my case I run the RCBS mold plus a Clone in five cavity. Of the two molds I like to cast my serious slugs from the RCBS mold, to my hands there just is not a better brand around.

There is a lot made of flat nose boolits and for good reason as metplat matters but a shooter with a 44 deserves a true Keith in their mold selection. Deer are not made of armor and the fine ranging and accuracy capabilities of a real Keith are just too good to ignore. A heavy boolit in flat nose also kicks the snot out of newbies as well. The RCBS 250k coming at just north of 250 gr. is a good comprise.

Powders

There is a lot made about Unique and to be sure it is an “essential” powder when it comes to truly enjoying a 44 Mag handgun but there are better choices in certain instances. Lots of folks like Universal Clays and I have used it some. It is certainly cleaner but I am not in a position to claim more than that since my experience is limited with it (other than the cleaner burn).

There is another powder that better fills the spot just above where Unique makes sense and that is Hodgdon’s HS6. This powder is a much better choice than Unique around the upper end Unique’s pressure range. If you are looking at turning up the juice on Unique to make a good upper end mid range load, forget that and switch to HS6. Trust me, you will be very pleased.

To get 1000+ FPS with the 250k burning Unique you have to push it and in doing so you are subjecting that boolit to a mid 30K pressure swat on it’s keester. If you want that sort of velocity out of HS6 you are subjecting that same slug to only 24k.

The mid 20k pressure range is just what Richard Lee writes is about optimum for cast boolits made of alloys that expand sufficiently to hunt with.

My experience with HS6 is that it produces fine accuracy and meters like sin from a powder measure. It lights off well with magnum pistol primers and while is not clean by many shooters it is about average amonst the cross section of magnum powders for large bore revolver cartridges.

My experience is that if you are looking for hunting performance from large bore revolvers and can not tolerate some cleaning chores to gun and fired casings you need to trade off those guns and find another hobby, it is just that simple.

My favorite load with a Keith bullet and HS6 is the 250k in a 44 Mag case charged at 11.8 gr. and in my case lit off with the Federal 155 Mag primer. I trim my cases to a uniform length and debur the inside of the flasholes and then crimp with a Lee carbide crimp die. In calibers where I have the Redding profile crimp die .... all the better.

The above load gives me 1066 FPS out of my 4” Mountain gun with just 7 FPS standard deviation and accuracy to swoon over. In my 7.5” Redhawk my velocity jumps to 1176 FPS with 15 FPS standard deviation.

I do use and favor Alliant’s 2400 very much and there I run 20.5 gr with a standard primer. Do not use a magnum primer with 2400 at the upper charge levels as they spike pressures. I do switch to Mag if I am dropping the 2400 charge to around 17.5 gr however.

It has been my experience that the boolits heavier that 260 gr require a powder slower than 2400 to really shine. That is where powders like H110 and WW296 take over.

The problem is that recoil is generally more than a unseasoned large revolver shooter can handle.

That is why I suggest looking at a medium heavy boolit like the 250k and a upper medium powder such as HS6 (or possibly 2400 on the heavier end). The recoil impulse from the HS6 load and the 250k boolit is a pleasant surprise, trust me.

Best regards

Three44s