handgun hunting

[M&M]

do any of you handgun hunt? I have a tc encore with several barrels and I do deer hunt with it in 44mag. what kind of ammo do you use for deer hunting in your handgun? I have been loading 270grn gold dots for several years but I am thinking of loading up something in the 300gr hard cast variety for next season

[gerald strine]

I shoot .44cal hornady xtp 300 grain bullets out of my muzzel loader and they preform great.
I am sure they would do well out of your hand gun becouse that is what they were desinged for.

[Boo]

I have a Freedom Arms in 44 mag and 454 Casull. Both work efficiently with gas checked bullets with wide meplats made with 50% wheel weights and 50% linotype.

[longwinters]

Sorry I have no experience with the venerable 44. I shoot a Contender in 7-30 Waters with 120 Ballistic Tips.

The only thing I don't like about shooting them is the long arm stretch to get correct eye relief. I wish there was a more in between scope so I could bend my arms more. I did take a small 10 pt with it about 8 years ago, at 70 yds, but since have used my 7m08 Sako. Taking that buck with the tender was certainly one of my greatest hunting thrills. Good luck with yours.

Long

[bkisel]

Hi,

I'll sometimes go out with my Ruger Super Blackhawk (.44 mag) mounted with a fixed 4 power scope. A brother of mine does mild reloads for me which are 240 grains hard cast bullets over ~10 grains of powder (not sure which brand powder).


Take care...

[EQUINOXHNTERVA]

If you want a load for you .44 mag that will kill anything this side of a rhino, go with Corbon 320 gr HC. I have a Ruger Super Redhawk Stainless with bull barrel this ammo is second to none! http://www.corbon.com/?dn=corbon.com&pid=2PO5N5455 Trust me this is the ammo your looking for in hard cast. A box of twenty is somewhere in the $40 dollar range US and worth every penny. I actually groundhog hunt with my .44, hope to go out for hogs one day. The velocity is 1175 fps with energy of 981 ft/lbs. Im new to this forum and need to learn how to post pics like everyone else.

[Cossack]

Let's see, there is the 7 TCU, 7 Int Rimmed, 30 Herrett, 30-30, 357 Herrett, 45 Colt in Ruger SA, and 45/70, all wanting stand time. No 2 & 3 get most of the attention tho.

[sumner4991]

Long Trang shot his elk with a handgun. Remember the video? That was awesome. He dropped it like a rock.

I can't find the video clip . . .anyone have it?

[M&M]

I have taken 1 deer and 1 wild boar with the 270gr gold dots and I load them myself and my encore 44 barrel has a leupold fixed 4 pwr scope on it but at close ranges 20-30yds its just a little much so I am thinking of going to a 2pwr. Now don't get me wrong the gold dots perform good, and I have used them in my muzzloader in the past with good results, but as you know deer season for me is over this year an I do like to tinker just like many of you so I just want to give some good cast bullets a try supposed to be awesome penitration I am looking at some from oregon trail and cast performance bullet co. they both make hard cast gas checked bullets in the 300gr and up range with a nice wide meplate. also in ohio we are limited to straight walled pistol cartridges .357 and larger

[M&M]

bstout you are right as the magnification goes up field of view goes down with 4x at 20-30yds it is hard to pick a spot on a deer all you see is hair at those close ranges and for my 44 I don't want a variable I think a fixed 2x or 2.5 would do very well

[Allan]

No handgun hunting here in Canada.

that's a no no.

[Boo]

No handgun hunting here in Canada.

that's a no no.

Bummer eh? Which is why we used to hunt in Wyoming for the most part in the old days.

[SPITFIRE]

I hunt deer with a ruger red hawk 44 magnum. Have taken many deer with 240 grain semi wad cutter ,hard cast bullet that was designed by Elmer Keith.(429421) Have never recovered a bullet every one was a pass threw and knock on wood I never lost any deer. Many of them dropped in their tracks. It's the only bullet I will use on deer. I have been shooting this bullet for many years and never had a problem.

[j3cub]

You can't go wrong with the TC Contender. I have both the Contender and the Encore. Take your pick, and you will be happy. What I can't do with my S&W, is easy with TC's. .44 are OK, but I like the 30-30 in 14" with iron sights for deer, but I also use the 35 rem as back up for bear when bow hunting in Montana. Two years ago I had a big Griz walk down the river bed along which I was hunting only a few yards away from my ground blind. I had spray and the 35, but was glad I never had to test if either of them worked.

[Big58cal]

I shoot some Federal loads out of my .44 mag deer hunting. They're loaded with a 300 gr. CastCore bullet that flat knocks the crap out of whatever it hits! Several years ago, I was watching at the bullet smacked a deer at about 30 yds. That thing did everything possible to stay on his feet and not get bowled over sideways.

I've got a T/C Contender with a .30-30 Win barrel on it in the safe, but haven't mounted a scope on it yet, so I've not taken it out hunting yet.