I just wanted to tell about my first deer with a pistol: large doe, 40 yards broadside, 180 gr Remington JHP, 18 gr. Blue Dot (1 gr. less than max.), 5" S&W model 629. The bullet hit 1" behind the shoulder and was in the skin about 4" behind the shoulder on the opposite side. The deer went about 80 yards. Very little blood. I didn't find the deer until the next day (hunting in clearcut area where I need a blood trail).
I really wasn't impressed with the whole thing. I know the deer only traveled 80 yards, but that prooved to be too far for where I hunt, especially since the bullet didn't go all the way through to produce a blood trail. I couldn't believe it didn't shoot through. If I hit the shoulder, I don't know if I would have recovered the deer at all. For the next one, I'm going to try a shoulder shot with 300 gr. Hornady JHP's to put the deer down right there, and if I do hit through the ribs, at least a complete passthrough should give me a blood trail.
One question- I've loaded these 300 grainers with 18 gr of H-110 powder. That is one grain below maximum as stated in the manual. The recoil is unexpectedly mild. The primers show no excessive pressure (round firing pin marks etc.). Does the H-110 usually produce less felt recoil than Blue Dot, or is my loading a little light?
Chronograph the load and see what velocity you are developing. This will give you an idea of how you compare with the loading data. There are several factors that effect felt recoil.
If ignorance is bliss; there are some blissful sonofaguns around here. We know who you are, so no reason to point yourselves out.
300s don't reach very high velocity and therefore don't expand much.A steady diet of 300s is not what I would use in my m29. No deer needs more than a 240. That will give you the necessary penetration and expansion. As to an instant put down, that would depend on bullet placement.Even with rifle a typical lung shot I find they go 50 yds. Last deer did 50 yds with 45-70 breaking shoulder and through the lungs !!
I have to say I have not shot the XTPs with H110, but the Lee 310 cast with 18.5 WC820 (OLD slow lot, comparable to the H110) is about all the fun I want off of the bench!
And that is in a Redhawk or Super Redhawk.
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Posts: 4271 | Location: TN USA | Registered: 17 March 2002
I shot them from my 9.5" Super Redhawk, which I keep zeroed for 100 yds. I dialed in 11 mins. of elevation (Leupy 2x), and they were right on the mark. I was debating whether to use 300 gr. expanding, or wide flat nose cast lead. I am going with the XTP.
I hunted a lot with a 44 back in the days (for the record, 300 gr hard cast bullets) and I never had a deer fall to the shot with a pistol. Most didn't go far but none were instant drops. I'd say performance in that regard was pretty close to archery results.
"Experience" is the only class you take where the exam comes before the lesson.
Posts: 11143 | Location: Texas, USA | Registered: 22 September 2003
I took one 130# 6 point buck with a .44 Magnum 7.5" Redhawk using the Sierra 180 grain JHC. The deer was walking in on me slightly quartering to my left at 30'. Bullet hit just to the right of center, turned the heart to jello and broke three ribs on the way out...
Bob
Posts: 601 | Location: NH, USA | Registered: 06 November 2002
I took a small spike with a 180 gr Sierra at about 60 yds, I spined him and he dropped, took a nice buck (180 lbs dressed wgt) with a 200 gr Nosler and deer went about 50 yds, quartering away through the lungs, complete pass through and good blood.
Used a 10" TC.
Posts: 1230 | Location: Saugerties, New York | Registered: 12 March 2002
Steve, I had the same experience with the 240 XTP. I hit the buck at 60 yd's and ruined the heart. The bullet was against the skin on the offside. If I hadn't seen the deer go down I might have had trouble finding it because there was almost no blood trail. I tried to track it back to where I shot the deer at and could not. I switched right away to a hardcast, LBT 320 gr. WLNGC and the 310 gr. Lee and have not found a boolit yet. Blood trails are great and deer actually have gone down quicker for me. Bones or Texas heart shots will not stop the boolits. (If you are incined to take those shots.) I have since then taken many, many deer with revolvers from the .44, .45, 45-70 and .475, all with heavy hardcast with large meplats. I will NEVER go back to a condom bullet. I have had too many deer just pitch to the ground without hitting the spine, just shoulder or ribs and many only go 30 yd's or less, to even think of looking for a better bullet. In my opinion, there is none better then an LBT style boolit. The only caution is to make sure there is not another deer behind the one you are shooting at because it will kill both--or maybe even 3 of them. I will get a lot of flack saying the 180 is the best. I finished off a deer that was hit by a car today with a .22. It did a nice job but I'll be damned if I would hunt deer with it. I put the light, fragile bullets in the same catagory. Heavy boolits have too much recoil? Yeah, maybe for a five year old! Are we men and hunters? Or are we whimps? I have yet to feel recoil when shooting at an animal with any boolit. If recoil scares you, use another gun---maybe a .223 rifle.
I am shooting 320 gr hard cast bullets in front of 22 gr H110 from my Dan Wesson .44 mag. You know you have fired the gun, but they are manageable. That load is max in the Hodgden Annual Manual, at 1350 fps. I want complete penetration first, a pretty mushroom second. I haven't shot anything bigger than a whistle pig with this load, but have been told it should about penetrate an elk end to end.
Posts: 866 | Location: Western CO | Registered: 19 February 2004
Sounds like the 180 jhp did just what it was designed to do expand and give about 12 inchs of penetration. If you want the bullet to exit you well have to go to something heavier.
I went to a hard cast 310 gr bullet out of a lee mold at just under 1300fps out of my 5.5 inch redhawk. It well drive a long ways
Posts: 19835 | Location: wis | Registered: 21 April 2001
Originally posted by bfrshooter: Steve, I had the same experience with the 240 XTP. I hit the buck at 60 yd's and ruined the heart. The bullet was against the skin on the offside. If I hadn't seen the deer go down I might have had trouble finding it because there was almost no blood trail. I tried to track it back to where I shot the deer at and could not. I switched right away to a hardcast, LBT 320 gr. WLNGC and the 310 gr. Lee and have not found a boolit yet. Blood trails are great and deer actually have gone down quicker for me. Bones or Texas heart shots will not stop the boolits. (If you are incined to take those shots.) I have since then taken many, many deer with revolvers from the .44, .45, 45-70 and .475, all with heavy hardcast with large meplats. I will NEVER go back to a condom bullet. I have had too many deer just pitch to the ground without hitting the spine, just shoulder or ribs and many only go 30 yd's or less, to even think of looking for a better bullet. In my opinion, there is none better then an LBT style boolit. The only caution is to make sure there is not another deer behind the one you are shooting at because it will kill both--or maybe even 3 of them. I will get a lot of flack saying the 180 is the best. I finished off a deer that was hit by a car today with a .22. It did a nice job but I'll be damned if I would hunt deer with it. I put the light, fragile bullets in the same catagory. Heavy boolits have too much recoil? Yeah, maybe for a five year old! Are we men and hunters? Or are we whimps? I have yet to feel recoil when shooting at an animal with any boolit. If recoil scares you, use another gun---maybe a .223 rifle.
You are 100% correct the same as my own experience with the LBT stlye bullits
I shoot the 320 gr. out of an 8" Dan Wesson puched by H110 mostly. It is more than I need for a whitetale of anysize. I have had good luck with a 240 gr. Horney JHP and with the 250 gr Keith (429421) from wheelweighs and both kill quick and never stay in the animal. They also work great in my .44 Marlin 1894. I think 180 gr loads are good to shoot people at close range.
The year of the .30-06!! 100 years of mostly flawless performance on demand.....Celebrate...buy a new one!!
The problem with light, fragile bullets is the inconsistancy of results. One shot will perform perfectly with good penetration but the next can come apart on a bone or even the skin and give you fits finding the animal. The light weight bullets can stop faster in an animal just like a light arrow. Weight equals penetration. Reminds me of the time guys were shooting deer with the .220 Swift. Some said it worked great but then there were the deer that the bullets blew up on and caused massive damage to the outside without getting in to the boiler room. Now a good 180 gr bullet like a Nosler partition will work fine, every time. Bullet construction is what counts but most 180's are not dependable. A lot of 240 gr bullets are not tough enough either. They do a much better job then the 180 though. I would not use a jacketed bullet of less then 300 grs. myself.
I shot a deer a few years ago out of a Redhawk that I had loaded up with 180 JHPs and 30 or 31(I think) grains of H110. It really was a flamethrower!!!! Fire would belch out the end of the barrel 2 feet. In fact I set my rolled towels shooting rest on fire shooting that load(I hope she never noticed her towels were missing, but that's another story). Anyway, I had the same results, penetrated to the offside ribs, no exit, no blood, but we recoved the deer. I have now switched to 240 Flatnosed bullets for deer and 300 Barnes for hogs. Excellent penetration and exit wounds.
Hugh
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Posts: 448 | Location: Palmer, AK | Registered: 17 August 2005
First of all, thanks for all the good discussion on my post. I feel so important!
Now I want to tell about what the 300 grainer did on a 160 lb. deer. After shooting at it several times, the third bullit hit directly in the shoulder and exited about 3 ribs back. The deer went about 15 yards. There was not much trauma in the shoulder. I'm going to eat the bullit hole along with the rest.
About those other shots the deer was about 35 yards away and I could see a limb a little bigger than a pencil right in front of him (maybe 10'). At the shot, the limb fell off and the deer took a couple of steps and stopped. Once again, there was a half inch limb just in front of the deer. At the shot, I could see a white spot appear on the limb and the deer took a couple more steps and stopped again! So, does everybody remember how Curly would look down the water hose, frosting applicator, or whatever he was trying to get to work? That's right, I almost looked
Maybe this should be a seperate post, but what's up with such little branched deflecting my big 300 grain bullets?
I've had that happen with an arrow, but not a 44 slug!! Bullets can do strange things and that is truely strange!!
Sounds like you got good performance once the bullet actually hit the deer. Maybe the 3rd shot broke down his force field and hit the mark. It's very considerate of him to stand there and let you shoot 3 times!! Congrats!!
The year of the .30-06!! 100 years of mostly flawless performance on demand.....Celebrate...buy a new one!!
Originally posted by Hughiam: I shot a deer a few years ago out of a Redhawk that I had loaded up with 180 JHPs and 30 or 31(I think) grains of H110.
That is one stout load! I never went over 29.0 gr. in my SRH with 296 with a 180 Gr. You still got any hearing left? Now all I use is my own cast bullets. The Lyman Devastator bullet is, well, devastating.
Catmandu
Posts: 109 | Location: NE,TN | Registered: 17 September 2004
I use the 180gr Remington in by Ruger SBH. 25gr 2400 for about 1600. They work beautifully. It all depends on the hit. I've dropped deer on the spot with rib hits and also had them run. I hit a buck a couple of years ago when he was quartering to me. Entered right front and exited left at the back of the ribs. About 35-40 yards. One heck of a spray of blood all over the corn. He ran 50 yards or so. He just didn't know he was dead yet. The first buck I dropped, again about 35-40 yards, I remember seeing all 4 hooves and dirt flying. If I remember right, it was a low and forward hit. He was dead when he hit. It all depends on where they're hit. It sounds to me like you may be happier with a slower powder for some more speed. Just my experiences. Go with what you're comfortable with.
If you can't have fun, what good is life? Were liberals born that stupid or did they work at it?
Posts: 84 | Location: Council Bluffs, Iowa | Registered: 11 March 2005
Like I said, bullet construction is the key. A hard lesson when the wrong one is chosen. The heavier bullets are always tougher so to prevent penetration problems, I just shoot them.
I picked up some 180 gr Hornady XTP's for coyotes this winter. My Hodgden manual lists 31 gr H110 as a max load. Thats the load I will be using. If it's a flamethrower, so be it. The manual also lists a speed of a little over 1800 fps. It should be a decent 'yote shooter for as far as I can shoot an open sighted hand gun.
Posts: 866 | Location: Western CO | Registered: 19 February 2004
I've seen bullets deflected more times than I care to admit. I've also shot through trees and killed deer. Just have to try and shoot around the limbs if possible. I had a very similar situation with a doe several years ago. Only she was 85 yards away when she dropped and I had to shoot three saplings out of the way to get her. She fell in her tracks on shot four; just her day to die.
If ignorance is bliss; there are some blissful sonofaguns around here. We know who you are, so no reason to point yourselves out.
I shot at a big buck one year during muzzleloader season all I could see was its face so I lined up between the eyes with 100grs RS a sabot and a 240gr Hornady XTP. I hit the limb I didn’t see right in front of the Buck it deflected down plowed a furrow you could plant tomatoes in. The Buck stood and looked at me but not long enough to get reloaded and walked off.
I shot a Doe in the side with an S&W mod29 she went 8 feet and dropped dead. I shot another with a 454 she went 200yards and bleed out. My point is the 44 was placed through the lungs the 454 went behind the lungs both went through and through. Both were XTP bullets but correct shot placement was the solution and problem.
I stick with 240gr bullets or heavier in my 44 & 454 nothing lighter.
Swede
--------------------------------------------------------- NRA Life Member
Interesting discussion. I'm planning on using a 180 grain Sierra JHP in my 6 1/2" S&W 624 .44 Special, 1300 fps with 20 grains of 2400. Now where did I leave that deer magnet?
Speer makes a 200 grain Gold Dot JHP designed for .44 Special that shows some promise. I may try it on a deer should the opportunity presents itslf, otherwise I'll just stick to the 240s and up. Initial testing in soaked phone books gave 14" of penetration and nearly 100% weight retention.
If ignorance is bliss; there are some blissful sonofaguns around here. We know who you are, so no reason to point yourselves out.
I just recently started handgun hunting and last year was my first year to kill a buck with a .44 mag. Super Redhawk. I was completley amazed by the performance of the factory Win. Partion Gold 250gr. The buck was about 55yds. broadside I shot him one time in the lungs, he did a complete 360 and then fell over on his back dead! I know I would find this tough to belive too, but it DID happen. The bullet expanded on the ribs and went completly through. I have not thought about changing ammo since. I normally shoot a Browning .270 and never had these results. Hope someone here can back me on the 250gr. Partion Gold.
I like the hardcast LBTs in my .44 magnum and don't remember a deer going further than about 30yds but I also don't remember any falling in their tracks either. Years ago I did knock over a few in their tracks with 240gr factory loads in a .454 Casull but most went about 25-30 yards before realizing they were dead.
Posts: 400 | Location: Murfreesboro,TN,USA | Registered: 16 January 2002
the deer was about 35 yards away and I could see a limb a little bigger than a pencil right in front of him (maybe 10'). At the shot, the limb fell off and the deer took a couple of steps and stopped. Once again, there was a half inch limb just in front of the deer. At the shot, I could see a white spot appear on the limb and the deer took a couple more steps and stopped again! So, does everybody remember how Curly would look down the water hose, frosting applicator, or whatever he was trying to get to work? That's right, I almost looked 
