I'm saving for a new Ruger Bisley or Blackhawk. I believe that i want it in .45 Colt. I handload, plus i like the bigger hole that it punches. But, i'm still not 100% sure. I like the less drop that the .41mag and .44mag offer, plus i like that .44mag ammo can be found anywhere loaded to nearly its full potential (and i love the Garret .44 mag loads, amazing). So, i'd like to hear it. I'm looking for suggestions on which i should go to. Favorite loads would help too. Maybe one day, i'll have one of each, but i'm only a poor college student. Thanks alot.
cyberhick

Pick whatever floats your boat. The trajectory issue is minor, assuming you are using this as an iron sighted sixgun, they all start dropping like a rock after 100 yds, and you'll have to compensate. I load 390's at 1150 in my 480, and have no problem hitting the 200 yd ram once I figure out where to hold.

I know there are some die hard 41 fans, but I don't see any loads pushing 300+ gr bullets 1200+ fps, something both the 44 and 45 will do. As far as the hot garret loads, I believe they will only chamber in redhawk and super redhawks, as they have longer cylinders then the blackhawk/superblackhawk.

Until recently, I had a 4 5/8" super blackhawk, and there was no problem pushing 300-320 gr bullets 1200 fps, I actually clocked a few 320's at 1300, but wouldn't recomend loading to that level. A 45 colt will do the same darn thing, and make slightly larger holes.

You can't go wrong with either round, the 44 has the factory ammo issue, but you need to figure if that really is an issue for you or not.

My buddy just got a one of a kind custom alloy framded 4" bisley with both 45 colt and 45acp cylinders. It makes me think a 45 colt/acp blackhawk might be just the ticket.

One other thing in favor of a 45 colt bisley, once you get some more funds, you can have a 5 shot cylinder fit, and then crank it up into the serious levels, 330's @ 1500 and 360's @ 1350, as well as down loaded to wherever you want it.

Cyberhick,

Forget the .41; the .44 and .45 are the way to go.
I have a .44 Redhawk and a .45 Bisley. There is little difference in trajectory at revolver ranges.
You should be thinking 50yds. not 150yds.

The Bisley is much more pleasant to shoot than the Redhawk.

George

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Shoot straight, shoot often, but by all means, use enough gun!

I have a .41 and love it. Plenty of power, but without quite the muzzle blast and recoil of the .44. With a target load, it is very pleasant to shoot, with less recoil than my friend's .357.

All that said, if I were doing it over, I would take a hard look at the new Ruger .480 before I made up my mind. The claim is more power than the .44, and significantly less blast and recoil. If it's true, that would be a very fun machine.

To me it depends on what you are shooting. If it were me going after elk, I would use atleast a .44 Magnum. A 480 Ruger, when I get mine, will be even better. But for deer sized animals I love my Model 57, .41 Mag. Plenty of power and not too much kick. Slim

Anyone who has followed any of my posts knows where my feeling are with regard to pistols and caliber for same. I have been a diehard .41 fan since my first pistol (S/W657). I currently own 3 14 inch scoped Contender barrles. Two are in .41RemMag and one is in .41GNR#2. I just received (06AUG)a duel cylinder custom SBH from Reeder Custom Guns in .41RemMag and .41GNR. I have never felt undergunned with a .41. What I do feel is less abused by recoil and muzzel blast.

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Handgun Hunter
LOVE THOSE .41s'

If you want a 45, why not just buy a
454 casull, it's esentually a hot roded 45 colt

[QUOTE]If you want a 45, why not just buy a 454 casull, it's esentually a hot roded 45 colt[QUOTE]

I'm sorry but why is it that when someone says they are thinking about buying A,B, or C someone has to say "well why not D?"

If the man was interested in "D" he would have asked about it. Look at the guns he listed to choose from is "D" available in those guns? No. Give a poster info on the topic they started.

Now, Cyberhick. If you could find a Bisley in .41 Mag I would say to buy it. They are not easy to find and they are great shooters. If you go with a .45 Colt which is an exceptional choice I would buy the Bisley because of the better grip shape. My current choice is a Super Blackhawk SS with a 5.5" barrel. I had a Bisley and though it was a great shooter the Barrel was just to long for me getting in and out of a truck etc. The 5.5" does not push up on me like the longer barrels do. Hope this helps. Sean

Have hunted deer & bear with all of the above. Ya pays your money, and takes your choice. They will all do the job, and do it Right Now. Use whichever you are most comfortable and most acccurate with. You won't ever have to look back.
Jay

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Jay
"For God and Country"

GeorgeS,
On what data are you basing your comment, " forget the 41"? By my book the 44 is only .019 larger in diameter and the 41 is .005 longer. If you reload, the 41 will do anything the 44 will do, with the one exception that most 44 are built on a larger frame, so can be loaded slightly higher. But you pick a Ruger Redhawk in each caliber and start reloading, you won't find a thimble full of diferance. And put two deer side by side and shot one with either gun and they're both going down, and you would never be able to tell which one was hit with which gun. Further, the recoil is going to be much less with the 41, so will be more enjoyable to shoot. As you can tell, I am a fan of the 41. I have owned both calibers, and chose the 41 after extensive testing, both on targets and game, including deer, bear and hogs. The bottom line though, any one of the three will do the job, it simply becomes a personal choice after that.

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41 and 44 mag, when like bullet weights are used, 41 mag is more efficient. These two are often compared and more often than not the comparison in internet discussion groups ends up in an argument. 41 magnum seems to outperform the 44 when like bullet weights are used. But here is the kicker: the 44 magnum was not designed with 200-220 grain bullets in mind. It was designed for bullets in the 240-300 grain range. Of course a 41 bullet @ 200 grains is going to have better sectional density than a .429 bullet @ 200 grains. If they are loaded to similar velocities, the 41 will have a flatter trajectory than will the .429 and it well retain its energy better. But try loading a 41 @ 300 grains to make it outperform a 44 mag 300 grain load. You can't! This debate is like comparing 270 and 30-06. For ninety percent of the hunting situations you are likely to find yourself in, 270 is probably a better choice. But there are some things that a 270 just cannot do. Same with 41 and 44 magnums. Bottom line: either gun will serve you well. I would go with the 44, mainly because ammo and components are more plentiful. Good luck whatever you choose.

Guys,
The reason I said to forget the .41 is that almost all the bullet development is in the area of the .44 and .45 calibers. There are more good bullets available in the bigger calibers. That's not my decision, the market is telling bulletmakers what they want.

As for efficiency, who cares? It's not a rifle cartridge we're talking about. The amount of powder is small in straight-walled handgun cartridges (even the .454 Casull uses only 36 grains of powder).

George

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Shoot straight, shoot often, but by all means, use enough gun!

I get 1275 fps out of my 4-5/8" 41 mag blackhawk with 293 gr hardcast bullets. So I believe it belongs in this comparison.
If You find a good price on one then any of the three would be good.
For reloading all your ammo I'd go with the 45 colt.
If you plan on using a lot of factory ammo then the 44 might be the way to go. You'll probably have more loads to chose from with it.

Show of hands here. How many of you shoot a veriaty of bullets in a given caliber?

170,200,210,220,250,255,265,280,290 in
.41RemMag, .41GNR, and .41GNR#2

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Handgun Hunter
LOVE THOSE .41s'

definately a variety guy here.
Crawfish, what is the heaviest jacketed 41 bullet that you use. Or do you use hardcast mostly.

Prior to working with the "heavies" my hunting load was Sierra 210gr Sports Master Power Jacket #8520/19.5gr/2400. They were like lightening on deer but were a bit lacking when it came to BIG pigs (300lb+). I started looking for something heavier, asked the question on one of these forums and was directed to POCO KELLY. He put me on CPB, then I found Bear Tooth. I still have a couple hundred rounds of the 210s loaded but I only work with the 250+ stuff now. My boys both like the 210s in their S/W 57s so I keep some around but I don't shoot them anymore.

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Handgun Hunter
LOVE THOSE .41s'