I'm curious about something. What loads, bullet weight, brands do you fellows use or recommend?

This is speaking strictly for commercial bullets/ammo of any of the various brands, and for anything from hunting to self-defense.

I'm primarily curious about .45 acp and .44 mag loads.

The two are different situations requiring different solutions.

Hunting = penetration/power, hard cast lead or heavy bullets

Self Defense = bullet upset, control/recovery for perhaps multiple targets, concern about over-penetration inside buildings/home

A .357 is about the best compromise, but is marginal for most big game hunting (IMHO). A better solution, but one that usually precludes concealed carry, is a .41 or .44 mag, or .45 Colt - loaded lighter for defense and loaded hot for game.

Yeah, I deer hunt with a .44 mag Ruger SRH when I handgun hunt, but for home defense and IDPA I mostly use a 1911, so I'm just curious what loads other folks like for them.

I haven't reloaded, but I'm considering getting started into it.

I like 240gr Hornady XTP hollow points with my DW 44mag.

Since Kansas won't let me Deer hunt with my Kimber 45acp I just shoot Lyman Round Nose cast bullets. I also like the XTP HP bullets in my 454 Raging Bull, but not there Mag line they did't expand on the Deer I shot.

I don't buy factory loaded ammo it cost to much for anything decent to shoot.

I wish I could have been of more help.

Use a 44 mag with 240 gr bullets either LSWC or heavily constructed JHP for hunting .Use 44 special loads for defense.There are some good 44 special loads available , Winchester, Federal ,Corbon is coming out with their DPX round.

I like the heavy cast lead FP or the 265gr Hornady in my .44mag. The .45acp is also my choice for a carry gun & any of the JHP out are fine. I like 185gr Sivertips or 200grXTPs.

Okay - for defense I use 200 gr Speer HPs over 5.0 gr of Titegroup in my .45 acp. (I also like the 140 gr Rem HSP in my .357.)

I usually use my big bore handguns for pig hunting, so I use a tough hardcast flatnose 300 gr in my .44 mags or a 220 gr in my .41 mags. I also like the 250 gr .429 and 220 gr .410 in the Sierra "full profile jacket" variety - a little dimple of lead exposed at the tip. They expand slowly on a hard critter like a hog but they stay together and penetrate well. These are all loaded over a stiff load of H-110.

Thanks for the info guys. I've always personally favored the bigger bullets like 230 gr. for the .45 and 300gr XTPs for the .44 when I hunt.

I've just always liked a nice, hefty lumbering round vs. a lighter bullet.

I do train my wife with a .44 special though, although I'd never considered using .44 special rounds in the mag for defense. I keep my SRH in the vault, and my .45 and .44 s&w on my and my wife's side of the bed. To be honest, I really don't remember what I'm using in her .44 but I think they're 240s. I keep Cor-Bon 230gr +Ps in my .45 now and it feeds them fine, but it never hurts to see what else may be popular.

The 10MM is nice for both applications if you don't hunt game larger than deer.

For my SBH in a factory load I like the PMC 240gr lswcgc. I reload Hornady 240xtp and their 265sp over ww296. All of these are accurate and the reloads hit very hard.
When I carried a 45acp it had 230fmj in the winter and Silver Tips in the warmer weather. I now have a Glock 23 and run 185fmj and Speer Gold dots.

I have a 10mm for both,,,the way the 175 grain Win. silvertips work on pigs and deer and large dogs I have no dought they would work well on 2 legged critters,,,,,keep 15 loaded in the truck just in case,,,,,

Since you asked about out of the box ammo, you might be intersted in Cor Bon's powerball ammo:

http://mysite.elixirlabs.com/index.php?uid=12665&page=1607

I carry my FA with CorBon's HC .45P+ ammo while hog hunting or in wilderness areas.

HOME DEFENCE????..... I have a Catch Dog & a Rotty ... ...The front door's unlocked...C'mon in.

I don't shoot .44 Magnum or .45 ACP much any more as I now prefer the .41 Magnum for revolvers and .38 Super for 1911s. But when I did/do I use a 180 grain JHP for deer hunting with the .44 and the CorBon 165 grain Pow'R-Ball for personal defense in the .45.

Start reloading, it is the only way to shoot...Bob

A friend of mine gave me, flat out, an old Dillon 550 a few years back with all the fixin's, but I never had any time to set it up or learn to play with it, so it just sat in a corner for a while.

I eventually ended up giving it to my cousin, who's currently stationed in Alaska, so that doesn't do me any good anymore either.

I still have a couple reloading manuals at home, and I've been thinking of just buying a small set of manual tools and reload a few rounds here and there to get a better feel for it until my cousin either gets out or I decide to invest in another 550 / 650 or something.

One of my dad's old running mates up in West Virginia had a S&W in .41 mag years ago, but I don't really know that much about the .41. It seems like it may have a slightly better BC than a .44, but in a pistol, the BC has never been anything I've worried about too much.

I don't really want to buy another gun right now, but I have been watching the .41 for the last couple years and it seems to be popping up more and more.

The .38 supers look neat on paper, but I'm just too set in my ways I guess ... I like 1911s, and to me, a 1911 means .45 caliber. I won't fault the folks that have 'em in .40s or .400 corbon, or whatever others are out there, and I even used to have a S&W Sigma in .40, but I just keep going back to the .45 for my carry gun.

for hunting i would use homecast 150 gr. swcs in my model 27...... for defense here at home i always keep 2 speed loaders with fed. jsps as i read somewhere that if the is a shooting it makes it a more leagle shooting if you use factory ammo opposed to reloads......i do have some hbwcs loaded in backwards just for grins though..........


THE SECOND AMENDMENT PROTECTS US ALL.....

Hrmm ... what's the issue with reloads vs. factory ammo if someone breaks into your home or you have to defend yourself?

I think I can remember, somewhere way back in the foggy parts of my mind, hearing that a long time ago, but I've never really paid it any consideration.

I wonder what the issue could be?

The only thing I can think of might be if the guy lived and sued for using under-powered ammo that didn't kill him, or maybe the other way around and his family sued for someone using "homebrew" over-powered rounds and making a kill that possibly wouldn't have otherwise been fatal.

I like to think that if I'm ever in that situation and I double tap with a .45, it will be a moot point, and I have lots of friends and family both lawyers and on police depts. that avow the second scenario is *MUCH* easier to defend against in court.

If someone breaks into your home, and you have solid reason to believe your life is threatened and you respond with deadly force to neutralize the threat to yourself and your family, everything else is academic and "what-ifs" ... but the only facts are you were minding your own business in your own home and were forced to defend your life.

If you let them live, then it becomes he-said, she-said and there's a suffering and injured "misguided and under-priviledged individual", possibly acting under the influence of controlled substances that wasn't in his right mind that night and now you've ruined his life forever and he wants "compensation" from you for the suffering he'll be forced to endure for the rest of his life, that you did to him.

It's total and utter BS. If you ever have to pull the trigger, don't ever "shoot to maim or immobilize".

quote:

Hrmm ... what's the issue with reloads vs. factory ammo if someone breaks into your home or you have to defend yourself?

I think I can remember, somewhere way back in the foggy parts of my mind, hearing that a long time ago, but I've never really paid it any consideration.

I wonder what the issue could be?

I don't believe it's an equipment issue at all. I think it's more a matter of intent. Society takes a dim veiw of people that portray the image that they "hope someone does breck in so I can wack them".

All things being eqwual a jury would likely be more forgiving to a a homeowner that defended his castle with his bird hunting shotgun vs. his 1911 with the homebrew loads.

The prosecutor as well as the attorney for the fine, upstanding gentleman's estate will most likely paint you as a maniac who made up his own rounds and somehow lured his "pillar of the community" client into your house in order to try them out. I understand Massad Ayoob and others are scouring the court records across the country to see if this has actually occurred in a case. I am not aware that anything has turned up yet.

Most people who have to defend themselves will be protrayed as a blood thirsty killer by either the press or portions of the legal system; sometimes both.

quote:

Originally posted by Ben589:
I'm curious about something. What loads, bullet weight, brands do you fellows use or recommend?

This is speaking strictly for commercial bullets/ammo of any of the various brands, and for anything from hunting to self-defense.

I'm primarily curious about .45 acp and .44 mag loads.

For the 45 acp I use Buffalo Bore's 230 fmj flat point plus P load That chronograph's 1017 fps out of one of guns and 1015 out of the other as for the 44 I do not hunt with one anymore as I use 45 colt 325 grain at 1420 fps another Buffalo Bore load or a 360 grian in the 454 or a 475 or 500 when I hunt with a handgun these larger bore handguns will handal any game under all conditions

I keep Federal Premium 230 grains Hydra Shok cartridges in my CCW Colt's Lightweight Commander (and Colt's Govt. Model). Although I've killed a couple of coyotes, some ground squirrels. and some jack rabbits with it, because of opportunity, I don't hunt with the .45 ACP.

My S&W 57 .41 Mag. is full of 265 grains LBT gas check Beartooth Bullets and Blue Dot. Ruger Blackhawk .45 Colt has 300 grains gas check LBT Beartooth Bullets and H110/296.

Ruger S.B.H. .44 Mag. has 240 grains SWC gas check bullets and H110/296. I do hunt with those... but if some dire circumstance forced me to use one of those handloaded cartridges on a two legged predator, I'd not worry about anything other than whether or not it was a "good" shoot.

FWIW. L.W.

For plinking, hunting, IDPA, bowling pins, metallic sillhoute (sp?)and all around shooting anything that needs shot, I like my .44 mag Mountain Gun with Tappan's 240swc/10.0gr Unique load. It's going about 1,100fps at the muzzle, it's accurate, controllable and penetrates quite well. That's the closest thing I know to a universal load and you could probably find something similar for the .41 or .357.

For home defense there's either my SIG P229 duty pistol with Winchester .40 155gr SXT or my 1911 with 230gr Gold Dots. But I wouldn't feel bad with just the .44 to rely on.

10mm all the way! Mine is a Kimber 1911.


I shoot 180 grain bullets at over 1300 fps. This load is capable of taking down Whitetails ( I dropped a buck at 45 yards with mine this year) and also very affective against two legged critters.


I love the fact that I can carry one gun for any situation here in Alabama. The same gun that's the B's Knees for personal protection is also more than capable when it comes to hitting the woods. I've gotten more than one strange look from hunting partners when I start walking into the woods without a rifle. But considering that most deer I see are within 75 yards carrying only my 10 makes perfect sense. Then I can also carry it to the range and show off with some long range target shooting. As I've said before, milk jugs at 100 yards don't stand a chance against my 10mm and a rest.

Double Tap Ammo makes great ammo for the 10mm (or the 45acp if you're not swayed to buy a 10mm.)

I wouldn't sweat the reloaded vs factory loaded ammo legal issue. There is no record of it ever coming into play in a court case.

If you are big game hunting I would start with the 44 mag......the Speer Gold Dot SP 270 would make a excellent hunting load.

I hunt with a .44 mag using lead filled hollowpoints. Unless you are going for elk or bigger I think the .44 is a great choice with any premium hunting round.

I don't use the .45 ACP for hunting ( I have the .44 mag for that). For defence I had a simular question on a different forum, but ended up going with a Remington Golden Saber (230 grain). The defense bullet "king" (IMO) seems to be split with the Speer Golddots being better for material penetration (glass and sheetmetal - more of a concern for police) and the Golden Saber being a better expantion/ penetration bullet using just 10% ballistic gel and denim cover. I would argue that they are both the best for what you need. The cor-bon power ball is great for 1911's that won't feed hollowpoints well.

For me it was price at $100/ 1000 for the GS and $170/ 1000 for the GD if you want to reload.

You are going to hear alot of people worried about litigation, but what is the matter with "it was what was in the gun" for an answer. There is a whole other group that says it doesn't matter - the bullet stopped the threat. No one that I have heard of has anything as far as real cases or evidence where reloading has ever been claimed as a determining factor in any shooting. I'd say the biggest issue with relaods is the guy working the press and how careful you can be to get consistant rounds (no squibs or double charges), but this would apply dramatically to a load that HAS TO WORK.

Use the factory loadings with these bullets if it eases your mind.

I keep Federal 240 LSWCHP Specials in my 4" Smith .44 for defense. Out in the field, Western Nevada 240 LWSCs over 8 to 9gr Unique does well. The accuracy of both loads is fine and the recoil works for me. And I don't go out in "known" bear country much anymore for what it's worth.....

For a heavier .44 load, I go to 300 JSPs/ WW296/ magnum brass in a 16" Winchester, just because I like Levers.

Hornady 230 JHP +Ps worked really well in an old Kimber CC, and our Colt 1991 has Win Ranger 230s in it.