.357 or .44 magnum for deer?

cote_b

cote_b

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
232   0   0
Location
Ontario
Hi guys,

My girlfriend is looking at getting a new rifle for this deer season. She wants a lever action carbine in either .357 mag or .44 mag. Weve been looking at a few Pumas and Marlins so far. Her uncle has a really nice Winchester 94 trapper in .44 she used last season, and she loves it, but hes not letting that one go quite yet.

She will be using this rifle for deer hunting every fall, but also wants to use it at the range. I would say the .44 would be best for sheer power on the deer, but I figured that since shes wants to shoot at the range, the .357 would be better since you can shoot cheap .38spl with it at the range. Would the .357 be enough to take down a deer? or would going with the .44 magnum and paying a bit more to shoot it at the range be her bettter bet?

We have found a few used rifles so far in both these calibers, and at the moment we could get a .44 for 200 bucks cheaper than a .357, which might negate the ammo savings.


Seems like .44 mag may just be better off for this application. Any opinions?

Thanks

Brendan
 
I think because she is going to hunt, you should try the 44. You can reload and it won't be expensive to shoot. Or you can buy reloads for much less than factory loads.

Don't forget the Crean Hill Gun Show in Sudbury on Sunday. McClelland areana in coppercliff. PM for directions.
 
in the usa they do 357 handgun hunting for deer -- and some bigger stuff

44 mag would give you the extra power for a few extra yards

but the 357 you could shoot all day having fun
 
if you use cast bullets and 44 special loads, 44 can be just about as cheap, if not on par with 38 spcl and still deliver about 100 grains more bullet weight -that's why i went with 44 mag; there was NO advantage to going 357, ; that is to say the powder charges are almost identical until you get into the heavy hunting loads; and if she's already shot the little trapper and found it pleasant enough , why bother with a "pussy"?
 
I was asking myself the same question a few weeks ago. I recently purchased a Marlin 1894SS in 44 mag for dropping deer and playing cowboy at the range. A 357/38 will be much cheaper for target shooting unless you relaod, then it's about the same. 38 special is much cheaper(around $20/50 rounds) than 357 mag, but for some reason the 44 special is more than the 44 magnum. 44 Mag factory ammo is about $1/round for Hornady hunting stuff. Wolf ammo is about $0.50/round when you can find it.
I'm researching loading presses now so I can start another addiction. :)
 
deer rifle

I have used both to shoot deer and would recomend the .44 the .357 will work but is barely enough. I reload so cost is not a factor and reloading for pistol cartridges is straight forward and highly recomended if you shoot much
 
With the right loads, the .357 has no problem anchoring deer at levergun ranges. No problem. The .44 will definitely do it with a little more authority, but at 100 yards or less, the deer is going to die if hit well.
 
how does she feel about a 30-30? ammo is cheap and available everywhere from canadian tire to walmart it also has more energy and if need be she can reach out further than a 44 mag
 
I have to agree with the .30-30 thing too. No one will question its effectiveness on deer. Just about any load will do too. It can be found anywhere.
 
Canadian_Zuk said:
I was asking myself the same question a few weeks ago. I recently purchased a Marlin 1894SS in 44 mag for dropping deer and playing cowboy at the range. A 357/38 will be much cheaper for target shooting unless you relaod, then it's about the same. 38 special is much cheaper(around $20/50 rounds) than 357 mag, but for some reason the 44 special is more than the 44 magnum. 44 Mag factory ammo is about $1/round for Hornady hunting stuff. Wolf ammo is about $0.50/round when you can find it.
I'm researching loading presses now so I can start another addiction. :)
Click to expand...

the reason 44 spcl is more than 44 mag is simply supply and demand- there are far more 44 mags out there than 44 spcls, and most folks realize that you can make 44 spcl from 44 mag with either a tubing cutter or a trim die- that's pretty simple
 
mike t said:
how does she feel about a 30-30? ammo is cheap and available everywhere from canadian tire to walmart it also has more energy and if need be she can reach out further than a 44 mag
Click to expand...

50 yards. big deal. rather have the bullet weight and shorter range of the 44- if you can't stalk another 50 yards, etc
 
Last edited:
t-star said:
the reason 44 spcl is more than 44 mag is simply supply and demand- there are far more 44 mags out there than 44 spcls, and most folks realize that you can make 44 spcl from 44 mag with either a tubing cutter or a trim die- that's pretty simple
Click to expand...

That is what I figured. Would I not be able to load the 44mag cases to 44 special specs instead of trimming the cases? Curious, I was hoping to just keep one flavour of brass.


t-star said:
50 yards. big deal. rather have the bullet weight and shorter range of the 44
Click to expand...

OP stated his wife wanted this hunting rifle for target shooting as well. For that reason alone I would stick with the straight pistol cartrige over the necked rifle cartrige. Brass should last longer, easier to reload, no need to trim the cases(I may be wrong on that) plus you get 10 in the mag instead of 4.

Those were my reasons, along with the heavier projectile options.
 
Canadian_Zuk said:
That is what I figured. Would I not be able to load the 44mag cases to 44 special specs instead of trimming the cases? Curious, I was hoping to just keep one flavour of brass.




OP stated his wife wanted this hunting rifle for target shooting as well. For that reason alone I would stick with the straight pistol cartrige over the necked rifle cartrige. Brass should last longer, easier to reload, no need to trim the cases(I may be wrong on that) plus you get 10 in the mag instead of 4.

Those were my reasons, along with the heavier projectile options.
Click to expand...

sure you can- the length of the chamber dictates the length of the case- if you have 44 mag chamber/chambers , you should load 44 mag cases for 2 reasons 1, they're cheaper and more plentiful, 2) you won't get the dreaded "CRUD RING " that forms as a result of shooting specials in magnum chambers- this is somehting you HAVE to clean out from time to time, or you'll not be able to chamber magnum cases- and they can be somewhat difficult to remove- i use a lewis lead remover if i have to- i'd rather just use mag cases to begin with
 
I had a Ruger Auto in 44 mag. 265 Hornady would give me 1 inch groups at 100 M. I shot a number of deer with it before stupidly selling it to a friend! It is a a great 100 yard deer slayer.

I also would not hesitate to shoot a deer in Vermont with my Manurhin 10 inch revolver 357 and with a 180 soft point. I have done ballistic test with this combination and can attest that this will work!

Regards,
Henry:cool:
 
Yeah I was actually thinking 30-30 might be a good option too, especially because the ammo is cheap and widely available. I will have to get her to shoot mine first a few times to see how she likes it. The 30-30 will offer greater range. 30-30 rifles are generally cheaper and easier to find too, than a .44 or .357. She really seemed to like her uncles 94 trapper in .44 mag though, I I think she might be sold on the .44 carbine idea. The area we are hunting would maybe be better suited for a .44 magnum though, since the shots are going to be 50 yards, maybe 70 max. The extra 75 grains in the .44 mag bullet would give a good punch and be plenty accurate at that range. Im thinking the .357 may be a little light, like alot of you mentiioned, so thats off the table.

We are hopefully going to be going to the coppercliff gun show on Sunday, so we can check a few things out.

Henry, she considered the Ruger auto .44 idea, but they are really hard to come by and tend to be expensive.
 
Tip for reloading 44 mag brass
shoot over and over and over again til it starts to split
put it in a container with some other split brass when you get 50 or 100
trim them to 44 special length and reload using special data then
shoot over and over and over again til it splits then toss in recycle bin
 
A carabine in 44 Magnum will kill anything you hit with it (using appropriate bullet) but the problem is the ultra curvy trajectory which limit you to 100yards of less. A 30-30Win with Hornady LEVERevolution ammo give you a 250 yards effective range and acceptable recoil.
For a woman or youth rifle, nothing beats a 243Win or 7mm-08 bolt action but it's not a cool or practical to carry around as a lever action.
 
As usual the CGN consensus is to get the most powerful of the two options.
357mag is plenty for deer. Even from a pistol. Ask the same question on US forums and compare the results.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom