44 mag ammo for deer and black bear

meatgrinder

meatgrinder

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eastern ontario
As the title states, I'm looking for any feed back on decent 44 mag ammo. I hear good things about the hornady leverevolution but my deer land has an increase of black bears. I've herd some recomendations for the winchester supreme stuff also. Any thoughts? thanks for looking
 
No need to go premium, I've used everything from white box Winchester to Leverevolution, to handloads with the same result....They all do the job!
 
We use mostly 240 grain hard cast with H110... we also use the Hornady 265 grain Interlock FP with Lil' Gun... they both do a good job, but the FP's pack more wallop.
 
Look for 240 grain soft point jacketed bullets they have worked best for me for deer.
I found the XTPs (hollow points) over expanded at close range, leaving nasty surface wounds but little penetration. I expect they are designed to work at handgun velocities.

When you are already making a hole almost 1/2" diameter penetration trumps expansion.

Dan
 
9.3 Hunter said:
Im using Winchester factory 240 gr SPs in a Ruger 44 mag carbine. Have worked well for both deer and black bears. Its my go to short range carbine.
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Our H&R Ultra .44 Mag carbines are our "go to" brush guns also... we have them mounted with NDS-38 peeps and Williams one-piece Fire Sight ramps... they are perfect with the Hornady 265 Interlock FP's and 23.5 grains of H110.
 
Northman999 said:
My brother shot black bears with simple factory 240's and 265's from various manufacturers. We never really saw any difference in terms of performance to be honest.
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On an animal, enough is enough and dead is dead... But through the chronograph and on steel plates we can see the difference... I suppose the only time this would come into play would be if you were pushing the envelope for the caliber... Which we never do and particularly with .44 Mag... Because where we use them, we can only see 50 yards max, and usually a lot less than that. Still, not much point in shooting a load that you know to be inferior when the cost is the same for both. Pretty much all will do, some are just better. For .44 Mag we find the 240 - 265 grain bullets to perform best overall.
 
How does the 265gr FP perform in the .44 Mag? It was specifically designed for the .444 Marlin at much higher velocity.
 
bcsteve said:
How does the 265gr FP perform in the .44 Mag? It was specifically designed for the .444 Marlin at much higher velocity.
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The Interlock 265 FP is our favorite bullet for .44 Mag... so yes, it works great... max loads of H110 or Lil' Gun.
 
that's great info guys, it's to here it from people that actually hunt with it and not a range jocky that work a counter in a gun shop. Really apreciated. I have to say I have never seen factory loaded 265 gr. Let me know were I can get some in the ottawa area if any one knows. 240gr I can find no problem aswell as the leverevolution in 225gr.Most of my shooting will be around 30 yards and I have a 30-06 to shoot longer range so the 44 handirifle is my bush/truck gun. I cant wait to shoot it.
 
Garrett 330 gr Hammerhead :D

330grHammerhead-1.jpg


Hornady Leverevolution 225gr FTX on left; 240 AE on right:
330grcomparison.jpg
 
I've taken both deer and black bear with my 44-40 levergun and 200 grain bullets, so the 44 Mag will not be an issue IMO. My wife uses the 44 Mag, and has taken a number of deer with it, using 240 grain Hornady's loaded to factory speeds.
 
John Y Cannuck said:
Looks like a hard hitting combination, but looking at the pic, I have to ask if it's OAL causes issues with tube fed leverguns.
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I'm a single shot fan... just prefer simple things (mostly bowhunt)... but the beauty of singles is not having to pay attention to max COL numbers induced by magazine restrictions... gives alot more room to play... as long as they are off the lands you are good to go.
 
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