444 Marlin, 450 Marlin, 45/70, for Moose

[Pathfinder]

read the sarcasm.

If you plan to reload go with the 45-70

If you will not reload go with the 450 marlin.

The 444 is good for small black bears only

 

[Animal.5]

Re: Marlin

Get the 45-70! I have all mentioned. 444 - Winchester , 45-70 - Marlin, 450 - Marlin. 4 - 30-30's (3 Marlins and a Winchester). I love the 30- 30 but have taken Moose, Bear and Elk with the 45-70 and the Winchester Partition Gold 300 grain drops them all fast. Got a 565 pound black bear with one shot from my Marlin 45-70. Great in the bush and easy to carry

 

[7.62mm]

I think if you were to go out and hunt da "MOOSE" with a turdy-turdy, put one in the boiler room, you would be eating some fantastic meat, that you shot yourself. i would not hesitate to take da "MOOSE" with my 6.5x55 swede, aka .25 cal., in which I think is the least amount you need for da "MOOSE". I am sure others on here will disagree with my choice, but in your case the turdy-turdy has probably taken more of da "MOOSE" than any other caliber in North America.

DISCLAIMER: All shots taken within the rifles capability of course.
7.62mm

 

[Tak]

compared to the 30-30, the 444, 45/70, 450 marlin are weak. You just cannot beat the 30-30's ballistics for shooting game as large as moose.

Was that sarcasm ? I Mean i get the bigger drops faster and all but i could'nt find an ammo chart to figure out what all these calibers exactly compare to each other.

I'm kind of a noob to all these calibers.

I know i should probably get two guns but hey, my cheap salary doesn't allow me to do so .

 

[gitrdun]

The tasles are absolutely necessary, much as they caused extreme speed increases in your tricycle, you can count on a least 2900 fps out of the 30-30 with tasles. Down range energy will also increase if you omit shaving 2 weeks before the hunt, just ask TB.

 

[444shooter]

You can't go wrong with any of those calibers. If you reload, don't bother with the .450M as it is nothing more than a .45/70

 

[blargon]

I'll second that 100 yards and 405 grain bullet really hurts Mr. Bullwinkle!!

I think pretty much any calibre at 100yds will hurt a moose, if hit in the vitals.

 

[sealhunter]

At 100 yrds. either of the mentioned are fine.
pushing it past that you want the 450, unless you reload.
This is the oppinion of someone who as used the 45/70, 450, and of course 30/30 on big game. Where are you from and what type terrain?
That is a very big determining factor on rifle choice

 

[huntinstuff]

I have killed moose with all 3. They all work great. I dont reload so Im partial to the 444, but if you reload, the 45-70 is hard to beat. and you have a wealth of knowledge and ideas for loads from the guys here that reload.

 

[jjackman]

with LEVER REVOLUTION you can extend the range to 700yrds!

Ha Ha Ha......better check that tank mixture, you're a little lean on oxygen.

450 if you don't reload, 45/70 if you do reload. Shoot whatever you want at a distance of less than 200 yards.

 

[ben hunchak]

The 45/70 trumps them all especially if you reload or plan to in the future.....In a solid gun the 45/70 can be reloaded heavy enough to beat all cals. except the .458Mag and up.

 

[Amphibious]

the 450/45-70's can kill WAY past 200m. if you can hit stuff that far out that is...


have killed animals form 150yrds to 6 paces with the .450 marlin. 350gr FN @ 2150fps. all but one was a pass through, a 70yrd quartering away moose. all were down for the count on shot one.

 

[luv2safari]

The two 45s are a far better choice. Good bullets can be had for the 45s, but the 444 has been limited most of it's life to lousey pistol bullets that aren't up to the task for large animals.

 

[Hotwheels81]

.444 recoil suck's and a box of 20 bullets will set ya back about $3 each but they make big hole's in stuff and you are hard pressed to fire a box at the range in a day unless you have a good recoil pad making it actually a cheap gun to shoot.... just my experiance with a .444 tho....

 

[uphere]

if you can hit stuff that far out that is...

now thats the million dollar question eh

 

[shepodyguide]

Tak,
The 444, 45-70 and 450 all have killing power at short to mid range (<150 yds) which is phenomenal. Recoil can be pretty stiff too. Big pills with big frontal area and decent sectional density (how much stuff is coming behind the nose of the bullet) equals major penetration and knockdown power capable of stopping and killing ANYTHING in north america at these ranges. 30-30's will deliver a fatal blow on moose at short range, but they lack the knockdown and penetration of the bigbores when things don't go quite perfect on the shot. Having said that, a poor shot on game is no less ineffective with a big bore than with a 30-30 or 30-06.

If you primarily hunt deer with occasional moose, a 30-30 will do. If you hunt a fair bit of game larger than deer at ranges under 200 yds and can handle recoil ok, the bigbores are worth considering. If you hunt at longer range, you will have to consider longer range calibers like 30-06 or one of the magnums and demonstrate to yourself that you are capable of consistently placing shots in the field under pressure at those ranges.

Hope this helps.