.45 Colt As a Hunting Round

04rubicon

04rubicon

CGN Regular
Rating - 100%
40   0   1
Location
North of all the fuss
Not sure if this is the proper forum, but here goes.
I am interested in the H&R Surviror its a .410/.45Colt Combo gun. Its small and affordable, which should suit my needs as a truck/ATV gun. It would be used for potting grouse and rabbits as i see them on the trails and in the bush. I know the .410 is fine for thism but the ,45 Colt I need help with. I hunt Moose and Deer as well. This would never be my primary hunting gun for either of these animals but would the .45Colt work? If I were to drive around a croner and see a calf and cow or a deer standing there would a .45colt besufficient to kill cleanly? I have read some of the balistics data on the .45 colt and it seems like its very slow. Any thoughts?

Also if this gun is not sufficient what might suit my needs (small, simple, and able to get food from grouse to moose) I know the venerable 12ga fits the bill, but i am interested in a rifle as well. Please do not suggest the savage 24 i know it comes in 12ga dn .30-30 but over $700 is way more than i can afford for a gun that will sit under my truck seat or be bumped around on my atv.

Thanks and merry christmas
 
No expert, but my 1st thought is ammo. For example 45-70 is a great round when reloaded, but with so many older models that cannot handle the pressure modern 45-70 rifles can, factory ammo is loaded very light.

Will 45 colt cause the same problem? How available are good hunting loads? I am really talking out loud here.

I think ballistically, it is between a 44mag and a 357 mag. So it should be fine for deer at very short range 75 yards and shorter and perhaps a calf too.

As for a cow, pretty dicey I think. Only under absolute ideal conditions
 
45LC can be loaded to pretty much .44 factory power, and it"s a capable short range deer round. What about a H&R 45-70? Someone can correct me if I"m wrong, but could"nt a 45-70 take 3" 410, 45 LC, (454 Cassull?), and 45-70?
With that array, you could take just about everything you"ll meet!
 
If you don't hand load, you can buy some of the specialty ammo made by a few of the small companies, or get a handloader to help you.

Make sure the ammo (in either case) is safe for your type of firearm.

A properly loaded 45 Colt woudl smoke a moose, no problem. Don't be taking long shots.:)
 
Gatehouse said:
If you don't hand load, you can buy some of the specialty ammo made by a few of the small companies, or get a handloader to help you.

Make sure the ammo (in either case) is safe for your type of firearm.

A properly loaded 45 Colt woudl smoke a moose, no problem. Don't be taking long shots.:)
Click to expand...
Well put Clarke.
Eons ago, even the black powder version of the 45 colt was used to take game as big as Grizzly. However!!! Don't push your luck!
If I were to take a 45 colt out for moose, it would be a very short range operation, with a stout bullet, and, I'd be using a heavy handloaded round. Be aware that there are firearms that might fly apart with such a load.
 
The .45 Colt can be a very effective hunting round if you handload. I've loaded this cartridge to pretty well equal .44 Mag loads out of a rifle. The trick is DO NOT use jacketed hollow point bullets -stick to hard cast lead or soft point jacketed loads. At .45 cal, you don't need much more expansion, you need penetration.

Having said that, making hot loads for a .410/.45 Colt chambered gun is not as effective as a straight .45 colt chamber. Because you have such a long leade in the .410 chamber, you lose ALOT of velocity in your loads, to the point where going to a longer barrel length gives the same or even less velocity as a shorter one.

All in all, a capable caliber as long as the range is close, and versatile in that it can use .410 shells to boot. But don't expect stellar .45 colt performance out of that gun.

Personally, I would rather stick with a single shot 12 gauge with light loads for grouse (1 ounce, a 20 gauge duplication load) and rifled slugs for the big stuff.
 
The .45 colt just because of bigger case size can be loaded hotter than the .44 Rem Mag.

But you would want to a pistol that can handle it!

You might think Ruger Blackhawk! bigger backstrap and such!


bob;)
 
our forefathers used it effectivly for everything from bunny rabbits to buffalo.... don;t be scared, just practice practice practice.

out forefathers used guns that for the most part where less accurate, ammunition that was less accurate and with more variables to deal with... with modern ammunition and staying within 75-100 yds you will be able to kill cleanly anything walking.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom