.44 Mag rifle bullets for whitetail

[Red84]

I seem to do this more often than not, but I am already thinking of what .44 mag bullet I want to use for a gun I don't own yet. My oldest daughter (9) has expressed some interest in deer hunting (already been hunting small game and turkeys) and fall of 2019 I want to be able to give her the opportunity to hunt with something that recoils less than anything else I own. Where I am at in Michigan we cannot use centerfire rifles for deer hunting unless they are straight walled pistol cartridges less than 1.80" OAL. I also will be using the .44 I am sure for a walkabout gun. My question is, what kind of bullets would you suggest? I have high favor for Partitions, but it does not look like they make these in a .429 bullet. What other options? I think I might prefer a JSP over a JHP, but having success with a Barnes Expander out of my muzzleloader I am not opposed to them either. I do plan on loading for it, as I have PLENTY of brass and H110 powder left from revolver reloading. Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks.

 

[deer_shooter]

I've killed a couple whitetails with my super Redhawk shooting 240gr Hornady XTP's. At pistol ranges, those deer went down like they were hit by a semi. I also had a Ruger carbine in 44. With a stout load the recoil was similar to a 30/30. I would try Hornady XTP in 180 gr and see how those work

 

[Gunner46]

I've used a Ruger M96 for pigs , in Fla, with great success. No whitetails yet, although it's my goto here in Ohio these days, just got to get out more often.

In Fla, I used factory 180's. That was really short range work, under 50yds. CLOCKED 'EM, 1st shot every time !

Now that I'm in Ohio I have switched over to Plain Jane Win whitebox 240's. They shoot well enough to negate my desire to waste my time & money trying to chase another 1/4", or a 100fps.

Even a Monster whitetail is not a Monster needing a cannon to drop cleanly.

If you're in the 2" group, then a JSP, JSP hollowpoint, or a XTP will do better job at their end than you will at yours.

 

[MThuntr]

I've not loaded for 44mag but I see there are Swift A-Frames available. Lehigh Defense makes some interesting bullets. Of course Barnes Buster bullets would be a good option

 

[maxx]

I've killed a couple whitetails with my super Redhawk shooting 240gr Hornady XTP's. At pistol ranges, those deer went down like they were hit by a semi. I also had a Ruger carbine in 44. With a stout load the recoil was similar to a 30/30. I would try Hornady XTP in 180 gr and see how those work

This. I have killed one deer with my 44 and this is the bullet I used. I have also killed piles of deer with the same bullet out of my 50 call muzzy.

 

[cheeser]

https://www.hornady.com/ammunition/handgun/44-mag-225-gr-ftx-leverevolution#!/

 

[Red84]

This. I have killed one deer with my 44 and this is the bullet I used. I have also killed piles of deer with the same bullet out of my 50 call muzzy.

Good call, totally forgot about the XTP somehow I used this about 15 years ago out of my .50 muzzle loader as well. I think they were 300 grain, but I think I will go lighter this time around.

 

[Ben Lamb]

I load some stout stuff for the 44, and I've have zero qualms about shooting a whitetail with a 240 grain XTP. Great bullet at a great price.

 

[RUT JUNKEY]

I reload the Hornady 240gr STX....never had a problem! Shoots great out of my Ruger Deerfield Carbine.

 

[MThuntr]

I reload the Hornady 240gr STX....never had a problem! Shoots great out of my Ruger Deerfield Carbine.

Oh man I've been wanting one of those carbines...I wish Ruger would make them again. The used ones command a serious price online

 

[BrentD]

I would use a flatnosed heavy for caliber lead bullet, cast soft and shot slow. They really do work. But I know, nothing but a copper jacket will do.

 

[SFC B]

Another vote for the Hornady 240s. My son uses it in a handy rifle and has killed several deer and a pig with it.....absolutely NO issues. His longest shot has been about 110m but it was like that buck (about 165lbs) was hit by a truck.

 

[Ben Lamb]

I would use a flatnosed heavy for caliber lead bullet, cast soft and shot slow. They really do work. But I know, nothing but a copper jacket will do.

I use a 310 grain hardcast at about 1200 FPS as my bear load. It kills on both ends. I think it would punch a .430 diameter whole through a buck w/ little expansion. The soft cast would be critical here.

 

[BrentD]

I use a 310 grain hardcast at about 1200 FPS as my bear load. It kills on both ends. I think it would punch a .430 diameter whole through a buck w/ little expansion. The soft cast would be critical here.

Cast it 40:1 and shoot it at 1200 fps. I don't know why hard cast bullets even exist. How fast are you pushing it -18-1900 fps?

I have a .38-40, shoot a 180 gr at some ridiculously low velocity (7 gr of Unique), and the bullet just whistles through. Recoil is all but nonexistent and death on the FAR END ONLY, is PDQ.

 

[utah400elk]

I just built/ am building a 44 mag round for my 10 year old son for fun. I a still working on the load but have settled on a beartooth bullet 250 grn WFN GC with H110. It is still a work in progress but shows good promise. I have a Marlin 1984 that was Cerakoted, big loop lever, trigger job, tuned action, and Sims recoil pad. Very light recoil and fun to shoot. I have had a few issues with the Cerakote and had it sent back twice so far. First time was terrible, 2nd time it last less than 3 months before the finish started falling off the rifle. I am hoping the 3rd time is a charm.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Cast it 40:1 and shoot it at 1200 fps. I don't know why hard cast bullets even exist. How fast are you pushing it -18-1900 fps?

I have a .38-40, shoot a 180 gr at some ridiculously low velocity (7 gr of Unique), and the bullet just whistles through. Recoil is all but nonexistent and death on the FAR END ONLY, is PDQ.

It's about 1200 fps out of a 4" S&W M29. I bet it would be close to 1600-1800 out of a carbine.

 

[50bowhunter]

I’ve killed a bunch of deer with the xtp’s out of a muzzleloader. In my super Blackhawk I’m shooting speer deep curls. They shoot great but haven’t killed anything with them yet.

 

[tarheel]

180 grain XTP's out of my 50 ML do a bang-up job on whitetails; never had one make it very far with that bullet.

 

[Addicting]

I have used XTP to kill a lot of deer over the years. I then used them in a 44mag Ruger Super Redhawk. I shot 2 deer from a treestand and did not get a pass thru. Each deer had 2 rounds in it and didn’t leave a blood trail.

XTPs are good bullets, I would recommend the XTP Mags as they are a little harder and will increase the likelihood of a pass through.

 

[Rancho Loco]

Wide flat nose hard cast. Meplat is where it's at.