.44 vs.45 cal bullets

[Maccool]

I have a older (2006) CVA Optima without the quick breach plug thingy and use BH 209 and use (black)harvester crush rib sabots with 240gr  .45 cal xtp/mag bullets right now and was wondering if I went to the 240gr .44 cal with the appropriate (green)sabots does it make a difference , one seem to shoot any better than the other. I'm asking cause I'm starting to get in to reloading and I have four 44 mag firearms and would like to be able to use the same bullet in the optima.

[Busta]

Typically the .45's shoot better with the thinner petals, but not always. There are several more choices in sabots and bullets for the .45's than the .44's. I have some rifles that really shoot the .44's well though, so I would buy some green MMP and Harvester smooth and crush rib sabots and give some of your bullets a whirl.
 
There is really only one way to know for sure, and your rifle may really like them. Not many deer that can live on the difference anyways.

[Muddly]

My( former) Omega , as well as my buddy's, prefer 44/50's while my Black Diamond XR prefers 45/50's. Its strange sometimes. The same manufacturer, the same barrel specs and production equipment had such different results. One thing I've learned is the 44/50 combo tolerates warm/hot barrels much better the the 45/50. More plastic to soften up is the apparent difference. Load development does give one a sense of pride, standing over a critter( or gawking at a target) realizing this is as much a part of the hunt as any other.

[flintlock]

I prefer the .44s  for a couple of reasons...The first is my Knight with the
.430 Hornady 300gr XTPs and the plain Harvester sabots shoot them very well and they kill deer very well...
 
I've never bought in to the theory that the thinner black sabots fall away faster than the thicker green ones so they are more accurate...Every gun I've sighted in with either the 240 or 300s in .430 diameter have been able to group very close or inside an inch with the Harvester sabots...
 
Now part of this is I still use FFF Goex in my inlines and start at 80grs of powder and go up to 100 in 5 gr increments...I've never had a gun that wouldn't give a good group within those charges...
 
The Hornady .430 XTP in 240 gr is a classic bullet for deer within the inline commumity...
 
Also, check out the ballistic coefficient of the .430 Hornady in 300gr...It's fairly streamlined and I find I'm able to sight in 2 inches high at 100 yards with 85grs FFF Goex and I'm only about 3 inches low at 150...
 
Finally, .45 caliber bullets in a regular MMP-24 are still fairly hard to load...The green sabots are thicker so they compress a bit easier and load a bit easier without going to a crush rib type sabot...In other words in my opinion they load just right in my guns...
 
But to answer your question, yes, .44 caliber bullets in 240-300grs kill just as dead as .45 calibers...

[Landngroove]

The only way to know is to try each in the ML. My T/C Thunderhawk is very accurate with .44,240 grain XTP's, green sabot, but does not shoot a .45, 250 grain XTP, with a black sabot nearly as well. Ditto my T/C Firehawk, but it likes .44, 225 grain FTX's instead. My Omega, and Encore like .45's, with the black sabots, and 250 grain Shockwaves, (Omega),and XTP's (Encore). So do some experimenting, and you will find a load your gun likes, and you will have fun doing it!

[SHOOTALL]

My TC encore shoots 45's  better .