41 210 XTP Performance

[rimfire]

First deer with an open sighted revolver on Saturday.  I have taken a number of deer with scoped single shots and a few with scoped revolvers, but this is my first with open sights.  Shot a small doe from about 35-40 yards with a 7.5" Redhawk 41, 210 XTP in front of 21 grains of 296 and a CCI350.  Perfect broadside shot just above the middle of the deer right over the front leg and I was surprised that I did not get full penetration.  I hit a rib going in and a rib on the off side and the bullet stopped before pentrating the off side hide.

I should be getting around 1200fps - 1250 fps according to several manuals and I was surprised I did not get an exit on a small deer at this angle.  Does this surprise any of you?  In a 44, 240XTP I have heard that it is very difficult to stop them in a deer and that they expand very little unless you are near 1300 fps at impact.  Is the 41-210 XTP that much different?  If this had been a larger deer at angle where I need to penetrate to get up through the diaphragm to the lungs I wonder if I could have had a problem.  I have this same bullet loaded much faster in a 41 Contender and I wonder whether it will penetrate well at higher velocities, or will it expand too much.

Am I reading too much into one game shot with this bullet?  I know that guys are loading this bullet in souped up 41s from Gary Reeder at near 1900 fps and say they hunt Elk with it. 

I have three 41s that were quickly becoming my primary deer guns as I like them...no other reason.  Was planning to shoot this same exact very accurate load in my 6"-S&W 657, 7.5"  Redhawk and 11" Contender until I found reason to change.    What do you think from your epxerience?

Appreciate your feedback as I am confused now.

Rimfire

[blklabs]

From what I have heard the XTP bullet works pretty well on deer .....  If you are really worried about penetration switch to a cast bullet, then you won't have that problem .....

[Bullseye]

I have shot 2 deer with the 41 Mag and a 210 gr XTP bullet.  One took 0 steps and the other took 2 steps.  Both were broadside shots and complete pass throughs.  I have no doubt about the 210 XTP effectiveness and am hunting with it this year.

[Pixsurguy]

I'd have to think that the 210 XTP would be a good choice, though I've quit using jacketed bullets almost totally in the last couple of years.

In my Smith .41s (an old M57 in 8-3/8" and a M657 in 7-1/2")  I've used Speer 220 grain half-jackets (wild boar);  212 gr. hard cast LSWC (deer), and recently the Leadhead 250 grain gas checked wide flat nose (deer).   The Speer did not go all the way thru on the pig, but they are known to be tough.  Both of the cast bullets exited.  Each deer was shot broadside with classic lung/shoulder shot.   Range was maybe 75 yards for the pig (honestly, I don't really recall for sure) and certainly  less than fifty for the deer.   I don't have a clue as to the velocity, but each load was just a hair under the max. recommended for WW296 or H110 in that caliber.

 Unfortunately, just as I dropped the hammer on the boar he moved forward and my bullet hit him in mid-ham of rear leg.  He fell down, then got up and ran off on three legs.  He only ran maybe 100 to 150 yards over a  hill and when I got to the top of that hill I put another round in him on maybe a 40 degree down-hill angle just over his left shoulder.   I could not find an exit wound, but never did find the bullet either.   I did find the one in the ham and all of the exposed lead on the 220 half jacket had been wiped off.

Neither of the two deer dropped immediately and both ran off.  I waited about 20 minutes in each case, followed the blood trai and both of them had laid down and bled out less than a 100 yards from where they were shot.

I'm going to stick with the Leadhead 250s from now on for deer or tougher game.   Have to jack up the rear sights pretty high as slow as they move though. I'll zero at 50 yds. and hold just a few inches high out to a hundred.  Not gonna shoot at anything past 100. with a .41 mag. and iron sights.

 I am using a S&W M657 with a 7-1/2" bbl (iron sights), the same gun I use for IHMSA standing.   For steel critters I use 212 gr. LSWC and zero at 100 on the pigs, up 8

 clicks for the turkeys and another five or so  for the rams.

[dakotashooter2]

I have shot about 5 deer with th XTP in 41 mag all similar shots to yours quartering slightly away. Only one passed through. The rest were found under the hide fully expanded. jacket and core intact (though close to separation)and retaining at least 90% of theri original weight. All dropped within a few yards. I can not speak for their performance on heavy bone but I had one deflect upward into the spine and tear it up pretty bad (the one that passed through. I see that as doing it's job and have no problems with it.

[safetysheriff]

in hornady's 2006 catalog that 210 gr' xtp in .41 cal' is shown as effective from 800 to 1600 fps.     its sectional density would be equivilant to approx' 229 gr's in the .44 mag' comparing a .429 diam' to a .410 diam'.   (so much for loading that 210 gr' bullet at 1900 fps' for elk......... in my opinion)

HERE'S A CONSIDERATION: Hodgdon's website shows a load of 20.0 gr's of H-110 with a 220 gr' Speer JSP going 1563 fps' out of their 10.125" test barrel (at 31,200 cup).   i'm guessing your load of 21 grs' of W-296 with a CCI-350 primer is going faster than you think out of that 7.5" RedHawk.  that is creating a lot of stress on that bullet.......causing it to behave as you saw on that doe.

i don't think you necessarily have to back off on the powder for safety's sake; BUT i think you want to do so if you are going to use that same XTP bullet from now on out of that Ruger.   and you definitely want to do some load work to slow it down for that Contender, in my opinion.

i'd try loading that Speer 220 gr' JSP for your RedHawk.   it's probably not a better bullet, as such, but is designed with different parameters -- including a slower rate of expansion i'm guessing....since it is not a hollow-pointed bullet like the XTP'.

blessings upon you,

ss'