Whitetail and 1911

[bikerbeans]

Hi All,

Anybody hunt whitetail with a 1911 45 ACP/45 Super/460 Rowland?  A standard 1911 is legal in my state as it has a 5" barrel and shoots a straight wall cartridge greater than .356 diameter.  IF someone does, I am interested in your bullet/powder selection.

thanks

Bikerbeans

[shot1]

I have killed some deer with a 1911A1 Colt. As long as you keep the range close, 50 yards or less, and pick your shots like you would for shooting a deer with a bow it does a good job. I used a 200 gr hard cast SWC and 7 grs Unique for 1000 fps. This was 30 years ago before all the new type of expanding bullets that will expand like we have today came along. I could not have afforded those bullets back then anyway. I cast my own and hunted for meat to eat. I could killed a deer much cheaper with that pistol than with my shotgun and buckshot. I lived in east NC where there are plenty of deer. I would heart/lung shoot the deer broad side and it would put a 45 cal hole clean through them. They would run off 30 to 50 yards on average before going down for the count. The new Hornady XTP or Speer Gold Dot 200 to 230 gr bullets I would think would make a good killer on deer under the same situation. If you double lung a deer with anything it will die pretty quickly. BUT! A deer can cover a good piece of ground in that short time. If you are hunting in very thick cover and don't know that much about tracking a wounded deer you may want to go with the heaviest bullet you can shoot and with the most velocity and take out the front shoulders. They can still go a ways with broken shoulders but not as far.

[handi243]

hey shot where you at in eastern nc?

[Mikey]

I can go with what Shot1 said but would like to add a preference for cast semi-wadcutter or fmj-swc slugs in the 230 gn range at around 900'/sec.  I use a Mag-Tecg 230 gn fmj-swc or a 238 gn cast Lyman 452423 and, either slug over your choice of powder to get it accurately to 900'/sec, will easily do the job you ask for; and this load is not as heavy as the last one I used to take a Whitetail at about 40 yds. 

Many of us prefer hardcast slugs with either large metplats or sharp shoulders, or both if we can find them, as we find they penetrate through more cleanly than many soft or expanding nose slugs.  They also penetrate pretty straight on through major bone structures where soft nose slugs may well glance or slide off heavier bone and cause a non-fatal wound. 

That being said, for the 45 acp just about any carry load that launches a 200 gn slug to about 1k'/sec or a 230-240 gn slug to about 900'/sec, as long as it isn't round ball and has some sort of a metplat, should suffice for Whitetail within a 50 yd range if you can place the shot where it should go.  jmtcw.

[Thebear_78]

while im sure a good hp load in a 45 acp would work fine I'm partial to 10mm.  I had a 10mm in para ordanace double stack that did pretty well.  165-200gr loads out of the 10mm are plenty potent for whitetail.

[bikerbeans]

Thanks for the replies. 

When the weather warms up I will start my 50 yard practice.   IF I can consistently shoot a 5" group freehand at 50 yards then I will feel comfortable with my 1911 for deer. 

Regarding ammo I like the 200 grain LSCW since I buy them 2,000 @ a time to reload for my friend who shoots bullseye.  They are a little soft so I probably need to gas check them if I want to push them out at 1,000 FPS.  I will try the Unique as I have never played with that powder before. 

Are the 230 grain LSWC available commercially?  Bullet casting is not something I do.

thanks

Bikerbeans

[Kmrere42]

Here is a bullet to try,


http://www.magnusbullets.com/images/bullet%20photos/image807.jpg


215gr's might be a little light but it is a wide flat nose and comes hard cast in a 250 or 500 round box at a decent price.

Magnus has been an awesome company to deal with....


Paul

[DanChamberlain]

Biker

My favorite do everything round for the 1911 is a 225 grain hard cast truncated cone.  It gives the reliability of ball, with the ability to have a flat meplat front for target work and initiating expansion when it strikes a hard surface like a bone.  I simply do not see utility of a fast expanding hollow point of light weight and construction when looking for a hunting bullet for the .45acp.  I would save those for self defense, and go with a moderately heavy hard cast bullet. 

Regards

Dan

[bikerbeans]

I like the idea of a flat-faced cast lead slug for deer.   Kind of a mini "Buckhammer".   Since I don't cast or know anyone close who does will need to go with factory lead.  I think the 215 grn Lead from Magnus looks real promising.  Maybe gas check and load it up for 45 Super levels?  I have the brass & appropriate recoil/firing pin springs for 45 super, could be a fun little project, since all the 45 Super load data I see is for jacketed bullets.

thanks for the input.

Tom

[shot1]

handi243: I don't live in east NC anymore. I used to live in Gaston, Northampton Co. I live in TN now. I go back to NC every year to deer hunt.

[handi243]

cool

[pozoutdoors]

I use .45 super loads in my encore!! 230gr. hp at about 1100fps. I shot 2 deer with it and it did great!!!

[Ole Man Dan]

The .45 auto works well.  I used my self defense load 230 gr. Federal Hydro shock. 1 shot kill.
Went about 15 yds.
I've used a .40 cal. 180 Federal Hydro shock also. That buck went about 25 yds.
(Part of it is where you hit em)

[Mikey]

Bikerbeans:  the 238 gn lswc, Lyman bullet #452423 is available from Mt. Baldy Bullets, for one.  HTH.

[bikerbeans]

Mikey,

thanks