.44 Special

[Mike in Virginia]

What do you think about a .44 Special, factory loaded, for deer?  My new favorite gun is a Ruger Flattop in .44 Special.  Range work proved the best load is Double Tap's 180 grn. jhp., 1150 fps out of a 4" inch gun. 
 
I've always hunted withy handloaded .45 Colt, 300 grain bullets, over a healthy dose of 2400, velocity unknown.  It works fine, but I'd really like to try the .44 Spl.  Never killed an animal with a .44 Spl., but killed plenty with loaded down .44 Magnum.  What do you think?     

[Mikey]

Mike:  Congrats on your new Flattop, that should be a sweetie and a 180 gn 44 caliber bullet at 1150'/sec is certainly adequate for Whitetail and should be good for at least 50 yds (my eyes..).  The hollowpoint however is not my idea of the way to go, especially hollowpointed ammo that may have been developed for personal defense; if it fiils with hide on the way in and fails to expand you have lost any possible advantage of the design and are literally shooting a pointed nose bullet. 
 
The 44 is really nice to shoot, very versatile and there are tons of medium range loads for the 44 Spl using better bullets for what you want to do without getting into magnum loading areas and that Flattop would be sweet with just about any of them, I believe. 
 
My choice would be a standard Keith style 240/245 gn swc.  This is one of the preferred slugs for the 44 spl/mag and is a much better critter gitter than just about anything else except possibly what Veral Smith has created in the LBT line.  Moderate loads with heavy bullets are preferred by many, my own self included, for their superior penetration (my words) and are as accurate as I am to the max distances I would hunt with a load like that.  The Double Tap loads you mentioned sound pretty close to magnum levels I think, and you really don't need that for what you intend to hunt, and a good cast load will give you more, I firmly believe.  Have fun. 

[Catfish]

I don`t think that the deer will know the difference. With a bad hit they`ll keep on going and with a good hit they won`t. It`s the same as the 44 mag., just don`t shoot quite as far. 

[jimster]

Have not shot a deer with a 44 spl, but have killed one with a .45 Colt 250 grain cast fn going only 850-900 fps.  Busted both shoulders, all the way though and out. (close range, approx 15 yrds) I can't think of one reason why a .44 250 grain cast bullet going about the same speed would be any different at all.  The .44 heavy bullets of equal weight are longer than a .45 Colt, some might say that is an advantage, but either way, same weight, same speed...same results.  I have not tried the lighter faster bullets for hunting, so someone who has would need to tell us what those do to deer.  I think I would agree with Mikey, 240/245 gr swc for hunting, I like the Keith style 250 grain from Mt. Baldy so far in my flattop.  I'm going to try 240 grain cast I got from somewhere else as soon as I can find the time.  I can say that a heavy cast bullet at moderate speed won't blow your eardrums out like a high pressure load either, and they will penetrate and break bone and keep going in a straight line.

 

[BigMuddy]

I have used a Keith bullet and a 210 gr. Gold Dot to take deer with a 44 special. Both worked fine but the GD moving at 1150 fps did do a better job. I had a better blood trail and the deer taveled less distance.

Dan

[reliquary]

I've never used a .44 Special, but have several kills with a Ruger .45 Colt, ~250 Keith over 2400 in the old days and Unique these days.  Moderate loads, nothing near the .44 mag level, but they did  a good job on deer, back when I hunted. And they do a good job on an occasional feral pig these days.
 
There's no reason the .44 wouldn't do the same with the Keith-style slug.  Go for it.

[Larry Gibson]

I've killed several deer with the .44 Special out of 4-6" barreled revolvers.  Soft lead HPs (swaged or cast) in the 200 - 225 gr range always killed quicker and left a better blood trail.  Velocities ran from 950 - 1150 fps depending on bullet and load.  The Double Tap should work fine as does the Gold Dot Speer loads as mentioned.  Also take a look at Federals 225 gr soft lead SWCHP.
Also as mentioned bullet pl;acement is critical.
 
Larry Gibson
 

[tatonka]

A 44 special loaded with a 240 gr hard cast bullet around 900-1100 fps is the ticket for whitetail deer. I've never shot a whitetail with my 44 special that didn't have an exit wound and a great blood trail. Actually, a 44 special will do anything a 44 mag will do on a whitetail out to 75 yards unless you take one of the "Texas heart shots". Good shooting.

[Ranch13]

I don't think much of the 44 special factory loads for hunting, velocity is to low and the bullet shape not the best.
 Howsomever if you reload the 44 with a Keith bullet and jazz it up using either Elmer or Skeeters favored loads then it turns into a magnificent hunting cartridge. Unique,bludot, and 2400 are my favored powders in the cartridge.

[HGunner]

I see an FA 44 special with 5.5" barrel in my future.  I plan on taking it to the deer woods from time to time.  I would love to hear details about your favorite hunting loads for this revolver.

[WyoStillhunter]

I am jealous of those who can legally hunt deer with .45 Colt and .44 Special.
 
Here in Wyoming handgun ammo must generate 500 ft. lbs. at 100 yds. to be legal for big game or trophy game.  That puts the threshold at .41 Magnum (maybe) or .44 Magnum for sure.
 
I have heard the regional enforcement coordinator say specifically that "the .45 Colt won't qualify."  He is correct by the letter of the law but the law does not take into account actual field performance capabilities of non-magnum loads as discussed above.
 
Maybe I will just have to take deer hunting trips back to my native Missouri to hunt whitetails with sensible handguns.