Author Topic: What is the best 44Mag setup? (Read 675 times)

ABaker · « **on:** June 18, 2004, 02:18:25 PM »

My local gun store has a new Contender 44 Magnum, 14 inch barrel, blued with wood grips for sale. It is selling for $459.00. I was wondering if this is a good deal, or there is something better for a 44 Mag. I am planning on putting a scope on it so if you have any suggestions your help would be greatly appreciated. I am going to use this gun to hunt for whitetail deer. If you think you know a better caliber for a whitetail that would be cool too. Tahnk you for your help.[/img]

PDM1 · « **Reply #1 on:** June 19, 2004, 06:49:34 AM »

The contender with a 14" 44 mag barrel is extremely accurate. I use one for silhouette shooting and 200 meters with open sights is no problem. If you add a scope, just pick your spot. I don't know the condition of what you are looking at, but below $400 would be a better deal. With 240 grain JSP and 20 grains of AA#9 expect better than 1500 fps. If you use 23.5 grains of H110 expect past 1600 fps. The 14" also makes recoil very managable.

ABaker · « **Reply #2 on:** June 19, 2004, 09:08:11 AM »

I am looking for a new Contender. I am also wondering what kind of scope and mounts I should use. I want something that will hold up to a 44 Mag. Red Dot? Price is an issue, something cheap but not cheaply made. Is a red dot scope good for hunting?

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #3 on:** June 19, 2004, 11:42:47 AM »

T/C mounts and Leupold or weaver rings. A red dot is good out to about 100 yards but no magnification. A good 2X scope is good also and better than the red dot for low light conditions. There is no such thing as a cheap scope or red dot that is good. What I have found is, I spend close to if not more on optics as for the gun it goes on. But a less expensive red dot that will work good is the Ultra Dot or Millet. I have an Ultra dot I use on my BFR 500MAG and it is holding up very well, over 600 rounds. A 44MAG has a lot less recoil than the 500MAG. I have a 10 inch 44MAG I just got and put 100 rounds through it and the recoil was not bad at all. I was using heavy loaded 240 gr. bullets. Even a 10 inch contender barrel is very accurate. Good luck in your quest.

Thomas Krupinski · « **Reply #4 on:** June 19, 2004, 12:39:14 PM »

Andy,

Before you buy that send me an e-mail and I will send you my phone number and we can talk a little while about Contender's and 44 mag barrels. I have a couple and may have some tips for you.

Lone Star · « **Reply #5 on:** June 19, 2004, 03:52:10 PM »

I've used Weaver bases and a variety of rings - the old Bushnells like SSK sold, now I use the Leupold Rifleman rings, three on the heavy recoilers (.45-70). SSK uses them now too.

I'd recommend you buy a used Leupold 2xEER - they are available on eBay for ca. $120-$150 if you can keep watch for a couple weeks (as I type this one is showing $117.50). They are FAR better than a cheap handgun scope (Simmons, etc.) on a .44 Mag, and they have a lifetime warranty.

The velocity difference between a 10" and 14" .44 Mag is not great; with 240-grain bullets Lyman shows around a 40-100 fps advantage, not enough to notice in the field.

mdc1 · « **Reply #6 on:** June 25, 2004, 02:37:59 AM »

I've become a big believer in Bushnell Holo-Sites. You can't beat them for ease of target aquisition. I've got one on a 14" .44 mag (Ohio deer) and a 14" 7-30 Waters (Michigan deer). I don't use any magnification (2x is available) but I also hunt in pretty tight cover. I previously used a Redfield 2.5x but didn't like all of the dancing around required to get a decent field of view, especially when shooting in awkward positions. With the Holo-sites, it's just aim and shoot, no matter how close or far the gun ends up from your eye. The only problem I ever encountered was the screw holding the sight screen in place loosened up once on the Waters, thankfully during a practice session.