Author Topic: 45 ACP FOR HUNTING (Read 3516 times)

Bugflipper · « **Reply #30 on:** July 13, 2007, 08:54:41 AM »

Over the years I have shot several deer with a 45 acp. The bullets I favor are the gold dots, they seem to expand well in the 230 gr. For several years I used a 45 lc as well which was close to the 45 acp round I carry now, same results they made it to the pot. I pretty well carry the pistol for personal protection since meth cooks are tired of getting busted and have moved out to the woods to set up shop. Generally the deer I have taken were 2-20 yards away and usually to steep of an angle to be trying to position the rifle. Since I have never had a deer get away after the 45 acp was used I have a lot of confidence in it. However, that is limited to a back up and not a primary, there are to many far better pistol calibers out there.

Mikey · « **Reply #31 on:** July 14, 2007, 01:09:24 AM »

northernhunter: as has now been said a number of times, it can be done and has been done but the 45 acp is not the best choice for the job. Mikey.

northern hunter · « **Reply #32 on:** July 15, 2007, 02:40:59 PM »

Thanks guys for all your comments,I know there are alot better rounds out there but I have a 45,I can't hunt with it up here in Ontario Canada.but my cousin in the USA will let me use his if I go down there.I always wanted to shoot a deer with a pistol,so it will be a 45.I will practise with mine and limit my shots.
Thanks again.

Dusty Miller · « **Reply #33 on:** July 16, 2007, 09:26:18 AM »

Ah, the People's Republic of Canada! If you ever decide to move to the states, come to The People's Republic of California, you'll feel right at home. Good luck with the 45 ACP. If it weren't for the plethora of other big bore handguns in my safe I'd use the same thing. Heck, if its good 'nuff for a stoked up meth freak it'll take down deer.

NONYA · « **Reply #34 on:** July 16, 2007, 08:56:44 PM »

So you can bring your handgun down here but i cant bring one up there?HTH does that work?

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #35 on:** July 16, 2007, 11:47:58 PM »

Nonya I guess you cant discount a gun because of one incidense. I hunted one year with a #1 458 mag and was having a poor year. Had a small buck come in through the trees at about 75 yards and like a dumb *** took a not so great shot. Bullet clipped the liver and after tracking was put down with a .250 savage. Now i cant look at that and say the 458 isnt enough for deer and the 250 is. Im sure that if that 45acp bullet was placed in even one lung that deer was walking dead. SHOT PLACEMENT is what kills not caliber. About Canada. I once passed on a cow moose hunt that was basically free because for one it was for a cow and for another i couldnt use a handgun. I was probably more stupid then there laws. I have another complaint with Canada. When i was young and a little wilder we use to go accross the border into Saulte Ontario and go to the strip clubs. Theyd let me go there but not bring one back HTH does that work!!

30-30man · « **Reply #36 on:** July 17, 2007, 04:25:27 PM »

Out of a short barrel, any pistol round is marginal at times for deer. I've seen a feral hog shot with a 6 inch barrel 357 hp and it squealed and ran for miles. It was a heat shot at that, right in the top of the head. We finally found it and it even had enough energy to cross a highway. Now I know them hogs are tough but I was a little disapointed. Then I've seen deer shot with a 357 leveraction and they dropped on the spot. IF I was hunting with a pistol, a good 44mag revolver would be about the best thing going.

Ak.Hiker · « **Reply #37 on:** July 17, 2007, 04:50:23 PM »

I was out hiking today and had a chance to test out some 45 acp loads on some moose bones. The moose was killed by wolves in the winter. I set up a leg bone as well as some other bones in front of a stump. The Hornady 230 TAP +P broke thru the leg bone and flattened out as well as lost its jacket. It did not have any penetration after going thru the leg bone. I also shot several 230 Double Tap ball loads with the Speer TMJ bullet. This bullet had no problem busting thru bones and then going thru the backstop. I did recover one of the TMJ bullets and the front part of the jacket had sheered off but the bullet held together and looked like a flat point hard cast. I also tested a 180 Federal 357 Cast Core and it had no problem going thru the bones and penetrated about the same as the 45 ball. That cast bullet also expanded. After seeing what a heavy bone would do to a 230 XTP bullet I sure would not want to use it on a big critter.

NONYA · « **Reply #38 on:** July 17, 2007, 05:26:39 PM »

Try that on a fresh bone wrapped in sinew,muscle and thick hide,you may find that your test is worthless.

Ak.Hiker · « **Reply #39 on:** July 17, 2007, 06:06:14 PM »

Spending an afternoon in the woods and testing out different handgun loads sure is not a worthless way to spend my time. Laying around the house or watching TV all day now that is worthless. I just thought some of the guys may be interested on how several different handgun loads reacted when going thru moose bones.

NONYA · « **Reply #40 on:** July 17, 2007, 08:15:55 PM »

Its not even close to the results you will get on a live animal,whats the purpose,the 45acp round would brake elephant bones,it dont make it a good elephant round.....I have seen it "tested" on live game and it was anything but impressive.

Mikey · « **Reply #41 on:** July 18, 2007, 12:52:18 AM »

As has been said, the 45 acp is not the best choice for the job.

I think that in this case Nonya is correct - while the 45 acp may break through dead animal bones it may not perform so well on a live animal.

And no 'testing' is in any way a waste of time or a worthless endeavor. Testing, so to speak, is how we got to where we are now with guns and bullets, whether it was old Elmer Keith experimenting with his bullet designs or (the almost equally old) John Taffin, or others, testing the penetrability of other cartridges or designs.

It has been said that a 44 magnum with a 255 gn cast swc slug at betwixt 950-1000'/sec is all that is needed for whitetail and other game. That leaves to reason that the 45 acp with a 230 gn cast swc at 950'/sec should be able to perform the same. Maybe. The results for both may lay in the bullet design; the swc design which has the tendency to cut/punch on through without being thrown off course by heavy bone structures or heavy tissue whereas the 'rounder-nosed' design is used to enhance semi-auto feeding and fucntional reliability but does little to enhance penetration on game animals.

At this time there are only two semi-wadcutter bullets designed for the 45 acp - the old Lyman 452423 and the newer MagTech 230 gn fmj-swc. There are those designed for the 45 Colt that can be made to work in the acp but they run a somewhat heavier, about 10% or so. I'm in the process of testing the MagTech bullet - first tests were pretty positive in terms of feeding and accuracy; next round of tests will involve penetrability.

I'll keep you posted. Mikey.

Savage · « **Reply #42 on:** July 18, 2007, 02:22:11 AM »

I bet AKHiker knows that his field tests do not reflect bullet performance on live animals. It did however, demonstrate the lack of penetration of the XTP in .45acp after striking bone. In this context, I wager the majority of us find the results interesting. I appreciate his sharing his experience with us.

Savage

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #43 on:** July 18, 2007, 06:23:41 AM »

Savage, I agree.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #44 on:** July 18, 2007, 07:45:42 AM »

last i looked we were talking deer. Not Elephant and not animals with big bones and a tough hide. Maybe we just have a bunch of lame week deer up here in nothern michingan but to be honest ive never seen one hit with any gun in any caliber that was hit in the boileroom not die and die fairly quickly. Ive got just as big of bones and muscle and a bigger layer of fat then any deer and i surely wouldnt want to bet a dime on surviving a hit to the chest with a 45 acp. Even if there were a hole group of ems and doctors standing by to keep me alive

Sorry boys but a 200 swc at 900 fps in the chest of a deer means a dead deer. It may take a leap or two but its as dead as if it were hit by a 300 mag. Ive yet to see a whitetail with a thick enough hide to turn back a bullet. Maybe i ought to consider packing my 500 more often in persuit of these bullet proof deer

ccoker · « **Reply #45 on:** July 18, 2007, 12:33:15 PM »

Lloyd,
I live in Texas and I hear all the time that a 22 caliber bullet isn't enough for deer
but I have yet to see one live to tell me different when hit in the right spot with a 223 or 22-250 with a 60g or heavier SP

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #46 on:** July 18, 2007, 05:33:00 PM »

seen it done many times and have even done it myself with a 223 and totaly agree with you. To many people anymore try to substitute marksmanship with some kind of a cannon that they figure is something they need for deer hunting. Dont get me wrong. Ive used big guns on them too but never was macho enough to preach that it is needed. Had to chuckle the other day when my buddy who owns a gunshop told me the most popular rifle hes sold in the last two years is the 300 short mag!! Anyone delusional enough to think that a 300 mag is needed for whitetail should get there heads out of there guns and ammo magazine and get out and stop at some camps and see what some of the old timers use to hunt them that have killed truck loads of deer. I hear to all the time the hogwash about wanting to ethicaly kill a deer. If your worried about hurting the poor lilttle thing then stay home because he doesnt want to die any more from your super mag then he does from my 44mag or even 45acp. Wether he takes one leap or two means nothing to me. God put him there to feed me and if he was conserned i think he would have stopped the indians from shooting them with stick bows and killing them with speers many years ago. About any gun in the hands of a marksman will kill quickly and no gun in the hands of an incompetant will avoid wounding a deer and haveing it run off to not get harvested.

Quote from: ccoker on July 18, 2007, 12:33:15 PM

Lloyd,
I live in Texas and I hear all the time that a 22 caliber bullet isn't enough for deer
but I have yet to see one live to tell me different when hit in the right spot with a 223 or 22-250 with a 60g or heavier SP

tallpaul · « **Reply #47 on:** July 20, 2007, 12:46:08 AM »

Seems I read in Graybeards post it was a target SWC load he likely used.... there is a big difference between a 600 fps load and a 900 in a .45

I have heard bad things about the light target loads we get comfortable with and load allot of verses a true fighting round

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #48 on:** July 21, 2007, 10:34:21 AM »

just got back from camp and we were shooting my ar15 with 55 grain ww softpoints and theyd blow through both sides of a 100 lb propane tank. Somehow i think theyd penetrate into a 100lb whitetail enough to do enough damage to kill it cleanly.

Quote from: ccoker on July 18, 2007, 12:33:15 PM

Lloyd,
I live in Texas and I hear all the time that a 22 caliber bullet isn't enough for deer
but I have yet to see one live to tell me different when hit in the right spot with a 223 or 22-250 with a 60g or heavier SP

Josh M. · « **Reply #49 on:** July 24, 2007, 01:30:16 PM »

I'm not here to answer the question of SHOULD you...only you can guage you skills, and decide what you SHOULD be doing.

But to the question of COULD you...yes. I know because I have. Factory 230gr Remington Golden Saber. Through shoulder and lungs at 21 yards. dropped him (largest buck I've ever seen in the Michigan woods). The recovered bullet weighed 185gr...not the right ammo choice for deer, but two quick follow up shots and it was all over.

I'd go with something with a nice flat nose, and pretend you're bowhunting when you pick your shot. - Josh M.