44 mag rifle deer hunting

[LiveFire]

Ive been using a CVA 44 magnum scout rifle in southern Michigan since it became legal to do so several years back. I tried a 450bm ar and cva and went back to my 44. Ive always enjoyed it more. It is relatively "cheap" to load for. I am coming to the last box of my preferred bullet, 270gr speer deep curl and am wondering what others have used with good results. I have used the hornady 225gr ftx bullet with good results at range. Under 50yds or so the speeds I loaded them at seemed to be too much for a pistol bullet. Has anybody used the 265ftx? I believe its designed for the 444 marlin. OAL isnt much of a concern. Theres a lot of room in these CVA rifles. Ive piled up a lot of deer between 120-150yds using the deep curl.

 

[vonb]

240 gr XTP. I've used this in a muzzleloader as well as in .44 mag and it always works.

 

[JSH]

No help really. Last bunch of jacketed .44’s I shot was out of a new FA years ago. I have shot nothing it cast since.
My lever gun has digested cast since I got it and has taken a truck load of deer over the years.

 

[LiveFire]

No help really. Last bunch of jacketed .44’s I shot was out of a new FA years ago. I have shot nothing it cast since.
My lever gun has digested cast since I got it and has taken a truck load of deer over the years.

Ive considered cast and will probably try them at some point. Do you have a favorite bullet?

 

[JSH]

Favorite, that’s tough. Weight wise I prefer a 240-270. My lever gun does not like the 270, twist issues in Marlins wisdom.
I would check your twist. If it will stabilize I would look at 270-310 grain just to take advantage of the rifle length. Several companies offer small lots to test drive and see what works or you like if you don’t cast, that is a whole new rabbit hole.
Also I would suggest slugging to see what the the throat and the muzzle measure. A choke at the muzzle is fine. If it’s bigger than the throat, not good but can be worked around.
Hard cast is not an answer to leading, proper size is king.
Should not need a gas check, but they can help lot with a one and done choice.

 

[LiveFire]

Thanks for the information. I believe the rifling twist is 1:20 on these and as such I find it likes the heavier bullets. Although when loaded way out of the case the 225ftx shoots really well. Your suggestion of 270-310 is probably spot on. Id imagine a wide flat nose type bullet would be the best design type? I dont currently cast but have everything to do it aside from the mold for whatever bullet I want. I had planned on casting for this rifle at some point as im tired of chasing in stock notices for the bullets it likes.

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

I also have used the 240 xtp/sabot out of a muzzleloader. Shooting it @ much higher velocities than a pistol. Always great mushrooming performance. Longest shot was 146 yards(open sights).

 

[LiveFire]

I have a couple hundred of them. Accuracy was not great in my rifle with the 240xtp but honestly I didnt spend much time with it. I found the 270 speer and stopped looking after trying a few different powders. Guess I should revisit the 240xtp.

 

[SSL]

If you decide on cast bullets and think you will be shooting quite a few, consider NOE molds. I have set for .44 at .433" that casts quickly and clean. Great people to deal with. Look at their website and then give them a call for special options you might want. Good people.

 

[Minshooter]

Every deer I've shot with a .44 Mag using a 300gr XTP had a wound channel that resembled
those from 12ga Foster slugs. Have never found a bullet; all have punched clear through.
The 300 XTP is also the most accurate for me, out to 200 yards. The 300 Nosler is about the same
for accuracy, but the XTP/AA#9 performs so well on deer that I've stayed with it.

 

[H2OBUG]

I shoot a 240 XTP and a 240 REM HP out of my CVA. They shoot the same POI. Both shoot 1.5”ish at 100
I have some 300 XTPs loaded long I may try.
See how they do.

 

[Mark W]

I shot a doe at 100 yards last year with 240 Gr XTP out of a Henry lever gun and it performed really well. The blood spray was actually quite spectacular.

 

[JSH]

NOE, Miha or Accurate Molds, I have all three and all are stellar products. I lean towards AM molds as you can spec them for what alloy you like and totally design or tweak a current one. I tired of those made for the masses, I had numerous 357 and 44 molds, all with the same number. No two were alike, design or weight wise. Don’t even get me started on 41 mag molds.
The 270 Speer is a dandy bullet for the 44, not overly heavy or light. I think it is a good do all weight for a jacketed bullet.
I wish them to get back making .475’s, I would sell all my molds and commit to 3-4K of them myself, if I made two phone calls I know we would be knocking on the door of close to 10K if not more.

The 357 and 44 are very good carbine cartridges.

 

[LiveFire]

Well it sounds like for jacketed bullets I really need to tinker with the xtp line again. My accuracy requirements are at 100yds, 3rds into 3" or less. The 270 currently puts 3 into 1-1.5". Sounds like the xtp will do just that. I do not remember what powders I used when I originally tried loading the 240xtp. Currently using h110 in the 270 load with cci350 primers and LilGun with the 225ftx. One of those I will have to use. Im worn out developing loads for other guns then cant find that powder two months later. I have 7lbs of each.

Those that use lilgun or h110 what primers do you use? I have cci350 and winchester large pistol. Do you really need the cci350 for these loads? Ive heard h110 can be hard to set of with a standard primer in cold weather but Ive only ever used cci350 with that powder. Thanks for all the experience and insight guys.

 

[Mark W]

I‘m using H110 and CCI 350s with 240 Gr XTPs. My groups at 100 yards run around 2”, but I honestly didn‘t try very hard because 2” groups were more than good for my purposes.

 

[LiveFire]

Thats kinda my thing too. I want what I, the gun, and ammo are capable of but realistically 4-5" groups at 100yds is sufficient for whitetail.

 

[Bottom Fodder]

Back in the day I killed a lot of deer with a 44 revolver using the Speer 240 gr. half jacket simi wad cutter, lot of exposed lead. Not sure if you even get them now or how they will feed in your gun

 

[LiveFire]

Back in the deer I killed a lot of deer with a 44 revolver using the Speer 240 gr. half jacket simi wad cutter, lot of exposed lead. Not sure if you even get them now or how they will feed in your gun

I'll take a look. Thanks.

 

[LiveFire]

Also I would suggest slugging to see what the the throat and the muzzle measure. A choke at the muzzle is fine. If it’s bigger than the throat, not good but can be worked around.

Do you have a recommendation on what to use for a slug? I slugged a 357 barrel years ago with an egg style sinker made of pure lead but im too inexperienced to know if that is the right kind to use. Should I go from breech to muzzle? Lubricate the "slug" at all? Again thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[MQ1]

I don’t know…I absolutely love my heavy 260 to 325 cast bullets for my lever actions and for my hunting pistols….but if I knew my average shots were going to be over 100 yards I may seriously entertain the 265 FTX…especially in a single shot. Those heavy casts are flying bricks….up close and personal they are awesome and devastating…but they do fly like bricks.

I’ve seen graphics that make the 265 FTX look like it is cannelured for both the .444 Marlin and the .44 Magnum. In any case, a Lee Factory Crimp die will make it work as long as you have the throat (which is probably the case). I do that with a couple of my bigger cast bullets that were made for my .444 Marlins


FWIW,

MQ1