My .444 wasn't hurting me enough, so I added an older micro groove 1895 to the arsenal. Fortunately it came with a nice fat decellerator recoil pad installed. I loaded up some 300 gr Hornady HPs over H4198 and at 59 gr chrono'd 2418-2420, which is a remarkably small spread. (I've never seen that before) Also remarkable was that I came close to the published velocity of 2424 FPS with a grain less of powder. I think I read somewhere that micro groove barrels are "fast". (my 444S chrono'd some good speeds too) Anyway, I stopped at 59 gr. I haven't mounted a scope yet, but even without the added weight, recoil wasn't as bad as I expected, except that it rapped my knuckles - I see a larger lever in it's future. Calculated recoil is around 42.5 lbs. Pretty fun actually...
Who out there (if anybody) is using this bullet on deer and hog? I know it will kill them deader than disco, but how messy?? The bullet is designed for rifle velocities, so I'm hoping it holds together.
With a 6" killzone this is a true 200-215 yd load, a pretty versatile rifle.
Thanks!
