Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Ruger No. 3 - 44 mag

Hey all, nice to be here. Haven't been active on a forum in a while, though this one seems very much my speed. Looking forward to it.

So this rifle, I own it. I inherited it from my grandfather over 20 years ago. It shoots beautifully. I took a good sized whitetail doe with it just this past evening, every bit of 120 yards. That was one of the closer shots I've had at this hunting spot I have on the edge of two fields. I trust this rifle with my life inside of 100 yards, but outside that I get nervous, and as stated less than 100 is more rare for me. More common to see 150-300 yard shots.

Growing up in Michigan, these shots aren't what I'd call rare(lots of farm field), but it's usually plenty easy to keep the shots well under the 100 Mark, given all the woods, but that's just not the situation I'm in. So I closed the season with that Doe, and I'm wanting to make some decisions for next season, taking this next year to possibly acquire and become familiar with a new rifle.

Do sell this one, and invest in something a bit more universal? Or hold onto it, possibly modify for 444? Oh man, that last one sounds amazing. But I do realize the rarity of this gun, so butchering it seems a bit destructive to something that someone else may be seeking. If I switch off of this gun, I'm likely in the direction of either 270 or 308 maybe. Flat shooting, great long range, not overly destructive, good ammo variety, etc. Thoughts?

Thanks all!

DO NOT sell, trade or modify the rifle you got from your Grandfather. If you want something different to gain yourself some range, then buy yourself another rifle. 270's and 308's are plentiful.

I agree. Keep that rifle as is. It came from your grandfather.

There are plenty of cheap rifles out there capable of doing what you need if money is a concern. You have all year to save up.

-Jake

+2.......if money is a major issue there are many rifles that can be had in the $300-350 range that can serve your purpose while holding on to a rare configuration, family heirloom. Trust me you can’t get it back!

PennDog

p.s. welcome to the Campfire!!

Thank you all for the replies. I kind of figured I would get a strong "don't sell that you son of a..." from most folks, and I totally get it. I don't think my family is the norm. We don't really function on much sentimental value, more practical value.

I guess the closest I come to being sentimental is doing or not doing something on principle. For instance not modifying this gun on principle that there's so few of them, and that seems kind of crazy to modify something with dwindling numbers.

Also, yes, I do have the next year to gather something else. It's not that it's necessarily difficult finances to figure out, the guns I'm looking for are basic and easy to find. My mind just to doesn't like investing extra/new funds into the hunting budget if I have something within the hunting tools to get the job done.

This reply isn't supposed to be a justification for selling it, because it was more of an idea I was kicking around, and I was likely going to sell or keep based on response of rarity of the gun. High rarity = keep, moderate rarity = sell. Figuring maybe someone that would actually gain an attachment to it would appreciate it more.

I promise I'm not a monster, haha, I just wasn't raised/born with the sentimental bone. Hey, it helps reduce clutter, haha. Thanks all!

In the spirit of keeping this rifle, are there some practical ways to make it a solid 150-200 yard gun, either by store bought rounds or reloaded custom rounds? I mean, I know 44 mag is not a huge round, so not expecting miracles. Just trying not to write it off out of ignorance. Thanks!