Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles .44 Rem Mag on deer???

This. I've killed a pile of deer with 44 revolvers and one with a 20" lever gun. Revolver loads pick up about 300 fps in a 20" barrel. A lead SWC or LFN will usually hold together better than the kind of JHP you find in most factory revolver loads.

To answer the original question, a 44 rifle is a good choice for deer out to 100 yards or a bit more.


Okie John

I too have used the 44 magnum out of a handgun to kill whitetail deer. Handgun has been a 7.5” Redhawk, and a 6” S&W 629 and the cartridge worked well. It should be even better out of a long gun.

It works

They did, prior to the re-introduction of the 1894. Winchester made some 94s too.

I killed a doe with a 629, but spined her, so not a learning experience. Shot another with a 77/44 at less than 50 yards and the internal damage from the 240gr HP was comparable to any other deer shot with a CF rifle. She dropped and rolled down a steep bank.

Yes


Very

Yes. For a few years

I don't recall how far out he may have shot, but my father did just fine on deer with a 10" barreled Contender pistol. I'm pretty sure he used a 240 grain Sierra JHC and 24 grains of H110.

I see a couple of others already answered that Marlin did make a 336 in 44 magnum. Sorry I was late. Mine is an accurate rifle like most Marlins and much smoother than the Model 94s I've tried. Wish they hadn't gotten so high priced, I'd get another....

Great results here. Anywhere from 5 yards to maybe 50 yards.

Single shot Handi-rifle and CVA Hunter.

You can kill elephant with a 44 handgun, but in a rifle it's iffy for coyote.

I have an affinity for 44’s and besides revolvers I have a 788 & a 336 in 44. Where I shoot white-tails 75% of the time a 44 rifle would be perfect. I’m not sure about the 300 yard shots tho.
I think I’d try to limit shots to 200 yards.
They come with pre-expanded bullets. I’d likely stay with Keith or Thompson style cast.
A deer won’t likely stop a 44 250 grain bullet and if it did the bullet was likely traveling lengthwise.

There was a time when railroad cars worth of deer were taken with the .44/40. The .44 Magnum is not less capable.

They work


Though I usually just use a handgun:

Killed an average sized 5x5 Bull Elk at a shade past a hundred yards with a 310 grain SWC. One shot behind the shoulder seemed to do the trick.




Shoot right through those tough shoulders on piggies too:

Used late FIL’s Henry in that caliber to whack a few, mostly high shoulder with 240 JSP, all bang flop. Under 100 it is good medicine. Can be for another 50 or more if you know your gun and load. Big enough a heavy hard cast will do the job at fairly low velocities.

I'd skip the HPs, too.

I shot a few deer with a Ruger 96/44. The first couple were with the 240gr XTP HP, and while effective, they made a mess and I got a lot of shrapnel in my meat. Switched to jacketed FN 240s, still had dead deer, but without biting into bits of bullet later.

Never had any bang/flops, but none of them ran much over 100 yards, either.

I had a brief fling with a Ruger Model 44 shooting Hornady 240 grain XTP's. I managed to plug a buck at about 100 yards, and he piled up within a reasonable distance.

Story and pics here:

Bob's Model 44 and the Buck

My conclusions out of this exercise were that 44 Mag out of a carbine was plenty good for a whitetail at 100 yards-- not stellar, but quite adequate. I could find no fault except that. . . well, there is nothing bad about overkill. I've hunted with 30-06, 308, and even 35 Whelen. I won't say anything bad about 44 Mag except that it is not a 30-06. After this exercise, I finally gave up on the idea of short-range deer rifles and cartridges. My next "short-range" rifle purchase was a 7mm-08. My buck this year was taken with a 308 WIN at 80 yards.

If I wanted a chambering for the PCR states like Ohio, I would seriously consider a 44 Mag, but I'm not itching for another one.

I’ve killed quite a few with my Winchester 94 Trapper in .44 Mag, using the Hornady 240 XTP and H110. They usually run 40-50 yards with boiler room shots and leave good blood trails, with good exit wounds. That XTP is an excellent bullet, and I use it in my muzzleloader at similar speeds. It never disappoints.

It certainly killed them, but with this particular rifle, I limit my shots to 50-75 yards, even though I know it’s effective beyond that range.

I don’t use it much anymore, but keep it for its handiness and as a good self defense rifle.

Same here, 44 Ruger International and whatever brand of 240 grain JHP or JSP were on hand has always done the job.

Within reasonable range I would think it would be very effective. If you are worried about hollow points use soft points.

Works very well. 77/44 , Handi rifle with 270 gr hard cast or a 240 gr XTP .