Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 454 Casull vs bigger calibers question

The 45 colt is one of the best calibers when properly loaded. Definetly my personal favorite!

One of my all-time favorites as well!

My personal favorite as well, not much a 45 Colt can't handle

The 475L, 500L, 500 JRH in a FA or Ruger all recoil more with top loads than a 454. A 475 loaded to 1200 fps instead of 1400fps is much more shootable load and lacks nothing on game

This mirrors my experience with the same pistol. The only pistol I've ever shot a dozen times and then sold because it was so miserable....

It does make a very good 38+P revolver, though. The holster can weigh more than the gun.

Ive hunted with a 8 3/8" or more recently a 10 5/8" 44 mag S&W and a 10" 445 dan wesson super mag for decades, when the 500 s&w came out I was convinced for awhile I had to have one, but after trying a few dozen shots from a friends 500, S&W and found it a bit too large and heavy and I began,looking back at the results Ive had with my current revolvers, I no longer see the need, so Ill continue with what I have a 44 mag with a 10" barrel has zero problems pushing a hard cast 300 grain past 1400 fps and the 445 pushes the same bullets to near 1600fps (basically the 454 power range) both pistols shoot thru large hogs and exit.
if your punching fairly large holes thru game from most angles and having the bullets exit I don,t see added power as a huge plus.
and while Id easily admit a 500 S&W or 454 can be loaded to hit harder I don,t see the need, the largest game Im ever likely to hunt is black bear or ELK and either of my current revolvers has been well proven to be more than adequate so why go the extra cost or put up with more recoil.

http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=000152660650

http://www.handloads.com/loaddata/default.asp?Caliber=44%20Magnum&Weight=All&type=Handgun

http://www.handloads.com/loaddata/d...type=Handgun&Order=Powder&Source

I agree. There is a point where enough is enough. When I bought the 454 I was actually looking for another Freedom Arms .44 mag. There are a few dozen used 454's available on the gun auction sites at any time, and I found one locally that was absolutely pristine, right down to the price tag still in the box. I got it at too good a price to pass up, and I reload so it is no problem tailoring loads. I don't know that I'll ever shoot full house loads as I find them to be vicious to shoot, and unnecessary for killing elk.

So, why must we learn this the hard way? Did we really think we could do better?

I have been having issues with my RB .454 when shooting deer. I seem to never get a blood trail and the deer runs away like it has not been hit and i have lost more deer than found.

I have used a couple bullets, and the same result. I am thinking that the bullet is blowing through too fast and not mushrooming or creating a initial shock. I currently am using hornady 300gr. XTP mag's loaded at book max.

My chrono says 1,450 fps when the book says 1,600 with the same length barrel. Would i be better loading a 250gr. barnes or partition?

I find the recoil more sharp and fast than my buds .50AE which is more of a push.

How far are they away?


You know, if you could tree or trap them and get good and close, I'll bet they'll work 30 percent quicker than a wide, flat cast or softnose cast....

last one was 15yds broadside, farthest was 40 yds.

Shoot for bone.

Sorry for the sarcasm; it had me thinking about another thread.

Quite honestly I've seen similar results from the XTP.

Have you tried the Freedom Arms JSP's?

No go on the bone, shot 2 at 20 yds quarter to, i aimed for the lead shoulder and it hopped away holding up the one shoulder, no blood, just hair on both, the other one acted like it was never hit and these were smaller deer. Really fustrating.

I never used the FA bullet.

The FA bullet has a nice, squarish meplat, which helps when they don't open.


The biggest issue with Casull bullets (in my VERY limited experience) is that they are designed not to deform at the base, and most jackets aren't tapered, so deforming at the front is also suspect. When they don't open, holes/wounds are smallish and are far smaller than a wadcutter or large meplat cast bullets.

A lighter XTP or the two you mention would work better, although they are a bit pricey for pistol fodder and you need to watch pressures.

Personally, I'd load up a Keith (Lyman 4452429) of RCBS SAA-270 to 1,000-1,200 fps and watch them fold....

Those FA bullets are really tough and not meant to expand much if at all. Wish they would produce the 300 grainers again.

Yep, most certainly to prevent core slippage and excessive base obturation.

I once thought the 300gr. Sierra JSP would be about perfect for 45 Colt levels, but on deer at eighty paces and another just feet away, I found them lacking expansion and the ability to keep that square face.

The older style plow handle can be painful to shoot with a powerful enough load. For me, it us just tolerable when pushing a 335 WFN to 1106 fps from my 4-5/8" NMBH 45 Colt. In a 5-1/2" Bisley, it's a pussy cat with the Bisley grip. As far as the effectiveness of the 335 gr @ 1100 fps. I'll let the following speak for itself.

Alan

The .454 M83's are pretty easy to find for sale, used. The other calibers not so much

Nice bull GSSP! Was that in Utah?
I used the 325 WFN at 1300 in my old .44. It worked well, on the one big animal I used it on.
Before selecting it I read that the wide, flat nose with square edges cuts a good hole that doesn't just close up behind the bullet, as round nose bullets were said to.