i am thinking about getting into pistol hunting and wanted to know if the 454 Casull was going to be enough to make a clean kill and also at what range it won't be able to make a clean kill.
probably be using the heaviest loads for hunting.

I would say if you're using a revolver, your accuracy would probably be the limiting factor in range. With that in mind, you could probably go out to 100 yards if you scope the revolver, carry shooting sticks, and practice quite a bit before the hunt.

Enough gun for sure!

Yip, and think Mr. Miller's post above sums it up. The limiting factor will be your shooting ability. At what range can you consistantly/every shot/hit an 8" circle? The lungs of an elk give you about a 16" kill zone, so if you can hit 8" every time, I think that would be your effective range with that gun.

do you guys know how much energy one needs on average to drop an elk or hit vitals
reason i ask is because i would like to see what ranges i am looking at
winchester bullets are giving me a little over 1000 ft lbs at 100 yards
thats a lot but at what point do you feel the energy can't deliver a clean kill?
is it 500 ft lbs ... 800 ... is 1000 the the safe rule of thumb not to go under?

Yes.. Whan I was up in Alaska.. It seemed like just about everybody had one..

The book says that to take a deer cleanly you need roughly a 1000# of energy to be adequate! For elk sized critters you need 1200-1500 # ---Of course where you hit an elk can determine a fatal shot or not. A 30-30 rifle with a 170 grain bullet delivers 960# of energy at 200 yards a well placed shot in the heart lungs will do the trick, yet this is well under what the books recommend!
One must use good sound judgment on shot angles & distance both before pulling the trigger! (grin) It appears you have a good 100 yard gun there, use good bullets & they will get r done!!

ElkNut/Paul

thanks for the rule of thumb elkhunt1.
looking at getting one this week.
when i get her i'll be sure to post some pics and range reports for you all.

As elknut is eluding to you may as well throw those energy numbers right out the window. There is sooooooo much more to it than nust energy levels.

Bullet construction being one of the biggest. While 1500 foot pounds may be adequate for a soft expanding bullet you will not need nearly that much with a 45 caliber, heavy, hard cast bullet at lower velocity that does not expand but uses its weight and wide meplate to penetrate and create the wound channel.

Twogreat examples would be from Double Taps ammo. Their335 grain WFNGC at 1600 fps or thier 360 grain WFNGC at 1500 fps.

I would be thinking about penetration and find out what the minimum volocity is for the bullet you will use to open up and stay well above it.