Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

I have hunted deer for the past 40 years but for the past 10 years I have been hunting with a custom built Contender in 7-30 Waters. I hunt in the western UP of Michigan where a long shot is 150+ yards and most shots are in the 60 - 100 yard range.

I recently inherited my father-in-laws mid-60s vintage Ruger Super Blackhawk 44 mag with a 7½-inch barrel. I have shot the gun many times over the years and the gun even won some early silhouette matches. However my father-in-law loved to test loads and so rarely shot any single load with consistency. I have boxes of ammo with various loads and bullets, mostly cast and swaged GC SWC. All of which shoot pretty good. Probably the most consistency is the primary use of H110 and 2400 powders.

Here is crux of my inquiry: I want a single load for deer hunting at ranges under 100 yards. Over 100 yards, I will be using my Contender. I have had a Doctorsight (holographic sight) mounted on the Blackhawk. (If you have never used one of these you really should check out the Doctersight - awesome!).

I think I want to stick with H110 powder. Given that, I would like to shoot a jacketed HP bullet in 240 - 300 grs. My question is: What JHP bullets give the best accuracy? I'm not too concerned about bullet performance given the short range on thin skinned whitetails and I usually am hunting in snow and the lack of other hunters gives me the luxury of being able to track a deer if I need to and not worry that someone will get him.

So, that's my long-winded question. I want a good accurate JHP bullet for my gun and would like to just start with that bullet and find a good accurate load that I can get consistent with.

Thanks for any input.



Daryl

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

I have used Hornady's XTPs in 240 and 300 grs. and have been well pleased. But my most accurate is a Remington 240 gr. SJHP with 24.0 gr. H-110. Through my 7 1/2" SBH it exhibits fine accuracy on the met. sil. range. Very effective on whitetails with good expansion.

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

Remington? Really? The only Remington bullets I ever shot were in my .17 Remington, and they were good bullets. Looking at the pictures of the Remington they do not look as clean and sharp as the Hornady bullet, in fact they look kind of rough, but I believe your claim.

I am looking for a good consistent bullet that I can buy in bulk and fine tune the charge of H110. Once I have a load that will consistently keep them in a coffee can lid at a 100 yards, I’m good to go. I used to experiment a lot with my bench rest and varmint rifles but for hunting guns I like to fine 1 consistent load and shoot that forever. That way I know exactly what to expect in all situations.

If you were having good luck in silhouettes with the Remington, then it must be a good one.

I did shoot a box of Hornady 265 gr bullets though this gun and those seemed to shoot really well but it appears they no longer make this bullet. Have you shot 270 or 300 gr bullets? If so, is the drop more noticeable at 150 yards, then say 240 gr?

Thanks for the tip.

Daryl

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

I have had great luck with the Hornady 240 gr XTP on paper and deer ,the other bullet that I have used with good results for both is the Nosler 240 gr HP

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

I too have a ruger black hawk 7.5in barrel in 44 mag, My most accurate load is a speer 225 JHP-SWC (jacketed hollow point semi wad cutter) over 23.5 grains of H110, they are great on paper with the iron sights shooting from a rest I consistantly group 1.25 to 1.5 inch groups at 50 yards. They also do the trick on whitetail, They are also very accurate with a sabot in my 50 cal muzzle loader.

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

darylc,
I have a SRH .44 mag and am just going to start reloading with 300gr. I have had a few people swear by a gaschecked hardcast lead bullet, but I have not had luck locating any for sale. I picked up some Hornaday, speer and nosler jacketed hp and soft points and am going to experiment with H110. I also would like to carry a TC Encore handgun for shots longer than 75 yards and am trying to findout what the best caliber would be. I have heard that 30-06 might be a good choice. Can I ask how you came to use the 7-30 waters. Are you satisfied with that choice or would you suggest a different caliber? Thanks for your help.

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

the 7-30 waters is a 30-30 necked down to 7mm right??

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

Ditto on the remington jhp bullets. They have a scaloped jacket the peels very uniformly when expanding. It also expands quicker, is best for thin skinned game like whitetails.

I also have a contender in 7X30 Waters. It is the best bet for the contender for long range shooting. Nothing else is close when considering trajectory. Accurate loads ar not a problem either. Notice I did not say encore. For the encore, you can go with full power rifle loads. I would try the 7-08 in an encore.

Basically a 7-30 Waters is a necked down 30-30. But the severe taper of the 30-30 is gone with a sharper shoulder to increase powder capacity. I've gotten 2300 fps from a 140 BT and 2500 fps with a 120 BT. Case forming is as simple as taking a 30-30, lubing it and running it into a 7X30 fl die. Be carefull to NOT set the shoulder too far back. Since the 30-30 shell headspaces on the rim, it's possible to have the shoulder too far back by setting the die down too tight in the press. Best way to prevent case head seperations is to size gradually until the barrel closes with a sanp.

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

Personally i don't like jacketed bullets for revolvers.. They are too hard on the gun, so i cast a 250 SWC "Keith" style bullet, and load it with 23.0 of H110, and mag. primers. I've shot many thousands of this load/bullet, and have taken game up to and includeing moose, it really does a good job in a 44 handgun.

The mould is from RCBS, and it does not have or need a gascheck... I lube my bullets with ALOX,.. I've won one heck of a lot of silhouette shoots with this load too, (production class) as it shoots very good in the several S&W M29's i've tried it in...

Drilling Man

RE: Jacket Bullet for the 44 Mag
 

John,

The 7-30 is great whitetail gun. I'm adding the 44 to my arsenal but the 7-30 is my primary deer gun. I hunted with a 7mm mag for years in open country and yes it will kill them a long way out there but he 7-30 is plenty of gun for deer inside of 250 yards. It puts them down just as quick as you need, it is accurate, and easy to shoot. I say this with hesitation but I had 4 witnesses. I killed a crow on the ground at a stepped off 380 yards. Now I'm not saying I could ever do it again but the little gun will shoot. It will remain my primary deer gun as I hunt the northwoods where 200 yards is the longest shot you probably will every get.