.45 caliber RB enough for deer?

[Wildrangeringreen]

Some years back when I hunted with modern guns, everybody was buying short magnums ,long magnums, i even had one friend come up here with 416 Rem. I mean a big deer up here is about 150 lbs.. I stuck with my 7m Mauser and never lost a deer. I had to ask my friend if had ever been charged by an elephant up here!

I usually suggest they just need to stop hunting dragons... leave that stuff to Bard the Bowman... ya know, of Laketown lol.

 

[leadhoarder]

Some years back when I hunted with modern guns, everybody was buying short magnums ,long magnums, i even had one friend come up here with 416 Rem. I mean a big deer up here is about 150 lbs.. I stuck with my 7m Mauser and never lost a deer. I had to ask my friend if had ever been charged by an elephant up here!

They were just doing what they read about in a magazine. That it takes serious firepower to kill a deer. Just like thinking that you must have a .54 when a .45 does the same job.

 

[bud in pa]

I bought the parts to make a Lehigh county rifle back in 1972. I chose a 45 caliber barrel. I reasoned at the time that I would only need the one gun for deer and loaded down for small game. Well PA changed the laws and said that we must use a 40 caliber or smaller for small game. I get a kick out of public officials and politicians who admittedly know nothing about the subjects that they legislate, but we must obey them. I always listen to their rules

 

[roundballman]

I have killed both mule deer and whitetail with a 40 cal round ball. Shot placement is the key. Never lost one and never had one go more than 50 yds
Use good sense and pass up long shots, aim small!

 

[Okie Hog]

Shot [placement is everything. A .440 round ball in the heart/lung area trumps a 12 gauge round ball in the guts.

 

[Gordoncourtney]

This topic realy interests me as I bought a double percussion .36 at Holts London auction just over £2 k Mint 1885 but thinks 1925 by Midland gun company ... Graeme Wright 's book "shooting the British double rifle" .36 " in a 2.5" cartridge 59g BP 155g bullet 10 tons sq in 1700ft/sec and 993 ft lbs Of course a 300g bullet will take you up to 1823 ft lbs. but you realy need 25 g of cordite or BP , or I recon 72 g BP. ....I was into double rifles then and hope to hunt hogs in France, just dreams.....I build the odd Flint lock double rifle in my old age , I like Bess 1810 locks around £250 if you can find one, tell us all about more hunting with a .36, Impressed so far . Well done

I was stuck for caps so made some conversion holders for rifle primers , and thought of nitro fir black loads, it's just thinking and experimenting outside the box for fun......I cannot shoot it in the uk, The police took away my shotguns and certificate, afraid I might shoot an intruder, bloody police state. Must think us 78 year olds are mentally gone....such is this green and pleasant land

 

[Loyalist Dave]

I usually suggest they just need to stop hunting dragons... leave that stuff to Bard the Bowman... ya know, of Laketown lol.

And the dwarves sing:

Far o'er the misty mountain bold,
In caverns deep, and dungeons old,
We must away near break of day,
To seek the lost, enchanted gold."

OK so I shouldn't be hijacking a thread nor digressing so much off topic. Back to .440 round ball and making venison...., mea culpa

LD

 

[ord sgt]

I witnessed a deer being taken with a .45 calibre rifle. I had the deer in my sights when I heard the shot from one of my hunting partners. He took the shot at 130 paced yards. One shot was all that was needed.

 

[Gordoncourtney]

My 400-450 double has killed cape buff at 2250 ft sec,but not by me, best gun for Africa. So a .410 400 g ball or bullet should be good enough for anything in North America, ok so with BP you only get 1800 ft sec.....but you are not shooting buff or elephant...........must admit my favourite bore is .510 just perfect. My flints are for .600" ball. Only funning with you , shoot whatever makes you happy......Gid bless

 

[Pete G]

Energy does not kill, tissue destruction (in the right spot) does.

 

[wojciste]

Yep 440 patch round ball, 60gr of FFG, 20 yards, dropped, flinl lock, never moved. 4 point

 

[4575wcf]

Picked up an under hammer .45 some years ago. I made and fitted an original style peep sight on a threaded stem which will also accept my long brass 4x scope if ever I finish the blasted mounts. Here in my state in the west we have short range hunts for the scoped version, and muzzle loader hunts for the peep sighted version. With that long, long sight radius the gun shoots right where she is pointed. I agree with every one else, the .45 or even the .40 is enough but shot placement and knowing the range limitations are important.

 

[Gordoncourtney]

“On a threaded stem” I made something like that, made some in brass, rotating the base gets really good windage. A variation could be made into a peep sight , I shudder at the price of Kranks, uk repro sights

 

[Gordoncourtney]

It's not quite correct the a .400 ball will kill anything in North America, as I mentioned in the sting above the 450-400 bullets 400g at 2250 ft sec , although they look small compared with the 577 jacket. They have the length to mushroom into a big blob of lead after shredding the steel jacket. Immensely powerful cartridge at around 4000ft lbs of energy I just weighed a .600 ball and it came out at 320grans so at 1800 ft sec that equates to 2300 ft lbs of energy even so , brilliant for a flintlock. I have a .45 but my later builds are .600 mainly as that's the tube size I buy, load two balls and if the barrel can stand it I would not want to be either a bear or elk. Brown bread I wish you well do whatever makes you happy , it's your rifle.

 

[MSW]

while i wouldn't hesitate to take a reasonable shot with a .45, i'd rather use my .54. One guy's opinion... free and no doubt well worth the cost.

 

[springfield art]

45 RPB - 70 FFF
Kills-em dead for me

I think that's the minimum caliber via state hunting laws; many use a .45 for deer. Should be good to go.

 

[old reb]

40 Cal or larger on smokepole deer hunting in MO. according to the wildlife book. so it will work.

 

[4575wcf]

This is my .45 mule deer gun. I will first be out mid Sept with it hoping to connect in the general BP season. It was made by Deer Lodge for awhile seems to be left over Numrich parts. Barrel is well rifled and shoots good, I do not like the stock work. I have leftover Curly Maple from a previous build big enough to make new stocks for it. I would like to do it up in the style of the obsolete H & A Heritage (Hermitage?) underhammer with the capbox in the stock and scroll guard behind the hammer spring/trigger guard. German Silver furniture all around this time to give it a bit of class. I made the sight base, I had to drill a clearance hole for the screw under the base in the receiver, which I did NOT want to do, but the originals are all done so, so grit the teeth and do it anyway. Some extend clear through. The front sight is a tall bead from H& R's Officer Model Trapdoor Springfield. The scope is an old Tasco I bought a bit later, other that modifying offset clamping rings and attaching them I have not got the scope mount all figured out, although it will use a common screw in the back to fit the peep sight mount, a detented knurled brass nut for elevation adjustment, and a spring loaded detented windage screw in the yoke, right side for a "righty".

 

[Gordoncourtney]

Comments from dear friend Roy I pass it on

The .400 is a good calibre for big game, and there are now a lot of .416" cartridges about. But your 400 grain bullet is a lot heavier than any lead ball in a sensible calibre.

Lead Round Ball Bullet, Weights:
0.350" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 64 Grains.
0.375" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 79 Grains.
0.433" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 122 Grains.
0.440" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 128 Grains.
0.445" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 132 Grains.
0.451" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 138 Grains.
0.454" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 141 Grains.
0.457" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 143 Grains.
0.490" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 177 Grains.
0.495" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 182 Grains.
0.530" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 224 Grains.
0.535" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 230 Grains.
0.570" Diameter Lead Round Ball Weight = 278 Grains

They were all economical in terms of the amount of lead used - which might have been important on the frontier - but there isn't the weight for deep penetration. The 577 calibre barrels were proof stamped "25" to show a bore of 25 balls to the pound. Even a 12 bore ball, at 12 to the pound, will only weigh 580 grains.
If the target is something you want to eat, not stopping it means it runs away and is lost. In those circumstances a lesser caliber isn't a problem. But if it's something that wants to eat you it has to drop at the shot, In those circumstances even a 12 bore rifle was considered to be on the small side. One of the most famous African hunters was Frederick Selous. When bore calibre rifles were in use he favoured a 4 bore for elephant and a 10 bore for lion. When elongated bullets came in he switched to a .461 Gibbs Farquharson and with smokeless he went down to .303, .375 and .425.

I wish you well......lovely forum

 

[Gordoncourtney]

This is my .45 mule deer gun. I will first be out mid Sept with it hoping to connect in the general BP season. It was made by Deer Lodge for awhile seems to be left over Numrich parts. Barrel is well rifled and shoots good, I do not like the stock work. I have leftover Curly Maple from a previous build big enough to make new stocks for it. I would like to do it up in the style of the obsolete H & A Heritage (Hermitage?) underhammer with the capbox in the stock and scroll guard behind the hammer spring/trigger guard. German Silver furniture all around this time to give it a bit of class. I made the sight base, I had to drill a clearance hole for the screw under the base in the receiver, which I did NOT want to do, but the originals are all done so, so grit the teeth and do it anyway. Some extend clear through. The front sight is a tall bead from H& R's Officer Model Trapdoor Springfield. The scope is an old Tasco I bought a bit later, other that modifying offset clamping rings and attaching them I have not got the scope mount all figured out, although it will use a common screw in the back to fit the peep sight mount, a detented knurled brass nut for elevation adjustment, and a spring loaded detented windage screw in the yoke, right side for a "righty".

Hello from uk Just reading This is from Henry Kranks catalogue