44 Reloading/Hunting Question

[bks]

Well I now have some brass and am wanting to reload some ammo for my Bisley Hunter.
Im looking for a mild load so I can learn to shoot this gun because I am having to relearn everything I thought I knew about handgun shooting.
Any recommendations for a load that would be easier to shoot and still kill a 80-120 lb deer at 25-30 yards?
Im about ready to throw this revolver in the back of the safe and forget it.
On hand I have Unique, 4227, and Trail Boss.

[BigBore44]

I'd try 7.5 Unique with a cast in the 240/250/265gr neighborhood.

What's the problem with your shootin?


BigBore44

[bks]

I just cant get a group consistently.
I am going to back down on the power level and see if that is it. I know I have to work on my grip and form etc.
Ultra Dot on the gun now, 2.5lb trigger, don't have access to bigger grips right now, thinking of wrapping it in medical tape to build it up some.

I can shoot a handgun, but it has always been an auto or a double action revolver, first single action/44 mag in a LONG time.

[BigBore44]

OK... Stick with the lighter bullets 200/240 (Less recoil) and try about 7gr Unique. Should be quite gentle shootin. Practice your trigger squeeze/press and rest that gun when shootin for better accuracy.
Optics are great but also make you chase the dot/reticle and THAT to me is a distraction in itself.
Keep us posted and keep watch here. Others will chime in.

Best
BigBore44

[bks]

Thank you.

[jimtx]

Nov 3, 2016 8:48:14 GMT -5 bks said:

I just cant get a group consistently.
I am going to back down on the power level and see if that is it. I know I have to work on my grip and form etc.
Ultra Dot on the gun now, 2.5lb trigger, don't have access to bigger grips right now, thinking of wrapping it in medical tape to build it up some.

I can shoot a handgun, but it has always been an auto or a double action revolver, first single action/44 mag in a LONG time.

Ok I have handgun hunted for over 25 years a lot of that time was with 44's, my original SBH Hunter model has taken many deer and shoots amazing groups even at 100yds. But I will say this not all guns are the same, some don't like those light loads, with mine the faster I loaded it the tinier groups got.

Also some guns don't like trail boss loads I have found this to be try shooting 38,41mag & spl. 44spl, 44mag, 45colt,etc.

To each his own with optics but IMO dot sots are useless for consist good groups and at short range only, I used one on my 44 when I got it, it was useless in the woods on an overcast day I could see deer, then look through the red dot and all I could see was "dot" the area around the dot was dark.

[todddoyka]

i'm using a ruger sbh with a 4 5/8" barrel in 44 mag. in it i use a 44 sp with a 250gr mihek hp with 7.0gr of unique. i can group consistinaly 3"+/- at 25 yards(off hand). although i haven't used it yet for deer, i'm pretty sure that it will.

when i go from 30-50 yards(bench) i get groups that go, ehh, i hit it to oh my God, get rid of the target! i am going to get a weigand scope base( www.jackweigand.com/Ruger-Revolver-Mini-Mount.html ) and i'm going to try a truglo reflex sight( www.opticsplanet.com/truglo-red-dot-dual-red-green-sight-5-moa-dot.html?_iv_code=TU-RD-5BRITEDOTT-169066 ) before i do either a burris or a vortex reflex sight.

[Shakey]

My personal 'light' .44 Mag load is 8.5 gr of Unique behind a 225 gr cast Keith-type SWC. Though I have not done so, I am confident it would kill a deer just fine. However, just because it groups well in my gun does not mean it will in yours.

Noting that you said you are coming from autos and DAs, perhaps you are having the same problem I did ….learning to cope with that long hammer fall. Nothing is better than lots and lots of dry firing, concentrating on follow through and not allowing that sight to waver from the target as the hammer falls.

Also, the single action grip coupled with the Hunters fairly long barrel mean that the gun can move a lot between ignition and bullet exit. You cannot prevent this movement so it is imperative that you develop a consistent grip, both as to position and firmness, to keep this movement consistent.

Don't get discouraged, sometimes it takes a while to learn a new type firearm.

[bks]

Any suggestions on a brand of lead SWC or other practice bullets?
I used to use a Lewis lead remover back when I shot a lot of revolvers before but dont know if they still make it and dont want to fight the leading issue. I don't know if I need .430or .431 with this revolver or should I look at a powder coated/ plated bullet.

Matts bullets is just north of me in AR but otherwise I dont have a local source for lead bullets

[2 Dogs]

At that range, and on smaller deer I would consider dropping bullet weight possibly all the way to a 180 if recoil is the issue.

You don't say what you are shooting now. If it's cast, pull your base pin and check your barrel for leading.

[jimtx]

Nov 3, 2016 21:50:43 GMT -5 2 Dogs said:

At that range, and on smaller deer I would consider dropping bullet weight possibly all the way to a 180 if recoil is the issue.

You don't say what you are shooting now. If it's cast, pull your base pin and check your barrel for leading.

Agree, I missed the part about deer size and distance. A 180 XTP will reliably open at 800-900FPS. At that velocity w/180's recoil is minimal.

[2 Dogs]

I'm wondering if he has a leaded barrel. There's probably nothing wrong with his shooting....

[bulasteve]

I'm having some troubles getting comfortable with my first Bisley gripped Ruger too, but I'm sure the gun can shoot. Wow, those seem like small deer !

[bks]

No leading. I have been shooting winchester white box 240jsp.
I had thought about loading some 180 xtp to around 1100-1300 fps they would be about the same as higher 10mm loads which is supposed to be deer medicine.

A full grown doe in South Arkansas normally weighs around 100lbs.
A mature buck normally weighs 170 or so. They are small but there is a lot of them.

I can buy xtp local.

[bradshaw]

Nov 3, 2016 21:33:24 GMT -5 bks said:

Any suggestions on a brand of lead SWC or other practice bullets?
I used to use a Lewis lead remover back when I shot a lot of revolvers before but dont know if they still make it and dont want to fight the leading issue. I don't know if I need .430or .431 with this revolver or should I look at a powder coated/ plated bullet.
***

bks.... the Super Blackhawk Hunter and Bisley variant wear a thick, ribbed, untapered barrel with the superior Redhawk front sight and long Maximum extractor. (Maximum extractor belongs on every Ruger single action with 5.5-inch, or longer, barrel.) Muzzle heft of the Hunter positions this revolver to reduce recoil fatigue in sustained sessions, in both iron and scope sighting. Perhaps we should take a step back and look at the inaugural process of old timers for shooting cast: SLUG THE BORE. Determine uniformity or lack of, then proceed. Critical to accuracy----absence of a compression ring (caused by over-tightening barrel to frame). Old timers may not have suffered this inexcusable flaw of contemporary assembly. Perhaps THREAD TIMING was eliminated by short-cut engineers or other penny pinchers who do not comprehend revolver accuracy.

The serious marksman and markswoman must discern three things:
1) bore uniformity.
2) forcing cone concentricity & smoothness.
3) chamber-to-bore alignment (offset or runout).
Note: there are no magic numbers to measure.

With accuracy and modest recoil the nobel goal, and a seeming desire to shoot cast, two old standbys come to mind. Both take a cast 240 SWC DEEP SEATED in .44 Mag case with standard primer. COL (Cartridge Overall Length) is 1.5-inches in .44 Mag brass. A roll crimp .030 to .060” above front band secures bullet without biting lead.
* 5.5 grains/231 or HP-38 (same powder). Velocity roughs at 800 fps, dependent on individual revolver.

* 10.6/HS-6. Velocity averages 1022 fps from a KS411N Super Blackhawk shortened to 5-3/4-inches. This is an upper velocity limit for commercial SWC with bevel base. Good for 5-shot, 6-inch groups @ 100 yards.

I would much prefer a cast bullet, when launched in the modest 800 to 1,000 fps range, to pass through the POWDER COAT process as clearly described in the writings of our esteemed Jeff “Tank” Hoover. Sixshot also may supply command guidance. I say this not from slaying deer with the anneal-sofened POWDER COAT .44 SWC. Rather, a spectrum of experience with the heavy punch of a swaged SWC 240 half-jacket with pure lead core @ 1060 fps----quiet of brimstone, precise of accuracy, curtains on the lung shot.

Do not fear practice sighting and trigger squeeze from sandbag rest. Mix with dry fire from sandbag. Don’t be a pig on the trigger! Mandatory graduation to offhand, with plenty dry fire to hone follow through.
David Bradshaw