# 44 Ammo "Hog Hunting"



## mvp0623

Any recommendations on the type of ammo to use for hog hunting. I have hit several and have lost them due to the lack of full penetration. I'm looking at corebond, full metal jacket. IDEAS?


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## Craig Knight

check out some of Buffalo Bores hard cast lead ammo. They leave a nice sized hole in just about anything you want to kill with a handgun, usually get full penetration on hogs and definetly any deer. Some will go ahead and let you know that they are not legal to hunt with but on hogs they work wonders and I use them regardless.


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## ATLRoach

mvp0623 said:


> Any recommendations on the type of ammo to use for hog hunting. I have hit several and have lost them due to the lack of full penetration. I'm looking at corebond, full metal jacket. IDEAS?



What are you shooting?


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## Jason280

Any hard cast lead bullets in the 240gr and up weights should work fine.


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## Hoyt

I use to cast 310gr. hardcast wheelweights using the Lee mold..those would do it if you reloaded and cast your own. 
Otherwise I'd go with a Hornady 240gr or 300gr XTP.


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## mvp0623

ATLRoach said:


> What are you shooting?



44 Super Red Hawk


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## hawgrider1200

If you handload, you can load more powder using the 200 grain and 180 grain bullets, without raising CUP over the recommended limit. According to ballistic charts I've seen, the lighter weight bullets actually have more velocity out of the muzzle and more energy when it hits the target. Try loading your own using the 180 grain bullets or if you can find 180 grain Hornady ammo try that. You gotta be close up to a hog to get full penetration with a handgun.


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## ATLRoach

mvp0623 said:


> 44 Super Red Hawk



Sorry I meant what ammo are you currently shooting that is not penetrating.


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## dertiedawg

Craig Knight said:


> Some will go ahead and let you know that they are not legal to hunt with but on hogs they work wonders and I use them regardless.



Hard Cast IS legal, any lead bullet is legal!!


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## mvp0623

ATLRoach said:


> Sorry I meant what ammo are you currently shooting that is not penetrating.



Federal 240 grain jacketed soft point.
Federal 240 grain Hydroshock.

I have not taken head shots rather shoulder shots. I'm sure I'm killing them but I'm not able to recover them from the palmettos. I suspect I'm not getting an exit wound and that fat is plugging the entrance wound. Starts out with a good blood trail and ends with a couple of drops.
Have you ever shot the corebond full metal jacketed bullets?


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## tv_racin_fan

I believe I would try some Buffalo Bore ammo myself. 

http://www.midwayusa.com/browse/Bro...***691***&sortBy=RetailPrice asc&brandId=2118


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## hawgrider1200

mvp0623 said:


> Federal 240 grain jacketed soft point.
> Federal 240 grain Hydroshock.
> 
> I have not taken head shots rather shoulder shots. I'm sure I'm killing them but I'm not able to recover them from the palmettos. I suspect I'm not getting an exit wound and that fat is plugging the entrance wound. Starts out with a good blood trail and ends with a couple of drops.
> Have you ever shot the corebond full metal jacketed bullets?


That shield (gristle) may plug up the hollow point and cause it to fail to expand also. I know I made a great hit on a hog at 10 yds with an arrow (It was a complete pass through) and never found the first drop of blood, so there is a good argument for the exit wound becoming plugged. If u can get really close and shoot em right behind the ear while they are slightly quartered away. A 22 lr will put them down with that shot placement.


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## Apex Predator

Any heavier soft point, or cast bullet should penetrate out the far side of a large hog.  Stay away from the lighter bullets traveling fast.  Yeah, they have higher velocity, but so what?  You only need 1,100 or 1,200 to blow through a large critter with the right bullet.  The last hog I shot with a .44 was with the wrong bullet, but it's all I had on hand.  It was a mature boar at a quartering angle.  The bullet was lodged just under the shield on the far side.  He only made it 40 yards.  It was a max hand-loaded 200 grain jacketed hollow point.  I normally use 240 grain softpoints.


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## hawgrider1200

If u are shooting factory loads you are only getting 1180 fps at the muzzle if u r using Remington cartridges and 240 grain bullets. The 180 grain bullets are moving 1600fps. That develops a lot more kenetic energy and would be more likely to penetrate a mature boar. follow the link  http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/results/default.aspx?type=pistol&cal=16


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## Philbow

http://www.garrettcartridges.com/products.asp

Get the 330 grain hammerhead. you will not have to worry about poor penetration. But they are pricey, $100 per 50 cartridges.


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## tv_racin_fan

Hawg sir I hate to disagree with you but have you really looked at those numbers?  Lets take a 240 and a 180 and seriously compare the numbers. 

240gr-1180-1081-1010   180gr-1610-1365-1175 this is velocity. Notice how the lighter bullet loses velocity much quicker than the  heavier bullet. Not far past 100 yards the lighter bullet loses the velocity race and it becomes slower than the heavier bullet and is still shedding speed at a faster rate. 


240gr-741-623-543   180gr-1036-745-551 this is energy (calculated). Notice how the lighter bullets loses energy much faster than the heavier bullet to the point where at 100 yards they are virually the same and from 100 or so on the heavier bullet is going to carry more energy than the lighter bullet.


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## hawgrider1200

I would not figure to shoot a deer or hog at that distance with a revolver. Sure would not expect a bullet out of my revolver to go all the way through a hog at that distance. But yeah at 100 yards that is what the chart says. It almost evens out. 240 grain drops 3.7inches at 100 yards too. 180 only drops 2.3 inches. I guess I just figured everyone would be using the 44 mag at ranges up to 50 yards. I'd probably hold my range to 30 yards. I'm only using my revolver for those shots where the deer or hog comes in under your right arm and u can't shoot him with the rifle without turning around. If ur talkin handloads u might find slightly different numbers than factory too. I'd like to try shooting into that ballistic gel at close ranges to see where the break point for penetration would be. Of course a hog is gonna stop a bullet before a deer would. That gristle that folks call the shield is tough stuff. Thick too.


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## Apex Predator

I've killed around 30 big game critters with a .44, and I can promise you that light and fast hollow points will penetrate less than slow and heavy soft points.  Things don't happen in the real world like you would think.  The more violent the expansion, the less penetration you are gonna get.  If you want two holes reliably, stay away from hollow points.


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## GAR

*44 Mag*

Firm believer in using heavy for caliber LBT style hard cast bullets. Penetration will not be a problem when loaded correctly. Will most definitely out penetrate any HP or JSP at the same velocity.

Here is a good link that has a lot of different styles and calibers with heavy for caliber bullets. That and the price is right!

http://www.montanabulletworks.com/wst_page6.html


GAR


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## deadgame

winchester supreme has a 250 grain nosler partition loading that works great on deer and hogs alike, but if you reload ,hardcast high antimony lead bullets are definitely the way to go. afterall who really needs expansion? just be sure and use the flattest tip with almost wadcutter edges so it will cut close to a full .429 diameter wound channel and voila', bloodtrail courtesy of .44 cal. irrigation pipe.


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## hawgrider1200

*expansion*



deadgame said:


> afterall who really needs expansion?



DNR says we all need expansion, read the regs.


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## SmokyMtnSmoke

Sledge Hammer to plinking 44 MAG loads...

310g HCLGC, 240g HP, 240g HP Copper Plated 








For Hogs or Bears, It'll be that 310Gn Sledge Hammer for me.

My other choice if I can't get the 310 gn is the 
Hornady 4300 Bullet 44 Cal 265 Grain Flat Nose 100/Box



> The Hornady Interbond uses a proprietary bonding process that hold the core and jacket together no matter what the bullet encounters. Combine all that hard hitting power with the proven ballistic advantages of Hornady's SST design and you have a super accurate bullet that delivers maximum energy right where you aim. The SST, engineered to shoot flatter, fly straighter, and hit harder delivers controlled expansion, superior weight retention, and massive shock for a clean quick kill. Features of the V-Max include a copper jacket that is designed to work with the tip to deliver incredible accuracy at long range and assist in dramatic expansion. All Hornady rifle bullets are available in a wide range of calibers and grain weights.
> 
> SPECIFICATIONS:
> Mfg Item Num: 4300
> Category: RELOADING BULLETS & COMPONENTS
> Bullet Type :Flat Nose
> Caliber :44 CAL.
> Weight :265 gr
> Quantity :100 Per Box



A great article and must read for reloading the .44 Magnum

Heavy Weight Bullets In The .44 Magnum
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m...7/ai_79586225/


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## deadgame

isad hardcast. perfectly legal as i have never measured one post impact that didnt show at least 0.01 worth of deformation. read the fine print.


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## Apex Predator

I think the regs are to discourage full metal jackets only.


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## HandgunHTR

The whole "hardcast" thing is a very dead horse.

As for the OP problem, there are many good suggestions here.

The only thing that I will add is that if you know you made a good shot and you have a good blood trail to start with and it peters out, the animal is more than likely within 50 yards of last blood.  Most people believe that the blood should take you right to your dead animal.  This is only sometimes the case.  A deer or hog can run a fair distance with absolutely no blood pumping.

Now, please don't take this the wrong way, but maybe you should improve your blood trailing abilities before blaming the bullet.

Any quality bullet shot from a .44 mag at resonable distances should kill a hog dead as long as something vital is hit.


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## Darrell H

> Any quality bullet shot from a .44 mag at resonable distances should kill a hog dead as long as something vital is hit.


Agreed, but you have to penetrate that shield to get to the vitals!  Last winter I shot a WMA hog with a .45 Caliber, 260 grain Speer hollow point fired from a 209X50 Contender pistol at 1700 fps.  I have killed several hogs with this load combination in the past with no problems.  This boar proved to be a tough one however.  On the first shot I shot him quartering away and he ran out of sight.  I reloaded my muzzleloader and discovered that the hog had run about 50 yards and laid down.  I shot him again behind his right front shoulder from the prone position about 40 yards away.  The hog got up and ran again.  He ran about 50 yards and lay down again.  I snuck to within 30 yards or so and shot him again behind his shoulder while he was thrashing around.  He didn't die but this time he didn't get up.  I walked up to the boar and realized that I wasn't getting a bullet into his vitals so I thought that I could shoot him from behind in the guts and angle a bullet up into the vitals.  Evidently I didn't put enough English on the shot because I still didn't kill him.  On the fifth shot I walked around him while he was still lying on the ground and put one right between his shoulder blades.  I thought that I was going to have to use my last bullet right between his eyes but finaly he gave up the ghost!  

When I skinned out the hog, I dug three bullets out of his shield.  They had all mushroomed perfectly with no core/jacket separation but they still didn't get through the ribs to the vitals.  









After this experience I purchased some .45 caliber, 300 grain Sierra soft-points and some .44 caliber Cast Performance bullets to try in the Contender.  The cast bullets didn't work too well in the sabots but the 300 grain Sierras shot really well from the short-barreled muzzleloader.  I hope to find out how well they work on a hog very soon now that small game season is open again.


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## hawgrider1200

U shoot that big hog right behind the ear and u won't have that problem.


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## Darrell H

> U shoot that big hog right behind the ear and u won't have that problem.


Not necessarily.  I know this is the handgun hunting forum but please allow me to share a muzzleloading rifle story.  I shot this hog with an Encore .50 caliber rifle, 295 grain Powerbelt, about 1800 fps.  




I walked upon this N. GA WMA hog while he lay snoozing in his bed with a bunch of his lady friends.  I put the crosshairs of the scope behind his right ear and pulled the trigger.  At the shot hogs scattered but this ol' boy wasn't going anywhere.  He got his hind legs up but couldn't get his front legs to work.  He was on the side of a very steep incline and he started falling down and working his way down the mountain.  I loaded up the muzzleloader and missed him completely on the second shot while he was thrashing around.  I reloaded again and finally on the third shot I was able to shoot him in the lungs.  This ended things quickly.  When I skinned the hog out you could literally stick your fist through the hole in the hog's neck where the Powerbelt had plowed through and shattered his neck bone but he still refused to die!  Bottom line is big hogs are tough!


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## MERCing

For hogs, go _heavy weight_.

Yes, the 180's, 200's and 240's will be traveling faster and look _somewhat more impressive_ on paper but they have lighter construction are a lot more prone to suffer jacket/core seperation and come apart.

I woundn't even think about shooting anything lighter than a 240 at Hogs.

Speer 270 gr SP's, 300 gr Sierra's or 300 gr Hornady XTP's
or similar for expanding bullets.
 LBT's or something similar if you choose hard cast but stay on the heavy side.


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## EMC-GUN

I am casting a 240gr. GC bullet from a Lee mold from clip on WWs. I am loading them over between 19-21gr. Hercules 2400. They shoot well from my SBH 7.5. I would not hesitate to send one into a hog or deer. I also have a Lyman 429-421 250gr. Keith style mold that throws a good bullet. That would knock 'em dead as well!


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## Barry Duggan

Hard cast LBT type with a fairly wide meplat, or soft points if you must use a jacketed bullet. More weight is more better for penetration. Wouldn't even consider using hollow points.


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## 44mags

hornady200gr hand loaded for deer an winn 240platium for hog has served me well with longest shot at hog at 35yrds.


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## Big7

*Food for thought...*

I understand this is a .44 thread, but....

I shoot a GP-100 .357 w/6"bbl.

If I have to use store bought I go with Gold Dot JHP
They move VERY fast...

Even better and faster with a jacked up Gold Dot or Hornady JHP handload.

Head or neck shot? Who cares about an exit wound
when you have a baseball sized "entry" wound and
half a head and/or neck gone??


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## oxbow

Has anyone shot a hog with Grizzly ammo?
I baught 41 REM MAG 265gr. WLNGC.
Any feed back on that cartridge would be great.


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