Hello all, Two years ago I tried using my FA 454 w/ 2X leopold scope on deer in S.Carolina with no luck.
I entirely misjudged the distances and missed everything I shot at (all over 120 yard) but due to my failure, my father in law who owns the land I hunted in gave me a Weatherby mark v in 270 win and I shot me a small buck at about 90 yrd. But the one thing that stuck in my mind is what he told me, "Bubba no one has ever shot a deer on this farm with a handgun".
Now next month I'm going for the rut and wanna take my FA454 but I thought would I be better off with the T/C contender super 14 in 35 rem. I've been successful with my FA down here in S.Florida on hogs out to 100 yrd.
I'm using 300 gr xtp on the 454 do you all think I should drop down to a 240 or 260 gr bullet for a longer distance or go with the contender.
This is a great site plenty of good info.
Thanks
Sergio

Just a couple of thoughts.....

1) 120 yards is quite a poke with a handgun. The 454 certainly has the legs for it and the FA I am sure is more than accurate enough, but the real question is are you? At what distance can you hit a clay target EVERY time? Cut 30 yards off that and use that as your max distance.

2) I can pretty much assure you that you will run into the same issues with the Contender as with you FA.

3) How are you shooting? Unsupported, shooting sticks, holding against a tree? This will have a big effect on where your shots end up. Practice at the range the same way you intend to shoot in the field. Pistols are very particular about the type of rest you use. If you are shooting off of sandbags at the range, and shooting unsupported in the field, your shots are likely to be quite a distance off the mark (this is certainly the case for my .44). At 100 yards, that POI shift is going to be the difference between a good shot and a complete miss.

You really need to spend more time behind the trigger. Use the same clothes and gloves you will in the field. Use the same shooting position. Be honest with yourself, if your max distance is 50 yards then so be it.

I love to send lead waaaaay downrange but I limit my shots to 75 yards and in because beyond that I simply don't trust that I can make the shot with all of the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

Play the wind, work on being quiet and I am sure you will be able to get inside 75 yards.
When I hunt with my pistol I consider it closer to my bow than my rifle. Close shots are preferred over launching a bullet 100+ yards.

As for your ammo, the 300gr XTP is one of the better bullets out there. In most guns it shoots very accurately. Regardless of whether you shoot a 300 or 240gr bullet you are going to have bullet drop to deal with. Once again, more time at the range will help you determine how much drop you get at what range.

Thats easy, BOTH!

Carry the 454 when your distances will be in the 100 yard or less area, and the 35 when you may need a little more range.

If 300's shoot well, use them. The difference in trajectory is not significant until you get beyond the 100 yard mark.



I got something like that too,the first time I showed up with a shortgun, but it didn't last long ;-)

I agree with 98Redline's answer. Part of the challenge in handgun hunting is getting close to your game. You have to be able to "let them go" when they are beyond YOUR range and like he said, be honest with yourself as to what that range may be.

Dan

Hi.. Thanks alot for the advise, I have been hitting the range plenty and and shot several hundred rds thrugh th FA Casull this year but I must admit it's from a rest on a bench. In S.Carolina I was shooting from tall deer stands (real high up and I hate hights) and being 5-23" tall I could not get to rest the gun off the stand frame becausse it was too low. I just picked up a stoney point monopod on ebay and I think that may work. Will go to the range this weekend and practice using it. I just wanna bag me a nice buck and prove my in-laws wrong.
Thanks again and you all have a good weekend.
Sergio

Sergio,

Good luck with the practice and your hunts! Bench shooting is great for familiarity with your gun, trigger squeeze, etc, but shooting off of sticks, rested off a knee, or over a rail as you may encounter in your stand this fall will give you the confidence to drop the hammer on a nice deer...and prove your in-laws wrong.

Good luck and straight shootin'!

BTW - Whereabouts in SC?

Howdy SChunter, the farm in in Lugoff SC just outside Columbia and they have about 1800 acres wich back up to Ft. Jackson. But they also have a plantation in Edisto Island that my bro in-law has been shooting nice bucks out of there.

Bye
Sergio

I'd say take them both and adjust for your hunting. If your still hunting use the revolver, if your stand hunting and don't expect long shots take the revolver but if you get into a situation where do to stand location or natural conditions getting to the comfort mark with the revolver will be tough break out the t/c. The most important thing is to use what your comfortable with and what you feel you can make a clean ethical kill with.

The Speer 260 gr. Mag. HP over 34.0 gr. WW296 is a devestating round on deer. The front half expands fast, the back half stays together. I've taken 40+ deer with this round, the last one 2 weeks ago at 85 yards. He dropped and was dead on a quartering away hit behind the shoulder. I've taken deer with this load out to 150 yards. This is also my turkey bullet, having taken over 30 birds with it. Surprisingly, it's not a violent expander on the birds, just a 2" area of damage. All birds dropped at the shot. Never had an escape!!

How much velocity do you get out of that load, if I may ask? Thanks!

I'd say take the one you have the most confidence in and shoot the best.Let'em have it !!

I was told about the same thing when I got out of the truck with a Ruger 22 auto mkI 35 years ago to go squirrel hunting. I came back with the limit and the most the shotgun hunters had was 2 and shot almost a box of shell between the 3 of them. It's all in the range time with a handgun (or any gun for that matter). I was hooked and all I hunt I hunt with a handgun. If it can't be hunted with a handgun, like duck or birds, I have no interest.

Yup.. now that I decided on taking the FA 454 I was now wondering what else I should take for back up in case something happens to the FA or the scope. I'm thinking between a 4" S&W 629 mountain gun that I can shoot good group out to about 75 yrds or a colt anaconda 6" in 45 LC that also a sweet shooter. Im riding my bike up to SC and Im kind of limited in storage space.
Im thinking I can make some hot loads for it and read somewhere where they hold up pretty good, better then the Smith.

me, I would go with the anaconda. But I am a 45lc fan (BIG TIME)

I'd say 45 just because I am a huge fan but i'll revert back to what I said before,which of the two do you have the most confidence in?

Which ever gun you take don't shoot past your comfort zone .Take a rangefinder if you can and use it. Stay within reason on shots
and set up like a bowhunter would,up close and personal. I want to be able to kill him when I see him, not watch him for a long while and get nervous. Good hunting and good luck!

I would second the Anaconda as your backup gun.

Heck, you could probably pick a decent 45 Colt round and use it out of both guns (It would mean you would have to pack 1/2 of the ammo than if you carried 2 calibers). Just be sure to clean the chambers of the FA really well after shooting 45 loads. Crud ring buildup can cause the already high pressures of the 454 to jump up to dangerous levels.

I have never really been a fan of trying to wrangle a shooting stick or monopod in a treestand. The deer never seem to appear or give me a shot where I can use the support in addition it now requires that I have something in both hands. Also both the sticks and the treestand are probably metal. Clang them together as you attempt to get setup and all you will see is white tails bounding through the woods.

Keep it simple, use a good 2 hand hold and good trigger control.

I find that the fewer "contraptions" I take into the woods, the better my luck is.

If it am hunting out of the blind or spot and stalk then a set of shooting sticks is a welcome addition. I can use them as walking sticks or to help move branches or thorns as well as being readily available for a shot.

I too prefer the .45 Colt to the .44 Mag, so that is the selection I would make, but having said that, you should use the one you are most comfortable and accurate with.