Newt2
Senior Member
I shiver every time the .41 magnum is brought up. My main deer guns were .41 magnum. First the 6.5 inch Blackhawk then the 7.5 inch Redhawk. For a lead bullet, I like the Lyman 220gr Keith.
I have a Smithy granite 1324 in my basement. I bought two cast iron risers and made a vice that turns to center. I design my own bullets and turn the cherries for my molds. No store bought mold has ever shot better. I equal or exceed the XTP Hornady bullets that are the best.I shiver every time the .41 magnum is brought up. My main deer guns were .41 magnum. First the 6.5 inch Blackhawk then the 7.5 inch Redhawk. For a lead bullet, I like the Lyman 220gr Keith.
Yes, the .41 is great but the .357 needs attention to bullet construction. The ideal is two holes with damage internally enough to bleed them fast or disrupt the nervous system. I have taken about 150 deer with revolvers and have learned a bullet must slow in passage yet not stop inside. Energy must be given up and when enough, any left after passage is moot. sometimes looking for the fastest bullet you can get can can lead to lost animals.I reloaded, but never got really involved. I worked up loads to shoot sub 2" at 50 yards at the highest possible velocity. Taking deer at up to 100 yards was no problem with my .41 or .357 even. Not bragging (yes I am), but of the dozens of deer I've taken, all were one shot stops except one using Remington 210gr soft points.
Too late. I'm already there. I can't hunt anymore.I suggest you never get old.
I used factory loads with the .357. Federal Hydra-Shok and Speer Gold Dot. In both calibers, I found one .41 Mag 170gr Sierra that passed thru and stopped in the leg and the one Hydra-Shok .357 blew apart on his neck. Had lead all over that thing.Yes, the .41 is great but the .357 needs attention to bullet construction.
I relieved one of the hammer springs off of my Blackhawk. Reduced trigger pull about a pound.I can show how to get a trigger pull of crazy numbers on Ruger's and BFR's. My SBH is 1-1/2#, 45-70 BFR is 19 oz. No failures to fire.
i solved the double firing pin strikes and doubling on S&W revolvers. I informed S&W and they said it was operator error but now do what I said. I found most revolver calibers do not need a gas check, I was wasting time and money.
Just ask.
It does not creep up on you, it slaps you silly! I had farms to hunt with unlimited damage tags and donated a lot of meat to the poor. At one time it was free but now I would have to pay for a butcher.Too late. I'm already there. I can't hunt anymore.
NO, NO and NO again!!! You have just removed what the gun can do. Shooting IHMSA a time came when I would miss. I found the hammer spring weakened and took a set so I bought them by the dozen until I tried Wolff over power springs. Every one of my Ruger's and BFR's gets a 26# over power variable. BFR is a large Ruger by the way, Pine Tree makes the castings and Magnum Research has a company that does the machining to very tight specs, faster twist rates, and today Green Mountain barrels. Most of mine have Badger barrels.I relieved one of the hammer springs off of my Blackhawk. Reduced trigger pull about a pound.
I have many stories I could tell, but I am a lot like you. I've followed does looking for a buck and got so close I was able to slap their butt. Even when taking a smoke break I had deer come to me when the wind was right. I hunted western NY, slug, muzzleloader, pistol only, and blaze orange was the norm. Still doesn't help sometimes. You know you can see a shotgun slug in flight when it is coming towards you? I do! Here is my usual hunting garb:It does not creep up on you, it slaps you silly! I had farms to hunt with unlimited damage tags and donated a lot of meat to the poor. At one time it was free but now I would have to pay for a butcher.
Gone are the days when I carried a 10#, .54 Hawken in deep snow, up and down mountains tracking deer. A revolver in a shoulder holster came next. Pure joy!
Some tips on tracking in snow, walk in the deer tracks because they make large circles like rabbits. One day I passed my truck 7 times until I shot one. If there are other hunters and you come to a clearing, stop and post because if they run into a hunter, they will backtrack to you. If deer go over a hill, get off to the side and crawl to peek over, they will stand at the bottom and watch up the hill.
Soon I will tell you how to fool white tails so they forget about you and you can even make one come to you. Last time I could walk OK, I made one come to me from 100 yards until I put a .500 JRH through her.
By the way, blaze orange is the best camo ever made. Forget patterns on it, just more expensive.
I had a different experience with that. If a deer spots me I freeze. You are a threat and the deer wants to see if you will move. It is the same with the head bob.The deer does not know what you are so they stamp their foot. This is not to warn other deer, it is a recognition signal to you so do the same back and if she does the head bob, do it back.