My portion of the state's firearms deer season opens this coming Saturday.

My normal practice is to put the first one in the freezer with some sort of rifle - I'm in thick stuff, so this year it'll probably be a Ruger .44 auto carbine.
Then - I switch to a variety of handguns to hunt with.

This'll be my first year hunting with a Ruger Lipsey's .44 Spl. Bisley BH, 5.5".

Trying to decide which load to use - know it will be a 240/250 gr. LSWC/KT, but not sure whether to go with the classic Skeeter load using 7.5 gr. Unique or Elmer's stouter load of 17/17.5 gr. of 2400.

I have shot the former in it, which it seems to really like and shoot well. Have not tried the latter.

Just seeing if anyone here has any experience with hunting with either?

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

Go with the Skeeter load. You are shooting enough bullet and you should be getting about 800 to 900 fps which has considerable energy. Accuracy in the 44 special is much more important than a few more fps. Good Luck with the revolver hunting.

Accuracy is more important than energy, so make up some of each and see which you shoot smaller groups with, then that should be your pick.

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Buy American!

I've used both. The deer didn't seem to notice the difference. Both loads gave complete penetration. The Keith load did enter at the back rib on a deer quartering away and it exited in front of the off side shoulder.

My every day load now is 8.2 gr. Power Pistol. Just a bit more velocity than Skeeter's load with lower extreme spreads and lower pressure as well. Much cleaner too. My guns get right at 1000 fps with this load.

Bottom line...as others have said both will work as long as you put it where you you look!

Good luck.

Dan

Skeeter all the way

Ive shot wild hogs with 1000 FPS 44 Mag loads, and with 1300 FPS loads.

I can’t tell any difference in killing power, and the hogs all went down quickly.

Skeeter. Also +1 on whatever is your most accurate load.
My version uses 7 grains of Universal and gets in the mid 900's out of a 3" 696.
The 696 is legal for deer hunting here as they measure all handguns from the chamber mouth to the muzzle.
Has to be at least 4" last I looked here in the land of cheese.
I am getting 1060 fps. from those same 696's and a coated 240 SWC using 12.5 grains of N105
but I don't expect too many folks to have that powder on hand.
No signs of pressure at all in fact the sound is more of a whoosh than a bang in those semi-snubbies.
I will be publishing my 44 special chronograph results spreadsheet shortly in it's own thread.
This includes dozens of loads I have measured over the last few years.

So far I have not hunted with the 696, having done so only with the 7.5" Redhawk but I'll admit that thing is a monster to carry around.
I use a chest holster for it.
I have gone to the smaller guns and loads for my woods walking in the last few years.

Good Hunting with your Skeeter loads!
Let us know how it works out.

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NEMO
"Everything 44"

Handloader #260 ran those, and others, thru a 5-1/2" Lipsey:

250gr Lyman 429421
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Unique @ 7.5gr = 960fps
(22K PSI or less)

2400 @ 17.0gr = 1211fps
(25K PSI or less)

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Waiting for the break of day

Try a 250g SWC over 6.5g W231/HP38.

Ever so slightly under the Skeeter, but oh so powerful and accurate, smooth shooting.

Either one will put meat in the freezer as long as the shooter does his/her part. I would go with Skeeter's load myself as I carry that load in my 3" and 4" model 24's, it has served me well for decades. Good luck & good hunting.

I got to ride with the rest of the posse on this one. No sense in trying to reinvent the wheel. You got a load that will do the job and you know how it shoots in your gun. If you want to try the Elmer load, wait until after the freezer is full. Then you will have time to tweek the load and see if it shoots any better than what you already have.

Personally, I'm not into "celebrity loads". I would first find the bullet I wanna use, find a starting load in one of my manual(s), then buy components and work up a load for my gun...

We've heard it a zillion times, "every gun is different" and I like reloading so there is no downside for me to work up my own loads. I would try the powders the celebrities used, but load data is out of my manuals...

But don't look at the headgear for that to work!

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Certified NRA rifle instructor

[QUOTE=Nemo288;139776265]Skeeter. Also +1 on whatever is your most accurate load.
My version uses 7 grains of Universal and gets in the mid 900's out of a 3" 696.
The 696 is legal for deer hunting here as they measure all handguns from the chamber mouth to the muzzle.
Has to be at least 4" last I looked here in the land of cheese.



3 inch is not long enough for hunting in Wisconsin

Handguns
Handguns must use center-fire cartridges of .22 caliber or larger and have a 5½ inch
minimum barrel length measured from the firing pin to the muzzle with the action closed.
For details on muzzleloading handguns, see “Muzzleloaders” section above

Huh, looks like everybody here prefers a light load with a lead semi-wadcutter.

I've shot a half dozen deer with both 357 Magnum and 44 Magnum..one shot with a 240gr LSW I took a big doe clean off her feet... (Illinois Handgun season was antlerless only)

and then she got up about 30 seconds later and ran off...

My recommendation is to forget all that nonsense and go with a Hornady 240gr hollow point at around 1000fps, it will do the job and your Ruger won't complain either.

Hornady makes a similar load in 357 Mag, either work well.

Nothing walked away from that, and the exit wound on the other side looked like a 12 Gauge shotgun exit..

As an archer, I want sharp blades cutting all the arteries and blood vessels possible,,, we've all seen lots of deer take a decently placed arrow and walk away..


Sharp Broadheads/240gr Hornady,,, samo, samo, I don't like wounding deer or any other game,, pack enough heat to do the job quickly and humanely!

Thanks for the update.
It has been a few years since I read the deer hunting manual.
I think they changed that rule or I just plain remembered it wrong.
Luckily I have a 4" 624 and a 4" 629-2 MR that is the one I would carry now I know the recent law.
They are practically identical except for the chambering.
Sadly my arthritis is getting bad enough that my still hunting days may be over.
I have had to curtail my long distance motorcycle riding as well.

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NEMO
"Everything 44"

My one and only deer was taken many years ago with the 2400 load. Same one I was using for IHMSA chickens and pigs.
Shot clear through the critter.
But then I'd shot many 100s of that load and was totally confident in it.
Being older and wiser, now I would probably just use the 7.5 Unique load.

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

The real advantage is that they took out the min energy for a handgun . It use to read 1,000 ft pounds or more.

So now , with a conceal carry permit, a person can carry a 44 special with a short barrel under your coat and protected from the snow as a walk in / walk out gun...loaded. Because it's not a legal hunting gun, it totally fits the self defense category and a game warden needs to allow it to be on your person and concealed/loaded even after legal shooting hours. Also bow hunters are allowed to CC. I put night sights on my M69 {2 3/4 '} to make it an even better walk in/walk out gun. Many things in the woods are becoming way to use to people and no longer run. I live in the far North with bear, Wolf and now the big cats.I like peace of mind in the dim hours.

Brian Pearce is a proponent of that load. Probably the best gun writer out there in my book.

I have personally used both the loads you described above with good success on game.

The Unique load is a great everyday load and the 2400 load is a dandy as well.

I used the 2400 load to kill several deer, an elk and a black bear.

I trust it, having used that same dollop of 2400 for my handgun silhouette target load.

Good Luck on your hunt.

Dave

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"

Shoot both loads and pick the best load you are comfortable with. Groups and recoil both loads will kill a deer but shot placement and a clean kill is a must.

250/900 is hard to beat in 44 Special.

I've shot both - the Skeeter load is nicer to shoot but the Elmer load shoots to point of aim in my 24-3 (Skeeter load is still high with the rear sight screwed all the way down). Killed two deer with it last year.

I shoot Skeeters load in my Charter Arms Target Bulldog in stainless . I shoot Elmer's load in my 2nd mod Hand ejector . Either kills game just as dead . Shoot which ever one your gun likes the best .

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Grumpy Old Man With a Gun

Elmer's actual load was 18.5 grs of 2400 with balloon head cases.........when solid head cases came along he backed off to 17.5 grs of 2400. I shoot 16.5 grs of 2400 with Elmer's bullet in my Lipseys Ruger Bisley with excellent results!

I went for years, shooting nothing but Unique for full loads since I had
no use for 2400 powder in my shotgun loads.

Finally I broke down to see what fps I would gain, along bullet drop and accuracy.
There was an increase but my revolvers liked both powders with all the
different weight bullets and calibers that I loaded for.

+1 on accuracy over fps with a pistol/revolver in the field....
maybe fps if you use a scope on that revolver.

As per Mr Keith in an article written in 1968,a 22.0gr 2400 with his bullet from a 7 1/2 SuperBlackhawk drilled all the way to the heart in an elephant(didn't do it himself;he reported it).I thus don't doubt that same bullet at aprox 2/3 it'svelocity,as per Skeeter's load,can and will drill deep enough into a deer.KT bullets are notorious for deep penetration while cutting a good size hole.
I'd use Skeeter's recipe without a second thought if that's what my gun preferred.
Qc

And Veral Smith's WFN will cut an even bigger hole unless you are REALLY going to try and emulate Elmer and his 200 yard + revolver shots.
I consider Veral to be the bonafide successor to Elmer as far as bullet design goes.
Unfortunately he is no where near as eloquent or well known as a result.
But anything a SWC will do a WFN will do better within 100 yards.

Having said all that another 44 special top load I developed is 8.5 grains Universal under a Sierra 210 JHC.
This goes 1055 fps out of a 3" 696 with a SD of 2 (CCI 300 primer, Starline nickel 44 special brass).
One of the only jacketed loads I would carry for all purpose use in the 44 special except the Bulldog
That calculates right at Brian Pearce's top end of 25kpsi.

Attached Images

Cast44Bullets-1.jpg (279.1 KB, 42 views)

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NEMO
"Everything 44"

On deer with a 240 SWC with 7.5 unique ,I have all ways got complete pass through on lung shots . Deer go about 25-30yards and pile up. Quick bleed out with Good blood trail.