New here. Questions on .44 rifle for deer hunting.

[hoosier23]

New to the forum so hopefully this question hasn't been asked too many times. I'm looking to improve on the trusty smooth bore 12 gauge for next deer season and wondered if it would be more beneficial to go with a .44 mag or .45 colt rifle (or similar) or a rifled slug barrel shotgun. I have my old H&R 20 gauge single shot I have had since I was about 10. Strongly considering have it fitted with a .44 or 410/.45 colt barrel or a rifled slug barrel. I have been told I can fit it with a 12 gauge slug barrel by H&R. What are everyones opinions on this conundrum? If rifle barrel what caliber and if slug barrel fit with a 12 or stick to the 20? All options can be done for about $150 roughly through H&R.

 

[hammer24]

I gave up slug guns as soon as the .44 was made available for deer in this state. Won't ever go back. It is a deer, it doesn't take a lot to kill. Shooting the .44 Rem Mag out of a rifle length barrel turns it into a different animal than out of a handgun. The .44 is a well proven deer killer out to 150 yards, the ammo is cheaper and the recoil is significantly less than a 12 gauge. That adds up to more shooting which usually means better accuracy.


Oh, and WELCOME TO INGO!!!

 

[Slawburger]

I have two friends that bought .44 Handi-Rifles and they both love them. They have hunted with shotguns, bows and muzzleloaders for years (ok, decades) so it isn't a case of loving the first firearm they ever bought. I haven't moved to the .44 myself but I have been considering it.

 

[Lucky]

I can only speak to the effective use of the 44 mag as an excellent deer cartridge. I have used it for years (in pistol) and probably killed close to 20 deer with it, including one that made Hoosier big bucks. The thing I can say about the 44 that I can't say about ANY other cartridge is that I have never lost a deer after being hit with it. They just seem to "die" better with it than anything else I have used.
My choice for rifle will be a trimmed case 35 rem. Just not been able to use it this year. Let my daughter,her boyfriend, and my grandson hunt "my" spot this year. Maybe next year....

 

[snapping turtle]

They will all work well. With 150 to spend it is about your only choice. I have shot some handi and h@r rifle that had 10 pound triggers. Not my cup of tea but they work for some.

In the rifled shotgun i would do the 20 guage. With a sabot: good range, accuracy and knockdown power. In your setup the smaller gauge will give you a bit more weight for recoil. Nothing wrong with the 12 but I think the 20 is better.

In the rifle the 44 mag is killer also. Out to 150 easy. I reload for mine but it is a lever. the 45 LC just as good handloaded factory not as good. Ammo cost will pay for itself over the sabot needed in the shotgun in just a few years. Sabots can run 3 dollars a pop. can remember many Indiana deer shots I could have taken over 100 yards. I am in open farm areas also. Every once in a while I see something at the other end of the field. A 7mm mag woud be best but not legal here.

A trigger job on the h@R is a good idea. Not the nice trigger of other guns. I think they might stone it a bit if you ask them when you send it in for a barrel.

If i was going the route of a hunter wanting just a single shot in a light weight package with a good trigger and scope. I think the T/C contender or encore would be the ticket. The old gen contender had a nice crisp trigger with 0 overtravel. The encore would most likely be 460 smith ir 454 casual or one of the HOOSIER wildcats, but you lose that rigger pull. Still over a 150 dollar budget.

A second thought is save the 150, add a little to it from your christmas stocking and birthday or overtime. Look for the deer rifles that come up for sale soon. Season ends for firearms after the first of the year and for bucks it is over now. Those who want to switch up or get out will have no reason not to sell off. Pawn shops in 120 days of end of season also. Lot get pawned for christmas money. Might be able to get a second whole handirifle in 44 mag to go with the H@R. Both will need trigger work.

 

[randygun]

michigan will adopt your rifle law next year watch out

 

[phatgemi]

And a plus if you go with the .44 single shot. You can have it reamed out to .445SM. Gives a bit more ooooooph but retains the .44 special/mag capability.

 

[hoosier23]

Thanks all for the replies. Just to be clear though I don't really have a $150 budget. Just figured having a slug or rifle barrel fitted to this gun could kill 2 birds with one stone. I could get something with a little more range and accuracy than the smooth bore slugs I've used for years and at the same time I could get some use out of a gun that basically just sits in the gun safe aside from the occasional squirrel hunt. The $150 price tag is a plus though. All seems like good, helpful info from you all though. Thanks again.

 

[Nayls47]

I thought I read once that they wouldn't fit a rifle barrel to an older standard shotgun receiver. It had to be the Handi Rifle or Combo receiver. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[nipprdog]

I thought I read once that they wouldn't fit a rifle barrel to an older standard shotgun receiver. It had to be the Handi Rifle or Combo receiver. Correct me if I'm wrong.

He's not asking to have a rifle barrel fitted, its a handgun caliber barrel. The SB1 receivers can be fitted with 357mag,44mag,and shotgun barrels.

 

[biggen]

I went with a CVA Scout in 44mag this year, and I have killed two deer with it so far this season. I like the trigger on the CVA better than H@R.
I am talking with my gunsmith about reaming it to a shortened 444 Marlin.

 

[hammer24]

I thought I read once that they wouldn't fit a rifle barrel to an older standard shotgun receiver. It had to be the Handi Rifle or Combo receiver. Correct me if I'm wrong.

This actually got me thinking. I know they'll fit the .44 and .357 barrels to shotgun receivers, but after Remington bought them out, I believe they really cut back on the years, serial #s, and models they would do this with. The OP may want to give them a call to check the serial # is OK.

I got a .44 barrel fitted to an old shotgun frame I had from the early 90's a couple years ago. Got an old leftover micro grooved barrel that was overbored at .432 back! That thing wouldn't shoot anything! I was lucky to pull off paper plate accuracy at 100 yds, so traded it in towards a 77/44. I bought a .44 barrel off a guy and fitted it to a .223 frame myself and that rifle drives tacks with my 8 yr. old son behind the wheel shooting a lighter handload.

H&R sells the .44 and .357 rifles on shotgun frames, they just have smaller diameter firing pins for the pistol primers.

 

[kludge]

With your H&R I would...

get a .44 Mag barrel if you don't reload.

or better yet start reloading, get a .357 Mag barrel put on it, then have it reamed out to 357 Maximum.

 

[Miketodd]

I am actually shooting the .44 mag Hornaday XTP bullets with a .50 cal sabbot out of my Muzzleloader and it is a deer slayer! So far I LOVE using this vs anything else.

 

[Gold738]

I love the .44, i am looking to buy a marlin or winchester if i can find a good used one for CHristmas.

 

[Gold738]

when you say Michigan will adopt our rifle laws what do you mean? I am in Petoskey for work this week and just curious what you can use.

 

[jurassicnarc]

+1 for the 44 mag in a rifle. I got a Win 94AE w/ octagon barrel for use here in Indiana, but wound up using it in WV on the family farm. Deer ran directly at me, so I shot him in the brisket at 20 yds +/-. He ran full tilt into a barb wire fence with out any attempt to jump over. This threw him end for end so hard he broke both a tine and the upper strand of fence. Not even a twitch thereafter; probably dead before he hit the fence 2 seconds later. I have killed a couple deer with a S&W M29 but never that fast. I can still hear that "sproing" when he flipped.

 

[Liberty Sanders]

There were at one time drop-in barrels for single barrel shotguns such as H&R Toppers that would allow them to fire an array of centerfire cartridges. Their only issue was ascertaining where they would hit using the single bead sights common on those guns.

If they're still made it might be an economical option.

P.S.

I checked...here ya go...

http://www.shotgunadapter.com/

 

[Hookeye]

And more adapters here

MCA Sports: Chamber Adapters, Inserts and Cast Bullets, Our Home Page!

 

[Liberty Sanders]

And more adapters here

MCA Sports: Chamber Adapters, Inserts and Cast Bullets, Our Home Page!

Thanks Hook,

The ones you found were what I was thinking of, with a length of barrel attached, not just simply a chamber adapter.