Buck Hollow Sporting Goods - click or touch to visit their website Midwest Habitat Company

.44mag ammo suggestions

JRudd

Aim small miss small.
I am mainly trying to see what the guys shoot out of their .44 mag, and what kinds of groups everyone has been getting.

I have a marlin 1894 .44 mag that i was planning on having my son shoot this weekend. He has shot it a fair amount, and i wrote off the loose groups as him just being a young shooter. BUT, I wasn't getting "good" groups initially either. I would have one 3-4" left, stack two shots 1-2" apart around center, one 2-4" high, one 3" right etc.

I just put a new scope on the gun, figuring that the older scope I had on it could also be contributing to the loose groups. +8" group at 50yds just doesn't cut it for me, and IMO might as well throw rocks at the deer further than 50yds. Considering that is off of a lead sled, with no additional factors, 3 mph wind, and with me squeezing the shots off... Put a 7yr old behind the gun, add in adrenaline, and consider it will be off of an effective, yet much less stable Deadshot field-pod...accuracy will suffer regardless of how well he shoots. Will that kill at 50yds? Of course. 75yds? possibly.. 100yds? Better bring a tracking party, and lots of hopes and prayers... But I wouldn't place any bets on a hit much less a kill. Maybe I am wrong, but I have a hard time believing that an 8" group at 50 yds is "normal" for a .44 mag... At 100 yds, you could probably talk me into considering a 6" group "acceptable", maybe. And since I know what the initial reactions will be; yes, the base, and rings are secure. lol

We will be in a blind that only offers shots out to 60 yds on Saturday morning, but I am going to get a couple different boxes of ammo to see if i can get a better group on Saturday afternoon before the evening hunt. If all else fails, he can use the muzzy when we are in the other blind where longer shots might be offered.

I am going to limit my son to a 50 yd shot unless i find a better round. Thats pretty limiting knowing how well he is able to shoot. I would prefer to have my wife shoot this gun as well, for recoil reasons. And I dont want her to be restricted to 50-75 yds. She has the option to use the .45-70, but that is not an option for a 7 yr old weighing #65 lol

Sorry for the lengthy post, and Thank you for any ammunition suggestions that you may have!
 
Last edited:
What bullet are you shooting? Your Marlin has a 1/38 twist, so you might try a lighter bullet. Some rifles have 1/20 twist (same as 44 mag handguns) to stabilize heavier bullets. I’ve heard that the Marlin doesn’t like much more than 240 grain.
 
Might try some classic Winchester White Box 44 Mag 240 JSP, if you haven’t already. May actually have a bit less recoil, still with plenty of power for whitetails, as well.
 
Top Bottom