I would be much more concerned about whether or not I could make the shot accurately.

45 with practically any decent JHP will do the job.

 

Limit your shot distance with the .45acp as you would if hunting with archery, and I think you would be as successful as most archery hunters- which isn’t perfect either, especially for the unpracticed and those who don’t have the self discipline to wait for the right shot.

But successful enough that dedicated archers are willing to risk it with careful practice and careful shot selection. And no disrespect to archery, it’s a great sport. If you hunt long enough, you will lose an animal no matter what your weapon of choice is.

 

Any service caliber will work on deer, they're not tanks all you need is good shot placement. I'm not saying they're ideal, I guess in ways no handgun is ideal in that regard but they will work if you do your part.

 

Buddy of mine shot a full-size doe with a 230 grain Federal Hydra-shok from his 1911. She ran about 30 yards and folded up. Shot was about 30 yards. I have a hard time believing that a whitetail shot squarely through the ribs with a 230 grain HST could get too far. JMHO

Ron

 

230 grain black talon after going through both shoulders of a whitetail and stopping at the offside hide , 30yards . I typically use hardcast though

 

230gr Sig V crown , 18 yards , frontal cranium entrance , exit at base of skull/ top of spine . Rode the neck skin down 7” and stopped there under skin.

would have to try a couple more in more substantial meat to see how I feel about them

 

No, no, no, no...

You're going about this all wrong!

Just use a 9mm.

''A 9mm blows the lung out of the body.'' ―Joe Biden

 

Why? What would be the point of it?

 

If you are a hand loader, and IF 'you're shooter' will eat 'em, a 230gr hard cast WFN and Heavy Power Pistol, or 200 gr HC, or 230 gr XTP, w/PP load.... will drill any deer out there nice and clean if you do your part out to 50 yards, and 'no sweat' closer in... Have fun.

All my PP loads here, are very stout (safe) but stout. I won't print them, but 7.5 grs is max, and I'm 'all over that area'...

ssaw

CM
✝

 

If you are a hand loader, and IF 'you're shooter' will eat 'em, a 230gr hard cast WFN and Heavy Power Pistol, or 200 gr HC, or 230 gr XTP, w/PP load.... will drill any deer out there nice and clean if you do your part out to 50 yards, and 'no sweat' closer in... Have fun.

All my PP loads here, are very stout (safe) but stout. I won't print them, but 7.5 grs is max, and I'm 'all over that area'...

ssaw

CM
✝

Not hard to get a 250 xtp to 900fps in a 5” 1911. Though i doubt it gives you much over a 230gr running 950?

 

I know of a few hunting with AR-45's.

 

Back 10+ years ago I had to get a tracking dog and find a large mature doe (135lbs) that was wounded, (scope mount was loose and round went low right and destroyed her front legs). She jumped a fence and disappeared into a thicket right at dusk. She made it about 50 yards and hid in a ditch. When the dog and I found her I put her down from about 10 feet with a G21 and some very hot Double Tap 230 grain JHP ammo. The round entered one side and exited the other, destroying the shoulder roast with a huge exit hole. That is an impressive performance on a large doe and a round I wouldn't hesitate to use if hunting a whitetail at a reasonable distance.

 

I want a LARGE exit hole to aid in tracking.
A .45ACP JHP won't do that reliably.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

I want a LARGE exit hole to aid in tracking.
A .45ACP JHP won't do that reliably.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

No but a wnfp solid will. 45acp wouldnt be my first choice but it can be made to work. A 230gr XTP running 950fs will likely not stop on a doube lung shot.

 

Shooting a bad guy and he runs away I would say you're lucky because your shot placement was bad lol.

And I fully agree a wounded animal sucks and we owe it to them for a quick kill. Ive killed a whole bunch of things with 45 acp. Things much bigger then deer and I know that with any caliber, if your shot isn't placed correct and your bullet isn't a deep penetrating tough one, things can suck real quick.

HST is great for humans, even though they are quick to expand they penetrate enough for that job. Humans and Deer just aren't the same. Not meaning weight etc, it's just a deer is quick to move and a click of a safety can end up with a missed or badly placed shot or opportunity, they're in tune with their surroundings. A typical person will stop and think what is that, too late lol.

Well plenty of bad guys have taken multiple com hits with everything hand carried & & continued to fight or run off. Even with self defense calibers, i would rather a bullet just exit, two holes bleed faster than one. Personnally, i would rather have the hst expand just a bit less for deeper penetration. All defensive shots arent always going thru the front of the chest.
Lastly, a calm feeding deer is not am amped up 250# bad guy. While i would hunt deer or hogs with a 45acp, right bullet & conditions, there are better tools.

 

Well plenty of bad guys have taken multiple com hits with everything hand carried & & continued to fight or run off. Even with self defense calibers, i would rather a bullet just exit, two holes bleed faster than one. Personnally, i would rather have the hst expand just a bit less fie deeper penetration. All defensive shots arent always going thru the front of the chest.
Lastly, a calm feeding deer is not am amped up 250# bad guy. While i would hunt deer or hogs with a 45acp, right bullet & conditions, there are better tools.

And I can make this case with every handgun caliber out there, even rifles ...I've seen a a 200 pound black bear obsorb four 180 grain 30-06 rounds before it finally died, yet that same bullet and caliber has taken many many elk over the many many years and still does today...Deer usually aren't calm most times, most times they are amped up they just don't shown it...

And yes a amped up bad guy can take many hits, even with a 12 gauge yet we all know how great the 12 gauge is...

It's a endless debate, know your limits and your skill set before venturing out into the unknown.

 

If the .45 ACP is so good for a 250-lb felon, why wouldn't it be good for a 200-lb deer at 50 yards or closer?

 

See my post above. If I shoot a bad guy & he runs away to die, I have solved my problem. If I shoot a deer & he runs away to die, I have a bigger problem.

 

Who said I did. Just wanted to discuss. Might/Might not. I've shot a lot of deer none over 40 yards.

Just curious as to why you want to hunt deer with a .45?

 

I've killed a bunch of deer with arrows, based on bow hunting experience...
If I wanted to hunt deer with my 5'' barrel 1911, I would set up for a shot inside 20 yards, ground level (blind) and wait for a broadside still deer, POA just behind the shoulder.
A bullet that penetrates deeper, at the expense of maximum expansion would be my pick (HST not the best choice in this scenario).
Example: Remington 230 JHP penetrated 17.5'' after 4 layer denim and expanded .65''
A broadside deer is about 12'' thick, but hide is good at stopping bullets on the off side

 

The father of a friend from childhood told us he killed a tiger while serving with Merrill's Marauders with a Gov't .45 during WWII. Up close and personal in the middle of the night.

 

Just curious as to why you want to hunt deer with a .45?

 

I've killed a bunch of stuff with a 45 acp. Stuff much bigger then any deer....Penetration and shot placement is key. Doesn't matter what caliber it is if it doesn't penetrate and doesn't hit it's mark it's not going to just flat out kill it.

I saw a horse with a broken leg recently take a full cylinder of 44 mag and was still alive 20 min after being shot ...awful...If you don't know where the vitals are and you don't have a good penetrating bullet that can break through bone then forget it. I've seen black bear take 3 rounds of 180 grain 30-06 and run like hell. Bad shot placement results in a long painful death.

You owe it to the animal for a quick kill.

 

I've shot 4-5 mule deer does with a standard 5" Government-style 1911. Load was a 200gr lswc @ 900 or so fps. All were shot up close in the heart/lung area and died but required a little trailing. They were all targets-of-opportunity and occurred during late season bird hunts or trap line checking and I just happened to have a doe tag on me.

 

Anything will kill a deer easily if shot was right on the vitals. Use whatever thats legal and just make it count instead of sending a mag full in volley like i always hear during gun season.

 

Holy crap you mean it's physically possible to kill a deer with a Glock that isn't chambered in 10mm? Who would've thought it!!

 

I dropped a 115 lb NH deer a few years ago with mu G23 40 cal, Using Winchester 165 grain SXT. Pretty much perfect conditions than Less than 20 yds I was in a tree she had no idea, Shot her just under the neck between shoulder blades (she was literally under me)dropped in her tracks twitched a bit then that was it. Not the best method to judge a certain bullets performance but not the worse either, I'll take this test over ballistic Gel
1SG
Out

 

I personally would prefer to use a .357 mag revolver with a 6" barrel. 158g Gold Dots or lead solids would be my choice.

.45acp is more than adequate for deer within range and with the right bullet. I would just have more confidence making the shot with a revolver than a semi-auto .45

I would use 230g Gold Dots or some other bonded JHP. Like mentioned using a handgun leaves little room for error.

I personally have never killed a deer with a handgun, but I always have one on me and would like to one day if the opportunity arises.

I took a 4" Smith model 66 loaded with 158g Gold Dot magnums hunting with me this afternoon.

 

What about the Underwood penetrator rounds? acp+p

 

I've proven they're more than adequate for me.......AND it's fun and challenging! You're entitled to your own opinion.......