45 ACP for close up whitetail hunting

Buddy took a ram out West with a full sizes 1911 and 230gr. Gold Dot. Tore through the animal and stopped in the thick wool on the other side. Perfectly expanded. Used to hunt with a pistol. You need to get close and only take good, solid shots. No room for error. Does really help your skills at tracking and getting close to game.

I shot 10 pointer, on the run, with CorBon HP .45 about 5 years ago. 20 yards. It had been hit in the back ankle opening day and by someone and ran 1/2 mile to my back yard and layed down. I just thought I was going out to finish it when it jumped up and ran. After he dropped with the first shot just behind the shoulderblade I walked up and put one more in him. It came to rest just under the skin on the other side. So I think the penetration is just right. Not my personal first choice for deer hunting but it will certainly do the job. Oh, and I found the original shooter and let him take it.

fortyofforty said:

The biggest .45 ACP fan I know shot a deer squarely with his trusty .45 ACP Federal HST. Off went the deer, never to be seen again. Tracking failed. Daylight faded. And he never again hunted deer with his .45 ACP. An anecdotal story, but another data point for you to consider.

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Must of made A very poorly judgemental shot cause it will definetly take down deer no doubt if done right.

fredj338 said:

In all fairness, a good size hog is a far tougher target than any deer. No place for any service caliber, any bullet imo.

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Go about halfway down and you'll see my pics........all but one with a "service caliber".

http://www.glocktalk.com/threads/hunting-big-game-with-glocks.1622300/page-2#post-23192969

hogcaller said:

Go about halfway down and you'll see my pics........all but one with a "service caliber".

http://www.glocktalk.com/threads/hunting-big-game-with-glocks.1622300/page-2#post-23192969

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If your shots are to the head, well doesn;t matter what caliber? I never said you couldn;t kill a deer or hog with a service caliber, just not the best tool. Kinda like opening a paint can with a screw driver or pounding nails with a rock, there are better tools for certain jobs.

http://www.glocktalk.com/threads/hunting-big-game-with-glocks.1622300/page-2#post-23192969[/QUOTE]

fredj338 said:

If your shots are to the head, well doesn;t matter what caliber? I never said you couldn;t kill a deer or hog with a service caliber, just not the best tool. Kinda like opening a paint can with a screw driver or pounding nails with a rock, there are better tools for certain jobs.

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2 were head shots, the rest were vital shots, and both bucks were DRT.......

Just a question, do you hunt?

hogcaller said:

http://www.glocktalk.com/threads/hunting-big-game-with-glocks.1622300/page-2#post-23192969

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2 were head shots, the rest were vital shots, and both bucks were DRT.......

Just a question, do you hunt?[/QUOTE]
Yes, not as much as I like lately, but all over the west, NZ once, Africa 3x, buffalo on two of those hunts, so yes I have a good understanding how this goes. It is JMO, I don't think service calibers are adequate gp purpose hunting tools.

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

What about the Underwood penetrator rounds? acp+p

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.

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

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!!

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.

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.

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.

Billdogge said:

May have been discussed here before but does anyone hunt with their 45 acp for whitetails at closer ranges (35 yards)?

If so what loads and what gun/barrel combo?

Thanks in advance

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

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.

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

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

Railsplitter said:

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

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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?