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1851 navy hunting

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smokepolehall said:
Like y

Like you i am going to use my 1860 New Army .44 with a .454 ball & 30 gr of T7-3F. I hit playing card at 35 yards consistantly & 4"x4" at 40 yards. That's the max i think i can make a clean kill
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I need to get some time with mine before I’m ready to hunt with it. I got drawn for mule deer this year so I’ll have a season to train with it and put in for coues next year. The most likely scenario at this point for me will probably be a H.A.M. Javelina with it first.
 
Eterry said:
This was our cow dog. But she liked venison as much as we did... maybe more. We finally had to start tying her up before hunting, or she'd chase the deer. Sadly, she's long gone.

I hope you get plenty of practice, get really familiar with your 44. The Conical or RB need to be dead soft or you'll have serious problems loading her.
If you've bowhunted you know where to put the round, also about not following up too soon. Avoid large bones, and post some pics after getting a Cous'. My BIL lives in Glendale, he used to hunt the Superstition Mountains.
It can be tough getting drawn I hear.
Best of luck. Be safe.
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Not a whole lotta things better than a good dog. Yeah I have a lot of practicing
to do. I imagine I’ll be working up to a deer hunt with it. Small game and hopefully a javelina while waiting to draw a coues tag since we drew mule deer tags this season. I’ll be keeping you guys posted as I get time with the gun.
 
The bullets Mr. Smith uses is the Kaido 240 grain. They are very accurate in repro revolvers. Mr. Kaido Ojama himself hunts with these bullets as do many of the people who bought his molds.
KIMG0512.jpg
 
Check first with your state's big game hunting regulations. Here in Colorado a .44 cap and ball revolver would NOT be considered a legal means of take or legal weapon for deer. And not supposed to be used for coup de gras during muzzle loading rifle big game season. Historically, the 1851 Colt Navy was .36 caliber and not .44. Your .44 is a modern Italian iteration of a 51 Navy rather than replica of something historical. My Uberti .44 caliber 1858 New Model Army won't take the Lee conical as it does not fit in the space between the front of the cylinder and the end of the rammer. It is plenty powerful enough for grouse, squirrels and rabbits and lighter to carry than most modern .44 Remington Magnums. Frontstuffer070, what specific 240 grain conical do you use in your Uberti New Model Army? Previous posts had long drawn out debates of sturdiness of an open top cylinder like the 51 Colt Navy vs 1858 Remington New Model Army with the top strap. Also read of folks loading their cap and ball revolvers with 4F instead of 3F granulation black powder. I personally would not use 4F. Use of a felt wad between powder and round ball or conical will reduce the maximum powder charge.
 
beardedhorse said:
Check first with your state's big game hunting regulations. Here in Colorado a .44 cap and ball revolver would NOT be considered a legal means of take or legal weapon for deer. And not supposed to be used for coup de gras during muzzle loading rifle big game season. Historically, the 1851 Colt Navy was .36 caliber and not .44. Your .44 is a modern Italian iteration of a 51 Navy rather than replica of something historical. My Uberti .44 caliber 1858 New Model Army won't take the Lee conical as it does not fit in the space between the front of the cylinder and the end of the rammer. It is plenty powerful enough for grouse, squirrels and rabbits and lighter to carry than most modern .44 Remington Magnums. Frontstuffer070, what specific 240 grain conical do you use in your Uberti New Model Army? Previous posts had long drawn out debates of sturdiness of an open top cylinder like the 51 Colt Navy vs 1858 Remington New Model Army with the top strap. Also read of folks loading their cap and ball revolvers with 4F instead of 3F granulation black powder. I personally would not use 4F. Use of a felt wad between powder and round ball or conical will reduce the maximum powder charge
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His pistol is legal in his state. I use the Kaido 240 grain Conical. Anyone can use any Conical in ANY repro revolver if you have a loading stand / press. I prefer to load Conicals with one anyway. We need another GOOD press to come on the market since Big Lube shut down. Lastly, I don't go along with that regurgitated nonsense that the Open top is not as strong as the Remington pattern. Its like someone spewed that excrement and everyone just blindly goes along with it. But we don't need to drag this thread out about that. Its been covered on this forum as you said at length. I just don't believe it.
 
I am just like Frontstuffer070, a person needs to try things in their own pistol. You can follow general advice & powder charges, i have enough chamber room to add more powder. I use 30 gr T7-3F. I can go another 5 gr if needed. States & their regulations seem more about daft azz people with no sense on what will kill game animals . You can never build a set of regulations that cover the grey matter in peoples heads ! There are plenty of really stupid people that walk among us & finds ways to kill themselves on a regular basis !
 
Frontstuffer070 said:
His pistol is legal in his state. I use the Kaido 240 grain Conical. Anyone can use any Conical in ANY repro revolver if you have a loading stand / press. I prefer to load Conicals with one anyway. We need another GOOD press to come on the market since Big Lube shut down. Lastly, I don't go along with that regurgitated nonsense that the Open top is not as strong as the Remington pattern. Its like someone spewed that excrement and everyone just blindly goes along with it. But we don't need to drag this thread out about that. Its been covered on this forum as you said at length. I just don't believe it.
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Yeah the conversation about this is what I stumbled upon that had me rethinking trying conicals. But there are load recommendations for them in the manual that came with the gun, so I assume it’s safe. They do recommend less powder behind them. Is that a head space issue more so than the pressures created when shooting them?
 
beardedhorse said:
Check first with your state's big game hunting regulations. Here in Colorado a .44 cap and ball revolver would NOT be considered a legal means of take or legal weapon for deer. And not supposed to be used for coup de gras during muzzle loading rifle big game season. Historically, the 1851 Colt Navy was .36 caliber and not .44. Your .44 is a modern Italian iteration of a 51 Navy rather than replica of something historical. My Uberti .44 caliber 1858 New Model Army won't take the Lee conical as it does not fit in the space between the front of the cylinder and the end of the rammer. It is plenty powerful enough for grouse, squirrels and rabbits and lighter to carry than most modern .44 Remington Magnums. Frontstuffer070, what specific 240 grain conical do you use in your Uberti New Model Army? Previous posts had long drawn out debates of sturdiness of an open top cylinder like the 51 Colt Navy vs 1858 Remington New Model Army with the top strap. Also read of folks loading their cap and ball revolvers with 4F instead of 3F granulation black powder. I personally would not use 4F. Use of a felt wad between powder and round ball or conical will reduce the maximum powder charge.
Click to expand...
Yeah in our regs it’s states “black powder handguns” to be a legal weapon. I even looked in the notes in the back where it dictates minimum draw weight requirements for anrchery annd other details . In that section it again just reads “black powder handguns”

You can legally hunt elk with them here which I would never try. That’s what brought me here to ask this fine groups opinion on the subject and hope a few had some personal experience with the efficacy of these weapons on medium sized game.
 
Thanks for info on 240 gr Kaido bullet. A black powder cannon is a muzzle loader. Has any asked about using them to hunt elk in Arizona?
A bowling ball mortar flushed out some elk but as the game warden and I were both hiding behind a big tree when the bowling ball went out of sight and then returned. I didn't attempt a shot with my legal rifle.
 
beardedhorse said:
Thanks for info on 240 gr Kaido bullet. A black powder cannon is a muzzle loader. Has any asked about using them to hunt elk in Arizona?
A bowling ball mortar flushed out some elk but as the game warden and I were both hiding behind a big tree when the bowling ball went out of sight and then returned. I didn't attempt a shot with my legal rifle.
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A more seasoned hunter wouldn’t have had a problem getting a clean shot off a in that scenario. Keep practicing! Haha
 
I got out to the range today. I was having issues with the caps getting stuck to the nipples so bad that it made it hard to focus on shooting with the short time I had.

I definitely have ALOT of shooting/tweaking to do before I can get dialed in enough to hunt with this gun. But, that was the first time I got to really punch paper with it. And I started to get a feel for things. Just would have been better if I wasn’t chasing jams and stuck caps the whole time.

I will figure it out and you guys are stuck on the journey with me now LOL. One step at a time we’re gonna get closer to me getting proficient with this weapon.
 

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I'd like to add this for consideration: In one State where I reside P/T, airguns are legal for big game. A 147gr lead airgun "pellet" going 880 FPS at the muzzle is legal and I have a few instances of personal observation of these being used. That kind of power makes me a little uncomfortable personally, but I saw some videos and personally sat with a person where in each instance a WTD of around 120 pounds was shot at a distance of 50-yards and was recovered within close proximity. Texas in particular did a 2-year long controlled hunt experiment before creating their airgun hunting parameters. Your Navy will be at or exceed the parameters determined to be okay by State biologists and game managers. For accuracy, etc, I might cut myself off at 20-yards - but I've seem some 150 grain-ish projectiles at a MV less than 950 fps take a deer at 100-yards, some with pass-through. If its legal, it's your hunt, you know your limitations and what your gun is doing and you know what outcomes to avoid because they will weigh on you. So within reason that is determined by you - I wish you great success and look forward to your report!
 
Sparkitoff said:
I'd like to add this for consideration: In one State where I reside P/T, airguns are legal for big game. A 147gr lead airgun "pellet" going 880 FPS at the muzzle is legal and I have a few instances of personal observation of these being used. That kind of power makes me a little uncomfortable personally, but I saw some videos and personally sat with a person where in each instance a WTD of around 120 pounds was shot at a distance of 50-yards and was recovered within close proximity. Texas in particular did a 2-year long controlled hunt experiment before creating their airgun hunting parameters. Your Navy will be at or exceed the parameters determined to be okay by State biologists and game managers. For accuracy, etc, I might cut myself off at 20-yards - but I've seem some 150 grain-ish projectiles at a MV less than 950 fps take a deer at 100-yards, some with pass-through. If its legal, it's your hunt, you know your limitations and what your gun is doing and you know what outcomes to avoid because they will weigh on you. So within reason that is determined by you - I wish you great success and look forward to your report!
Click to expand...
Thanks for sharing! Our WTD here are coues deer and quite small. 80lbs on average. I’ve been practicing on a bench at 25 yards and feel that is about a far as I’d shoot at a deer with it. Next time I draw a coues deer tag I’m going to use it. I drew a mule deer tag this year and feel like they’re a little large bodied for this. For now just getting more accurate with it so I’ll be ready when it comes.
 

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