32 cal maxi for deer

[cooter303]

was wondering what folks thoughts are on a 32 cal maxi on deer. t/c's load chart says 40 gr of 3 f will produce 600 ft pounds at the muzzle with the 103 gr maxi. i would think out to 50 or 60 yrds this would be plenty. up here in bc canada we don't have a min caliber for deer. my first post here.

 

[gunner69skmc]

With the size of the deer you have in Canada I would say "NO" to that. Growing up in South Dakota, I was reluctant to use a .45 cal on deer size animals. I don't want them to suffer..... I want them on the ground ready for the butcher.

 

[cooter303]

i figured it would turn out too light for deer but i thought i would throw it out and see what others thought. i have a 50 cal barrel i have to fit to it. i should start on it soon.

 

[BrownBear]

My only frame of reference is shooting several deer with the 32 H&R magnum in a handgun. Ballistics ought to be similar all around.

The deer ranged from around 90# to 130# dressed weight, estimated.

Yeah, the round did the deed with one-shot kills for all and no long tracking jobs. But I was SUPER careful to take broadside lung shots at less than 50 yards. Of course, in my mispent youth I also killed several with one-shots using a 22LR.

In both, I passed up a lot of marginal shots. Deer die easy with well-placed shots. They can die hard with poor shots, no matter the caliber. The burden is entirely on the shooter.

 

[varsity07840]

IMHO that's a very bad idea.

Duane

 

[Patocazador]

Sounds like you need to shoot it at point blank range to have a chance with those monster whitetail you guys have.

 

[larry wv]

I have no horse in this race. But in my earlier days I did shoot through a prob 1200 to 1300 lb dead Dairy cow side ways through the chest. I don't remember the charge but it was 3f and a maxi ball in .32 cal. The range was around 40 yards. Don't know if any ribs were hit or not. The cow was only Dead a few hours before I shot it. It was DRT no tracking needed. :grin: That said I am sure it will kill a Deer with a Heart lung shot. BUT I would only do it for survival purposes. Larry

 

[varsity07840]

I have no horse in this race. But in my earlier days I did shoot through a prob 1200 to 1300 lb dead Dairy cow side ways through the chest. I don't remember the charge but it was 3f and a maxi ball in .32 cal. The range was around 40 yards. Don't know if any ribs were hit or not. The cow was only Dead a few hours before I shot it. It was DRT no tracking needed. :grin: That said I am sure it will kill a Deer with a Heart lung shot. BUT I would only do it for survival purposes. Larry

A number of years ago, here in NJ, BRI .50 cal sabot slugs, soon to be taken over by Winchester were popular with 12 ga. slug gun shooters who used rifled barrels. While very accurate,they were low velocity hard lead projectiles that made "pencil" holes in deer. A friend of mine put three consecutively through the chest of a buck before it decided to run off and eventually drop, leaving no blood trail. Maxi balls have the same reputation for poor expansion. What kind of results do you expect to get out of a tiny .32 pushed by black powder? That bullet/caliber is for varmints. Buy a bigger rifle.

Duane

 

[galamb]

Like BC, Ontario has no minimum caliber either in black powder for deer - and our deer are big.

I have been hunting with a 40 prb for a number of years now. That's a mere 92 grain ball pushed by 60 grains of FFF.

In my opinion a 32 cal conical of 100'ish grains would be superior to my 40 round ball.

But we are talking about "finesse" hunting that many are not willing to undertake.

You DO NOT pull the trigger beyond 50 yards - and 35/40 is a more realistic MAX.

You DO NOT shoot at a moving target - you ONLY fire at a fully stopped, standing still broadside or quartering away deer (within the range above).

If you can't put the sights on the center of the vitals you have a NO SHOOT condition.

If you are not disciplined enough to follow those rules then you don't hunt with anything lighter than a 45 cal.

I will be trading my 40 for a 38 cal in the very near future - that is a drop to an 80 grain ball.

I have pulled the trigger on my 40, 4 times in the past 8 seasons.

Each time the deer has dropped with the "longest" recovery being 70 yards.

The effectiveness of your weapon has as much to do with perspective as any other factor.

As a bow hunter a 30 yard shot is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaayy out there. If you hunt with that frame of mind then "even" a 32 round ball IS sufficient (which is packing more punch than a single ball of 00 Buck and is enough to take down a deer at that range).

My 40 cal PRB "EXTENDS" my SHOOTING RANGE by 30% all the way out to 40 yards (I don't let the bowstring go past 30).

That's "PERSPECTIVE".

If you have "moved down" from center fire rifles, then even a 58 cal would be a "severe handicap".

Should the "average" shooter use a sub-45 cal on Bambi - NO.

Can a sub-45 be used on Bambi, even the big Canuck one's? - absolutely. You just have to intimately know the limitations of the weapon and keep well within them.

If you can't, or don't trust yourself to do so, then NO...

 

[longcruise]

You can't expect much in the way of expansion from any maxi ball due to it's pyramid nose. But, the .32 should allow velocities that a .45 or .50 can't achieve with a maxi and possibly better expansion. Personally, I would not be hesitant to use a .32 conical on deer if it had a blunt nose and weighed in at around 120 grains. There is probably one out there in the modern bullet lineup.

 

[cooter303]

thanks for the insight. i was thinking along the same lines. if a close shot presents itself i will take it. if not then i won't. chances are though i will have something else in my hands when i see a deer.

 

[Alden]

A maxi probably gets you where you need to be if it shoots fast and accurately enough with your load and you at the trigger. Your outline is excellent but of course...

...there is not much margin for error, so, you have to ask yourself aboot this: do I really want to hold the dumb deer painfully responsible for my experimentation, eh?

 

[Sean Gadhar]

Not vary PC but . . . buy a goat.

Take your shot with someone backing you with a for sure kill gun.

If the kill gun is not needed, look at the damage you did, if your happy with the damage then think about deer.

One way or the other BBQ the goat. :grin:

 

[galamb]

You can read numerous articles/studies/notes/thesis that state to kill a deer you require a minimum of 800 foot pounds of kinetic energy on "impact" to ensure enough "shock", "tissue damage", and "blood letting" to effect a kill.

Obviously, PRB shooters (who couldn't make 800 ft pounds at 100 yards with a 58 cal PRB pushed by 140 grains of power) and a traditional bow hunter who is lucky to have 40 pounds of KE at impact are relying "solely" on "blood letting" to effect the kill (with an arrow shaft "smaller" than a 32 cal ball, plus the blades of course, but still at about 10% the KE of a 32 PRB at the same range).

A hole through the lungs with a 32, 36 or 40 will let blood just the same as a hole from a 45, 50 or 54.

If you are close enough, the small calibers will go through and through just as well as the larger calibers will at greater distance.

If you miss the vitals at 100 yards with a 54 the deer will wander off and die injured possibly many days later.

If you put a 32 PRB through the heart at 25 yards the deer will fall down in short order.

I don't like BBQ'd goat AND will stick with my 40

I do understand that small cal's are not for everyone or even the majority.

But just because "some" believe they are inadequate does not mean they are - it simply means they are inadequate for the way they hunt or their own abilities/practices.

If the caliber is legal and you are willing to do the work/practice to get proficient with it, then I say use it.

 

[roundball]

was wondering what folks thoughts are on a 32 cal maxi on deer.

Personal opinion...repeat...personal opinion...is the same thing I think about using most target / small game calibers for deer...they're for targets / small game. Deer are in the class of 'big game' animals...I go 'big game' hunting with 'big game' calibers...not little target / small game plinker calibers.

After spending time / energy / money on planning / scouting / practicing all year to be on top of my game come deer season, the last thing I want to do is have a B&C Buck step out into view 100yds away and have to sit there and watch him walk off because I'm holding a squirrel rifle / small game load...I go deer hunting prepared to take deer under all reasonable maximum limits, not interested in simply being a spectator 90% of the time holding a target / small game caliber while big game hunting.

Others mileage may vary...

 

[cooter303]

well i am not after a boone and crocket buck. and if i want to shoot a deer at 100 yrds plus i will use my 1905 ross rifle in 303. but if i am out late season doe hunting and see a deer at 40 or 50 yrds i might use the 32 with a maxi ball. i guess i am fortunate here where i live. 10 minute drive from my house and i can go deer hunting. the bush is thick and shots are not to far.

 

[Sean Gadhar]

I don't like BBQ'd goat AND will stick with my 40

Goat in a pit, beer on ice, chilies roasting over the fire, rifles cleaned, the smell of burnt black powder still sticking to you. :thumbsup:

 

[Patocazador]

Goats contain caproic acid (capra = Latin for goat).
Caproic acid and goats stink therefore I'd need plenty of beer .. maybe enough to pass out. :td:

 

[longcruise]

Mmmmmm! (this is me angling for an invite)!

Wonder if the FBI had the sense to BBQ all those goats?

 

[BrownBear]

Goat in a pit, beer on ice, chilies roasting over the fire....

Make that cabrito on a spit, and it's over the top for me!

A smear of queso fresco, a slab of cabrito and chili wrapped in a fresh tortilla is probably as close to heaven as I'll ever get. :thumbsup: