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I'd feel comfortable shooting any "plains" animal except a grizzly with a .50, and I'd try my best not to have to shoot one of them with any single shot gun. People on the plains had lived for eons using only bows, so even a squirrel rifle would be more deadly. So yeah, a .45 would probably do. I've read that the .44 revolvers killed bison, and long ago read that the St. Louis rifles often started as smaller bores and over time were reamed larger as the riffling wore. Someplace else I read that most were .50 or .53.Bigger than a .54, I'd go to .68 or so and keep it smooth, although I've read that T. Roosevelt owned a .70 Hawken rifle. That must run about 14 balls to the pound.
I'd feel comfortable shooting any "plains" animal except a grizzly with a .50, and I'd try my best not to have to shoot one of them with any single shot gun. People on the plains had lived for eons using only bows, so even a squirrel rifle would be more deadly. So yeah, a .45 would probably do. I've read that the .44 revolvers killed bison, and long ago read that the St. Louis rifles often started as smaller bores and over time were reamed larger as the riffling wore. Someplace else I read that most were .50 or .53.
Bigger than a .54, I'd go to .68 or so and keep it smooth, although I've read that T. Roosevelt owned a .70 Hawken rifle. That must run about 14 balls to the pound.
