Ok, not to start a ruckus. But .44 Mag or .45 Colt?
There is a big consideration variance if you re-load your own ammo or not. At east I figure. Surely everyone has their own objective opinion.
Hmm. I'd say the 44 magnum ...
Only due to the issue of there are more factory loads available.
After Mom passed away, I sold the home and moved across the country for a year. I wanted to be as unencumbered by "stuff" as possible. I did have a mini reloading kit so to speak but the big presses were all sold off.
Now that I have a place in central Maine I plan to get back into reloading.
I find that there is more variety in components for the 44 vs the 45.
Another issue is that I still use the TC Contender. I know there are some +P loads for the 45 Colt that would not be healthy for the gun. I would hate to have a mix up.
Big time hunter Al DiPrima is a confirmed
44 man. No question about it. However, if I was to count how many critters I`ve taken with 44 and 45 Colt, I think the 45 would win. I do not have an answer as to why but I know I used the 44 early on and as I purchased bigger and better reload equipment the 45 saw more "sports afield"....
The late Mark Hampton hunted
with a 5 Shot M83 Freedom Arms in 44 magnum around the world( where allowed)
I loved reading about his hunts in the Congo region.
Doug had one in 10-1/2" .44 Mag.
it had the crap shot out of it (likely silhouette competition) and had rubber grips and fancy factory sights. We sold the grips and sights, brought good money, had Gary re-build the gun and bob the barrel, gunfighter the grip-frame, make custom grips. Man was it a dandy. Of course when he got it perfect he decided it was time to sell. It got away from us. Some we keep in the family circle of trading, but that one got out. Where ever it is it's one nice rig.
In the recesses of the cobwebbed mind,
I recall an old story in a defunct handgun magazine about an author who hunted mountain goat in Alaska with a 10" 44 Magnum.
I believe the author's name was Gary Johnson or Johnston. I still have a fantasy of doing something like that.
This June I will turn 60. As I look back I know that there is more in the rear view than the front view so I have some Al Goerg type hunts I want to do before I am either too old or called to the next life.
Phil Johnston
Successful Handgun Hunting.
I met him in the mid-80s at a hunting / outdoor show in Denver CO.
Packed away in storage is my signed copy of his book.
book cover
![[image]](images/uploaded/2025052420211868322a3e39fd5.jpg)