Original Winchester Model 1873 brings home the venison

[Cliff Fendley]

Yep, little whitetail will run an amazing distance sometimes with no heart or lungs left and a volleyball size hole in them.

Actually the medium size does will run the farthest. A big bruiser buck will come nearer tumping over than a small doe. Them little ones are like a bolt of lightning sometimes.

[MJN77]

Yup. I've seen more than a few whitetails run a good distance after a heart shot. Not uncommon at all.

[PJ Hardtack]

I've learned something about White Tail deer.

[w44wcf]

I do have Goes FFg and FFFg. Should I go with the FFFg?

Kirk,
With my lot of Goex FFFG, it took 36 grs. by weight to reach 1,300 f.p.s.
With Goex FFG a full 40 gr. by weight charge did not quite reach 1,300 f.p.s. and required more compression.

The charge should be compressed before seating a pure lead bullet or the bullet would be distorted in the seating process.
I use the Lyman "M" die to compress or a .40 Caliber 180 gr. jacketed bullet.

w44wcf

[KirkD]

Thanks for that info, w44wcf. That is helpful.

[Rowdy Fulcher]

w44wcf
The WHV load was using a metal patched bullet . So they used BP and jacketed ammo . What modern day jacketed ammo would be a good choice ? Also when was the WHV ammo introduced ?

[KirkD]

Rowdy, the Winchester HV load was smokeless. I bagged a nice doe a few years ago with the HV version, using a Winchester Model 53 44-40. I have an old chart and it says that the 44 WCF HV cartridges were for the Model 92. For reloading to duplicate the original HV load, I used cast bullets. I'm not sure who makes JFP bullets for the 44-40. I just checked my Hornady manual and it looks like they do not.

[w44wcf]

Rowdy,
As Kirk indicated, the high velocity loadings used smokeless powder. It was introduced in 1903 and discontinued prior to WWII.

Winchester is now the only source of .44-40 jacketed ammunition. It is cataloged at 1,190 f.p.s.
http://www.ableammo.com/catalog/winchester-super-rifle-ammunition-x4440-winchester-soft-point-1190-rdbx-p-75015.html

Currently Winchester makes the .44-40 200 gr. jacketed bullet.  Midway also shows the Remington .44-40 200 gr bullet but since they discontinued the jacketed ammunition this year it is likely they will no longer make the bullet.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/1390291280/winchester-bullets-44-40-wcf-426-diameter-200-grain-soft-point

w44wcf

[Rowdy Fulcher]

Howdy
Thanks for the info , I knew that the HV was designed for the 92 action . I was wondering if you could use the jacketed soft point with BP . Don't want to blow my 73 up . And I guess there would be no real advantage to using a JSP at BP velocities . Thanks again .

[w44wcf]

Rowdy,
A jacketed bullet can be used with b.p. since, way back when, factories did offer some calibers with jacketed bullets using b.p. as the propellant.  They did not for the .44-40 as far as I know and I don't think it would be as good as the lead bullet since the velocity would be reduced due to the higher resistance and thus the bullet would not expand much, if at all.

w44wcf 

[Lefty Dude]

I have both the Winchester & Remington JFP bullets. The Winchester is .426" and the Remington .427". I use them only for special occasions. I bought 100 each from Midway about 10 years ago.

[w44wcf]

Lefty,
Thankfully, I also picked up some of boh several years ago. I still have about 50 of the Winchester bullets left and some of the Remington's' .   The batch of Remington's I have check at .426" like the Winchester's so they are from a different lot than yours.

At .002" undersized from my Marlin's .428" groove they still group very well. 

w44wcf