Hog Hunting with .45

[Joven]

I am currently on a lease that is infested with hogs, at the landowners request, we are going to lessen the hog population. I can easily take shots within 25 yards, so I would like to shoot a couple with my .45. Do you think FMJ or HP ammo would be best?

[Windjammer]

Joven,

What .45 caliber are you talking about? .45 ACP, .45 Long Colt

If your talking .45 ACP, I do not think that will work well. I have very limited experience hog hunting but from what I have seen the hog hide is very tough. I think you will need some thing with more penetration than a .45 ACP. A 357mag which is stronger than a .45ACP is on the light side for hogs.

Just MHO

[Joven]

Thanks for the reply.
.45 ACP

[20cows]

Within 25 yds? Get after it! I've used my Kimber on javalina (I know, it's not quite the same).

Use a semi-wadcutter.

[zeisloft]

Shoot em up, Ive shot over 100 with an ACP. Word to the wise though, avoid the big ones, it tends to take more and .45s will bounce off their skulls if they are facing you.
~z

[Mannlicher]

There is nothing in the world wrong with hoggin with a .45 ACP. I like a hard cast 230 grain LSWC over a good dose of Unique. I realize that this won't feed reliably through everyone's pistol, but my Springfield loves them.

[rapier144]

If its 45acp dont try it. if you do better be fleet of foot. I took a friends son bear hunting with me. Had a 175lbs black bear treed at about 20 yards it was just standing on a limb looking at the dogs wondering what to do when he shot it with a 30-30 up from below in the chest at about a 45 degree angle it exited between its shoulder blades all the it did was shudder a little and try to start down the tree. thats when a shot it with my ruger P90 with 185 grain +P gold sabre round in the shoulder thinking to break it . The bear didnt even twitch.Thought i missed so i shot it again in the neck same results nothing happened.So i shot it again in the rib cage behind front leg still nothing .Tried again in the same spot got zip for a reaction out of it.So then a figured the hell with it and sprayed and prayed missed the remander if magizine.Then someone shot it with the 30-30 again and it feel off the limb dead Took a lot of ribbing for missing all the shots.But didnt miss the first four shot at all. Found out when we skinned it i hit wear i aimed.Just that they had no effect at all on it. The gold sabre rounds mushroomed perfectly but didnt have enough power.Still have the bullets in the freezer to show how well they expanded in real meat.

[rapier144]

I was thinking of the hogs we have here in Tennessee. The ones you have in texas are a little smaller. Then the 45acp might work.

[john in jax]

FMJ - right idea - you want penetration, but wrong bullet. I dont think hunting with FMJ is legal anywhere.

FACTORY AMMO - if you're only choice is "off-the-shelf", store bought ammo then do some research on what is available in your area and buy the hotest JSP you can get. I strongly suggest that you DO NOT try/use HP's.

HANDLOADS - - Finding and experienced handloader is by far your best option. A guy who loads his own might already have a favorite .45acp hunting load or can set you up with the hard cast bullet mentioned above or a JSP traveling at +/-1,000.

[trooper3385]

There not a game animal, so the fmj will be legal. If your going to do it, I would go for the fmj's since they will have better penetration. I wouldn't think you should have a problem with is, if there on the smaller side. Just as one of the others said though, don't try it in the head facing you. I've seen a 7mm rem mag bounce off. I'd heard of it before, but wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. I've never been into the handgun hunting before, although I did buy a S&W 44 mag last month that I might try this year. I shot a small hog last yr (75lbs +or-) that stopped out in front of my truck while leaving the ranch last yr with a sig sauer .357 with speer gold dot hollow points. It was about 20 yards away. Dropped it on the spot. Didn't penetrate through. I wouldn't hunt with it, but the rifle was already put up. Back to the .45, it wouldn't be my weapon of choice, but for hogs, why not give it a try. Might want to have a rifle close by if your not off the ground though, just to be on the safe side!!!

[zeisloft]

rapier144, not trying to start the "my state is better than your state" debate, but how big do hogs get up in Tennessee?
~z

[john in jax]

Joven aren't you looking into a HD shotgun? A 12ga slug gun w/rifle sights would make an EXCELLENT hog harvester and HD weapon too. You just got to love those multi-purpose weapons.

[20cows]

I don't recall anything in Texas game laws regarding FMJ. It wouldn't be my first choice, but I don't think it's illegal here.

[Rich Lucibella]

45 ACP for Hogs?
I regularly take 'em down with my .380. Never at more than 25 yards and always just behind the ear or in the eye socket; though I was about 3/4 of an inch off once on a running hog.....the gun probably needed cleaning.

Never wounded one; never lost one, running in agony, to die of starvation after I'd missed that eye socket or ear and busted a jaw. It's fun and ethical. Great way to introduce kids and new hunters to the "way we do things", whether it be in the field or on the Internet.....though I suggest for the kids you start them off with a .25 auto....that's great for deer also.


Rich

[zeisloft]

So thats what sarcasm looks like in an Arial font.
~z

[roger1shot]

Hey,
I've got to repyl to the statement on small Texas Hogs,by rapier144.
As you know Davy Crockett left Tennessee,saying to hell with ya'll I'm going to TEXAS.
Davy Crockett has been one of my hero's,so I'm not saying anything about Tennessee.
Here in Texas we have a National Forest named after him along with alot of other stuff,even a large county, and a East Texas town of Crockett.
To say that Texas has small hogs just shows how much you know.
I'm a proud Texan as you can see.

[Big Yac]

I have heard people using a 45 ACP with the drop on 460 Rowland barrel for hogs and having good success. Me though if I were hog hunting I'd use my .454 Casull or S&W 500

[wayneinFL]

45 acp is a little light. The 12 ga.would be much better.

That said I've seen a hog spin around in agony after taking a heart-lung shot with a 12 ga. slug. Nothing's perfect.

I took my first feral hog with a Glock 30 (45acp with a 3.78" barrel) at 25 yards. Bear in mind, at the time I was a better shot with this gun than any other handgun I'd owned. I've put tens of thousands of rounds through this gun and can hit stuff with it. With a huge hog or a gun I hadn't shot that much I wouldn't do it.

Winchester white box 230 gr. JHP was an effective, adequate load. It penetrated 10" and exited the animal. It was a little sow about 150 lbs.

It was comforting to learn that my carry gun and load were effective on an animal that size. I am fortunate to know my loads can overpenetrate and that's something I would have to consider when using my sidearm in a defensive situation. I also learned something about practicing with handloads.

Great way to introduce kids and new hunters to the "way we do things", whether it be in the field or on the Internet...

Mr. Lucibella, if you think this discussion is unethical, misleading or portrays hunters/gun owners in a bad light on the internet, close the thread. It's your forum.

[Rich Lucibella]

Mr. Lucibella, if you think this discussion is unethical, misleading or portrays hunters/gun owners in a bad light on the internet, close the thread. It's your forum.

In answer:
I do.
I do.
I do.
I won't.

Carry on. But know this:
TFL is proud of what it's accomplished with first time shooters and fence sitters.
REAL hunters pride themselves on quick kills and minimal suffering; knowing full well that, even with the latest and greatest Smoke-Pole-From-Hell, they WILL err (or at least I know I do....YMMV). They introduce new shooters and children to hunting with the same mindset.

Now, if you think a .45 ACP meets the parameters of a humane, quick kill on the next 10 hogs you shoot, I say "Go For It" and teach your children that hunting is done that way (right now, you're teaching others' children). But, please, invite me along on your next outing, at my own expense. I'll be more than happy to report right back here how wrong I was.

Better yet, a Real World Challenge:
I'll challenge any of you .45 ACP Hog shooters to do what you do at my hunting camp in the TX Panhandle. Food and lodging is on me. I'll report right back here....and provide video evidence of your pistol prowess and effectiveness of your 45 ACP on FERAL hogs.

Following that, we can film you doing deer with 9mm.

Any takers?
How 'bout you, Wayne? You're local. Make to to Ft. Lauderdale and I'll even fly you out by private plane.

Rich

[wayneinFL]

I wasn't trying to be a smart aleck. Seriously, if this thread is destructive it should be terminated.

I never claimed "pistol prowess". That was my most familiar gun at the time, but I have never had any amount of "pistol prowess". I'm capable of making a heart lung shot 25 yards and closer, not hitting a pig in the ear canal from 25 yards. (Compared to the guys who hunt with dogs this is humane, IMO) I've never "hunted" with a 45acp. I was scouting during hunting season and walked up on a pig almost by sheer accident.

I did claim from a self defense standpoint it was a learning experience.

You made a very good point with post #14. I still believe with all your wisdom, evidenced by the quality of the TFL, if you think this thread does not promote the responsible use of firearms, you should close the thread.

[wayneinFL]

Sorry about the second post... I'm a little flustered. It's intimidating getting "called out" by the big guy.

I'm not sure I'd take the "challenge", but I wish I had the money to hunt in Texas. It sure is wet here. I make a lot of noise slogging around in rubber boots.

Joven, let us know how it goes, however you decide to hunt.

[Rich Lucibella]

I was scouting during hunting season and walked up on a pig almost by sheer accident.

Wayne-
More than acceptable, under the circumstances.

No harm, No foul.

if you think this thread does not promote the responsible use of firearms, you should close the thread.

I'd rather promote responsible use of firearms in a slightly different way, when I can. To wit, back to The Challenge:
Any of you .45 pistoleros wish to Walk the Walk?
Rich

[Art Eatman]

Hey, hogs come in all sizes. Down around Blountstown, Florida, "good eatin' size" seems to be in the 40- to 60-pound size. For one of those, you could almost figure on a .22 rimfire, if you did indeed make a brain shot. I said "almost". In the thick cover of the Appalachicola River bottoms, more than once I've eased up within ten or fifteen yards of hogs, having the wind in my favor. In that sort of deal, I'd have been happy with a .357--but I had a .308...

Back before there was such a thing as Photoshop, I saw photos of a South Texas hog that weighed 549 pounds. A hog that was choused by a group of men and dogs near Cuero, Texas, was heavy enough that it took seven pretty strong men to get it into the pickup truck after many shots from various rifles. I'd be talking Great Big Gun for one like that.

A little hog, up close, is a lot different from larger hogs in the 150-pound range and on upward in weight and out at 100 or 200 yards.

It seems to me that you've gotta factor in all that sort of variables before you go to choosing.

Howsomever, if you generally figure that what will work on a 200-pound thick-skinned critter is what's "best", you won't be far off. Just remember that shot placement and clean ethical kill is mandatory, whether game animal or pest.

Art

[cje1980]

thats when a shot it with my ruger P90 with 185 grain +P gold sabre round in the shoulder thinking to break it

A 185gr. 45ACP is a poor choice for defense against humans. What made you think it would be effective against bears? That poor bear. How many times did you shoot it? When hunting, you should try to make clean kills. That isn't a testament that a 45ACP isn't capable of doing the job, it just illustrates that poor ammo choice and shot-placement doesn't kill animals quickly. For regular hunting I would recommend a Magnum revolver cartridge as a minimum or even a rifle.

[Rich Lucibella]

Art-
You happen to be one of my very few hunting Mentors.
I will NEVER take you on about your hunting experiences....I'll never be able to live/last/hunt that long.

But I've hunted hogs in FL (the least feral), NC, TN and TX. Just where is everyone coming up with these apparently thin skinned, 90 lb, full grown hogs that'll go down to .45's?

Seriously....do they exist as a rule somewhere?

cje1980-
Just to prove that I'm no armchair prude, I've no problem with rapier's actions, so long as he was "just along for the ride" on the 30-30 shooter's hunt. The bear was hit with a rifle round and needed to be put down. I'd have no problem if he did his best with a .22 pocket gun at that point.
Rich