david_m_curry
New member
Those of you who have read the "Anyone hunt with an AR-15?" thread know where I am going
I get annoyed whenever I think of the metrics devised and advocated by some states and gun writers. I all fairness, some people just aren't looking at the big picture and are subconciously thinking of, for example, a 150 gr. .30 cal bullet when they claim that some magical number, say 1,500 ft-lbs of energy is required to kill an elk. However, let us shift the focus and look at large, slow bullets. Elmer Keith was a man with great experience in taking large game and his pet .44 Special load sent a 250 gr. Keith-style cast bullet at 1,200 fps from the muzzle. That makes only 799 ft-lbs of energy at the *muzzle*---probably only around 500 or so by the time it connects with some unfortunate animal. And that load *is* verifiably effective. Further more, folks like Paco Kelly and John Linebaugh believe that heavy, large caliber bullets at around 1,200 fps are around ideal for handgun hunting and claim that they appear just as effective as a high-powered, small caliber rifle round such as a .30-06 and they have taken a lot of game. If you ever get the urge, http://www.sixgunner.com/ is the coolest site on the web regarding handgun hunting---check it out!
The point: lethality is not as simple as foot-pounds of energy and, closer to the truth, I felt like yapping from my soapbox
I honestly hope that I didn't offend anyone because there's room for more than one opinion and I certainly won't claim infallability (although I would for the Bible ).
Cheers,
David Curry
I get annoyed whenever I think of the metrics devised and advocated by some states and gun writers. I all fairness, some people just aren't looking at the big picture and are subconciously thinking of, for example, a 150 gr. .30 cal bullet when they claim that some magical number, say 1,500 ft-lbs of energy is required to kill an elk. However, let us shift the focus and look at large, slow bullets. Elmer Keith was a man with great experience in taking large game and his pet .44 Special load sent a 250 gr. Keith-style cast bullet at 1,200 fps from the muzzle. That makes only 799 ft-lbs of energy at the *muzzle*---probably only around 500 or so by the time it connects with some unfortunate animal. And that load *is* verifiably effective. Further more, folks like Paco Kelly and John Linebaugh believe that heavy, large caliber bullets at around 1,200 fps are around ideal for handgun hunting and claim that they appear just as effective as a high-powered, small caliber rifle round such as a .30-06 and they have taken a lot of game. If you ever get the urge, http://www.sixgunner.com/ is the coolest site on the web regarding handgun hunting---check it out!
The point: lethality is not as simple as foot-pounds of energy and, closer to the truth, I felt like yapping from my soapbox
I honestly hope that I didn't offend anyone because there's room for more than one opinion and I certainly won't claim infallability (although I would for the Bible ).
Cheers,
David Curry