225gr 44 cal Hornady FTX on whitetails out to 150yards (maybe 200)?

All,
I got a box of 44cal 225 grain Hornady FTXs for super cheap. I have heard mixed results for the FTXs in general so I know they may ultimately become plinking bullets BUT they shoot amazing out of my CVA Accura V2. We are talking Sub-MOA out to 150 yards tested so far with 110grains 209 powder. I have not shot to 200 yards yet but I feel confident they will still be in the 1-1.5MOA ball park. Even though not the best, do you think they will be ok for whitetails? They are a lighter bullet and from what I can tell not the best penetrating so I know all shots would be broadside lung shots only with ranges over 60 yards I would think.

I have shot the 44 cal 265 grain FTX out of my Knight Vision with great accuracy. One of the most accurate bullets I've tried. If concerned that the 225 grain is too light you might try the 265.

rangerod said:

I have shot the 44 cal 265 grain FTX out of my Knight Vision with great accuracy. One of the most accurate bullets I've tried. If concerned that the 225 grain is too light you might try the 265.

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thanks. No doubt other bullets will shoot well for me, just curious about these since I already have them. Maybe ill give them a go. Any bullet in the boiler room will be fine I'm sure.

The FTX is a nice bullet and the added speed you're displaying is perfect for them.
Don;t worry about the 225s being too light. Millions of deer were harvested using a 177gr roundball and probably millions more using lightweight XTPs and all those PRBullets like the Dead Centers, QT Polymer Tips and even the SSTs and Shockwaves..... all these bullets doing their job that weighed between 180 and 225 grains.....many in only 40-caliber (50/40)

https://www.prbullet.com/qt.htm

I don't know about the .429 225 gn FTX, but the .452 225 gn FTX has a fairly thin jacket and can be a bit fragile on a heavy bone(shoulder) hit. I shoot the .452 225 gn FTX out of a smokeless rifle, at paper, and it shoots great but I have been warned by others with more experience than I about it blowing up on shoulder hits on deer. With the slower velocities you would be shooting, that would not be as great of an issue but I would still be wary of it. If you run the ballistics, you find it also loses velocity and energy much more quickly than a heavier bullet. For hunting and 200 yds and more, I think it is too light.

Well, if we all plan our purchases on meeting big bones, then that opens-up a can of worms and starts a whole new ballgame.
That really lowers the number of different bullets that can be trusted upon.

44cal 225gr FTX has a advertised BC of .150. Using an estimated 2000fps mv and 100y sight in it will look a bit like this.

Range Velocity Energy Trajectory Come Up (MOA) Come Up (MILS) Wind Drift Wind Drift (MOA) Wind Drift (MILS)
0 2000 1998.0 -1.5 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
25 1874 1755.0 -0.1 0.4 0.1 0 0 0
50 1755 1538.0 0.7 -1.3 -0.4 0 0 0
75 1641 1346.0 0.8 -1.0 -0.3 0 0 0
100 1534 1176.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
125 1434 1027.0 -1.7 1.3 0.4 0 0 0
150 1341 899.0 -4.4 2.8 0.8 0 0 0
175 1258 791.0 -8.3 4.5 1.3 0 0 0
200 1185 702.0 -13.6 6.5 1.9 0 0 0


Just for comparison a 40cal 200gr SST is around .250 depending on who is doing the testing. 225gr 40cal custom quality bullets can be had for as low as $36/50 or $44/50 in bonded. A 40cal in 225gr will have a sectional density of .201. The 44cal is around .175. It does not require a math wiz to guess which is more likely to hold together better and penetrate.

Lets see what a 40cal 225gr with an estimated BC of .250 looks like using the same calculator.
Range Velocity Energy Trajectory Come Up (MOA) Come Up (MILS) Wind Drift Wind Drift (MOA) Wind Drift (MILS)
0 2000 1998.0 -1.5 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
25 1924 1849.0 -0.2 0.7 0.2 0 0 0
50 1850 1710.0 0.5 -1.0 -0.3 0 0 0
75 1779 1580.0 0.6 -0.8 -0.2 0 0 0
100 1709 1459.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
125 1642 1346.0 -1.3 1.0 0.3 0 0 0
150 1576 1242.0 -3.5 2.2 0.6 0 0 0
175 1514 1145.0 -6.5 3.6 1.0 0 0 0
200 1454 1055.0 -10.5 5.0 1.5 0 0 0

GoexBlackhorn said:

Well, if we all plan our purchases on meeting big bones, then that opens-up a can of worms and starts a whole new ballgame.
That really lowers the number of different bullets that can be trusted upon.

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You really should plan on hitting bone if you want a quick clean kill so the animal doesn't suffer. The chest area of a deer is protected by ribs or shoulder for a reason. I personally prefer at least 300gr. bullets to make an ethical killing shot in a muzzleloader.

My son used the FTX .452 225gr with 80gr weighted of BH209 and win209 primer black rib sabot out of a TC omega, big AZ desert mule deer was ranged at 180 yards and was hit in the shoulder ran maybe 5 yards and piled up, the projectile was recovered on the opposite side under the hide, the projectile went thru both shoulder blades and caused a lot of damage,

Hac said:

My son used the FTX .452 225gr with 80gr weighted of BH209 and win209 primer black rib sabot out of a TC omega, big AZ desert mule deer was ranged at 180 yards and was hit in the shoulder ran maybe 5 yards and piled up, the projectile was recovered on the opposite side under the hide, the projectile went thru both shoulder blades and caused a lot of damage

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At that range your bullet was probably nearly the same as the FTX ammo load in a 45colt carbine at 25 yards. So basically right where the bullet was designed to function at around 1200-1300fps impact speed.

Hac said:

My son used the FTX .452 225gr with 80gr weighted of BH209 and win209 primer black rib sabot out of a TC omega, big AZ desert mule deer was ranged at 180 yards and was hit in the shoulder ran maybe 5 yards and piled up, the projectile was recovered on the opposite side under the hide, the projectile went thru both shoulder blades and caused a lot of damage,




rsz_20180219_085617.jpgrsz_20180219_085542.jpgrsz_20180219_085840.jpg

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well this makes me feel good about them.

GoexBlackhorn said:

Well, if we all plan our purchases on meeting big bones, then that opens-up a can of worms and starts a whole new ballgame.
That really lowers the number of different bullets that can be trusted upon.

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You may not plan for it but the OP asked specifically about shooting a deer at 200 yd with a particular bullet that has the potential to laterally move quite a bit in a stiff wind. An unplanned hit on the shoulder would be a distinct possibility.

Yep, plans dont always come together and the deer dont know they are supposed to always present you with a text book broadside shot.

That little bullet in just a 10mph crosswind drifts almost 4" at 100y, over 9" at 150y and nearly 17" at 200y. That could easily put you into bone you were trying to avoid.

or worse into the guts :cry:

GM54-120 said:

Yep, plans dont always come together and the deer dont know they are supposed to always present you with a text book broadside shot.

That little bullet in just a 10mph crosswind drifts almost 4" at 100y, over 9" at 150y and nearly 17" at 200y. That could easily put you into bone you were trying to avoid.

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I just ran the numbers again using .250BC and the drift is close to half as much.

Next year im gunna give the Fury 40-250 a try. Not really sure atm if i need to spend the extra on the bonded since i will be shooting them at smoker speeds.

That looks like a sweet bullet GM. I may have to look into them.

Thanks you for sharing the info I just switched last year with the Hornaday FTX 225, I’ve been wondering what kind of results to get out of it.


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MrTom said:

That looks like a sweet bullet GM. I may have to look into them.

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The owner Dennis seems to be a really good guy and very interested in serving the ML/SML shooters. Sofar they are gaining more ground in the smokeless market but they should be fine in upper end BH209 speeds too. Just to compare, a Barnes 458 300 SP Original cost around $50+/50 and they are not even bonded. Bonded Shockwaves are even more expensive and they dont offer the 40cal in bonded.

He offers 40cals in a soft point and star tip from 225gr, 250gr and 275gr but the 275gr is probably a bit too long for sabots. Not really sure but im nearly sure a faster twist would be needed for the 275gr. Best guess is a 1-24 or faster.

I'd be shooting 1:28 and would be most interested in the .40 at 225 grains. Your picture got wheel turning. Again. lol

In the Hornady reload manual the .44 cal 225gr FTX is rated for 900-2200fps and the .452 225gr FTX is rated for 600-1800fps.