Buffalo Bore 44 Mag +P 240gr Deer Grenade – Powerful Whitetail Load

Description

The Buffalo Bore 44 Mag +P 240gr Deer Grenade is the opposite of everything else Buffalo Bore is known for. Instead of a hard cast bullet built to drive straight through, this one is cast deliberately soft, hollow nosed, and pushed to 1550 fps so it comes apart inside the animal. On deer sized game that is exactly the right answer.

• Buffalo Bore 44 Mag +P 240gr Deer Grenade Overview
• 44 Magnum Deer Hunting Ammo Ballistics
• Why The 240 Grain Gas Checked Hollow Point Comes Apart
• Specifications
• Revolvers That Take This Fragmenting Cast Bullet Load

Buffalo Bore 44 Mag +P 240gr Deer Grenade Overview

Buffalo Bore item 4F loads a 240 grain cast hollow point at 12 BHN, gas checked, to a nominal 1550 fps for about 1280 ft-lbs. Twenty rounds per box.

Buffalo Bore chronographed it at 1578 fps from a 5.5 inch Ruger Super Blackhawk, 1535 fps from a 5.5 inch Ruger Redhawk, and 1466 fps from a four inch Smith & Wesson M&P. Those are factory revolvers, not laboratory barrels.

Brinell hardness of 12 puts this bullet well down the scale from the 18 to 22 BHN alloy in a typical hard cast load. Soft lead at high speed does what soft lead does: it deforms, sheds and fragments. Buffalo Bore chose that on purpose and named the load accordingly.

The name is blunt but it is accurate. Buffalo Bore does not pretend this is an all purpose load, and the honesty is useful: you know exactly which animal it is for before you buy a box.

44 Magnum Deer Hunting Ammo Ballistics

At 1550 fps a 240 grain bullet produces about 1280 ft-lbs, from grains times velocity squared divided by 450437. That is a substantial figure for a 44 Magnum and it is a significant step above the 971 ft-lbs a standard 240 grain factory load generates at 1350 fps.

Buffalo Bore states this bullet penetrates roughly thirty percent as deep as their hard cast flat nose loads. That sounds like a shortcoming until you remember what it is for. Energy that leaves through an exit wound did no work; energy spent inside the animal did.

Even from a four inch barrel the load still chronographs 1466 fps, worth about 1145 ft-lbs. A compact hunting revolver loses less here than you might expect.

Recoil is firm without being abusive. A 240 grain bullet at 1550 fps kicks noticeably harder than standard factory 44 Magnum, though considerably less than the 340 grain heavy loads, which makes this practical all steel revolver hunting ammunition for a full day in the woods.

Why The 240 Grain Gas Checked Hollow Point Comes Apart

Hardness is the variable most shooters never think about. A cast bullet at 20 BHN behaves like a solid; the same shape at 12 BHN behaves like a very aggressive hollow point. Buffalo Bore builds this one soft and adds a hollow nose so the deformation starts immediately on impact.

At 1550 fps the hollow cavity fills, the nose peels back and the bullet breaks into large fragments that travel outward from the main path. The result is a wound channel far wider than 0.429 inches across the first several inches of penetration, which is where a deer’s vitals sit on a broadside shot.

The gas check matters even here. Soft lead driven this fast would strip and lead a barrel badly without one. The copper cup on the base seals the bore and Buffalo Bore lubricates the bullet properly, so a fragmenting cast bullet load still shoots clean.

Use it for what it is built for. On elk, moose, bear or anything you need to shoot through heavy bone, a hard cast flat nose is the right tool and this is not. On whitetail, hogs and black bear at handgun ranges, this is one of the most effective 44 Magnum deer hunting ammo choices made.

There is a second, quieter advantage. A 240 grain gas checked hollow point that stays inside the animal does not carry energy off into the brush behind it, which matters when you are hunting field edges or anywhere with a neighbour on the far side.

Put simply, this fragmenting cast bullet load trades penetration for a much larger hole, and on a 44 Magnum deer hunting ammo application that trade is the right one.

Specifications

Revolvers That Take This Fragmenting Cast Bullet Load

This is +P ammunition intended for all steel firearms in normal working order. Ruger Super Blackhawks and Redhawks, Smith & Wesson steel N frames, Taurus all steel revolvers and steel framed 44 Magnum rifles all handle it.

Buffalo Bore advises against firing it in lightweight alloy framed revolvers, because the recoil impulse can let the remaining bullets jump the crimp and tie the cylinder up. If you carry a scandium framed 44, choose a standard pressure load.

One rifle note worth knowing before you order: Buffalo Bore says this cartridge is too long to cycle through the Henry Big Boy. It feeds fine in most other 44 Magnum lever guns, but check yours by hand.

Sight your revolver in with this load specifically. A 240 grain bullet at 1550 fps leaves the barrel faster than most 44 Magnum ammunition and will usually print lower than a heavy slow load at the same distance.

All Steel Revolver Hunting Ammunition Availability

This Buffalo Bore 44 Mag +P 240gr Deer Grenade is in stock and ships from our Collegeville, Pennsylvania shop. MAG5 Firearms is a family owned FFL dealer, and orders of this all steel revolver hunting ammunition normally leave within one business day.

For bone splitting penetration instead of fragmentation, look at the Buffalo Bore 44 Mag +P+ 340gr Hard Cast. For a softer shooting all purpose 44, see the Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 255gr Hard Cast Keith, and for a lighter revolver the Buffalo Bore 44 Special 200gr Barnes TAC-XP. Tested velocities are published by Buffalo Bore Ammunition.