I think my choice would be the 310 Lee bullet but I haven't shot one. The .30-30 has killed boat loads of moose.

 

Have never drawn a moose tag. No seasion in Alabama LOL, Would think a .444 load with a hard cast bullet would work well. Always remenber bullet placement is the most important. The .444 of the 30-06 will work. If I get a moose tag on my next trip to Canada I will use my 45-70 not my 30-06 becouse it is my favorite rifle. Not becouse it will kill any deader than my 30-06 or the.444. MY .444 is gaining ground.

 

I think it depends on the distance and type of hunting you might be doing. I used to hunt moose with my 30-06 then stepped up to the 300 win mag, which I like a lot and shot plenty of moose at 300 + yards. I then wanted a bigger bullet and more whomp, so I went to the 416 mag and been very happy with that. It is a long gun 28" barrel, heavy but very accurate. My longest shot with that was 470 yards and it dropped like a stone. But these are big slash logged areas, or across small valley bottoms. These are distances I would not feel comfortable shooting my 444, plus my 416 still has more energy at 500 yards then the 444 at the muzzle. If however I was going to be hunting close 1/4's I would like to be packing my 444. I love carrying it through the timber. It is a great rifle and when I know that my shots might be from 20 yards to 100 then it is the gun I would take. I guess you want to know where you will be hunting and what conditions, then make your choice. Good luck with your draws

 

Hal, I've shot a bunch of moosies with my .444's. My go-to load is a 300-310 gr cast lead ACWW over 50 gr/Imr-3031. Works very well. In the event you don't cast the 300 gr Speer PSP is a great j-bullet and has accounted for several of the big beasts. The .444 is absolutely perfect for this type of hunting. Any shot in the boiler room is good for moose steak. It makes a big hole and even if it breaks significant bone, goes right through. My last one took one shot, broke two ribs in and two ribs out, destroyed everything in between, exited and drove nine inches into an oak tree that was behind the moose. At the shot, it got really sick. I levered another in but didn't shoot as it was apparent it wasn't going anywhere. Through the scope I could see the blood squirting out the entrance hole like a hose. After a few seconds it collapsed straight down. By the time I walked the 40 yards to it it was stone dead.

The .444 is about the best possible choice you could make for moosing!

 

While we think of the .444 as a close range cartridge a comparison with the .308 or .30-06 shows that out to 300 yards it's holding it's own..

 

While we think of the .444 as a close range cartridge a comparison with the .308 or .30-06 shows that out to 300 yards it's holding it's own..

Absolutely. And with any large animals like moose, shot placement is extremely important. A moose hit in the butt with a .375 H&H will lead you on a merry chase through the nastiest swamps you've ever been in. With five foot long legs, he can slow walk faster than you can run and when the poor beast decides to die, it'll do it in three feet of ice cold (COLD) water with a two foot deep mud bottom (Ask how I know. One time it took me three weeks to find my boy parts again.)

For humane kills on big critters a good hunter gets close to ensure good placement and under the 250 yard mark, Marlin's big .444 is pure moose perfection. Moose aren't hard to get close to. Their momma's teach them that they are the biggest SOB in the whole valley so they aren't terribly skittish over noises, they have lousy eyesight but incredible noses. Keep them upwind and getting to 100 yards is no great trick.

 

Well I have been lucky,where I live we have a large moose population ;D. I have shot many over the years with all types of different rifles,but this fall I will use my 444 for the first time and I know that it will drop any moose in this area.I plan to use reloads with Hornaday 265gr Fp interlock.

 

Hal,

Never have with a 444 but it shuld be a great choice. I have shot one moose with my 338WM and one with my bow. getting close to moose can be hard and they can hide behind a blade of grass. ;D

What states do you put in for?

Joe

 

Hal factory leverevolution ammo will drop any moose in maine at 200 yards no problem. I've seen one dropped by a 30 30 with factory remington 150 grs. one shot dead. Of course that was at about 25 yards but moose tend to fall dead in there tracks and they don't go down hard.

 

Hal,

Never have with a 444 but it shuld be a great choice. I have shot one moose with my 338WM and one with my bow. getting close to moose can be hard and they can hide behind a blade of grass. ;D

What states do you put in for?

Joe

Maine, New Hampshire & Vermont.

 

OK, guys & gals. Has anyone used the 444 to bag a moose? What would be the recommendations for a bullet/load, and what about distance, range and shot placement. In the off chance that I draw a moose permit (I apply every year to 3 states), I'd like to try to down one with the 444. If not doable, I'm going to use a 30-06 with 180 gr Nosler partition bullets.

You need to talk to Olle', aka Win 405; he's killed more moose with a 444 than any man alive. He uses a 300gr Speer Soft point I believe.

 

Cool, Bet you will be hunting around a lot of water. I shot a bull moose way above the Green River Lakes in Wyoming at over 11.000 feet, and it was a big job. I passed a very nice bull during archery because it was in the evening and I just saw a fresh pile of grizzly crap and tracks not far from where I was walking. If I had a 444 for moose I would go with a 250 cast and I would turn it in to a paper patched bullet, nothing like a large chunk of soft lead to do the job.

 

Hal factory leverevolution ammo will drop any moose in maine at 200 yards no problem. I've seen one dropped by a 30 30 with factory remington 150 grs. one shot dead. Of course that was at about 25 yards but moose tend to fall dead in there tracks and they don't go down hard.

Yep, they can certainly have a glass jaw, or not. If you flub the first shot they can soak up so much lead they'll rattle when they run. That's why a good first round hit is so important. Get close, make it count.

 

i go with a heay grizzly or buffalo bore 300 gr round. no sense penny pinchin on a hunt like that

 

Like everyone said, they can be fairly easy to kill. On the other hand sometimes they're bullet sponges too.
The last one I killed was with the 444 and the 300 grain Hornady XTP. 140 yards then a followup a little closer in the neck. Never found either bullet. 42" Wyoming moose behind one of my stackyards on the ranch.
The other one was with a 45-70 300 JHP. I didn't know way back then that you couldn't do that (kill a moose with that bullet :) and it put him in the dirt too.
Most of the time it ain't tough to sneak up on a moose. Any decent load in your 444 will work fine.

Janott, I've been in the GR lakes area before. There's some country in there I would'nt want to pack a moose out of either.

 

Hal,

I would also consider the Nosler 250 gr PT.

JD338

 

I'm sure that the 444 with 265gr will deliver one wicked smash on a moose .I have seen moose take round from a 300 Weatherby mag 150 gr nosler partition and walk away like nothing happen :-\ he was hit hard and went 100yds ,but on the other hand Ive seen 55gr 22-250 take a large bull down with 1 shot right under the ear. So always remember shot placement is so critical with any rifle.

 

Janott, I've been in the GR lakes area before. There's some country in there I would'nt want to pack a moose out of either.

+1 Not having a pack horse or mule, I made it my business to insure I could get my truck fairly close to my downed game; worked for 7 out of 8 elk. Can't do that very well around the Green River Lakes. My buddy shot a big cow moose near Meadow Lake. It was just outside the borrow ditch on the lake road when we saw it. He went and parked the truck in a safe spot (like a good city boy) and let the moose climb the hill. He did put it down with his 308W, BUT lucky we had 4 guys as he wanted it brought out whole (to show the kids how big it was) and it was a struggle on dry ground! Absolutely the hardest drag I ever pulled. (My Dad shot a little buck near Mopang Stream in Maine when I was a kid and I thought that was hard to drag on snow)

Last time I hunted in Maine was '96 - Moose were literally everywhere. I've been in the Jackman area which is very popular, but I think there is a better chance out the Stud Mill Rd, East of Milford into the Sunkhaze Bog area.

My mom had a Bull tangled in the clothesline in the early 1960's in Calais. Local warden jokingly accussed her of "taking game out of season without a license using an illegal method" - it was good for a laugh. He finally got loose of the clothesline, but our laundry was scattered all over the neighborhood and Dad had to build a new clothesline. H'mm, wonder if that's what prompted him to buy a clothes dryer? It would work for me.

Jeff
NRA Life

 

In around Ontario, we are very close to our moose.

 

Love the Pic Tony ;D And Sweetwater Mopang stream and route 9 is where the Granddaddy Moose are. Some real stompers out there.

 

In around Ontario, we are very close to our moose.

I hope that moose had a breath mint before hand.... ;D

 

I hope that moose had a breath mint before hand.... ;D

Cool PIC! What did you have to pay the moose for that pose?

 

I hope that moose had a breath mint before hand.... ;D

How did you think the term 'moosebreath" was invented?

 

Cool PIC! What did you have to pay the moose for that pose?

Moose? what moose? That's my first wife. No, seriously, I had to date her.

 

How did you think the term 'moosebreath" was invented?

You go that one trained to fetch a tennis ball?