Welcome from Oz. I would love to see Alaska one day. Preferably in summer.lol.

 

Thanks, It should be obvious that a .444 can handle all North American game. Real life experences like yours kills the Naysayers debate.

 

Welcome to MO, I think you will like it here, I only hunt with 444's with the 1-38 twist MicroGroove, and I only use Reloader# 7 powder, one day God willing and if I can save enough money, I would very much like to hunt the big Bears, most likely one of my 350gr loads will be used, maybe even the 444AA. I do believe you can hunt the World with the 444 Marlin, if you have it loaded like it should be!

 

Welcome to MO! Thanks for the info.

 

A big welcome from Georgia and much thanks for the first hand performance information! :top:

 

How did the bullet perform on the bear penetration, tissue destroyed, shot angle and were did you hit him. Thanks. Widow

 

Skywagon, welcome to the MO Family, from here in west central Mo. Thanks for the first hand experience info on the triple 4, we hear alot sometime about what a caliber ''won't do'', good to hear what it will do. I think that too many folks are caught up in the Magnumitis of a caliber, if it ain't Magnum, it won't kill whatever. People forget that man has been harvesting game with all sorts of firearms that weren't Magnums, I know I sometimes let logic enter an equation, but I think it is needed here. Take care, John.

 

Welcome to MO from South Carolina! Great report on the triple 4! I always liked that round, great to hear it is doing what it was designed to do!

 

Welcome from south Alabama. My research team (me ) is ready to join you and do the same research with the ole 45-70. I need to be there with you to validate this very important research. Lol

 

Thank for the report on the 444 and capabilities. I hope to one day join the 444 club and this report just furthers my desire to purchase a Marlin in 444!

 

How about posting some details about you brown bear kills with the 444 and cast. How far did they travel after the shot ? Thanks.

 

Thanks for all the welcomes! I will describe how the 444 performed on a Kodiak bear. First I would like to say that you should never take just one shot on a large bear. They are very tenacious animals. You should be ready to shoot everything your rifle holds. I don't care if you are shooting a 505 Gibbs. Recently I shot a big brown bear 30 yards away. The first shot destroyed the right front leg near the shoulder. The 355 gr bullet completely broke the largest part of the bears toughest bone in half. I found the bullet and the gas check. The bullet had retained an estimated 75% of its weight. I launch these 355 gr Beartooth bullets at about 2200 fps. The bones and muscles of these animals are huge. To appreciate what I am saying you need to see what a skinned Kodiak bear looks like. A lesser bullet would have likely come apart. Next I took a direct broadside shots and then a third follow up shot. The direct broadside shot went completely through the bear taking out ribs and lungs and leaving a hole on the far side about the size of a 50 cent coin. All the shooting happened in less than 30 seconds. I hope the details are helpful.

 

Your attitude is exactly the same as mine when I hunted in the Brooks Range area and Ft. Greely Training Area some 20 years ago. Be prepared to empty your firearm into a very mean and tenacious critter. I had two brown bear confrontations as a soldier while hunting in AK. Both times the bruins decided that a hunting group of well armed infantry/engineer soldiers wasn't worth the trouble. I am glad to hear that the 444 Marlin does very well up there in Sourdough country. I hunted up there with either a 338 Win Mag or 45-70. I never got a bear but did get a moose and a caribou while I was stationed at Ft. Wainwright--they were very good eatin'.

 

Skywagon, welcome to the forum. I know what you mean about the versatility of the 444; just this past January I took a nice bison in South Dakota with my 444, and it did a fantastic job.

 

Mr. Skywagon, you just put a smile on the faces of a lot of 444 shooters. Most of us can just opine about the 444 in that role, but that and a dime won't even get a cup of coffee.
So thank you for coming here and sharing your experiences. I am hoping you get to share more 444 exploits from Alaska in the future.

 

Skywagon, what is the year of manufacture of your 444? Is your gun MG or Ballard rifled?

 

How far did the bear travel and how long did he live after the first shot?

 

Who need's a magnum. I do not own one and never will have a need for one as long as I have a T4. I have always walked a different path I hunted with a bow when a lot didn't I use a recurve even when crossbows are all the rage. I always use a different caliber then the mainstream I started using a 7mm08 when people did not know what it was knowing its true potential. I had and have a ongoing love affair with the 358win even when they say it is dead and gone. When I have the urge to pound something to the ground hard enough to cause a earth quake I let one of my T-REX's bark (that's what I call my 444's). I have always said there is nothing I will ever need a magnum to kill and this proves it. Widow

 

Always glad for a real world report. I'd love to have a 444, but 35 Rem is plenty for any oklahoma bears.

 

I would say Its a pleasure to here real Life.
The 444 has more overall ability than any other caliber from trajectory to penetration to energy delivered. Not just one but the whole pakage.
Hey I love the 45/70 but if I am stuck with only one gun in the north It would only be the 444 for all its virtues.
For me if I had also only one bullet it would be the 290 BTB with A charge of 52 grains of RL-7 as it is mouse to T-Rex :congrats:

 

I would say Its a pleasure to here real Life.
The 444 has more overall ability than any other caliber from trajectory to penetration to energy delivered. Not just one but the whole pakage.
Hey I love the 45/70 but if I am stuck with only one gun in the north It would only be the 444 for all its virtues.
For me if I had also only one bullet it would be the 290 BTB with A charge of 52 grains of RL-7 as it is mouse to T-Rex. :congrats:

That boolit would be my choice also, albeit pushed by H-4198 powder.

 

Very good report, Thank you. I do not own a 444 YET but it is on my next gun list.

 

Another welcome and thanks for a great report!

 

A few people have asked what 444 rifle I use.
It is a 2009 Marlin XLR 444. 1:20 Ballard rifling.
Someone else asked "How far did the bear go after the first shot?" It went less than 10 yards, but I followed up immediately with a second and third shot, because going after wounded bears in the Alders is no good.
Great to meet some real 444 fans.

 

Great to meet some real 444 fans.

Some are fans, then there's those of us who are fanatics :marchmellow:

 

A number of years ago on this very forum, I was poo=poo'd by the naysayers when I made the statement that the 444 could take on the large bears with ease...which it can....a 300 grain bullet at 2200 fps, the power of the 405 Winchester, will get the job done. Just to "prove" the power of the 444, and remove all doubt, and lay the issue (and the naysayers) to rest, I developed the Safari Grade 444. The 410 grain bullet at 2160 fps (4000+ ft lbs), or the 445 grain bullet at 2100 fps (almost 4500 ft lbs), from my 444 XLR, removes all doubt in anybody's mind that the 444 will not only take the big bears, but, anything else that walks the earth!!! The SG (1-20 Ballard), and the AA (the All-American...1-38 MG barreled modified Marlins), are the most powerful OEM big bore Marlins that can be had....bar none....period! So, stories like the OP's should not be a surprise to anyone....the 444 has more than enough get up and go for the big bears........and, if you need or just want more than the OEM has to offer, the Safari Grade modifications can be had.

 

Hello and Welcome Skywagon to MO from a small bluff here in W TN.
Thanks for your experiences with the T4. I picked one up last year and fell in love. I call it my BigGrin Gun. I took a nice doe with it two days after I got it.

 

Great story Skywagon, good to hear the 444 being used on big bears. The only Bears we have are Koala Bears, but thay are for lookin at, not shootin. :biggrin:. I do love shooting pigs with my 444SS though.

GUS