question - hunting with an old Winchester 44-40

I'm going to be inheriting a 1908 Winchester 44-40 (model 1892) and I want to do some hunting with it.

Does anyone have any experience shooting/hunting with this rifle? Any ammo I should look for specifically, or stay away from? I've been told to stick with cowboy loads.

And what is an effective range for an ethical kill shot with a rifle like this, in your opinion.

Thanks in advance,
~George

I looked the Winchester Power Point load, 1190fps - 629lb/ft.. If you're hunting deer I think you'd have a 50-75 yd limit, IMO.

Tough call as to max usable range. Depends mostly on you and the quality of the iron sights, and on how much light you have to work with. When I was young I hunted with my old 35 Remington and in dim light I was worthless trying to get deer meat. And that was with teenager eyes. And I think it's great that you have the opportunity to use that old family rifle.

George, how bout a pic of the rifle?

My brother has the one my dad bought. When he bought it the firing pin was touchy. We both warned him about it. Shortly after dropping him off at a blind I heard a muffle "whump!". He'd knocked the barrel against the wall of the blind and blew a hole in the floor of the blind. He got the firing pin fixed after that.

Great round at close range. Simply bowls them over. Basically a high-powered rock hitting 'em.

I hunt with a Marlin 45-70. I use Winchester 300 grain jacketed hollow points. Last kill was 143 yards..bang-flop!

With factory ammo you you are looking at 44 Spl type performance. Are you a handloader? If so, I would look into the specifics of what others with Win 92s of the same vintage are saying about the steel used in the rifle. I know that owners of current Rossi 92s are pushing the 44-40 Wins to 44 Mag pressures and velocities. The 92 is a strong action and as long as modern steel was used it should be the same. I would think that by 1908, Win was delivering a tough product.

I have a win 92 in 44-40 manufactured in 1894, I use winchester ammo, it is around $70 a box but I have never had an issue. I have not taken a whitetail with it but have taken some rams, a hog and a few critters. The longest shot was a little over 100 yards.
I would suggest taking it to a good gunsmith and having him just check everything out on the gun to make nothing is worn out or broken.
The model 92 is a solid and reliable gun and there are parts available to fix any broken parts and should keep giving you years of good use.
I like this model enough that I bought a rossi 92 in 357/ 38 spl for practicing with so I didn't have to spend as much money on ammo for practice and not wear out the winchester on practice.

I have shot mine a few times, but I don't consider it one of my hunting rifles. It is a keepsake that I love and admire, but will not take out in the field.

I have a mod 73 in 38/40 and it's essentially a pistol round. I took a deer with it about 30 or so years ago but it has a trajectory like a rainbow(Tom Horn movie).

Thanks everyone!
Here's a couple pics of the rifle:




I don't have my hands on it yet - probably within the month. I purchased a couple types of cowboy loads and will have a gunsmith check to out before I start hurling some lead.

My grandfather gave me a Marlin model 1893 in a 30-30 caliber with a huge octagon barrel on it. His grandfather gave it to him in the 1930s, and he said it was pretty well used when he got it.It hadn't been shot in 30 years, but I cleaned it up and shot it, and the gun is in perfect working condition. Open sites and the far site out on the barrel was broken off, so someone cut a piece of stainless steel fastened it perfectly in place and filed the top down until the rifle was dead-on accurate again. Pretty cool pioneer type gunsmithing right there. I am very proud of that gun, and that my grandpa chose to give it me over other grandsons. He said, you grew up hunting and ought to know the value of something like this. He said if I was ever down to my bottom dollar and had nothing, I better not sell that gun. I never will, and someday a grandchild of mine will be told the same thing. Priceless.

I'd hunt with it if I were you, I shot a nice management buck with this gun a few years back. The smile on grandpa's face when I gave him a picture of me the buck and the rifle was a pretty cool thing to see.

^^ Yes to this.