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Jermanator
Senior MemberPosts: 15,351 Senior Member
Introducing the .430 SJS and My First Bear
Jermanator
Senior MemberPosts: 15,351 Senior Member
Grab the popcorn kids. Here is a start...
Not anything for the record books, but I shot a 175 pound boar 11 minutes before legal light ended on my 4th day of bear hunting. (I was only scheduled for three.) I am on the left, bear in the middle, and my guide, Kip Cameron, on the right...
The rifle is a Marlin X7 chambered in my wildcat, the .430 SJS with reamers made by Dave Manson and the experimental barrel made by X-Caliber barrels. The scope is a Leupold Vx-1 1-4x shotgun scope with the Turkey-Plex.
.430 SJS next to a bear wiener...
Not anything for the record books, but I shot a 175 pound boar 11 minutes before legal light ended on my 4th day of bear hunting. (I was only scheduled for three.) I am on the left, bear in the middle, and my guide, Kip Cameron, on the right...
The rifle is a Marlin X7 chambered in my wildcat, the .430 SJS with reamers made by Dave Manson and the experimental barrel made by X-Caliber barrels. The scope is a Leupold Vx-1 1-4x shotgun scope with the Turkey-Plex.
.430 SJS next to a bear wiener...
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Jerm draws first blood on big game for the "fall" season!!!
The reason I developed this is because Michigan finally changed their laws regarding rifles in the lower half of the lower peninsula. For ages, all that was allowed was handguns with straight walled cases, .35 caliber and larger, shotguns, and muzzle loaders. Last year, they allowed rifles. The rule is that they have to be straight walled, .35 caliber or larger, and the case cannot exceed 1.8" in length. Indiana and Ohio have passed similar legislation for deer hunting. My intent is to market it at gun shows in the region so hunters have an alternative to lever action .44 mag rifles. My cartridge works in standard .308 bolt rifles. People in those areas can now hunt deer with bolt action rifles like God intended!
I was talking about this years ago when they were only talking about making the change to the law. I put it on hold until they actually passed something. It was supposed to be a .45 caliber round. Come to find out, someone else had the same idea. That is now the .45 Raptor. Once I heard about that, I had to change gears and found that a .44 caliber bullet works great in a .308 case. The .430 SJS is essentially a longer version of the .44 Automag. Ballistically,it either meets or exceeds a .444 Marlin. My conservative load using Hornady 265gr FTX bullets exceeds .444 Marlin velocities at 2200fps.
Look forward to hearing the details of the hunt Jerm. Taking that critter with your own wildcat has to be one of the most satisfying things you can do with your clothes on................You did have your clothes on I hope...........
$5 fine for no autopsy photos.
-- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer and politician
That's what I'm talkin about!!! Heck even when you kill something with a reload you worked up it's a thrill in my book. Doing it with your own wildcat is even mo betta! Congrats! Nice bear too!
Son that's somebody with nothing to do with his time but keep me in trouble with mom.
CPJ used Butt Jerm for a rest. I don't use them. I learned that bear have the best sense of smell in all of the animal kingdom-- 7 times better than a bloodhound! Therefore, Butt Jerm had to go into hiding. I bought suspenders!
The VX-III is freaking awesome! That said, I was too lazy to switch it to the SJS and put the turkey scope on it instead. Want value? It is going for $217 at Midway right now...
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/812958/leupold-vx-1-shotgun-scope-1-4x-20mm-turkey-plex-reticle-matte
My hunting hours are 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset. This scope allowed me to hunt that way in a darkened blind, in darkened woods. I could see just as well through the scope as I could with my naked eye. I shot my bear at 8:11-- 11 minutes before last legal light on the last day of hunting-- 19 minutes after sunset. People with lesser scopes and sights would have already been in the truck because they can't see crap in light like that. The scope was set at 1x. It weighs 9 ounces.
Somewhere around 15-20 yards. Yes, I still use a rest at that distance. Rests are an effective tool at any distance. I will use any tool that will help me make a quick, clean kill. Mr. Bear was a beautiful healthy animal before he met me. I owed it to him to dispatch him as quickly and cleanly as I could. The load was a considerable charge of H-110 in modified Hornady .308 brass pushing 265gr Hornady FTX bullets in .430. They clocked on the chronometer at around 2200fps. I estimate the impact velocity somewhere around 2150fps.
Entry wound...
On the left side...
Toasted both lungs and the liver. Heart was intact...
So yea, I hit this bear hard! He made it about 25 yards before expiring. I am thinking that the .430 SJS is suitable for anything in North America. I would not hesitate to use it for moose or brown bear. I have had discussions with Jackson Engineering about making some sort of system featuring this cartridge that would make a fairly inexpensive, lightweight bolt action bush rifle-- we will see what happens.
Cool cartridge, and write up.
Congrats on a nice bear!
"The Un-Tactical"
congrats:beer:
The velocity threshold according to Hornady is 900-2,200 fps. Think I'll conduct a little science.
Besides, I already stock those bullets.
Did you get to hear the death moan?.......That one is a good eating size.
He had quite a bit of fat for this time of year.
Before winter he probably would have been in the 225 range
I was going to ask whose bum was used as a rest for the shot...
Seriously though, man, congrats all around. From getting drawn to getting it done, great job!
-Mikhail Kalashnikov
What a way to show the world a cartridge that you came up with by yourself.
So what are you going to make out of the meat? Who is tanning your hide?
D
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.... now who's bringing the hot wings? :jester: