Will a 45 Cal. stop a wild hog?

[SirReal63]

I have stopped BB's, a few pellets and several roman candles but so far no bullets.

 

[MossRoad]

I have stopped BB's, a few pellets and several roman candles but so far no bullets.

Yeah, I've stopped a few of those myself. Heck, with my feet alone I've stopped a few bricks, rocks, canned goods, hammers, a car, and the occasional bathroom door, but never a bullet. Fingers crossed I never do.

 

[carlhwv]

So the real question is after this wealth of information...experience, opinion, and research and all a great read btw, is the OP going to get his 45 or has he been swayed to something different?

 

[CCWKen]

That thing is getting to be in the scary size category.

Now you understand when I said the ground was shaking!

 

[Ford850]

Them ain't hogs, them's piglets!

This is a hog. And a small one at that.

View attachment 490333

If you look at all the pictures from the website where this picture is posted, there is a big variety in the hogs taken at these places. Some look like large farm hogs, others look like foreign boars, and then everything between those. Lots of small meat hogs taken by the looks. Whitetail Deer Trophy Hunting in Texas at the Wildlife Ranch in the Texas Hill Country
In the Trophy Room section of that site, they say large males can weigh 300 pounds. I wonder it that is the max size they offer or if that is truly the largest these boars can grow.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

I can tell you that a .40 works for the small ones I have here. I took a momma and a baby this morning with the XD from about 30 yards. Got the sow first and the little ones just stood there looking at me. If I would have had one of the AR'S I think I could have got more. They didn't want to leave the sow.

They were miracle shots as I am near sighted and cannot aim very well with my glasses on, I can't see the rear sight clearly.

I think if you can hit them you can discourage them from coming your way with the .45 or the 9mm.

I have that problem, but one day out shooting with a friend of mine, we traded rifles, just messing around. His rifle happened to have a peep sight on it, and I was amazed at how much better it was with that particular sight. Don't shoot much any more, but I would certainly opt for a peep sight if I did. My brother gave me a British .303 that had a peep sight on it when he bought it, and he converted it back. I twisted his arm until he came up with the peep.

Peep Sights: How to Improve Your Vision and Shooting | Outdoor Life

 

[CCWKen]

So the real question is after this wealth of information...experience, opinion, and research and all a great read btw, is the OP going to get his 45 or has he been swayed to something different?

Keep reading. I said I was going to keep my 9mm. Just wear it more often until they move on. They may have already. I saw a buck and two doe down front last Friday and again yesterday. I hope they don't camp out as I planed to shred a lot of brush and high grass if it ever stops raining. It'll take a few days or a week of drying before I can get the tractor out there though. And it looks like we may get a little frost by the end of the week so it may be a couple of weeks. I don't do much tractoring when the bitter cold temperatures blow in. They said it may get down to 31 on Friday.

 

[CCWKen]

I have that problem, but one day out shooting with a friend of mine, we traded rifles, just messing around. His rifle happened to have a peep sight on it, and I was amazed at how much better it was with that particular sight. Don't shoot much any more, but I would certainly opt for a peep sight if I did. My brother gave me a British .303 that had a peep sight on it when he bought it, and he converted it back. I twisted his arm until he came up with the peep.

Peep Sights: How to Improve Your Vision and Shooting | Outdoor Life

Yeah, peep sights help a lot. Except at night when you can't even find the rear sight. That's what drove me to a tac-light and red-dot for my night shooter.

 

[k0ua]

Yeah, I've stopped a few of those myself. Heck, with my feet alone I've stopped a few bricks, rocks, canned goods, hammers, a car, and the occasional bathroom door, but never a bullet. Fingers crossed I never do.

Come to think of it, I have been "shot". Sort of. I was on a public range (not an IPSC range) a long time ago and an idiot next to me was shooting a .44 magnum revolver loaded with some "salvaged rounds". I asked about them as they did not sound right going off. Some were weak sounding and some sounded "extra loud". He said that they had been under water and later recovered. The next thing I know he touched another one off and I got a piece of metal in my leg thru my jeans. It bled a bit and I picked out the metal and decided to leave the area. I am not sure what happened, but I think the case ruptured and spit brass my way. In any case I had enough and left.

 

[the old grind]

Interesting article about peep sights. I'd learned long ago about looking thru 'pinholes' to correct myopia for reading labels etc when my glasses were broken, but didn't realize it was working with my sights too.

My gig with 'irons' is to practice a 'shotgun snap' to establish cheek position (as also with bow release), then focus on the target and squeeze off when the somewhat blurry front blade aligns with it. The guys at our deer camp (who insist on scopes for 30-40 yd shots) that can hit a running deer are the ones who take the most rabbits, too. They're not exactly looking through their scopes after the first shot ('charging' or not). Irons/peeps go well with 'both eyes open' shooting, which is what I'd expect to do if facing a charging animal.

I have Williams 5D, FP, and WGRS 'rears' on various long guns, tho' I use 'std' vs 'Fire' fronts. Half of my 'old mils' have OEMs (SMLE, '98s) and different aperture dias allow different focus on the front blades. Be sure your aperture allows focusing clearly on the target when you 'pick a hair' to aim at.

btw, #1 buckshot will get you 11 .30 cal pellets/oz. A friend from LA/MS recommended them for deer from a blind, and when he wouldn't get a shot at one he'd usually come home with a 100lb or so pig as consolation. I don't suppose a 'hog' would have to be very big to charge when agitated. If 'Hogzilla' was in your nabe, you'd hear about it before long ... and know what to carry.

(I've only been 'shot' with .380 RNFP ... at PB range ... with a complete pass-through .. and a story by itself. )