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"I would like to thank you for such incredible ammunition!
Last hunting season I took a wild boar with my .44 Mag. with some commercial ammunition and the bullet fail to stop the boar and it took about 4 hours to track and find this animal (and about 2 more shots). After skinning the boar we found the first bullet stuck in the leg bone, it did not penetrate to the heart or lungs. Last weekend I took my Ruger Super Redhawk with two boxes of your 330-GR SUPER-HARD-CAST GC LONG-HAMMERHEAD hunting to a private ranch in Moreno Valley California and after stocking a big pig for about 30 minutes I took a shot and this hog was down!!! I was very surprised how powerful this ammunition is. The pig was about 350 lb and the shot broke his right leg bone, penetrated the vitals (heart and lungs) and exited through the left leg bone shredding it into pieces. Now that’s stopping power!!!
Thank you very much for such incredible ammunition. I will never use anything else in my handgun for hunting."
- Daniel Brighina
Mr. Brighina's hog can be seen on our Trohpies Page
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"GARRETT 310 DEFENDER AMMO: Using his 310-gr Hammerhead bullet, Randy loads them to just over 1,000-fps in a 4" revolver. With a heavy bullet, this is still a very powerful load and will give deep penetration. It was proven long ago bullet weight and bullet construction are the key factors in penetration, not muzzle velocity. So what we have from Garrett Cartridges is just about the perfect ,44 Magnum load for relatively light-weight , short-barreled sixguns. Not only did Garrett come up with an excellent load, he also named it appropriately calling it "Defender Ammo." We are not talking about what is thought of as defensive ammo for use in man-made jungles, but rather relatively easy controlled but powerful ammo for use outdoors. The Garrett Defender Ammo really has two uses - hunting and defense against anything trying to take a piece out of your hide. This does not preclude its use for either four-legged or two-legged critters. As a hunting load it is certainly adequate for deer-sized game, black bear and should be just about perfect for close-range hog hunting." "...the Garrett Defenders might well be the perfect choice for deep cover hunting of anything inclined to bite back."
John Taffin, April 2007 GUNS Magazine
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"Randy Garrett's .44 Magnum loads and the Ruger .44 Magnum pistols are a marriage made in heaven for those who need sheer power and penetration, and of the three buffalo stompers he sells in that caliber, the 310-gr SuperHardCast Hammerhead Defender Ammo running through a 4" barrel at 1020-fps, offers 80% of the penetration of the full-power Hammerhead rounds at 1325-fps at relatively close range. The load combines excellent penetration and bullet weight retention with quicker recovery and follow-up shots, and at close ranges with large animals that's important in a defensive round."
Denis Prisbrey, HANDGUNS 2007 BUYERS GUIDE
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“The 44 Magnum cartridge was big news at its introduction in 1956. It propelled a 250-gr bullet at 1300+ fps, far more potent than anything else available at the time. These figures sound so quaint now compared to the 454 Casull, 475 and 500 Linebaughs and 500 Smith & Wesson cartridges, all capable of generating twice as much horsepower.
But for many of us, nuclear levels of revolver performance are neither necessary nor manageable. All we really need is ammo that will do the job with the guns we have. No telling who was the first sensible champ to recognize in the lowly 44 Magnum the solution to the problem. JD Jones may be the real culprit but Randy Garrett was also on the case early on. Both rightly recognized that the 44 Magnum loaded to sensible pressures with 300 to 325 grain bullets, was a serious cartridge, and kept the venerable 44 Magnum in the hunt in the face of more formidable developments. Owners of countless 44 Magnum revolvers thank you, whoever you are.
Not content to lounge on his laurels, Garrett has introduced an updated version of his +P Long Hammerhead Ammo. Otherwise identical to the original, the latest iteration sports gas-checked bullets to combat leading that occasionally occur even with the best bullets. Fourteen hundred fps is cooking for a 330-gr cast bullet. Unless a revolver has perfectly sized throats and slick bores, the heat, pressure and gas leakage can cause barrel leading. Nothing can wreck accuracy quicker. Nothing stops the problem better than gas-checks.
Plenty accurate before, the ammo will keep producing good groups. Testing in a stock 7½ inch stainless Ruger Redhawk produced some outstanding performance. One six shot group landed in 1¼” while another had five more or less in one hole with the sixth about an inch out due to the excitement and amazement of the shooter (not your blind contributing author).
Garrett bullets are hand-cast, water-quenched with alloys tailored to give maximum resistance to shattering and deformation. A lot of trouble but it makes for a superior bullet. Bullet-to-bullet weight variation is typically +/- ½ grain.
Long Hammerhead Ammo is suitable only to Dan Wesson and Ruger 44 Magnum double-action revolvers since it works at 43,500-cup. For the S&W and Ruger Single-Actions, the standard Hammerhead 310-grain Ammo, working at 38,000-cup is best. Both sell for $70 per 50, a true bargain for hunters who have trekked thousands of miles for the shot of a lifetime or outdoorsman who ventures into bear country and may depend on this ammo for safety and preservation.”
- Hamilton Bowen, American Handgunner 2006 Annual
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“Not long back I made a quick trip to TN to hunt hogs with a guy who advertises with us in Primitive Archer. Naturally, I had to use a stickbow to whack my hog, and it was super. But Harold Wiggins went with me. You might remember that name. He went with me on my bear hunt years back when I first used your loads in my .45-70. He shot a .444 on that hunt, and it worked reasonably well with some Nosler handloads I fixed up for him. Anyway, he didn't want to use the .444 on the hogs; wanted to use his .44 mag handgun. We were up at my farm a few weeks before the hunt burning some .44 powder, and he was discussing what load he was going to use. I handed him six rounds of the Garrett 310-gr Defender Ammo, and they went into practically the same hole from his Super Redhawk! He scrounged six more for the hog hunt. Didn't need but one! Man, that round whacked a big ole TN boar that went a bit over 300. The hog didn't go more than 30 yards. And talk about a blood trail! If one had been needed, there it was. What a super load. Thanks.”
- Tony Kinton , personal letter email dated 5-14-06
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"I have seen the tracks of this big boar in a draw only a couple hundred yards from my hunting camp off and on for over a year. When it has been handy I have baited strategic areas with corn but he was never seen. One morning about 45 minutes before sunrise, after a rain, I headed over to check the draw while my hunting buddy Rich Lucibella (publisher of S.W.A.T. Magazine) was cooking breakfast. I had looked outside and it just seemed too good, the wind would be in my face and the glow of a soon to rise sun would be at my back. I had grabbed up one of three guns in camp loaded with your 330-gr +P Long Hammerhead Ammo. Most of the time Rich and I both carry custom long cylinder Blackhawks, mine a Bowen and his a Gallagher, but this morning I hadn’t put my Bowen on yet and grabbed my Dave Clay custom takedown Marlin. This is the same gun pictured and discussed in the Guns & Ammo article on heavy 44 loads. As I approached the draw, I spooked five whitetail deer that naturally had to run into the draw. I knew these deer would alarm anything in the draw so I held my position for three to four minutes before proceeding. When I got where I could see where I needed to see in the draw (still a half hour before sun-up) the deer were level with me on the other side just browsing. This may have been a part of a whole lot of things gone right for the hogs undoing because as I watched the deer, the hog just appeared about seventy yards away. In an instant the front sight was on his shoulder and in another instant a Garrett 330-grainer was on its way (kind of like a Hallmark card: ”When you want to send the very best”). The 330-grainer hit him right on top of the front sight and away he went. I walked to where I thought he had been and on the light colored ground I could make out quality blood so I headed back to camp to get Rich and let him know what I was up to. When we got back to the blood trail twenty minutes later it was getting close enough to sun-up for pretty fair light. You would have to see the blood trail to believe it. This boar covered about 125-yards spraying blood three to five feet out of the off side on every bound. That is until he ran out of blood and fell over dead in a clearing. The shot had centered the near shoulder and exited just behind the off shoulder and coming out about three inches lower than the entrance (I was shooting somewhat downhill), the only bone hit were ribs on both sides. The bullet trashed both lungs and went thru the top of the heart. The picture of the heart isn’t real clear as to what happened but it is good evidence that this shape of bullet pulverizes flesh in front of it to a diameter of up to about three quarters of an inch. Folks that think this bullet shape just punches a 44 caliber hole need to quit looking at entrance and exit wounds in tough hides and study this picture. Even makes them bleed like nothing else except maybe a broadhead. If heavy bone is struck it will of course also shock the crap out of them and cause other complications but if you only hit meat the thru and thru core sample will make them bleed like nothing else.
This hog was over 6-feet long nose to tail and would have weighed 350 plus. He didn’t have the longest teeth I have seen but maybe the thickest. Look at the picture and compare the thickness at the bottom of the lower teeth to the barrel on the rifle. It was no mistake having a rifle built specifically to shoot your 330-grainers. Please keep making them!”
- Ashley Emerson
See Ashley Emerson's Boars on our Trophies Page
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"When I stop and think of the dozen or more different guns I have hunted with in just the last year and the fact that I got this many pictures of hogs killed with your 330s in that custom Bowen revolver, I start to realize how much of a favorite it is. How about this? All four of the hogs pictured were one shot kills. Apparently I did hit them good but only one of them wasn't on the move. Often hogs take some extra killin' and some times are unimpressed with seemingly good hits even with rifles. Hogs punched thru the chest with even .375 H&H and .470 Nitros have not immediately reacted to being dead, (ask me how I know). Because of this I have grown very confident in the Garrett 330 as the ultimate in what can be done with a lead alloy cast bullet load in the long cylindered 44 Magnum. Accuracy, power and reliability unsurpassed by any other factory or hand-load ammo I have ever used."
- Ashley Emerson
See Ashley Emerson's Boars on our Trophies Page
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I dont intend to handload for this Bowen custom gun, and I already had my mind set on the Garrett 44 Mag 330-gr +P Hammerheads for regular carry. Recoil ranged from very mild with the 210-gr Winchester Silvertips to hells-a-poppin with the Garrett Hammerheads. Randy Garrett warned me that his loads would wake up my Redhawk, and they did. No handgun is ideal for heavy bears, but he tells me his Hammerheads hurt even more in front of the gun than they do behind the gun. If thats true all I need is time to aim; the rest should be a knockout. Those SuperHardCast 330-gr +P Hammerheads, by the way, are built just for the Ruger double-action 44 Mags; the longer Redhawk cylinder allows a longer (heavier) bullet to be seated farther out in the brass case than would be possible in other revolvers, which means more energy while maintaining safe pressures, and the strong Ruger can shoot them all day long, which is more than I can do. With a hard alloy, wide meplat and heavy-for-caliber weight, this bullet is designed for deep penetration. The best accuracy of the bunch was a bonus.
- Denis Prisbrey, HANDGUNS 2006 ANNUAL
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"Since the 1990s Randy Garrett has been producing a 330-grain SuperHardCast
Long Hammerhead at 1385-fps for the long-cylinder 44 Magnums. Custom
gunsmith John Gallagher introduced me to it several years ago. I have found
that if you run into John out hunting, he will likely have a cylinder full
of Garrett's 330s in his custom Ruger Bisley. When Hamilton Bowen went
hunting up in Alaska last year, he was camping out in brown bear country.
At night he slept with a Redhawk on a lanyard. No, it wasn't a .475 or
.500. It was, in fact, one of his 4-inch Kodiak conversions in .44 Mag
loaded with Garrett's 330s. I've been so impressed with the additional
performance afforded by having a .44 that works with this type of ammo that
I now have two custom Bowen Blackhawks and a takedown Marlin rifle
specifically built to chamber the Garrett 330."
Comparative Wet Newspaper-Penetration Test
Garrett 330-gr.......4" revolver: 32"...18" rifle: 33"
Buffalo Bore 340-gr....4" revolver: 28"...18" rifle: 23"
"Randy Garrett has for years specialized in high-performance .44 Mag and
.45-70 ammo. All of the hard-cast bullet loads he sells are loaded with
bullets he's hand-cast himself out of molds he designed with an alloy made
to his specifications."
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Ashley Emerson, GUNS & AMMO, June 2005
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"If you want a steamroller punch, Randy Garrett's 310-grain 44 Magnum Hammerhead would
be your bullet of choice. Garrett's bullets have the broadest meplat in the industry.
If you are not familiar with the term 'meplat,' it is a measurement of the flat
striking surface at the front of the bullet. Garret's 44 Mags will handle anything
on the North American continent."
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Glen Voorhees, Gunweek.com
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"Your heavy bullet ammo has made the .44 Mag. a real cartridge again and is the
stuff we recommend unequivocally to our clients."
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Hamilton S. Bowen
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| "In keeping with its company philosophy that penetration's the ideal, Garrett offers two hard-cast thumpers for the 44 Mag. The first is a 310-grain SuperHardCast Hammerhead with a .320-inch meplat, good for all 44 Magnum revolvers and TC Contenders. Advertised muzzle velocity from a 7 ½ inch barrel is 1325-fps, which is remarkably close to the 1321-fps average we got from our 7 ½ inch Redhawk.
Garrett's 330-grain is for Ruger Redhawks and Super Redhawks. It's a beast, faster and, of course, heavier than the 310-grainer. The company claims a muzzle velocity of 1385-fps (and an awesome 1400 ft/lbs). Out of our Redhawk it averaged 1392-fps.
Those 330s were very accurate from our particular gun, although it's tough to shoot photogenic groups with a load of this magnitude (we can honestly report that the Garrett 330s are the heaviest recoiling 44 Mags we've ever experienced). Both the 310s and the 330s were remarkably consistent, with a standard deviation of 16-fps and 12-fps, respectively. Both loads cost $65 per box of 50. Steep, yes. But if you want to play around in the high end of the 44 Mag field, these things will deliver. Texas big-bore revolver authority Ashley Emerson tells us the 330s are terrific medicine for monster hogs. We believe him."
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GUNS & AMMO, October 2002
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| "Here is a picture of a Zebra Stallion I killed while hunting in Africa recently using a Ruger Super Blackhawk Hunter and your 310 grain Hammerheads. I took 14 animals with a handgun but this Zebra is one of my favorite trophies. I shot the Zebra from 89 yards (laser ranged) and he went down very quickly. My PH, Bobby Hansen, couldn't believe the complete penetration and quick kill from a 44 Mag. on an animal as tough as Zebra." "I fired one shot and moments later Bobby said, "he's down". I said, "I know", then in disbelief and with a very surprised look he said, "No! He's Down!" like I didn't understand. I had to leave the unfired rounds with him when I left; he carries a 44 Mag. as his sidearm while guiding and quality big game ammo is tough to get in his neck of the woods. Thanks for making a bullet tough enough for any task." |
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Gary Smith, President, HandgunHunt.com
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"...I literally chased the ibex for two days and after running faster and further than I thought I still could, I got a good sight picture and trigger break as he trotted by at about 60-yards. This shot went through the lungs and sent him staggering. I closed to 30-yards while he went maybe three and put him down with a second shot through the shoulders. The gun is a beautiful Bowen custom long cylindered 7 1/2 inch Super Blackhawk. The ammo is your 330-grain +P Ammo. This load goes over 1400-fps in this tightly fitted gun. The Garrett 330-grain +P Ammo is the best defensive load I can imagine for a Redhawk in brown bear country."
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Ashley Emerson
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> See Ashley Emerson's ibex on our Trophies page
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"...
my Ruger 44 Magnum Hunter put all six rounds into one ragged hole
at 25 yards, with Garretts very fine 310 grain loads. And at 1377
fps average from the 7.5 inch barrel...and over 1300 lbs of muzzle
punch...this is a big game load supreme even from a handgun."
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Paco Kelly ("The Hunter 44", 09-01. SIXGUNNER.COM)
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"In spite
of the fact that recent technical developments within the
ammunition industry have allowed the development of high-performance
handgun
loads with expanding-form bullet designs that will upset effectively
and
dramatically at the relatively slow velocities traditionally associated
with
pistols rather than rifles, serious handgun hunters who pursue large
and
potentially dangerous game still have need for the bone-breaking,
deep
penetration capabilities of hard-cast, nonexpanding solid lead bullets."
"The acknowledged leader in the modern design of such bullets
and loads
is the small firm of Garrett Cartridges. Its tidy line of high-performance
flatnose, weight-forward Hammerhead 44 Magnum handgun ammo (and
45-70 loads
for current production rifles) represents the present state-of-the-art
in
this area."
"Bullet design and production is the key to the Garrett approach.
Unlike all other manufacturers who offer cast bullet ammunition,
all Garrett
bullets are his own design, hand-cast from his own special, proprietary
high
performance alloy. All commercial cast bullets from other manufacturers
are
cast by automatic casting machines that will, in general, allow
an
acceptable product rejection-rate percentage only with high antimony
alloys."
"Garrett believes that high-antimony alloys are far too brittle
for use
against really heavy game and that high-antimony alloys tend to
cause
bullets to break when the inherent strength of the alloy is exceeded.
By
comparison, Garrett's low-antimony alloy is far less likely to fracture
when
its inherent strength is exceeded. Instead, it simply deforms modestly.
The Garrett antimony content is 2.5%, notably less than the six
to 12%
antimony content commonly used in commercial castings. Plus, Garrett's
bullet alloy is arsenic-enriched to enhance hardening. The alloy
yields an
outstanding 25-Brinnell rating with extremely low fracture potential."
"The design of the Garrett bullet is also a key performance
aspect and
has the added benefit of allowing Garrett to effectively specify
and
restrict the guns in which his loads may be used. The Hammerhead
concept is
a weight-forward design and puts a substantial percentage of the
bullet's
weight forward of the crimp groove. This allows relatively shallow
seating
of a heavier bullet, which in turn maintains a larger case capacity
and
keeps pressure restrictions from becoming acute while developing
a notably
higher velocity than is possible with conventional-design "weight-rearward"
bullets."
"Turning to the Garrett 330-grain 44 Magnum load, the advantages
are
even clearer. The additional 20-grains of weight is carried entirely
in the
nose, making it .050-inch longer than the 310-grain version. This
permits
Garrett to offer the load as a "+P" item because it is
too long to function
in standard length cylinders such as found on S&W revolvers
and Ruger Super
Blackhawks. Consequently, given the 454 Casull-grade strength of
the Ruger
double action mechanisms and their .050-inch longer cylinder, Garrett
worked
the pressure level of its 330-grain version up to 40,000-psi. This
remains
within the performance limits of the Ruger Redhawk and Super Redhawk
and is
the most powerful load available for the 44 Magnum cartridge."
"I've used Garrett's heavy 44 Magnum loads for special purpose
handgun
hunting (as well as having used the Garrett 45-70 rifle loads) where
serious
penetration was required since he first entered the market in 1988.
I've
watched the evolution of the product with considerable interest.
These are
powerful, accurate handfillers, and the one time I tried to check
the wound
channel with a Garrett load it zipped through five 12-inch, 10%
ordnance
gelatin blocks put end-to-end."
"Garrett says that "invariably calibers are defined by
the bullets they
push, and our SuperHardCast Hammerheads are simply without equal
in the
realm of cast bullet ammunition." That's hard to dispute."
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Dick Metcalf (SHOOTING TIMES, April 2001)
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"Randy Garrett of Garrett Cartridges doesn’t diversify. He is old fashioned and selective, offering exactly two loads for sixgunners in only one caliber, .44 Magnum. For several years Garrett’s offering has been rated as one of the best for big game hunting. This load consists of a 310-grain SuperHardCast Hammerhead bullet at 1325-fps for use in all 44 Magnum revolvers. This load has a worldwide reputation for use on big and dangerous game. Garrett has been developing a new +P 44 Magnum load and it is now in production. Featuring a 330-grain SuperHardCast Long-Hammerhead at 1385-fps, this load exceeds SAAMI specs and is for use only in Ruger Redhawks and Super Redhawks. In my custom 4-inch Ruger Redhawk, the Garrett 330-grainer clocks out at 1263-fps. This sixgun has been round-butted and is a very easy packin’ powerhouse that would be most comforting to have in close quarters with big nasty stuff, especially when loaded with Garrett’s hot load. My hunting Redhawk has a 7-½ inch barrel and Leupold scope. Using this combination, the 330-grain slugs clock out at 1372-fps and group into slightly over 1-inch at 50-yds. This is the ultimate in power for a 44 Magnum sixgun."
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John Taffin (AMERICAN HANDGUNNER, November/December 2000)
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"Garrett's
hard-cast factory load has quickly become my favorite factory
hunting load in 44 Magnum caliber...."
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Sheriff Jim Wilson (Shooting Times, 3-2000)
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"When
it comes to premium hunting loads for the 44 Magnum and 45-70,
Randy Garrett is the world's specialist. Garrett loads are designed
around Super-Hard-Cast bullets that are remarkable for their ability
to penetrate game from stem-to-stern, break bones and deliver
jacketed bullet velocities and accuracy. This year, Garrett has
redesigned the whole bullet line to improve what was already some
of the finest big game ammunition ever assembled. The two new
44 Magnum loads consist of a 310-grain HAMMERHEAD slug at 1325
fps and a 330-grain LONG-HAMMERHEAD at 1385 fps that is loaded
for the stretched cylinders of the Ruger Redhawk and Super Redhawk
revolvers. Garrett's new HAMMERHEAD bullets feature a weight-forward
design and a broad meplat that improves penetration while opening
a larger wound channel. Is it any surprise that Garret ammunition
is carried by the Wyoming Grizzly Bear Team?"
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Holt Bodinson (Gun Digest 2000)
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"You've
made a believer out of me. Last September I was hunting Alaskan
grizzly with some natives when one of them wounded a male that
took off in the brush. Four of us went in after him, the other
3 had rifles and due to the circumstances of the moment, I was
armed with only a S&W 2.5" 44 Magnum loaded with your rounds.
I was the fourth guy back, and you guessed it, he circled back
around us and did a full charge from the rear at about 15-feet.
I turned and shot, hitting him in the upper shoulder, blowing
out his lungs and lodging just under the hide on the far side.
It knocked him down, giving me enough time to empty my remaining
rounds to keep him down. I know these loads were a real life saver!"
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Jeff Newville (Personal Letter)
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> See Jeff Newville's Grizzly on our Trophies page
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"When
fired from my 7" Super Redhawk the 330-gr LONG-HAMMERHEAD clocked
1,369-fps. That's some serious energy. It is also accurate. As
you might expect, recoil is prodigious so it's more a test of
the shooter's ability than the ammo. Groups under an inch at 25-yds
are easily achieved if you do your part. Serious handgun hunters
have taken Garrett's ammo all over the world and it provides the
accuracy and penetration needed to anchor anything appropriately
hunted with a handgun."
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Charles E. Petty (American Handgunner, MAR/APR 1999)
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"The
only 44 Mag round I'd feel comfortable firing at a large, angry
bear is the Garrett 310-gr hard-cast. This round has brought down
charging grizzlies, and I think it offers the minimum ballistics
necessary for that warm, fuzzy feeling of being well defended
when you're in bear country."
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Shane Wrixon-Belcher (Handguns, 2-99):
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"I
tested Randy Garrett's excellent new hunting ammo, known as HAMMERHEADS.
These bone-busters feature 310-gr and 330-gr hard cast bullets
at 1325-fps. Test firing the new Garrett HAMMERHEADs at 50-yds
was accomplished with a 7.5" Freedom Arms 44 and a Leupold 2x
scope, while the 7.5" Redhawk wore a Leupold 4x scope. The HAMMERHEADs
both came in at 1400-fps with 1 3/8" 50-yd groups in the Freedom
Arms gun, and 1385 and 1355 with groups of 1 5/8" and 2 1/8" in
the Redhawk, which had a horrendous trigger pull to its disadvantage.
Garrett offers these 44 Mag loads as their only handgun loads,
and they are for serious hunters who desire power and superior
penetration."
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John Taffin (American Handgunner, Jan/Feb 1999)
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"The
resurgence of the 454 Casull, 50 AE and various 45 Colt max loads
has caused many to question the heretofore top-of-the-heap power
status of the great 44 Magnum. But fans of the 44 Magnum need
worry about their favorite no longer. Garrett Cartridges Inc.
has come up with two new HAMMERHEAD loads that'll provide all
the punch any responsible adult could reasonably ask of any hand
cannon."
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Payton Miller (Guns & Ammo, 12-98)
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"Garrett
Cartridges doesn't offer an extensive lineup of ammo. In fact,
it offers just two, but both are the most effective hunting loads
in the whole world for these two cartridges." "The Garrett loads
are hot, fast, hit like a train and penetrate as well as anything
I have ever used in a 44 Magnum. The other Garrett load is a 415-gr
hard-cast flatnose in 45-70. Penetration is superb, this load
has been used on Cape buffalo and big bears, as well as its most
natural use on elk, moose, and such. If you use either of these
cartridges, try Garrett ammo. It's impressive."
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Colonel Craig Boddington, USMCR (Safari, Jan/Feb 1998)
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"A
few years back it was impossible to find factory loads suitable
for hunting anything other than deer-size game with the 44 Magnum.
All of the 240-gr soft-points and hollowpoints are for deer hunting.
For use on bigger and tougher game, bigger and tougher bullets
are needed. Garrett Cartridges led the way with its 310-grain
hard-cast bullet load at 1320-fps. This is an excellent load,
suitable for big critters such as elk and moose, or smaller heavy
muscled game such as wild hogs that require deep penetration."
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John Taffin (Big Bore Sixguns)
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"The
times that I have used the Garrett 44 Magnum hunting load, I have
taken two feral hogs, a mule deer, three whitetails, two javalinas,
and numerous Rio Grande turkeys, with it. It is capable of breaking
big bones and driving on to exit the game, thereby leaving a good
blood trail should a bit of tracking be required."
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Jim Wilson (Shooting Times Gun Guide 1998)
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"For
the biggest beast I would go with the very hard, cast lead 310-gr
slugs loaded to over 1300-fps by Garrett Cartridges, Inc."
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Finn Aagaard (American Rifleman, 6-96)
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"For
those who want to try a cast bullet load but don't hand-load,
there is none better than the ammo provided by Garrett Cartridges.
If you test this Garrett ammo on your next trip to the range and
on your next hunt, it will give you a true indication of the real
hunting potential of the 44 Mag six-gun."
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Jim Wilson (Shooting Times, 3-96)
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"For
shooters wishing to try a heavy 44 Magnum hunting load, Garrett's
SUPER-HARD-CAST 310-grainer is ideal. It is field proven to be
among the best 44 Mag loads ever assembled."
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Holt Bodinson (Gun Digest, 1996)
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"I'd
use the Garrett 310-grain hard-cast rather than load my own for
such possible situations (grizzly attack). I've put a lot of faith
in this round in the past, and it would certainly be my choice
for a bear confrontation."
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Larry Weishuhn (Handgunning, Nov/Dec 1995)
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"Speaking
of heavy, hard-cast bullets, there's a source of 44 Magnum ammo
with such bullets; it's Garrett Cartridges. At least for the big
44, you don't have to hand-load to have optimum big-game hunting
ammo; this stuff is so good, reloaders probably can't improve
on it anyway."
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John Wooters (Petersen's Hunting, 3-95)
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"Fired
from a scoped 7.5-inch Ruger Super Blackhawk Hunter, the 310-gr
Garrett load ran 1303-fps, and the center-spread for 5-shots at
25-yds was a skimpy 0.537-inch!"
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Dean Grennell (Gun World Annual, 1994)
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"Of
the various 44 Magnum loads I have used while hunting, the hardest
hitting has been produced by Garrett Cartridges. I have shot a
considerable number of thick-skinned, heavy-boned, wild boars
with this 310-gr hard-cast bullet load, right though the shoulders
at varying distances, and always the bullet exited on the opposite
side. Not many calibers or bullets will live up to duplicating
those results. Based on my experience with the Winchester Black
Talons, PMC Starfires, and Hornady XTPS, there's no doubt they
will do well on deer-sized animals. However, were I to hunt elk
or potentially dangerous game with the 44 Magnum, I would opt
for the Garrett hunting load."
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Larry Weishuhn (Handgunning, 11 -93)
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"Garrett
makes one of the most accurate, hardest hitting 44 Mag loads I
have ever shot. For those wanting to hunt elk, black bear, moose
or large wild boar with a handgun, this is the load to use." "This
310-gr bullet gives the deepest penetration of any 44 Magnum bullet
I have field tested."
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J. Wayne Fears (Guns & Hunting, 7-93)
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"Where
penetration is vital, these tough bullets get the job done."
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Sam Fadala (Guns, 5-93)
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"The
Garrett 44 Magnum load has routinely demonstrated the fracture
of both shoulders on heavy elk. Garrett's bullets are cast and
hardened for maximum strength."
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B. Anderson (Gun-News, 4-93)
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"Until
the advent of Randy Garrett's cartridges, I would have been skeptical
about the 44 Magnum's ability to deliver a deeply penetrating,
bone-crushing blow to an animal as massive as a big bear. Not
any longer. From the 5.5" Redhawk, the big 310-grain SWC bullet
tore into the saturated phone books with obvious authority. The
bullet's exceptionally hard alloy helped it retain its shape even
after penetrating a full 26" of my test medium; it would have
progressed even further but was stopped by a solid wood backstop.
The bullet was so unfazed by its test, that it could almost be
reloaded and used again." (Mr. Steele also reported that the 375
Holland & Holland produced only 12" of penetration with Winchester
270-grain factory-loads). "The bullet sliced through the dense
newsprint as if it were tissue paper. Likewise, I recently shot
a 300-pound boar hog right between the eyes with this load from
a distance of about 20-feet, and the bullet ended up buried in
the left ham. That's penetration!"
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Kevin Steele (Guns & Ammo, 4-93)
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"These
are hard-cast for maximum penetration, rather than expansion.
They should be considered by followers of the Keith school of
penetrating bullets for hunting heavy game with big revolvers."
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NRA Staff (Dope Bag, American Rifleman 10-92)
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| "To call these
"hard-cast bullets" does not quite say it all. They are so darn
hard I would almost swear they are about half lead and half concrete.
They are beautifully cast, sharply profiled bullets that will deliver
the goods with the deepest and straightest penetration on big-game
animals possible. If I opened up this morning's paper and read Tyrannosaurus
Rex had made a sudden reappearance up here on the north coast and
fat kraut boys were on his diet list, you can bet your last buck
my 44 Magnum six-guns would be stuffed full of Garrett's cartridges." |
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Terry Murbach (Handgunning, 9-92)
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| "Garrett Cartridges
makes heavy hard-cast bullet loads, for extreme penetration in 44
Magnum and 45-70 Government. Penetration is nothing less than phenomenal."
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Edward E. Matunas (Gun Digest 1992)
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| "I recommend
his 44 Magnum cartridges to any serious hunter. Garrett tells the
truth about his ammo." |
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Hal Swiggett (North American Hunter, 1-90)
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| "...The GARRETT
load out-penetrated everything else, including the 180-grain NosIer
Partition from the 30-06. If I should want to hunt moose or elk
with the S&W, or carry it for big bear protection, I could feed
it the fine GARRETT ammo." |
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Finn Aagaard (American Rifleman, 1-90)
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| "This
is heavy stuff, designed for those handgun hunting situations requiring
deep penetration through heavy gristle and bone. Should be an excellent
choice for wild boar, bear, deer, elk, and moose. No matter how
you cut it, this new GARRETT ammo looks like a winner." |
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Bob Milek (Petersen's Hunting, 8-89)
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