I am limited to choosing one handgun for deer hunting in local "shotgun counties". What is your favorite and why? .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum, .45 "Long" Colt and .454 Casull are all on my short list. I do not reload.

How do the new Ruger Redhawks stack up? What else should I consider?

[ 08-31-2002, 20:55: Message edited by: Wayne Nish ]

Wayne, I have used a S&W 44 Mag 6 1/2" or an old model Ruger Super Blackhawk 7 1/2" for all of my handgun hunting. I carry a 4" S&W while "rifle" hunting, and have taken deer and pigs with it also. For strictly handgun hunting any of the 6 to 7 1/2 inch bbls are prefered. The Freedom Arms is probably the finest hunting handgun made. If I was in an area that allowed only handgun hunting I would get a FA in the caliber of my choice. There are many different levels of 45 Colt and 454 factory loads avialable. A 454 FA with an extra 45 Colt cylinder would be hard to beat. They are very accurate.

Wayne
I lived in Woodstock NY 1979-1990 and although Ulster Co. is a rifle county, I took to hunting with a TC Contender 44 Mag. with a 10" barrel and 2X scope. It worked fine at woods ranges.
What are the current legal requirements for handgun cartridges in NY? Is 35 cal. the minimum?
Greg

My favorite and a gun I've shot alot of game with is a .256 Ruger Hawkeye. It shoots a 60 grain bullet around 2500 fps. The caliber is known as a .256 Winchester Magnum and is a .357 necked down to .25 caliber. It's not very popular and Ruger only made "The Hawkeye" in 1961&62. It's a single shot and very accurate. I doubt if you could even find one. Happy Hunting.

Wayne, there is a large and dedicated following of .41 Magnum shooters on this site. (I'm one of them.) Most of us have a good bit of experience with the .41 & 44. All of us have nothing but superlative results to report about these two cartridges. The advantage of the .41 over the 44 is it seems to do it all with a little less recoil and flatter trajectory...although realistically they are almost identical.

Since you are a non-reloader, the 44 would be your most PRACTICAL option. I would suggest a heavy Smith with 6" barrel. Their "Hunter Series" is an excellent bunch of pistols.

If I did not reload I think I would chose the .44 Mag. out of the list you gave. As for what gun that would have to be personal preference.

Josh,
I forgot to mention that my preference for a hunting hangun is the TC Contender (or Encore). They are easily scoped, give better ballistics than a revolver due to the longer barrels, and they are accurate.
The other nice thing is that you can experiment with different calibers for the price of a new barrel only.
Greg

What do you classify as a handgun? a cut off rifle or the old hoster portable Elmer Keith definition? -Rawhider

Rawhider,
What do you classify as a handgun? Have used both T/C Contenders and Smith&Wessons. Call them what you want, to each his/her own. Sometimes (alot) I even use OMG rifles.

I would vote for the 44 Magnum since you are not a reloader. The 44 Magnum with hardcast ammo is a force to be reckon with. It is also much cheaper than the 454 Casull and with a more variety of ammo over the counter. The new Ruger 44 Magnum Hunter single action is a very nice gun for deer or anything else. I am thinking about getting one myself. One of my previous Super Blackhawk 44 Magnums was extremely accurate out of the factory box and I would assume that this model Hunter model is the same. The one I have handled from our local guns store several months back had a very smooth action. Good luck and have fun. Cheers! Ming

For the non-reloading handgun hunter I'd recommend one of the following:

1. T/C 10" bbl in 44 Rem Mag. as the fixed breach will provide a significant boost in muzzle velocity over a revolver.

2. If you must have multiple shots--a revolver--then what a set of options to choose from. A S&W 629 Classic Hunter or DX would be excellent. I also like a 5.5 in bbl Super Blackhawk in stainless steel. Either or all of these will reliably hit a gallon jug at 100 yards, off hand, or minute of deer. It just depends on what feels comfortable to you.

Rawhider--a pistol is anything I can put in a holster and does not have a butstock. The firearms above are handguns. Some days I wonder about the 14" 30/30 and find that a 14" .223 with a scope on it is at the upper limit of what I'd call a handgun.

I find a 16.25" barrel on a contender much nicer as a rifle--with a buttstock and a red-dot sight. Or, if you want to look at it another way, if it has a scope and a sling is is a rifle regardless of stock configuration The .223 does not havea sling and still fits in a Bianchi holster--but is is some holster!

[ 09-02-2002, 20:48: Message edited by: Fish Springs ]

Thanks, guys.

Seems like a split between a 44 Mag and a 454 Casull with an extra 45 Colt cylinder. I've got catalogs coming from Freedom Arms, Ruger and Hamilton Bowen.

Wayne, If I were to choose between the ones you listed I would go with a 44 mag or 454. But for me you guessed it my Dan Wesson 445 supermag. You can change barrels at a whim to 4 6 8 10 inchers and have any of them compensated too. Heavy barreled or light weight barrel. Dan Wesson makes the most versital handgun out there and not many if any could out shoot it. NOT talking about tc's or xp but revolvers here. But good luck with your choice. I would lean toward the 44 mag or even a 480 ruger if that is of interest to you. Good luck

Brian

Although I use the TC with a 14" bbl in 35 remington for deer, I started out with a 6" model 29 44 mag. For deer down here hard cast loads are not needed.xtp hollow points work great

Jules,
I thought you were the "Rat"

Greg

If I had to pick one that would be hard my Contender with all 12 barrel then Competitor and Ruger 44 SRH 9 1/2 Barrel I cannot just pick 1

for a first gun for handgun hunting youd go along way to beat a super blackhawk .44

I use a 309JDJ and the Deer don;t get away.Works for me

I hunt with a taurus raging bull in 454, but to be perfectly honest a 44 mag will flatten deer almost as well. I really wouldn't consider 480 if you don't reload as ammo is still a bit tricky to come by.

No one jump on that S&W 629 V Comp over at the class ads yet? There's your gun Wayne

Pacos45 said:
Wayne, there is a large and dedicated following of .41 Magnum shooters on this site. (I'm
one of them.) Most of us have a good bit of experience with the .41 & 44. All of us have
nothing but superlative results to report about these two cartridges. The advantage of the
.41 over the 44 is it seems to do it all with a little less recoil and flatter trajectory...although
realistically they are almost identical.

Since you are a non-reloader, the 44 would be your most PRACTICAL option. I would
suggest a heavy Smith with 6" barrel. Their "Hunter Series" is an excellent bunch of pistols.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well thats just about word for word the advise I was going to give you.
I would how ever piont out that the old 41 is starting a resurgenes, and there are several new "hunting loading" on the market in the last few years. So don't count out the 41 to fast.
I have hunted with a S&W modle 57. 6" for about 15 years now, but if I was going to buy a new hunting hand gun in this price range to day it would be a Ruger Super Redhawk. If I could afford one I would go with some thing like a Gary Reeder custom.
FWIW X-Ring
Here is the link to Gary Reeders Customs

http://www.reedercustomguns.com/

[ 09-07-2002, 09:35: Message edited by: X-Ring ]

Years ago, I had a very sweet S&W 657 .41 mag--I didn't reload at the time a eventually swapped it off for something I no longer have because ammo of high quality was tough to find...damn! These days I use a Bisely (ruger) in .44 mag, although a .45 Colt would be as good. I've been through the scoping thing, the contender thing and have returned to opensighted revolvers--generally less accurate but always more fun. My rifle hunting is done exclusivel;y with muzzleloaders. I do not disdain any handgun, just like revolvers. Chuck

Wayne,

My workhorse is a Ruger Bisley in .45 Colt. The only alteration I have made is to shorten the barrel to 5.5" and have the action tuned. I do think the Bisley does have a definite advantage with recoil control over the conventional Ruger grip frame and the various DA revolvers. Also the single action revolvers are more durable over the long haul than a DA.

Don't count the .45 Colt out just because you don't reload. Buffalo Bore has three heavy .45 Colt offerings specifically for Ruger single and double action revolvers. All are loaded to 30,000 cup. A 325 gr cast bullet at 1,325 fps, a 300 gr Speer at 1,325 fps and a 260 gr at 1,450 fps. The 325 grainer is a cast LBT Long Flat Nose bullet. I have taken two elk with this same bullet in my handloads and both elk were devastated on the spot.

One thing I would recommend before you spend big $$$ on a custom revolver, or even a a Freedom Arms, is to get a copy of Hamilton Bowen's new book, The Custom Revolver. I thought I knew a thing or two about revolvers, but then I got this book and realized I knew jack until I devoured this book. It will be $40 well spent.

www.buffalobore.com

other then the bow the only way I hunt anymore is with a handgun. For small game usually I carry one of my smith .38s or my .32 birdshead if Im really seriously bird hunting its the tc .410

New York no longer has it's .35 cal minimum requirment. It was changed to any centerfire a few years ago.

For me it is an XP-100 in specialty handguns or a FA 454 Casuall in revolvers.
xphunter

David Reed,

Thanks for your comments. I have pretty much narrowed down my caliber choice to .44 Magnum or .45 Colt. Cartridge makers like Buffalo Bore and CorBon now make difficult .45 Colt ammo procurement a non-issue. I am also leaning towards a Ruger Bisley for the same reason you state. Less perceived recoil. I also like it's style.

I got Hamilton Bowen's book last week after someone else recommended it to me. It's not only very informative, it is a great sales tool for his company. A Bowen Nimrod based on a Ruger Bisley would be very sweet. But I probably wouldn't need all of the bells and whistles on it. The base package will probably suffice.

[ 09-18-2002, 04:47: Message edited by: Wayne Nish ]

I just got word Ruger made a few more SS Bisleys in .45 Colt. If you call around, you can get one.

I've got a Freedom Arms in .454. It's as fine as you can wish for, and you can get it for less money and hassle than reworking a Ruger.

That said, I'm working on a custom 5 shot made on a SS Bisley just because I want a one of a kind sixgun. My .45acp is a custom with a real story, and I'll never part with it. The FA is as fine a gun as I've owned, but is no different from a heap of others out in the world.

What are you gonna shoot with this here wheelgun?

As a practical matter, I don't shoot anything bigger than whitetails. But a fella can dream.

Pete

Wayne,

I've spoken to Bowen a few times about the 'Nimrod' package. According to him this is the "leave nothing to chance" hunting revolver package his firm offers. There is a lot of work not readily seen that goes into these revolvers. Analagous to an Echols Legend rifle. I just sent a Bisley to Bowen for this same package! Damn, I hope the next few monthes go quickly.

stinkeypete,

I handled a SS Bisley that my dealer has. Actually he has one in .45 Colt and one in .44 mag! Maybe Ruger is testing the market a caliber at a time. He told me that he has sold a few of the SS Bisleys in .45 Colt. I would pick one up if I preferred stainless to blue. Maybe Ruger will be make this a regular catalogue item. If only Ruger would make a run of Blued Bisleys with a 5.5" barrel as well.

[ 09-19-2002, 21:19: Message edited by: DavidReed ]

I love my .45colt ss bisley,but I hunt with my .45colt,10" blue barrel contender.I feel that my bisley is too shiney. Good Luck!

stinkypete,

I want to cull deer with it. We get two anterless deer tags each year here in NY State. The only limitation is that the region where deer are plentiful near NYC are so-called shotgun counties. Handguns qualify.

A Bowen .45 Colt Ruger Bisley sounds good, but I want a blued one.

[ 09-20-2002, 07:16: Message edited by: Wayne Nish ]

Wayne,,Just remember good rounds never die,,,The .45 colt has been with us for a 100 years,and in strong actions,,is quite venerable,and can knock on the back door of the .454 casull.The .41 mag. Is a hoopass flat shooting round that I feel has enough of a following that it is'nt going to be lost anytime soon.The .44,,,,,,It's the .44,,,,somewhere in between the other two,,immortalised by clint.Any of the three will dispatch white tails with efficency.Hope you use both tags,,,Clay

I prefer the .41 Mag, but since you don't reload, I'd suggest the .44. Good selection of factory loads unlike the .41.

Oh, BTW, my .41 is an unmodified Old Model Blackhawk.

[ 09-20-2002, 06:16: Message edited by: Ol' Sarge ]

S&W PC MOD 629 comped 6.5 barrel .......OTTO

I am not an expert but I use a S&W 44mag. 629 deluxe 8 3/8 barrel so far it has taken a javelina, bobcat,warthog,blesbok,springbok, and bluewilderbeast all but the wilderbeast fell on the spot. And he wasnt hit good and still didnt go far.
Dean

My vote is for the 44 magnum. I love my 629 classic. It shoots like a dream. With the 44 mag you can get a bunch of different ammo to choose from. That alone make it a great choice. The single shot TC and XP-100, etc, are great if you need more of the distance on your shots. You can "cheat" the DNR by having a long range weapon. I know some people that hunt in shotgun country here in Wisconsin and that is what they use for field guns. I have a 45 colt bisley and like it but it seems to recoil quite a bit (with +P handloads loads) with similar velocity and grain bullet than the 44. (I think it is the barrel whip and no rubber grips) I like the 629 better. My new toy is my 480 Ruger. WOW! Love it!

My 44 mag has a 2X Leupold on top which allows me to hit better. My father has trouble with hand guns scope. He can't pick up the crosshairs easy. So he is looking at red dots for the top of his .308 TC Encore. Just food for thought if you are thinking optics too.

Good Luck

The neat thing about handguns, they are like potato chips, you can't have just one!!!