Im thinking of selling my 9mm to buy a revolver to hunt with. As of now my pistol is kind of useless to me besides home defence. A revolver would atleast serve a purpose. My question what would be a good caliber for hunting deer and such. I would like something that would be accurate and powerful enough for deer.
this is a touchy subject with many people as there are those who feel any revolver caliber/revolver is not proper for the hunting of deer.
There are some massive handguns such as the .460 and slightly larger
calibers out there but you should study both recoil and cost to shoot before making a purchase decision.
Personally, I would not hunt deer with any handgun yet I respect those of the forum who will see it differently.
this is a touchy subject with many people as there are those who feel any revolver caliber/revolver is not proper for the hunting of deer.
There are some massive handguns such as the .460 and slightly larger
calibers out there but you should study both recoil and cost to shoot before making a purchase decision.
Personally, I would not hunt deer with any handgun yet I respect those of the forum who will see it differently.
nathangdad mentioning the .460 is actually brilliant as a HD / Hunting handgun. The .460 is a great gun to buy it is very versatile as you can shoot .460 S&W; .454 Casual; and .45 Long Colt. Thus giving you two very capable hunting handgun calibers, plus the .45 LC that is cheaper (and easier on the wrist) to shoot as well as being great at defense. The .454 Casual is not good for HD, it is just too hot. If you were facing 5-6 attackers and they all lined up the Casual is perfect, but otherwise is far too much gun ( hit the bad guy, the neighbor, his wife, and both dogs down the street kinda deal). I have no personal experience with the .460, but have been told great things about it.
this is a touchy subject with many people as there are those who feel any revolver caliber/revolver is not proper for the hunting of deer.
Personally, I would not hunt deer with any handgun yet I respect those of the forum who will see it differently.
With all due respect I must disagree. I see where you are coming from however if you are shooting a capable cailber and shooting within 50yards I don't see the problem. I know that a 357mag in 18in barreled rifle is very good at killing deer within 100yds. I know a rifle has different balistics than a pistol but if you get a 4 or 6in barrel pistol you should still be able to cleanly kill a deer.
With all due respect I must disagree. I see where you are coming from however if you are shooting a capable cailber and shooting within 50yards I don't see the problem. I know that a 357mag in 18in barreled rifle is very good at killing deer within 100yds. I know a rifle has different balistics than a pistol but if you get a 4 or 6in barrel pistol you should still be able to cleanly kill a deer.
As nathangdad said though it is a personal choice. Some feel that anything that can be shot from a pistol is no good period, whether out of a rifle or not. Again it is all in how you feel. I personally think that if you are patient and let them get close and put a good hit on one, then a .45LC and anything hotter, (.357 Mag, .44 Mag, .454, .460, ..........) is ok. It is all about how you hunt. Nobody in here would tell you that a .30-06 is not enough for a deer however if you shoot the deer in the a$$ the .30-06 wont do you much good..... It is a choice if you choose it then good for you, if you dont thats great too. Just make an educated choice dont decide because "my buddy thinks its ok"
Check your laws....here it must be 357 or greater caliber with 5" or longer barrel. make sure you get a revolver that fits the specs. that said I would say if you had a 6" barreled 357 or 44 and hunted smart (treat it like bow hunting) you could easily take a deer cleanly.
You can not go wrong with a .44 mag for deer. I have used a .357 mag and it worked out as well but I would rather have a little more umph. The .44 has done that for years.
I like the .45colt personally and find it more than capable for hunting. Like LeftyO said the Blackhawk hunter is hard to beat. They are well built and affordable. If you are a reloader then the .45colt would be a good choice. If you don't reload I would suggest the .44mag.
.357, .44mag and larger should be GTG for deer with proper shot placement. The problem comes in the ability of the shooter to shoot the gun accuratly at distances. If you can't make accurate shots you can't make clean kills. As stated keeping your shots to closer distances and having good shot placement is key.
__________________
"I don't go shooting without my guns and they don't go shooting without me!"
If Elmer Keith were alive today I am sure he would argue that the pistol can be used for hunting. I think they claimed he killed a mule deer at 600 yards with a model 29. It is not a question as to whether the pistol is adequate for hunting, but rather is the shooter adequate for hunting.
I think if a man is willing to put in the time to become proficient with the pistol, and has the discipline to only take shots that offer a clean kill, then the pistol is fine. My choice would be a 44 mag.
Location: a secret lab on the shores of lake titicaca
Posts: 24,117
i have the new model blackhawk .44mag 6 1/2 bbl
and the taurus raging bull .454casull 8 3/8 bbl
either one i would feel perfectly confident in taking a 50 yard shot with.
__________________ "I don't practice what I preach because I'm not the kind of person I'm preaching to."
This is exactly what I was thinking. I plan to treat it just like bow hunting.
Sorry if I caused a hubbub earlier I was just trying to respectfully disagree. I feel that I know enough about hunting that I can confidently train to shoot accurately at 50yards or less.
I was glad you guys said the ruger blackhawk and the taurus those were the two I was looking at. I was also thinking 45lc, 357 and 44. Now I just need to sell my 9mm and find one within my price range.
Thanks for all the input you guys answered my question exactly. As usual .
One more question do you think a 4in barrel is too short. I was thinking that length that could be concealed if one day I decide to get my CCW but I didn't if I would sacrifice to much accuracy?
I have hunted with a 44 but never got off a shot but I felt well armed and you can practice with specials all you want. Sorry I don't have any practical experience for you I only went the one time for deer.
Ruger 
.
