Author Topic: why do you hunt with a handgun? (Read 1307 times)

rickyp · « **on:** November 05, 2003, 10:20:03 AM »

I hunt with my handgun because i find that it combines the skills of bow hunting with a rifle.
and for me it is much easer to get in postion and shoot from my tree stand. Fortier more I just flat out enjoy it

Questor · « **Reply #1 on:** November 05, 2003, 10:28:56 AM »

Because I like pistols, and hunting is just one more fun thing I can do with pistols. It also takes a lot of skill to do it well, and that's one of the reasons I like pistols in the first place.

Captainkev · « **Reply #2 on:** November 05, 2003, 10:36:17 AM »

It's something different. Takes a bit more work, and developed skill.
Everyone and there brother don't do it.
A new challenge, and a whole lot of fun.

Kevin

Captainkev · « **Reply #3 on:** November 05, 2003, 10:39:49 AM »

make that, DOESN'T DO IT.......................................

HappyHunter · « **Reply #4 on:** November 05, 2003, 10:45:06 AM »

Need to get a deer with each gun.

Now I need to have a holster rig and the sights adjusted for each gun, select the correct bullet and determine the best load and powder for each gun, maybe a sling? Perhaps a scope on the Encore, Reddot on the 44 SRH, stick with iron sights on the Raging Bull and Smith 57 and the Smith 686.

This sounds like a lot of fun? You bet it is, and firearm season begins a week from Saturday. I have been geting ready all year.

Somebody on this forum once said: There are two seasons, Hunting season and Waiting for hunting season.

True words indeed.

Fred

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 05, 2003, 11:39:32 AM »

It is more like bow hunting as far as getting in close. Shooting a bow correctly and with accuracy, takes skill. As with handgun hunting. And it is just plain fun

TopGun · « **Reply #6 on:** November 05, 2003, 02:28:11 PM »

Because I can....Freedom, choice, what else is there? I just wish I could get a tag for every barrel and handgun I have!!! We'd be talking a bunch of meat!!

tripper · « **Reply #7 on:** November 05, 2003, 03:31:50 PM »

For all the reasons aready mentioned and besides I'm to lazy to carry a big heavy rifle all the time.

Dan Chamberlain · « **Reply #8 on:** November 05, 2003, 03:38:33 PM »

Challenge! It was too easy with a scoped .22 rifle to take squirrels, so I started using a .22 Pistol. It evolved from there.

Dan C

rickyp · « **Reply #9 on:** November 05, 2003, 03:42:22 PM »

tripper, some of the handguns are just as heavy as some rifles

KYODE · « **Reply #10 on:** November 05, 2003, 04:11:34 PM »

just a combination of the challenge, i like packing the shorter, smaller package, the accuracy rivals most rifles, love the looks of them, and they are just plain fun to shoot. i'll shoot a handgun ten times more, than i will a rifle. sure puts excitement back in hunting!
a couple years ago, i killed a small to average buck at 40 yards with a .270 rifle. it just hit me at tha moment! what the heck am i doing? that was too easy! i had hunted with handguns before that, but decided at that moment to lay the rifle down, and hunt only with handguns from now on. i just enjoy handguns, plain and simple. maybe i'm nut's :roll:

rickyp · « **Reply #11 on:** November 05, 2003, 04:21:01 PM »

most of my shots are from 5 yards to 50 normal But i can shoot out to 100 yards from my stand and when walking out i can have very long shots. In My part of Maryland I can not use a "moderen" handgun so I must use my 14 inch 209x50 bullberry contender. How ever I can use the muzzle loader from early muzzle loader season trough shotgun season and then again in to late muzzle loader season. so this is my main handgun hunting barrel. The one thing i can not understand is taht i can use my 375 jdj to hunt squirrel and fox but not for deer.

Graybeard · « **Reply #12 on:** November 05, 2003, 04:58:06 PM »

Cuz I been doing it for nigh onto 40 years now and it just sorta "feels right" to do so. I don't hunt exclusively with handguns anymore but am never without one when hunting. I began with iron sighted handguns and am gravitating back in that direction again. I find the TCs and other single shot specialty guns not much less of a challenge than rifles and in many cases not a whole lot lighter and not as easy to carry.

I will still take the TCs out some each season but am using them less and less each year it seems. I alternate guns often during the long Bama season some times taking different guns each day of the week when I hunt.

GB

Bullseye · « **Reply #13 on:** November 05, 2003, 05:00:18 PM »

All the reasons listed already plus the fact that I live in a shotgun only state. Makes you wonder when you can hunt with a 30-06, 30-30, 45-70 etc. handgun but not a rifle. Guess they firgure there are not as many handgun hunters, of all my friends that hunt, I am the only handgunner.

Smokem · « **Reply #14 on:** November 06, 2003, 03:06:15 AM »

I have already taken 2 big deer. One at 5yds 190lb, 19pt, 177" non-typical and 1 at 125yds 229lb, 11pt, 123" typical. I wanted something different. So I am choosing to handgun hunt this season (Maine). I will still have the rifle in camp, but I will be primarilly handgun hunting.

Gregory · « **Reply #15 on:** November 06, 2003, 07:26:31 AM »

My experience was similiar to Kyode's, after taking a deer every year with my 30/06 rifle, and one at only 10 yards, I decided to use a TC Contender only. That was in NY state where I had a choice. Here in IL, I can use a shotgun, muzzleloader, or handgun, no rifles so my first choice is my Contender. I can shoot better groups out to 100 yds than either my muzzleloader or shotgun.

Besides it neat to hear your hunting buddy brag on you when he tells people that you take deer with a handgun!

Mikey · « **Reply #16 on:** November 06, 2003, 08:11:08 AM »

'cuz it's more fun. Mikey.

512 · « **Reply #17 on:** November 06, 2003, 02:07:15 PM »

for the challenge. i have not hunted big game with a rifle for almost 20 yr now. it just seems too easy. i use open sighted revolvers only.

someone mentioned that showing people that handguns are used for hunting would be a step in the right direction. i wonder if we could get a count or a census on the number of people who do?
how could it be done?
it would no doubt be interesting and maybe even help our cause.
jeff

tripper · « **Reply #18 on:** November 06, 2003, 02:28:34 PM »

rickyp, here i thought you would just give me a bad time about being lazy.
the rest of the story. several years ago i was bow and rifle hunting and then one CHRISTmas i gave my son my main rifle and just bow hunted for some time. at that time in most of MN you could only shoot one deer a year anyway. then one of my brothers got hurt and i didn't feel he should be in the woods by himself, hence the tc to keep some of the bow challenge in it. now i hunt nice bucks with the bow and go for meat with the tc.

JOE MACK · « **Reply #19 on:** November 06, 2003, 05:03:12 PM »

I started handgun hunting due to the fact that rifle hunting was getting too easy. See the game at xxx yards, boom, process. I tried bowhunting and liked it, was successful at it, but my checkered youth and the injuries I acquired caught up with me. In pulling a bow of any decent weight, I'm in agony due to traumatic arthritis. I then started handgun hunting 25+ years ago. I like to get as close as I can to my prey and then get a little closer. I have self-imposed range limits due to the power of the load and not skill level. I put on the average 2000 rounds a month downrange from field positions. I also go out to the desert and bust rocks at unknown distances. I believe that a handgun hunter must be more like a bowhunter than a rifle hunter when it comes to stalking, range, skill, and practice.

RKBA!

SingleShotShorty · « **Reply #20 on:** November 07, 2003, 03:10:29 AM »

Because of the challenge, Heck anyone can take a deer with a rifle.

Graycg · « **Reply #21 on:** November 07, 2003, 03:58:41 AM »

So that when the liberals and anti's say handguns don't have any legitimate purpose I can crap in their post tosties....
Also because it is just plain fun!

regards,
Graycg

dakotashooter2 · « **Reply #22 on:** November 07, 2003, 04:43:37 AM »

Cause I'm a hunter more than a shooter.

rickyp · « **Reply #23 on:** November 07, 2003, 07:35:16 AM »

Quote

Ricky,

how does that 209x50 pistol do? how accurate is it? you shoot optics or iron sights on it? have you chronographed it against a rifle length barrel? i wonder what the velocity difference would be. the idea of a 209x50 pistol barrel is intriguing, and TC makes a 15" 209x50 for the Encore. i might have to get one and try it out!

The 2090x50 contender was made for me by fred at bullberry. it is a S.S. 14 inch bull barrel. I put a silver weaver 92a scope mount on it and 3 tasco rings. and it has a black leupols 2X EER scope on it. I have not cronoed it so I dotn know how it compairs to my rifle. While it is not a Tack driver it does shoots groups good enough for hunting. I am getting something like 2" or so at 53 yards (range limitations). 90 % of my shots are under 50 yards so i have it sighted dead on at that distance Last year I took a nice buck ( see the icon under my name) last year. I misses 3 does this year and grazed one in the top of the back. the missed shots where because of me and not the gun. this barrel is not forgiving if you flintch or jerk the trigger in the leas bit it will trow the shot.

crawfish · « **Reply #24 on:** November 07, 2003, 03:08:18 PM »

I had a treestand incident in 1989 that made it all but impossiable to use deer caliber long guns even the light stuff. In order to keep me from going nuts my doctor suggested I look into handguns as a way to stay active in hunting. I got my first hunting handgun in December 1989( not knowing any better I chose a S/W 657 .41RemMag :shock: :-D :grin:

). I killed my first deer about a year later, a 135 7/8 gross, 135 5/8 net 8 point. I still hunt with a handgun although after the 8th surgery in August 2000 and a year of PT I could now use light deer calibers (.243Win). I am scaling back my handgun battery and as soon as the new .243WSSM hits the shelves I'll have one. I don't think I'll ever give up the handgun as a hunter but it will be a pleasure to get back into using a longgun again.