My friends son

[30-06man]

OK my friend don wanted me to ask if y'all thought that his 14year old son Ethan is too young to try deer hunting or even givin a ruger blackhawk 44mag for deer hunting. i personally don't see anything wrong with it if he knows basic safty and knows how to handle guns which i know he does. so what do yall think?

[Dan Chamberlain]

TC

I don't see 14 being too young to hunt deer, but handguns are a different proposition.  Hunting deer takes discipline with a rifle.  Handguns are harder to hit well with, so of course tons of practice would be required.  I'd forgo the handgun the first couple seasons and have the lad hunt with a rifle or shotgun (depending on local laws).  I'm not sure if your state laws allow a child to be in possession of a handgun for hunting.

Dan

[Rog]

I don't see why not.  My son was fully capable of deer hunting by age 14.  In fact he had two deer under his belt by then.  While both of those deer were shot with a Contender rifle in 7-30 Waters, he also on occasion shot my Ruger Redhawk 44 mag, with full power loads, with no problems also.  He even expressed an interest in deer hunting with it, but ultimately chose to hunt with a rifle and archery equipment (first archery kill was with a 45# Saxon American recurve and a two blade Zwickey broadhead on an old Bear fiberglass arrow - boy was he proud!)

I'd say if the son, Ethan wants to hunt with a handgun, then by all means provide all the encouragement and necessary "training" to make it happen.  He'll be grateful and thank the involved parties later.

Regards,

[Graybeard]

The first thing to determine is your state's laws regarding handguns and kids his age. In some places to put one in the hands of a kid that age will get you sent to prison. In some it's no big deal at all. Find that out FIRST.

The next thing to ask is how much handgun experience he has. It sounds like he has ZERO deer hunting experience unless I'm misreading your comments. I think that if he has no deer hunting experience and no handgun experience it would be sheer foolishness to send him out deer hunting with a handgun. Now if he is proficient with a handgun but just has no deer hunting experience then sure no reason not to use one to gain that experience. But in my opinion I don't care how old you are if you have no handgun experience and no deer hunting experience then you have no business taking a handgun deer hunting or for that matter hunting for anything with one until you gain proficiency.

[jcn59]

There are four issues of concern here.  First is hunter safety, then hunting ethics & proficiency & last, is it legal for a 14 y.o. to posess a handgun.

We discourage adults from starting with a .44.  Why would we give a 14 y.o. a .44 then before he even has the time & experience to become proficient with it, send him out deer hunting?  Doesn't seem fair to the deer, either, in that we owe it the likelihood of a quick, humane death.

All this plus the child has never hunted deer before?  Sounds like a formula for disaster.

I'm all for getting youngsters involved in hunting and shooting.  If this boy had been started at age 8 or so, he would be ready well before his 14th birthday to hunt deer with a handgun, if the law would allow it.

[warrior1]

what the others say about checkiing the laws first is the best way to proceed. the atf states a person must be 21 yrs
old to purchase to purchase a handgun or handgun ammo. another good source may be your local gunshop.
good luck,dan

[SHOOTALL]

My son has hunted since he was 8 , took a doe and a small 8 pointer that year with a shotgun  , got his first deer with a handgun at 16 , he won a Glock match at 15 , YOUTH DIVISION .
at 25 he limits handgun hunting to the Right set up ! It is fairly simple to know if you are ready to hunt with a handgun , you have to be able to call your shot every time , IE. set out targets at different ranges , call where you will hit them , when you can do it every time you are getting close , next take a fast hike then do it while catching breath , if ya can good hunt to you as far as skills go !
it is important to know the law for sure , but more important to know your child ! you must have total confidence in his judgment ! PERIOD !

[superdown]

14 years of age is a little late to get started.  younger children are more impressionable and take rules to heart a little easier 14 can be quite a turbulent time in a young persons life . but the most important thing is SAFETY and PRACTICE besides it's better late than never ,justin

[David Carey]

what the others say about checkiing the laws first is the best way to proceed. the atf states a person must be 21 yrs
old to purchase to purchase a handgun or handgun ammo. another good source may be your local gunshop.
good luck,dan

THis from the ATF website.

B. UNLICENSED PERSONS

(B14) May a parent or guardian purchase firearms or ammunition as a gift for a juvenile (less than 18 years of age)?

Yes. However, possession of handguns by juveniles (less than 18 years of age) is generally unlawful. Juveniles generally may only receive and possess handguns with the written permission of a parent or guardian for limited purposes, e.g., employment, ranching, farming, target practice or hunting. "

Dave

[30-06man]

yes he has very much hunting experience. he has hunted since he was 5. and went with his father before then. and he has got his first deer and his first gun was actually a gift when he was born. so he has plenty of experience and he has shot the .380 auto with plenty of training and supervison. but thats not his gun its his fathers so what caliber would be best?

[Graybeard]

OK that sounds like he at least has the hunting experience part of the equation covered which means the rest of it can be addressed more properly.

I am personally of the opinion any hell ALL handgunners should begin with the .22LR and once they've chuncked 5000 to 10,000 rounds down range with it and can really hit what they aim at consistently they should then move up to larger rounds with more recoil. I think a .357 Magnum and beginning with .38 Specials in it is the right next step from the .22LR. From there once the .357 Magnum is mastered it becomes a matter of what their recoil tolerance is really. Yeah it is the route I personally took to becoming a handgunner so I am not recommending something different for others than I did myself.

In this case for this kid I think the .357 Magnum would be the best next step and his introduction to handgun hunting for deer. The .44 Magnum can work fine too IF someone is reloading his ammo so he can begin at reduced load level say at around normal .44 Special level. He could even hunt at that level just fine is he doesn't progress to the full magnum level in time for season. Cast bullets of 200-240 grains moving around 850 to 1000 fps will be OK for practice and at that level work OK for hunting too. At that level in the average .44 mag revolver recoil isn't too much.

[30-06man]

OK. i think that the .22 would be a good spot to start too. but he was very accurate with the .380, he was shooting better than me but i am very shakey i am going to give don a call about the advice given

[corbanzo]

When I was younger, I had already learned all about safety, and was proficient with most guns.  Before my father would let me hunt with a larger gun, he would take me out, set out a paper plate at a certain range, and tell me to put 5 rounds straight through it.  If I could do it, he would take me.  It worked that way from spruce grouse with a .22, to moose with a .30-06. 

Test him, on safety, on lawful game, on shooting, on everything.  If he does it well, then he is ready.  If he is lacking, then he needs to learn and practice more.

[30-06man]

he already knows rifles well. he knows his safety. were just wondering about moving him from his current Remington 700 300win mag to a 44mag ruger blackhawk or Thompson center encore 44mag

[jcn59]

This kid has accumulated lots of experience since the thread started 3 days ago.  He went from just "knows how to handle guns" but never deer hunted to currently having a .300 Win mag., "very much hunting experience...hunted since he was 5", "shot the .380 with plenty of training", & "has got his first deer" (already).

The rest of us have accumulated lots of experience answering a misleading question.  Live & learn, I guess.  No one clarified the legal question as it pertains to Ethan yet, though.

[Lloyd Smale]

I wont judge yours sons ability because i dont know. I do know that ive seen 14 year olds on the ppc range outshoot the adults so age doest mean much to me experience does. I do know in michingan you cannot be in possesion of a handgun unless you either have a ccw or have a grean card (they call it an inspection card but it for all practical purposes is a registration card) in your possesion and you cannot legaly have someone elses card and gun so theres no way he could be in the woods with a handgun alone. He would have to be sitting next to you to do it. Kind of a silly law as a kid can be in the woods with an ar15 by himself but i guess in a way i understand it. At 14 i know how much responsibility i had and i also know that it is alot easier to get in trouble with a handgun. There just to easy to point in places you shouldnt. At least not if you want to walk right for the of his life. Handling a loaded handgun takes a tad more disipline then a rifle and at 14 it would take an exceptional kid to get my nod of approval.

[David Carey]

No one clarified the legal question as it pertains to Ethan yet, though.

This from the ATF website.

B. UNLICENSED PERSONS

(B14) May a parent or guardian purchase firearms or ammunition as a gift for a juvenile (less than 18 years of age)?

Yes. However, possession of handguns by juveniles (less than 18 years of age) is generally unlawful. Juveniles generally may only receive and possess handguns with the written permission of a parent or guardian for limited purposes, e.g., employment, ranching, farming, target practice or hunting. "

Dave

[30-06man]

it would be his fathers gun he would just use it to target shoot and hunt. he wouldn't own it and it would only be in his possestion while hunting with his father

[SHOOTALL]

In Va. he can hunt with it , and transport it in a locked container from a shooting range to home or back or to a private hunting location ! i believe he has to be 16 ! i also believe he has to have written permission from a parent , and written permission from the land owner !
also in Va. a hand gun can be aval. to someone 15 and older for home protection !

[30-06man]

he can hunt with it here with parent signture. but he decided to go ahead and get a bow insted and try to get a pistol in the next year or so