Velocity/energy combination for handgun deer hunting.

[Warthog]

All of my hunting life, I've heard you need an impact of 1300 fps and 1000 ft-lbs for a rifle cartridge to be considered adequate for deer.  While I'm relatively certain these numbers are arbitrary, there must be at least a bit of truth in them.  That being said, these figures obviously won't hold true for hundgun cartridges.  So, my question is:  Assuming acceptable hunting accuracy, what combination of velocity and energy would be considered sufficient for whitetail?

[jhalcott]

Md. states a "handgun"must have a 6" barrel and generate 700 fpe at the muzzle.A muzzle loading handgun(single shot or revolver)must be .40 cal or larger and use not less than 40 grains BP or equivalent.
  This prevents the use of 25 autos in Md. :cry:
The 357 mag is the limit I reccommend,and that only to some one who can wait for the proper shot.In a revolver the 44 mag is hard to beat.  I prefer to use a T/c in 7t/cu as a minimum.

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Warthog,
First off, forget all that required KE stuff the "experts" tell you in the magazines...  Next, read these...let me know what you think!

http://www.beartoothbullets.com/tech_notes/archive_tech_notes.htm/55
http://www.linebaughcustom.com/Default.aspx?tabid=111

Jim

[dougk]

Dakota,
very informative articles.  I liked the knock out formula in the second article.
Doug

[knight0334]

I've taken 3 deer with my .357 Colt Python over the years.  The only thing I shoot in it is 125gr JHP's infront of 13.5gr-16gr of Blue Dot.   MV of 1500 to 1900fps depending on powder charge.  

All 3 kills were close to 50yards away +/-, one was stopped dead in its tracks, the other two made it another 20-100ft before expiring.  

Lucky shots maybe, but they worked.  The slugs were completely fragmented, tearing up the entire chest cavity(heart and lunges).  Contents were more mush than seperate orgins.

One thing I've learned, killing isn't an exact science.  Animals have been hit with .22rf's and died instantly, and others of the same species hit with a .460 Weatherby Mag and live...  go figure.

My .357 served me well, have since moved up to .44mag and retired the Python to target and show piece duty.

[crawfish]

BIG, slow moving bullets were killing everything that walked the earth for two hundred years and then along came smokeless powder and the 30-30. They turned the hunting world upside down. But ya’ know what? Big, slow moving bullets will still kill anything that walks the earth.
I shoot .41 caliber handguns. I load a 250g hardcast from CPBT or BearTooth to 1150-1250fps depending on which .41 caliber gun I’m shooting. That combination has killed a truck load of deer, bunches of pigs and five very large animals all the way out to 67 yards, all but one with one shot. Why does that combination work so well? Because it does what needs to be done to quickly kill an animal. It puts a big hole through, destroying bones, heart and major blood vessels while doing so.
All of us who have hunted for any length of time have seen things that make us wonder why that animal died and on the other side of that coin what is it going to take to kill this thing. Paper numbers don’t explain it or turn it into truth or make it untrue.

[mellow_1]

I gotta say, those articles are a good read Dakota. Thanks for posting them.
Mellow_1

[Redhawk1]

I don't try to get to caught up is all the energy for pounds thing. Just check the State regulations. Most States have a certain energy needed and the .357MAG is usually the starting point.

Do like I did and get a 500MAG, and then you won't have to worry about making the minimum.  :-D

[Warthog]

Very interesting articles, Dakota.  Thanks.  My personal experiences, along with many relatives and those on this board, mirror those in the articles.  Much more important than any of the 'scientific' data is the fact that bullet placement means more than weight, size or speed.