pistol caliber questions
im new to the pistol world im doing a little research, is there a min. caliber to big game hunt in ny? im looking for a good all around caliber hunting, carrying. the 45 acp is my leading canidate right now but 357 has also been recomended. any input would be apreciated, thanks
What kind of game are you looking to hunt with the handgun? If it's big game such as deer then there really Isn't any good choices out there for a combination carry/ hunting gun unless you are willing to try to conceal and carry a 357mag with a 6" barrel at least. Something like a 45acp is not a good cartridge for deer size game a more appropriate shoice is something like a 357mag, 41mag, or a 44mag in a full size revolver with at least a 6" barrel. If it were me I'd probably go with a compact semi-auto in something like 9mm or 45acp for a carry gun and a full size 44mag revolver for hunting. Now if you are just looking to shoot small game and varmints pretty much any of the typical defense cartridges in a concealed carry size pistol will get the job done although not being ideal.Originally Posted by wasr10ak
A long time ago I was going through the same thing you are. I finally listened to a guy that made sense. A handgun is a tool. If you wanted to screw in a screw you would not use a hammer. Guns are the same way. If you want a nice hunting gun for large game then you shop for that gun. A nice 44 Caliber 5.5 inch to 7 inch barrel I ended up geting a Ruger Red-hawk double action .44Mag. It was a good deer gun if you practice a lot and hunted like you were archery hunting and keeping your shots down to where you can shoot all the time into the size on a 9 in circle all the time from a cold shot. My range was about 40 yards all the time. I could do a lot better with a shotgun and later went back to my old Ithica Deer slayer model 37 featherweight. But I realized that I could never carry the 44 manum as a concealed gun and a 44mag was more than you need for a 3 to 10 foot shot god hoping you never have to use it.
So then you need to look for a carry gun. You want something small that you can wear comfortably. I went with a 9mm because it is a cheap round and I can shoot it accurately. A Glock 26 or something like this. 9mm is the cheapest rounds you can buy so you can practice a lot. $14 to $15 for a box of 50. So as you can see there is not a good gun for hunting and self defense. One is a hammer and the other is an allen wrench. I would look for a good instructor that has different gun you can try and then you can take the NRA self defense classes about $135.00. for a day. You learn the correct way to draw a gun. your legal rights and a whole boatload of information you need if you are going to take on the responsibility to carry a gun in public. If you PM I can give you a couple of names for training.
I hope you understand what I am saying. you are looking for two tools and need to buy one of each for what you are doing.
Good Luck
Bob
NRA Member, Genesee Conservation League Member.
Never argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
. .
Last edited by NewYorker; 10-30-2010 at 09:03 PM.
A 300 pound guy in a leather vest sounds like you would fall into the law that you did everything you d=could do to escape. Run like hell. That is what you ar =e supposed to do. You need to exhaust every avenue of ewcqpe befiore you would draw your weapon and use it. You need to use every means possible of escape before using a firearm. THAT IS THE LAW....
I really think yu need some good training so you can make an educated derision.
I forgot what the minimum barrel length for hunting but I think it is 5.5 inches. I do not think you could carry that gun concealed so no one can see it at any time. In and out of the car. In the summer whe =n it is hot. remember you have a penmit to carry a concealed weapon at all times. A deer gun would be almost impossible to do this.
Please get some training on this. It will be the best money you ever spent. It will keep you out of jail down the road and it will also keep you from loosing the right to have a permit.
Education is your best action right now.
You do not have to listen to me. I do not think you will fin a member on this forum that will advise you on what gun to get for both jobs...
Good luck
Bob...
NRA Member, Genesee Conservation League Member.
Never argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Newyorker,
I think you and I are on the same page.
wasr10ak, PLEASE TAKE A NRA CLASS by a good instructor ON SELF DEFENSE.
The downfall unless you buy everything used is you are going to spend over $1000.00 on handguns and you will be buying to different handgun rounds making it more expensive.
A good deer gun is the Ruger Red hawk double action .44 Mag. It is no fun to shoot but it does a lot of damage on a deer in the lungs and heart.
Good Luck..
NRA Member, Genesee Conservation League Member.
Never argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
get one in every caliber
wasr10ak,
I used to deer hunt with a S&W 66 stainless with 6" barrel. Used a low slung holster on hip. You strap on the pistol when you are getting ready to go into the woods and return to locked box before driving. I had no scope, if I needed a distance that was time to use my model 94 Win.. I used the pistol only for 20 yards or less due to the fact that I preferred to get as close as possible to better my chances for a kill shot. Was brought up to not wound and causing suffering for the animal.
My 2c !
It's a hell of a lot of fun. Just hurts after a while.
Now yer talkin!
How about a Dan Wesson revolver in 357 mag. You can carry it with a 2.5 inch barrel, and you can change the barrel and go 4,6,8,10,12, or 15 inches long. The grips are available from small carry grips, to large target grips. I only have the 2.5 and 6 inch barrels. When colt made revolvers they thought the 357 mag was enough for deer, as that was the caliber of the "whitetailer".
-delete-
Last edited by NewYorker; 06-15-2010 at 10:35 PM.
I carry a 6" S&W in 357 mag. along with my 280 rem. when I sit if a deer comes in on my left I use the rifle on my right, the wheel gun, best of both worlds. the 357 dumps them in a pile within 50 yds.
rem 700 in 308 as my rifle, and a s&w 357 mag 6" or redhawk 44 mag 8 1/2" as my side arm. sometimes when driving through the field, you come across that pesky deer, and it is hard to shoot him with an unloaded rifle.....
Great thinking!!,
Twice the fire power!!!!!!
NRA Member, Genesee Conservation League Member.
Never argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Dan wesson is not made for concealed carry.
I tend to agree with the notion of having different tools for different jobs, but if you really want to just have one gun I would seriously think about the 10mm. Surprised that only one other person has mentioned it. The 10mm is flatter shooting than the .45 and more powerful than the 9mm. Much better choice for hunting than either of those cartridges and quite effective in the carry role as well.
The downside to the 10mm is that ammo is expensive and hard to find. You'd probably want to get into reloading to ensure a constant and affordable supply.
The .357 is an option too but you probably wouldn't want to conceal carry one with a long enough barrel to be effective for hunting. I CC'ed my 6" GP-100 once. It worked -- it was December and I had a heavy winter coat on -- but it's not something I would want to do on a daily basis.
“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.” -Sir Winston Churchill
What's the stat on self-defense shootings? Most of them happen within 10 feet? How many deer have you been able to get that close to? Can your average shooter reliably hit the vital zone on a deer with their self-defense handgun at longer ranges?
“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.” -Sir Winston Churchill
It looks like the original poster of this thread is not being active. So lets give this a rest. All people that shoot a lot agree that you cannot buy one gun for multiple uses.
A small 9mm is a good self defense gun. at 3 to 7 ft.
A large caliber with a 6 + inch barrel would be good for hunting, but why if you can use a shotgun in the northwest part of the state.
I think the debate is over. thank GOD!
NRA Member, Genesee Conservation League Member.
Never argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
or a new Ruger Blackhawk in 327 fed mag. can shoot 32 S&W,32 S&W long and 32 H&R Mag all in one gun. 7 shots....anybody got one?
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