What pistol caliber?

[Kennedy]

Hi, I'm not a pistol guy I never owned a pistol. I shot 357 magnum, 380's 9mms and 45's. But I was thinking I should start packing a pistol with me when I am out hiking. I live in a small town which 95% of the houses hunt. So I'm looking for a pistol probably a revolver I'm thinking to pack. Something big enough to take game with like mule deer maybe even an elk, if Its possible. I do reload, I dont know much about the cartridges. Thanks.

 

[Buckyranger42]

I have a Smith & Wesson 686 in .357 Mag and can hunt deer with it, but it’s not my go-to as a pack revolver. The barrel is too long, yet is the legal minimum length for deer hunting where I’d hunt with it.

For a pack revolver, if you’re concern about grizzlies, I prefer a Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan in .454 Casull.

If you’re not concerned about grizzlies, a smaller .357 would serve well as a pack revolver.

If you want semi-auto, I recommend a 10mm.

 

[Islander]

You want to shoot elk with a pistol while you are out hiking?

Forgive me if I feel like a punchline is coming.

 

[HandgunHunter]

On e you get up to elk size that pushes me to 44 magnum.

One of my hunting irons.

 

[2506gunslinger]

Yeah, anything big enough to reliably kill elk with is too heavy for me to want to pack around very long. I carry a 2" snub nose 357 mag hunting here in Idaho and Wyoming and feel plenty well armed for odd encounters. Plus side is that my pants don't fall down with that lightweight revolver either.

I would love to go on a dedicated handgun hunt one day, but I would get an entirely different setup for that. Something huge, long barrel and setup for accuracy. T/C Contender or something like that.

 

[longbow51]

Are you an experienced deer and elk hunter, having killed many with rifles or better yet, with a bow, and are you an expert stalker, so that you can get within 50-100 yards? Food for thought. A 44 Mag has 1330 ft lbs energy at the muzzle. A .243 Winchester has 2027. You need to be an expert (thousands of rounds) to consider this IMHO. Start with .357 Magnum/.38 and move up. Good luck!

 

[Salmonchaser]

I think it’s difficult to find a comfortable carry gun that is adequate for hunting larger game like elk. Learn to shoot a carry gun then learn to shoot a hunting handgun would be my suggestion.

 

[lpcoutdoors]

I carry a Smith and Wesson 44 magnum with 4" barrel. Comfortable to carry and could stop something if need, probably won't ever but makes me feel real western.

 

[belshawelk]

Ruger GP100 or any 10MM you like

 

[Islander]

When this type of post appears, do you ever feel like you are being gas lighted? Like maybe someone from ARFcom posted this silly post just to watch the response here and laugh and laugh? Or could it be a Russian "post farm" post, where they know that posting something "crazy' generates lots of responses, thereby improving the hit rate for advertising on the forum?

Just wondering. Because even someone as obviously ignorant about hunting would seem to be capable of posting a more legible post that doesn't seem to blend stream of consciousness with the original thought of getting a pistol.

NOTE: Another thing typical of spoof or post-mill posts is that the OP does a hit-and-run, never posting again. So far, not even a thank you from Mr. Kennedy for all of the sincere great suggestions. Hmmmmmmm. I sure hope it is just someone wanting to learn.

 

[Dan O]

If your going to use it to hunt Elk then start with a 44 mag and learn to shoot it. Start with light loads and work your way up to full loads. Also look at 45 colt, 454, 480 etc. The Ruger Super Redhawk is heavy but has a great scope mount system. It can be had in all the calibers mentioned. The standard barrel is 7 1/2 but you can get a dealer special with a 5 inch barrel in 454.
If you plan on just a carry gun the S&W 629 4 inch would be a great option. If you get a lot of practice you could use it for short range hunting say 50 yard max.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Seems like mixing two use cases. Personal protection and hunting. You can hunt elk with the right handgun if that is your goal, but it seems more like something you want in your pack in case you come across an elk. I have a hard time seeing a scenario where you are hiking in elk season with an elk tag in your pocket and you stumble across an elk and take it with your pack pistol. Seems like if you are hiking during elk season with an elk tag you would have your elk hunting firearm with you (be that rifle or big long barrel scoped revolver). As for personal protection from human or furry encounters, I used to carry a .357 magnum and now carry a 10mmAuto loaded with hard cast or mono bullets respectively. But then, I rarely hike/hunt grizzly territory.

 

[HandgunHunter]

Hang around a few more months and you’ll get to see which revolver takes deer, lope, and elk.....I’ll post it here with due time

 

[VikingsGuy]

Hang around a few more months and you’ll get to see which revolver takes deer, lope, and elk.....I’ll post it here with due time

BcGW has already posted a bunch of crazy pistol hunting pics/stories, some of the cooler HT posts last year. But I don't recall any of those being easy carry pistols.

 

[HandgunHunter]

BcGW has already posted a bunch of crazy pistol hunting pics/stories, some of the cooler HT posts last year. But I don't recall any of those being easy carry pistols.

The one above...6” 629 44 mag is about as small as I’ll go for elk.

I’d use a 6” 357 for anything smaller.

 

[HandgunHunter]

The way I carry the full size wheelguns. It packs well in the backcountry. I’m a big guy at 6’ 270lbs and there is no way I could conceal these guns or daily street carry in a reasonable fashion.

I do also use a western belt rig in the field. Mainly when day trip hunting.

 

[shootbrownelk]

I usually pack a S&W 657 mountain gun in .41 mag. I have a Ruger SuperRedHawk in .454 Casull, but as was mentioned, it's Heavy.

 

[Ovis Venator]

I carry a S&W 329PD, it the lightest .44 mag you can get. It's ideal to carry a lot and shoot a little. I don't go out to fill a tag with it but if the opportunity arose I'd consider a 20-40 yard shot on a deer or elk. If you were more wanting something for bear defense and not so much concerned with shooting elk you could look at one of the 10mm Glock options.

 

[GlockZ]

Sounds to me like you have 2 different issues here, if your packing for self defense against other bipeds, a compact 9mm or 40S&W auto and or a 3" to 4" barreled 357 magnum would serve you well. If your goal is for hunting purposes, I would check what the minimum legal barrel length is for hunting with a handgun in your state is first, and as a lot of others posted step up to a 44 magnum or larger caliber revolver, I personally like the Ruger Super Red Hawk, they are well built revolvers, S&W makes some very nice ones as well, it really depends on what you're looking for. As a side note, you can always get 2 different handguns for your differing purposes. Good luck with your choices.

 

[Dougfirtree]

I've never owned a pistol and don't know a ton about what's available in terms of bullets, powders, etc. But I have to wonder about all the advice telling the OP to go with a .44 minimum on elk. I'm assuming that pistol hunting for elk would involve shots that were inside of 50 yards, or so. Do you really think that a high-quality bullet in a .357 would not punch through an elk at shorter ranges? I mean, wasn't that round developed to be able to shoot through cars? Forgive me if I'm being ignorant (because I think I largely am here), but I can't help but wonder if this is sort of equivalent to the posts that say you really need a .30-06, or larger for elk... Feel free to set me straight.