deer hunting pistol?

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webster86

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hey im thinking about trying to get a deer with my thompson center pistol.. thompson center has basically every barrel there is for it. im thinking more like a .243 or 25-06.. might want to use it on smaller and bigger animals than just plain whitetail deer... anyone have a opinion on these 2 calibers or would u sugest something else???
thanks for your imput all will be concerderd

sorry im not a very good speller
 
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Either of those calibers would be fine for whitetail, but probably not recommended for anything larger.

On the flipside, 243 is also great for game smaller than deer, and great for target shooting. It is accurate, relatively low-recoiling, and you can light bullets for targets & small game or heavy bullets for deer.

Best bet would be to have a 22-250 or 223 Rem barrel for small game & targets and a 30-30 for deer and larger. With 30-30, you could load pointed 30 cal bullets.

For one caliber, pick 243. IF you ever go bigger than deer, just buy another barrel in a bigger caliber. (if you decide you're willing to take that kind of hit to your hand...)

Lastly, you'll probably want to ask to have this moved to The Hunt forum, where you'll get a better response.
 
FWIW - My deer handgun is a Ruger Redhawk in 44 Magnum. 7.5" barrel and 4X scope.

The 4X scope is too much. 7.5" barrel is great for hunting but not-so-great for everything else. (VERY heavy)
 
what kind of scope, if 4X is to much what do think is the right scope . I have a 2X on a pistol and wish it were 4X. Alex
 
If you already have other things in the calibers you mention then I would go with one of them for simplicity.

If not, I would look at the 7-30 Waters. I think it's a great round in the Contender and IIRC was designed for just what you're looking to do.

Plus, if you reload it's not bad since the 30-30 is it's parent case and 7mm bullets are readily available.

It would be (was) my first choice.
 
You don't indicate which state you intend to hunt. Check your state laws. There may be restrictions on the case, caliber, and power level.
If you are in IL then neither the .243 or .25-06 are legal for deer because the rd has to be at least .30 cal and a bottleneck case cannot exceed 1.4" in length.
For IL:
"Centerfire revolvers or centerfire single-shot handguns of .30 caliber or larger with a minimum barrel length of 4 inches.
For handguns, a bottleneck centerfire cartridge of .30 caliber or larger with a case length not exceeding 1.4 inches, or a straight-walled centerfire cartridge of .30 caliber or larger, both of which must be available as a factory load with the published ballistic tables of the manufacturer showing a capability of at least 500 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. Note: There is no case
length limit for straight-walled cartridges.
Non-expanding, military-style full metal jacket bullets cannot be used to harvest white-tailed deer; only soft point or expanding bullets (including copper/ copper-alloy rounds designed for hunting) are legal ammunition.
Legal firearms for the Late Winter Antlerless Deer Hunting Season include all firearms described under Firearm Deer Hunting Season. In addition, muzzleloading handguns may also be used. Legal muzzleloading handguns are limited to single-shot muzzleloading handguns (blackpowder handguns that are incapable of being loaded from the breech end) of .50 caliber or larger capable of producing at least 500 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle according to
published ballistic tables of themanufacturer. Single-shot muzzleloading handguns must use a projectile of .44 caliber or larger with sufficient blackpowder or “blackpowder substitute” (such as Pyrodex) to produce at least 500 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle.Awad or sleeve is not considered a projectile or part of a projectile."
 
I Deer hunt with a pistol almost all the time. I rarely take out a Rifle anymore.

I use a T/C contender, Super 14" in 30-30 winchester. Mine has a Burris 1 1/2-5X scope on it. The 30-30 is VERY accurate and the recoil is not to bad(About like a stiff 44mag only sharper). If You hadload, and you need to with a T/C, You can make the 30-30 do stuff no one ever dreamed of. Serria makes a 135gr SSP Bullet just for the T/C, it's a killer. For Varmints I would go with either a 222, 17 rem or a 223. I have a 223 and the same above is true.

If you stick Factory ammo, made for a rifle in a T/C Pistol you will not get the velocity you expect. But if you handload you can keep the velocity up there with a good powder selection.

If I was going to get an Encore I would look at at maybe a 260 Rem or 300 savage. Then get another barrel in a varmint cal if that is what you want. The Encore is a heavy gun and I am saying that humping around a 14" Contender. It is made very strong to shoot the more powerful cartridges. You can find Contenders cheap(less than $400 with a barrel) on GunBroker.

Last if you are going to get a scope for it, don't skimp on the scope. The scope and rings/mount take a beating. I would look at a var. scope but one that has a very Low Power setting. If you get a fixed power go with a 2X for hunting, anything more and you will be handicapped with the FOV.

As far as hunting with a revolver, go with a 41mag or larger. I have a 629 classic 44Mag. You also need to have at least a 6" barrel. Mine has a 6.5" and I put a 2X Leupold M8 on it. Again the mount and rings need to be STRONG. The newer(Post 1992?) Smiths are set up for scope mounting, so you can find a nice one without a Hilliary Hole in it.

Good luck and I think you will enjoy hunting with a Pistol.
 
Always thought it funny that some people think a 30 30 in a lever gun is too lam-o and weak for hunting deer anymore, but alot of people put it in a single shot pistol and say it is big medicine for deer! :)
 
Well Tom some folks are wrong. A 30-30 is a killer on everything up to Black bear. I would not feel underguned going after Elk with one if I picked my shot. Shot Placement is king. The good thing about a T/C is you get to use pointy bullets. This makes the 30-30 carry the power down range a lot better. A 30-30 in ANYTHING is a great hunting gun.

I was a little tipsy last night but I am sober enough to post now:)
 
robhof

I've used a 30/30 in a 14" contender to take deer out to 150yds with 150gr softpoints. Mine is ported and recoil is mild. I practice at 200yds and have a 4x scope.
 
Didn't see any buck today, but I did take a nice doe. Range was about 75yds, one shot from the SRH using 240gr HP-XTP's and H110.

100_6962.jpg
 
I was just saying, the 30-30 is underrated by folks. I have been thru plenty of Winchesters and Marlins, in the cal. Still have the reloading components but need to get another rifle for it. I don't think I will do the hand cannon route, but you never know.
 
Steve, what caliber is that hand cannon? I just bought a Ruger SRH in .480. Can't wait to see how it shoots down at the range. Overall though, how is the SRH?
 
My SRH is chambered in .44 Magnum. The load is handloaded 240gr Hornady HP-XTP over H110 with Remington cases and CCI LP mag primers. I love the SRH, and have taken several deer with it.
 
You don't indicate which state you intend to hunt. Check your state laws. There may be restrictions on the case, caliber, and power level.
If you are in IL then neither the .243 or .25-06 are legal for deer because the rd has to be at least .30 cal and a bottleneck case cannot exceed 1.4" in length.
Click to expand...

Good point.

In Iowa the regulation is as follows:

Handguns: Center-fire handguns .357 caliber
or larger, shooting straight wall ammunition with
an expanding-type bullet. Minimum barrel length
for all handguns is 4 inches. No shoulder stock or
long barrel modifications are allowed.
Only the following center-fire cartridges may
be used: .357 Magnum, .357 Maximum, .375
Winchester, .38 Super, .40 S&W, .401 Powermag,
10 mm Auto, .41 Remington Magnum, .41 Action
Express, .44 S&W Special, .44 Remington Magnum,
.44 Automag, .444 Marlin, .445 Super Mag,
.45 ACP, .45 Colt, .45 Super Mag, .45 Winchester
Magnum, .45 Silhouette, .451 Detonics, .454
Casull, .45-70 Govt., .460 Rowland, .460 S&W
Mag, .475 Widley Magnum, .475 Linebaugh, .480
Ruger, .50 Action Express, .50 Linebaugh, .50
Beowulf and .500 S&W Mag.
 
I've also been handgun hunting for years now ( we are mostly in shotgun slug zone ), & I'm not as much a shotgun guy, & we can use handguns in shotgun zone...

I've used a 14" Hunter barrel ( hunter barrels are ported ), in 45-70, with a 2 - 7 X Burris posilock scope, over the last several years, with this combo, I can regularly shoot 3 shots touching at 75 yards with a normal "field rest"... however this year I got to go to my wife's cousins property, there are way more deer, the ranges were much closer, & the deer have more pressure ( are less relaxed, & moving quicker )... this year I used a 10" 30-30 barrel I set up with another ( non posilock ) Burris 2 - 7X... that I originally set up for my wife to use, however, I chose it over my old stand by 45-70, because it was extremely accurate, & she decided she didn't want to hunt in the freezing rain that domnated the weather most of the week ... I was not happy with the scope for use in this area, lots more deer spotted at dusk & dawn, & the faster movement, made for tougher shooting at 2X through the scope...

your best choice of a weapon / caliber will depend alot on the type of area & style of your hunting ( there was a big difference between my hunting the woods of northern MN, & the woods of southern MN along the Mississippi river in the bluffs... which is where I hunted this year )... I think the "purist" in me wants to hunt with a single shot ( one step up from muzzle loading ), but there is lots to be said about a quick follow up shot, as far as ease of or lack there of, of trailing game, that a revolver offers over a single shot, & a 6" barrel 357, 44 mag, 45 Colt or bigger... in the right revolver, & with a good load, can offer acceptable power & accuracy for hunting use...

Scopes... used to be a necessity for me ( I never learned to shoot rifle, or handgun when I was young, so scopes were much "easier" to shoot ), however... I'm now setting up a 10" 45 Colt barrel with a Williams fiber optic / ghost ring Fire Sights combo, & expect that will be the best of both worlds for the type of hunting I plan on in the future... I've been looking for a good quality lower power scope to put on that 30-30 barrel, as the 2X was at times tough to use... I see Thompson Center has a 1.25 - 4X available, & I plan on trying that one on the 30-30 barrel
 
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The 480 Ruger in the SRH is a very good deer rig. I have a Leupold 2x scope on mine. If you aren't used to the hand cannons, you'll probably have to spend some time getting used to it. Use Loctite on the Ruger scope mounts otherwise it will shoot loose quickly.
 
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