This discussion is about handguns and ammunition most suited to hunting. For our discussion we will concentrate on revolvers, automatic pistols and single shot pistols like the T/C Contender. We will only discuss cartridges that are capable of taking game in a quick and efficient manner.

The ideal hunting handgun has a barrel between 5 and 8 inches in length. Any shorter and you lose velocity from your cartridge. Much longer and the weapon becomes awkward to carry with you on the hunt. In addition, when using iron sights the longer barrel gives a longer sighting distance resulting in more potential accuracy. The handgun can be a very effective hunting tool in the hands of a trained shooter. While it can never go up against a rifle at long ranges, within 100 yards the right gun will take the game just as well. It is also much lighter and easier to carry around all day than any rifle.

What defines a cartridge as being suitable for hunting is the size and type of game you are seeking. Small game like rabbits are frequently hunted with the .22 long rifle cartridge. In addition, the .22 WMR magnum is also seen on occasion. These are both rimfire cartridges and very inexpensive to shoot. These cartridges are effective at 50 yards on small game. Being inexpensive to shoot they also allow for a lot of practice at little expense. The Ruger line of .22 revolvers are excellent for this task. They are reliable, accurate and reasonably priced. Ruger's MK II automatic .22 LR pistol is also a very good option.

The .22 WMR magnum cartridge is chambered in revolvers and has the additional power to go to 75 or more yards. It can easily take even the largest rabbits. Perhaps the ideal option is either the Ruger or Frontier Arms line of convertible revolvers. These come with a spare cylinder and allow you to shoot either .22 LR or .22 WMR magnum. This is great for practice since the .22 LR is much cheaper then the .22 WMR ammunition. You can practice on the same gun you will hunt with using inexpensive .22 LR and use the more powerful .22 WMR for the actual hunt.

For game larger than rabbits a centerfire cartridge of higher power is needed. Cartridges that are suitable for hunting larger game begin with the .357 magnum and end with the massive .500 S&W magnum. In between are fine cartridges such as the 10mm automatic, .41 magnum, .44 magnum, .454 Casull and the .480 Ruger. These cartridges are easily capable of taking deer and larger sized game.

Many other less powerful cartridges have been used to take game and will kill a game animal. However, these smaller cartridges have also resulted in crippled game which runs far enough away to where they are never found. It is the hunter’s responsibility to use enough gun to get the job done responsibly and quickly.

There are also other magnum cartridges we haven’t mentioned. These are cartridges that are either rare, specialty cartridges or obsolete. If they have the same power as the cartridges we mention then they certainly are useable should you have a gun in one of these calibers.

Moving up from deer sized animals to black bear one should exclude the .357 magnum from the list of appropriate cartridges. The 10mm automatic with maximum loads is minimal for hunting black bear.

Beyond black bear the large magnums are the only real choice. At some point the animals become so large that even the largest handgun magnums are marginal for the job. We would certainly never recommend taking on one of the great bears with a handgun, regardless of its size. While people have done this many times, the possibility of enraging a large Alaskan bear with a shot from a handgun that does not instantly get the job done, seems risky for obvious reasons. At the very least such tasks should be accomplished with a veteran guide at your side who's carrying a large magnum rifle as backup in case all goes wrong.

Unlike hunting with a rifle that has a high power scope, handgun hunting requires patience and skill to stalk the game. It is much easier to put bullets into a 5 inch circle at 100 yards with a rifle than with a handgun. A handgun hunter who cannot consistently put his shots within a 5-7 inch circle at 100 yards needs more practice before trying to hunt game at that range. Many handgun hunters will limit their shots to 50 yards or less in order to be able to insure their shots are within this 5-7 inch circle which represents the size of the kill zone of the average deer sized animal.

Hunting revolvers come in both single and double action styles. The major manufacturers include Smith and Wesson, Strum Ruger, Freedom Arms and Taurus. These revolvers are chambered in all of the magnum cartridges referred to previously. Any revolver from these manufacturers has the accuracy to make a good hunting gun. The choice is mostly about what works for you and how it feels in your hand.

The classic handgun hunting cartridge is the .44 magnum. Over the last several decades, this cartridge  has taken almost every big game animal on earth. It is ideal for deer sized game and black bears. While it has significant recoil it is nowhere near some of today’s super magnums. In a Smith and Wesson “29” series revolver or Ruger Blackhawk, it is a relatively small easy to carry cartridge that will get the job done. For the first time handgun hunter this is what we would recommend.

The .44 magnum was the king of the handgun hill for many years. Nothing put out by the firearms factories was more powerful. However, there has recently been a trend towards bigger and bigger magnum handguns. Smith and Wesson, who introduced the .44 magnum to the world has once again claimed the top honors as having the most powerful handgun in the world with their .500 S&W magnum. This revolver is extremely large and heavy. Muzzle energy exceeds 2500 ft-lbs. This puts it in the same league as many rifles. The fact that it fires a large diameter heavy bullet gives it tremendous short range knock down power. While a rifle will still be a better choice for long range shooting there is nothing that this revolver, within shorter ranges, cannot do as well as a rifle. However, this gun is so heavy and awkward to carry that the advantage of not carrying a heavy rifle through the woods is nearly lost. As a self defense weapon against the largest bears in the Northwest and Alaska it has no other peers in the handgun category.

The T/C Contender single shot pistol has been in production for many years. Caliber can be changed by simply buying a different barrel. Just about every handgun cartridge and a few rifle cartridges have been chambered in this pistol. For the skilled hunter going up against non dangerous game it is an excellent choice.

The only generally available, automatic pistol we can recommend for hunting deer sized game is the Glock model 20 -- preferably with a 6 inch hunting barrel. In this configuration, the 10mm cartridge it is chambered for is approaching the .41 magnum in maximum loadings. This makes it effective against deer sized game and black bears. Much of the factory ammunition loaded for the 10mm is not loaded to hunting levels. However there are manufacturers who do load hunting bullets at maximum velocity in 10mm. Any one of these loads by Cor-Bon, Double Tap or Buffalo Bore will do the job.

Handgun hunting has grown into a major form of hunting in the last few years. Ammunition is now factory available that used to be only be available by loading your own. This has made it much easier for the once a year hunter to try this sport without having to spend time and effort developing ammunition on their own.