You hunt with a handgun???

[sixshot]

My back pack kit is similar to Bearskinners except I take some toilet paper, using spruce leaves gets old after a while. I also carry at least one Bick lighter & 2 cans of Sterno, they burn for a long time. I don't carry any liquid fuel. 2-3 plastic bags makes up the remainder of my pack. I use them to carry water, sometimes fresh water can be a little hard to find, so I pour it in a plastic bag & carry it back to camp in my pack. I can stand pretty cozy using a good couple of tarps, they are water proof & wind proof. You HAVE to stay dry.

Dick

[sharps4590]

That would have been me in the 1970's. However, I have to admit that mostly I'm a rifleman. I do believe that for me, I agree with something Elmer Keith said a long time ago, "A sixgun is a weapon of opportunity. If you carry one you will have the opportunity to use it". I have carried only a SA revolver and never felt undergunned and, did take a few deer.

Somewhere in the distant past I became enamored of old rifles and old cartridges, foreign and domestic. Since about the late 80's I've hunted with some oddballs. At least they're oddballs for today. Also, over the last 30+ years I haven't killed anything with a jacketed bullet and not very many with smokeless powder. When I still went to "deer camp" the question was always, "what's he hunting with this year"? For 12 years in a row that was a Shiloh Sharps, Montana Roughrider in 45-90.

[contender]

An older thread,, but still a good one to re-read!


I went on an elk hunt with a group a few years ago. Only one guy in the group really knew me. The others had never hunted with me. When we got to Colorado,, and went to the range to "check our zero's," I brought out my small handgun case. (Primary & b/u guns.) One of the guys asked me; "Where's your rifle?" I casually replied; "I don't cheat!" After a few shots at the 100 yds range,, a few of the guys were asking me if I'd help them if they had a chance at getting an elk. Apparently,, they had never killed one & weren't too educated in the gutting & skinning etc.
I guess my abilities with a handgun & not even bringing a rifle made them decide that I might be the guy to help them out.
They didn't get an elk,, but if they had,, I was not going to rob them of the fun & knowledge of gutting & skinning their first elk.

[bigbrowndog]

I rearrange my packs according to where I’m hunting, western, Texas, public land, private land, etc. Like Dick though, TP is ALWAYS in the pack and in one of the easily accessible pockets. Instead of a Bic, I carry a Zippo. On western hunts, Like Dick I also find large plastic bags ( 50gal. can liners )useful for game quarters, ponchos, impromptu bivy sacs, covering meat from birds, etc. I can take a knife and split them open if need be and use them as a tarp or ground cover as well. Plus they fold up much smaller than a tarp and pack away effortlessly. A wool poncho or Sarape is also carried in the pack if cold weather is expected, worn under a trash bag rain poncho it is amazing the amount of warmth afforded when bad weather hits.

I do still rifle hunt, but it is predominantly with older rifles and the distances could easily be handled with a handgun, they are mostly used for the nostalgia and sentiment they remind me of. This year a 1905 Win94, a 1936 Win71, and a 1943 Sav99 will make attempts at being successful, the first two have no blood on them from my hands. The second is a little killing machine acquired from 45MAN. Everything else will be handguns, FA83, JRH 414sm, Forkin 45, and Ruger RH 41mag, those are first on the list there will be others I’m sure.

Trapr

[pete]

Dec 8, 2020 10:35:02 GMT -5 alukban said:

I am in New England and really only hunt my own little woods where there is hardly a maximum of a 50y shot on anything (unless you are on somebody’s farm).

My state only allowed the use of revolvers (specifically - no other “handgun” types allowed) for deer a couple of years ago.

It almost doesn’t make sense to use anything other than a handgun.

I love your pictures of that revolver, it's a beauty, it gives you something to look at when hunting is slow! That's old school cool right there.
What rear sight is that, I've been thinking more and more about putting one on my Uberti 45 convertible? It's wanting to go hunting, but I would need more visible sights for my eyes these days.

[alukban]

Hey pete,

That's a J-frame rear sight put on by Alan Harton. The front sight is a Clements and fits the rear notch just right for my eyes.

[pete]

Thanks for the reply, I'll have to put it in the que. Yours just looks so right

[singleaction]

Just got back from Bow season Elk and Black Bear (Frack crew came through area, and animals mostly disappeared!) in southern Colorado. I drew a plains doe tag for 1st rifle season, and I hope to take out a FT 44 Special to hunt some river bottom. Lots of corn fields in the area, and the mulies are plump. Plus they won’t have the sage aftertaste I’ve experienced with the local mountain deer.