Handgun Hunting?

[Tom A Hawk]

I have taken several deer with 44 mag. and 10mm. ( Also, a turkey - but don't tell... ) I have carried my Lyman .54 plains pistol several times but an opportunity has not come up. I would have no concerns taking a shot with this out to 50 yards or so. I re-worked the sights and it shoots great, especially off a rest ( like a tree limb ) and I consider it a short carbine.
To date, game taken with BP revolver only include one skunk and one red squirrel.

 

[Grimord]

I agree with Carbon 6, small game with a muzzleloading handgun is great fun. I use a Traditions .32 for small game and have taken several squirrels and two rabbits so far. Most shots are under 25 yards. I have taken one wild boar with a .50 caliber traditions Trapper. One shot with a 240 grain Ballet and 60 grains of powder (3f) did the deed at about 35 yards.

 

[Enfield58]

I don't think I'll be ready to hunt zombie warthogs with a flintlock pistol anytime soon.

 

[Britsmoothy]

I don't think I'll be ready to hunt zombie warthogs with a flintlock pistol anytime soon.

View attachment 6393

Well you bust a leg and maybe some ribs.

Carry a sword or spear!

 

[Rat]

Never underestimate the power of the spear. !!! I am, a fan of the spear.

 

[Enfield58]

Never underestimate the power of the spear. !!! I am, a fan of the spear.View attachment 6443

Look at what they did at Isandlwana, in 1879.

 

[Enfield58]

Well you bust a leg and maybe some ribs.

Carry a sword or spear!

Or a rifle.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Never underestimate the power of the spear. !!! I am, a fan of the spear.View attachment 6443

I wasn't joking!

 

[Rat]

I knew you were not. I know the power of the spear, and the sword. That pic was taken in a grizzly recovery area.

 

[Griz44Mag]

Never underestimate the power of the spear. !!! I am, a fan of the spear.View attachment 6443

And I LIKE the period matching clothing too! (Where's the loincloth and wood bark shield?

 

[Rat]

Working on it.

 

[MarkG]

In Canada, one can own a sawed off shotgun so short it would be a -Felony- in America, but handguns are banned?

Handguns aren't banned here (yet), just more heavily controlled than short-barrelled shotguns. However, modern handguns can generally only be fired at approved target ranges. Antique handguns don't have as many restrictions, but carrying one in the woods would be just asking to be arrested by a cop who doesn't know all the ins-and-outs of Canadian gun laws. And they'd probably still be illegal for hunting.

Modern flintlock rifles are treated as antiques here, but I'm pretty sure modern flintlock pistols are still classed as modern handguns and restricted to target shooting.

 

[nhmoose]

Well you bust a leg and maybe some ribs.

Carry a sword or spear!

I'd stay in the truck if I were him.

 

[Enfield58]

I'd stay in the truck if I were him.

Can I try the Howdah on the hog? This is with #00 Buck at 10 yards. I have yet to cast some .614" round balls.

Hickok 45 takes the Howdah barrel off the pistol and puts it on a shotgun stock. I show you this video only because you can load the same buck & ball load in combination with the pistol.

So watch what he does to the watermelon. I guess I'd have to wait till I see the whites of Hogzilla's blood shot eyes before letting him have both barrels. Fast forward to the 10 minute mark to see the watermelon explode.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Can I try the Howdah on the hog? This is with #00 Buck at 10 yards. I have yet to cast some .614" round balls.

View attachment 6556

Hickok 45 takes the Howdah barrel off the pistol and puts it on a shotgun stock. I show you this video only because you can load the same buck & ball load in combination with the pistol.

So watch what he does to the watermelon. I guess I'd have to wait till I see the whites of Hogzilla's blood shot eyes before letting him have both barrels. Fast forward to the 10 minute mark to see the watermelon explode.

Hog ain't no watermelon brother and at ten yards your running out of time if it don't work!

 

[Loyalist Dave]

I’m a bit curious how many people on this forum use a handgun to hunt with. What are you using, what are you hunting, what’s your load(s), and why the handgun? And what ranges do you feel confident in, and is that offhand, from a blind with a solid rest or shooting sticks? .

Well here in the People's Republic of Maryland, if you're using a muzzleloading pistol or a cap-n-ball revolver, you are required to use a minimum of 40 grains of black powder and be at least .40 caliber....for big game. Hogs, bear, and deer. (Don't have feral hogs yet, but if we did...,)

So that limits me to either a single shot pistol, or a Howdah, or a Walker, Colt Dragoon, or a Ruger Old Army when it comes to deer. So I'm disinclined to hunt deer with a black powder handgun. (There are some hefty restrictions on modern handguns too.)

I've never felt the need to try my .36 or .44 out on small game.

LD

 

[Enfield58]

Hog ain't no watermelon brother and at ten yards your running out of time if it don't work!

I was going to say something like; "Oh well. I guess I will make like Marlin Perkins and stay in the jeep." However, I guess that Marlin did get out of the jeep.

It's not a Hogzilla but just as bad...

 

[8 BORE]

Can I try the Howdah on the hog? This is with #00 Buck at 10 yards. I have yet to cast some .614" round balls.

View attachment 6556

Hickok 45 takes the Howdah barrel off the pistol and puts it on a shotgun stock. I show you this video only because you can load the same buck & ball load in combination with the pistol.

So watch what he does to the watermelon. I guess I'd have to wait till I see the whites of Hogzilla's blood shot eyes before letting him have both barrels. Fast forward to the 10 minute mark to see the watermelon explode.

My howdah takes a .600 ball and a .020 patch good tight fit. Your barrels must be a little bigger

 

[Britsmoothy]

I was going to say something like; "Oh well. I guess I will make like Marlin Perkins and stay in the jeep." However, I guess that Marlin did get out of the jeep.

It's not a Hogzilla but just as bad...

 

[Enfield58]

My howdah takes a .600 ball and a .020 patch good tight fit. Your barrels must be a little bigger

I haven't cast the ball for it yet. I just got the mold that Pedersoli makes for it.

It's a .614 diameter ball. After I looked at their specifications online, they recommend a .010 patch as opposed to the .015 pillow ticking patch.

I'll just have to see what I got after I cast some balls.

What kinds of performance / groups do you get with the .600 ball?