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What Handguns to Use for Hunting Whitetail

by Wade Middleton

Learn What Models Wade Uses for Handgun Hunting 

It is a well-known fact I have become addicted to handgun hunting. As a hunter, I’ve always embraced hunting through a variety of means and methods, allowing me to start and end my season earlier in many cases. I consider myself a whitetail hunting fanatic, and as such, I’ve never turned down a chance to hunt with something different. Which lead me into the world of handgun hunting so I could have more reasons to hunt whitetails.

This new addiction has forced me to learn a lot more about how handguns work, how the ballistics of different calibers perform, what ammo works best in hunting, as well as sending me to the range more than ever to learn better trigger control. When you look at handguns, I favor the ones made by Smith & Wesson. You can tell immediately they’re designed for ultimate performance in the field. Many of the models I hunt with have muzzle breaks at the end of the barrel to help reduce recoil. Furthermore, many of these handguns are built to be better balanced in the field, allowing for the opportunity to hunt at longer distances with higher performance. In addition, many of them have triggers that are far more crisp than say some models you might find, which really helps when it comes to trigger control when a whitetail is standing in front of you. Finally, they are built to add various accessories such as scopes, fiber optic sights, and various red/green dot sights. 

Smith & Wesson Performance Center® Model 629 Stealth Hunter

Smith & Wesson Performance Center® Model 629 Stealth Hunter in .44 magnum equipped with a Trijicon SRO sight

This past season I spent a lot of time shooting my Smith & Wesson Performance Center® Model 629 Stealth Hunter in .44 magnum. This is one of my favorite hunting handguns and I’ve been using it for nearly a decade. I recently mounted a Trijicon SRO sight on top of it to field test that sight after shooting the Trijicon RMR sight in the past off this handgun. My early thoughts are this is the best sight in its class.  

The Trijicon SRO is very easy to acquire a whitetail in the sights and place the dot onto the vitals. I am very impressed with the sight picture and how easy it was to sight it in. Overall, I feel this is the best option for this style of sight when it comes to hunting. 

Looking back at my first handgun whitetail buck taken with this model of handgun, I vividly recall practicing all summer at various distances but none of that practice prepared me for that hunt. With little experience personally when it came to handgun hunting, I was, to say the least, nervous throughout the entire encounter. I still remember it vividly, the way that deer was darting in and out of the trees while running and fighting with another deer as they tried to prove dominance to a doe that was nearby. My hands were sweating nonstop as I prayed from inside the pop-up blind for the buck to stop in a narrow shooting lane. He finally did, and ended up turned quartering slightly towards me and I pulled my shot a little bit. I was so worked up that I honestly wasn’t even sure I’d hit the deer. It ended up being that I did in fact, hit the deer mid body up and down but slightly back, so I knew it was a mortal hit. We found the buck about two hours after the shot. My takeaway was that I needed to practice, practice, practice, and really work on my trigger pull with a handgun to help me overcome the excitement of a deer finally giving me a shot.  

Hunting posing with deer and handgun

Wade and his first handgun buck.

I also learned to study more on the various handgun loads. When it comes to most of my hunting and shooting with that handgun, I’ve settled on 200-grain XTP .44 mag ammo from Hornady. I can say undoubtably, the Smith & Wesson Performance Center® Model 629 Stealth Hunter in .44 Magnum set up will always be in my top three favorite hunting handguns and I would argue around about any campfire why I prefer it. 

Smith & Wesson Performance Center® Model 460 XVR 

Smith & Wesson 460XVR Handgun

Smith & Wesson’s Model 460XVR™ has the highest muzzle velocity of any production revolver on earth.

Next up, we discuss another of my favorite handguns, the Smith & Wesson Model 460 XVR. This handgun is known to have the highest muzzle velocity of any production revolver on earth. According to Smith & Wesson, the Model 460 XVR (X-treme Velocity Revolver) is the world’s highest velocity production revolver, as well as the most powerful.45 caliber production revolver. The .460 XVR can launch a 200-grain (13-gram) bullet at 2,330 feet per second (710 meters per second), generating 2,416 foot-pounds force of muzzle energy. 

Aside from the .460 S&W Magnum cartridge, the revolver can chamber .454 Casull and .45 Colt ammunition. Personally, we’ll use .45 long colt out on the range a lot of times for practicing specific hunting scenarios or if we want to work on our trigger pull. The key reasons being that load is cheaper and does not punish your hands quite as bad as the .460 ammo. 

Smith & Wesson offers this handgun in a variety of barrel lengths, and you can order them with HIVIZ fiber optic sights already equipped (which we recommend and have used in the field). I believe when hunting with open sights, HIVIZ fiber optics sights allow you to acquire the target faster due to its light gathering capabilities. This helps tremendously during those early morning or late evening times thanks to its light-gathering capabilities. I believe this forces me to focus on the sight picture by it catching my eye quickly as I bring the handgun into play on the vitals of a deer or other animal I’m hunting.  

I spent one summer really working with the .460XVR fitted with HIVIZ sights in an effort to take a buck with open sights with the.460 XVR. That experience and the buck I ended up taking, turned out to be one of my biggest handgun bucks ever. I can still see that buck and the other buck he was traveling with working through a broomweed field and coming into range. After calming myself, the .460 round found the lungs and I found the buck less than 60 yards from where I took the shot. The summer of practice really paid off on that one. 

Hunter holding whitetail with hunting handgun

Wade’s practicing paid off BIG TIME!

Regardless, of what model you hunt with, regardless of what caliber you settle on, I simply say practice a lot for the hunting scenarios you likely will encounter. I also recommend that you spend time shooting off a good brace to build confidence in both your trigger pull but also the sight picture for whatever you are going to use be it a scope, red dot, or open sights. The more you shoot, the more confident you’ll be when it comes time to take a shot on whatever you’re hunting. 

YAMAHA’S WOLVERINE X2 NAMED FIELD AND STREAM MAGAZINE’S BEST OF THE BEST!

 

Yamaha Motor Corp., USA, has earned the 2018 Field and Stream Magazine Best Hunting and Fishing Gear of 2018 honor for the Wolverine X2 Side-by-Side (SxS).

“The perfect hunting rig needs to be roomy enough to carry a couple of hunters and all their gear, powerful enough to get them into hard-to-reach places, and quiet enough to not send deer bolting in every direction,” wrote Field and Stream contributor Rick Sosebee. “The new Yamaha Wolverine X2 does all that, with a killer warranty and a surprising extra that’s perfect for the outdoorsman.”

Named the top off-road vehicle for hunting and fishing adventures, the 2019 Wolverine X2 combines Proven Off-Road capability and confidence-inspiring performance with Real World comfort in a compact, nimble chassis to make it the ultimate trail-exploring vehicle in tight, technical terrain. It is purpose built for exploration, work, and play, featuring a comfortable two-person cab configuration, a smooth, quiet, and vibration-free 847-cc twin cylinder engine, a 600-pound-rated dump bed, and 2,000-pound towing capacity. The new X2 also comes with Yamaha’s unmatched 10-year CVT belt warranty – an industry exclusive.

 

 

“The Wolverine X2 offers the ultimate off-road adventure package, combining Yamaha’s industry-leading durability and reliability in a compact and nimble chassis,” said Steve Nessl, Yamaha’s motorsports group marketing manager. “The Wolverine X2’s Proven Off-Road design gives it the best balance of capability, comfort and confidence in real world environments to suit the needs of everyone from seasoned trail-goers to first-time adventure-seekers, earning its spot among Field and Stream’s best outdoor products of 2018.”

 

 

Every Yamaha SxS is assembled at Yamaha’s U.S. factory in Newnan, Georgia, for worldwide distribution.

Follow Yamaha Outdoors on your favorite social channels at www.facebook.com/yamahaoutdoorswww.twitter.com/yamahaoutdoors and www.instagram.com/yamahaoutdoors #Yamaha #ProvenOffRoad #REALizeYourAdventure #AssembledInUSA #WolverineX2

About Yamaha Motor Corp., USA
Yamaha Motor Corp., USA (YMUS), is a recognized leader in the powersports industry. The company’s ever-expanding product offerings include Motorcycles and Scooters, ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles, Snowmobiles, Outboard Motors, WaveRunner Personal Watercraft, Boats, Outdoor Power Equipment, Power Assist Bicycles, Golf Cars, Power Assist Wheelchair Systems, Surface Mount Technology (SMT) Machines, Unmanned Helicopters, Accessories, Apparel, and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of distributors and dealers in the United States. YMUS has a corporate office in Cypress, California, two corporate offices in Georgia, facilities in Wisconsin and Alabama, as well as factory operations in Tennessee and Georgia. Further U.S.-based Yamaha companies include Skeeter Boats (Texas), G3 Boats (Missouri), Bennet Marine (Florida), Yamaha Precision Propeller (Indiana), and Kracor, Inc. (Wisconsin).

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SxS Vehicles are recommended for use only by licensed drivers 16 years and older.

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When Should You Head To Your Deer Stand?

When should I get to my stand and how early is too early? Two questions every hunter should ask when preparing for any deer hunt. Some fellow hunters provide their take on when they like to head out to the stand.

How early is too early and how late is too late when going to and from stands? WOW, that’s a great question that really can’t be answered with a one part answer due to so many factors. To get the right answer you would have to look at the time of year, deer movement, weather conditions, etc. 

As a rule of thumb for me, I like to get to the stand at least 30 minutes before daylight for an early morning sit. One hour is even better. For an afternoon sit, I like to get there two hours before prime time movement for that time of the year, at a minimum.   However, as I said above there are so many factors in answering this question that I would never say there is an absolute answer to it.”

Wade Middleton, Host of Americana Outdoors®

Well, I’ll start by prefacing my answer that I am not a fan of all-day sits…that considered, in the AM, can’t get in too early (in most cases).  Always good to be settled/quiet for a period of time before the woods officially comes to life for the day.  As far as leaving in the AM, if there is action, stay put.  If nothing is moving, at all or for an extended period of time, and you don’t have pics to show a pattern of late-morning wanderers, get out.  Head back to camp and solidify the plan for the afternoon/evening.

 For the PM, same as the AM…too early is a good default.  No harm in saving the sore backside if you don’t have a comfortable set-up.  Sneaking in just before a forecasted “prime time” is too risky.  I’m lazy but not that lazy!  As far as getting out, dark is the default.  Even with no movement I would vote for staying as long as you can, with a couple of exceptions – you can more easily bail without mucking up the area for future hunts or if Angel is making venison salisbury steak that night.”

Steve Nessl, Yamaha ATV and Side-by-Side Marketing Manager & Avid Hunter

I’ve always wanted to get in my stands really early in the morning. I prefer about 30 minutes before it actually starts breaking. That may seem early, but bumping one by being a little late is just not worth it to me. Then when the hunt is over, I gauge when to leave by what is around as it is getting dark. I don’t want other deer to see me getting out of the blind during daylight. Usually when it gets black dark, I’ll sneak out.”

Clark Wendlandt, Host of Fishing & Hunting Texas™, Cabela’s Pro Staff

As you can see, everyone has their own preference. However, the general consensus for morning hunts, plan on being squared away at least 30 minutes to an hour before daylight. Regarding afternoon hunts, confirm what the deer are doing that time of year. If you have Stealth Cams setup, check the times of when the photos are taken and gauge from there.

We hope this insight will help you get settled in the stand and ready for when that shooter comes in. Happy hunting!