Dropping a deer dead in its tracks at 152 yards is an accomplishment for any whitetail hunter, but what about if you’re shooting a handgun?
That’s what this shooter allegedly did in this video. Did he really pull it off? We’re not sure; he’s not responding, plus he didn’t include a recovery of the alleged kill.
We’re not going to get into the controversies outside of the distance that’s shown in this video (there are a few that readily jump out). We’ll leave that up to you. All that aside, this is good fodder for some debate: What do you think about the video and the shot? And the circumstances? Was is safe? Ethical? Let’s hear from you.
It also brings up another good topic: Are handguns viable firearms to use when deer hunting? Absolutely, according to shooting expert Dave Workman.
“On a couple of occasions many years ago, when big game handgunning was just hitting its stride, I was interviewed on a local outdoors radio show and the host suggested that at ranges greater than 50- to 75 yards, a handgunner was shooting “at the animal” and not trying for precise bullet placement,” Workman wrote in a recent issue of Deer & Deer Hunting. “That just isn’t true. If you are good with factory metallic sights, being able to hit a deer out to 125 or even 150 yards is not out of the question.
“After all, I’ve competed a couple of times in the annual Elmer Keith Memorial Long-Range handgun shoot over by Spokane and have hit 6- and even 4-inch plates at better than 150 yards with my Smith & Wesson Model 57 in .41 Mag. I can certainly hit something bigger. The deer I shot were both center-of-mass in the vitals. I missed the heart by very little but destroyed the lungs both times. Plus, there are good handgun scopes available.”
According to Dave, if you go that route, you can stretch your range farther. Just make sure the round and bullet are up to doing their job downrange with enough power and accuracy to make a clean kill.
“Don’t be shy about trying a handgun for deer this fall or the next.” Dave explains. “It’s challenging and rewarding, and by necessity it makes one a more careful marksman, and perhaps a better stalker.”