9mm for deer hunting?

Bluefish

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Look at it this way, you are shooting a really slow 350 legend, when using a 9mm handgun. Using factory Hornady for a comparison, 9mm handgun, 135g at 1010 vs 350L, 165g at 2200mv. The 350L doesn’t drop down to 1010 until almost 550 yards. 9mm wouldn’t be my first choice for a method of take, but I have several pistols that are more than adequate for white tails
 
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Rich M

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Tell ya what I’ll carry a g19 this fall on private and if I get a shot within 20 yards I’ll do it

I don’t much care if people think it’s an experiment or not. If we can shoot hogs out of helicopters and woodchucks from a mile away I don’t see what makes a deer so special there’s only about 30 million of them.
No-one seems to have any issues with shooting deer w bows - I'd say you are more likely to lose one to a bow than a 9mm handgun at the same ranges inside 50 yards.
 

87TT

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I'm a hell of a lot more accurate with my bow at 50 yards than my handgun. And my arrows are heavy razor blades.
 

Rich M

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I'm a hell of a lot more accurate with my bow at 50 yards than my handgun. And my arrows are heavy razor blades.
Deer dont move when you shoot a gun. They always seem to jump the string on me. Im deaf and that changes the whole archery thing. Handgun hunting = much easier for me.
 
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9.1

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Guns and cartridges don't kill deer. Bullets kill deer. Pick a bullet designed for killing 12" thick animals and verify adequate impact velocity and accuracy at your desired hunting distance.
 

Swamp Fox

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Tell ya what I’ll carry a g19 this fall on private and if I get a shot within 20 yards I’ll do it

I don’t much care if people think it’s an experiment or not. If we can shoot hogs out of helicopters and woodchucks from a mile away I don’t see what makes a deer so special there’s only about 30 million of them.


Thanks for your license revenue and your P-R contribution.
 

9.1

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I've finished off a few deer with these with adequate results. I'd limit any real hunting shot to 20-25 yards and that's if you are a good shot.
Just as a heads-up for anyone reading this, some states require hunting with bullets designed to expand. Hunting with these non-expanding Lehighs could get you in trouble in some localities.
 

Rich M

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Just as a heads-up for anyone reading this, some states require hunting with bullets designed to expand. Hunting with these non-expanding Lehighs could get you in trouble in some localities.
Agreed! A heavy hollow point is the way to go with this enemic round.

Soft point would be good but they’d have to size down a .357 125 gr softpoint and keep it over about 900 fps.
 
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Nope, all you're going to do is wound a deer. Best check your states regs. on handguns acceptable for deer hunting also. But if your dead set on this, think can you consistently put 5 rounds in a target at 50 yards grouping where a bottle cap can cover them.
 
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I was thinking about ordering an Amazon rainforest " Blow gun" for deer hunting . What size darts are you guys using ? Lol Personally i wouldnt use a 9 mm handgun to hunt deer unless it was 10 yards and in . I do some crazy stuff with my longbow "all the way out to 15 yards" . I dont think its the lack of horsepower but accuracy of a 9mm pistol
 

TxxAgg

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I've killed pigs with FMJ 9mm rounds. It would be easy to kill a whitetail at bow range with a 9mm hollow point.
 

Rich M

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I was thinking about ordering an Amazon rainforest " Blow gun" for deer hunting . What size darts are you guys using ? Lol Personally i wouldnt use a 9 mm handgun to hunt deer unless it was 10 yards and in . I do some crazy stuff with my longbow "all the way out to 15 yards" . I dont think its the lack of horsepower but accuracy of a 9mm pistol
I know a guy who has shot turkey in the head w a blow gun.

A handgun shots as good as the shooter. Remembering some guy shooting a balloon at like 300 yds w 38 spc…google it.

Dude 1 post up is asking a guy to do something few folks could do with a rifle. LoL! The cold shot challenge is a 10-inch circle. 4-6 is more than adequate. 8-10 is the kill zone.
 

Colby

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I’m not a ballistics expert nor have I ever killed deer with a 9mm. I do edc a 9mm specifically for bad behaving 200-ish lb mammals. I chose ammunition from the fbi approved list because it is designed to be effective against 200 lb mammals. That said I would not hesitate to shoot a deer with said combo within a range that I was confident I could make a good hit/ hits.
 
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A CCW pistol is usually a shorter barrel so your handicapping yourself balistically right out of the gate. Unless you're like me and conceal a G34 or a FN FNX45 tactical.

There are some hot 9mm loads that'd probably work inside 25 yards. But it's no 10mm or 45 Super.

Seems like you just need to buy a 10mm and a smaller 9mm.

I really love handgun hunting. I've shot a bear and two does with my G40. It's like bowhunting and gun hunting had a baby.
 

Long Cut

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10mm or even a 5.7 or stick to Archery.

A .22 Mag can kill a deer but the margin for error is high, as is the chance of no recovery. Same goes for the 9mm
 
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