A deer hunting handgun is not a good first handgun.
A .22lr is a good first handgun. Anyone can pick up a deer rifle and learn how to shoot it well, handguns are not the same. A .22lr handgun is far and away the best investment a handgunner can get. Here's the skinny: by the time you put enough rounds through a hunting handgun to be skilled enough to hunt with it, you'll have burnt enough ammo that you could have paid for a .22lr handgun and gotten MORE practice for less money. In the long run, it really does save you money to start with a .22lr and learn how to shoot handguns, then only need a bit of practice with your hunting handgun. I learned that lesson the hard way, and have instructed bad habits out of dozens of shooters over the last decade that started out with a gun too powerful for them to learn with. You REALLY will save money by buying a 22lr handgun first.
The .38spcl is not a legal deer cartridge in many states, and honestly, I'm glad it's not. It's woefully under powered. It CAN kill deer, but it's not powerful enough to do so reliably, and there's no reason to spend money on the wrong weapon for the job. (Remember the conversations we had about the .22mag and the .410 for coyotes? Buy a hammer to drive a nail. Not a wrench).
A .357mag revolver will give you the option to fire .38spcl rounds for practice, but have enough power with .357mag loads to kill deer. Ruger Revolvers are my favorite.
With money a concern, look at the Ruger Blackhawk .357mag or GP-100. These can be had for around $550 new, occasionally under $400 used in decent condition. Get a 6" or longer model, shorter barrels are difficult to hunt with (short sight radius = hard to aim for new shooters) and give up a lot of energy.
Personally, I HAVE hunted deer with a .357mag quite a bit in the past, but my go-to round for deer is the .44mag. 100% NOT GOOD FOR A FIRST HANDGUN, but if you get a .22lr to practice with a lot and get your fundamentals down, you can jump up to .44spcl loads, then .44mag for hunting. Ruger Super Blackhawk is a great hunting revolver.
This is my go-to deer hunting handgun. Ruger Super Blackhawk .44mag 7.5", with a Simmons Prohunter 2-6x32mm scope. Bought it for $350 new 'round-abouts 1999, got this scope for it 2 seasons ago (aint as good as the Leupold I had on it before, but aint as expensive). Filled a freezer many seasons with it.
