I'm looking for a handgun to carry while deer hunting. I am trying to decide between the .44 magnum and .45 acp cartridges. I want a revolver. I have not yet fired any of the newer models. I like the look of the Smith & Wessons. I hate the Taurus look. (I don't want "Raging Whaterver" plastered across the barrel in that gawdy fasion). Any suggestions?

What are you trying to protect yourself from?

Nothing, I actually want to try handgun hunting.

The 45acp is a great round but it is not a deer hunting round.Now the .44mag is a good deer hunting round in a revolver out to about 50yards.I have never seen a .45acp in a revolver,Maybe a .45LC??

Get a .44mag and you'll be able to kill deer out to 100 yards if you are proficent enough. This way,you can shoot .44special for reduced recoil practice. Keep in mind that you sight it in for hunting(.44mag) loads however. I HIGHLY reccomend ruger revolvers. You can get ruger single action called super blackhawk,blackhawk hunter,bisley,or double action in either redhawk(my personal favorite) or super redhawk.

Get a 44 with atleast a 6in barrel. The 44 has alot more power.

As others stated ya cant go wrong with ruger revolvers for hunting deer( or other uses even)

But the 45acp is nowhere near the 44 mag in power& the 2 are not comparable in my opinion-( other then there bullet dia/ size)

Dont forget those single shot pistols that come in some great rifle calibers also.

thought 45ACP was AUTOMATIC Colt Pistol. Never seen a revolver.

What they said about the 45ACP. It is a great man stopper, but not nearly enough for deer. There are some great deer hunting HG's out there, in both double and single action revolvers. I would suggest the minimum round be .41 Rem Mag and from there the choices are almost mind boogling, like 44 Rem Mag,45 Long Colt, 480 Ruger, 460 S&W, 500S&W, and my personal favorite the 445Super Mag.

I would recommend a minimum barrel length of 6", with 8.5-10" being the optimum. High viz sights are a must if you are going to use iron/open sights, especially in low light. If shots are going to be 50yds and less iron/open sights will do fine and a holographic sight like EO Tech, Red Dot, or Aim Point type optics will also do very nicely. If shots are goignto be 50-100yds you may want to consider a low power fixed scope like a fixed 2x.

There are some good revolvers out the these days, with Ruger and S&W at the top of the list. For the money it would be real hard to beat Ruger, with there Blackhawk/Super Blackhawk and Redhawk/Super Redhawk line. MyRuger deer hunting HG is an old model Blackhawk 45LC with a 6.5" barrel. S&W have some very fine models as well and I really like the Model 657. But my absolute favorite hunting HG is my Dan Wesson .445 Super Mag. I have 6", 8", and 10" barrels for it, but use the 10" 99% of the time. I have a 3MOA AimPoint on it and it is scary accurate out to 100yds. I shoot 32gr ofH110 and a 240gr Hornady XTP at 1,742 FPS and deer and boar just can't stand it as it lays the smack down on them. I can also shoot 44 special and 44 Rem Mags out of it as well. I have never shot 44 specials in it, but do shoot 44 Mags in it from time to time. Dan Wesson is now owned by CZ and I hear good things about them.

http://www.cz-usa.com/product_detail.php?id=79

They are around. Here are a few that are available.

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=11101&a mp;langId=-1&productId=14751&tabselected=tech&isF irearm=Y&parent_category_rn=15706

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=11101&a mp;langId=-1&productId=14749&tabselected=tech&isF irearm=Y&parent_category_rn=15706

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=11101&a mp;langId=-1&productId=53940&tabselected=tech&isF irearm=Y&parent_category_rn=15706