Let's see your Turkey Hunting Handguns

With Spring Turkey Season opening soon, I have my shotgun patterned and ready to go. With a reasonable 40 yard max range for the load I'm using, I'm having a hard time justifying carrying the long gun over one of my handguns.

My shotgun is the last long gun that I carry afield any longer, and just don't prefer it anymore. Handgun Hunting is my passion for sure.

I'd like to see what yall use. Thanks

Taurus Tracker .357 with 140 grain Leverevolution.
Note the camo tape on the stainless gun.


Ruger Single Seven .327 with 100 grain American Eagle.


TC Contender 22 mag with 40 grain CCI HP.
These turkey kills left me wanting more. I am still searching for the perfect handgun and load for turkey.

That's awesome, and thanks for the pics. Just curious, do you use a rest to support the handguns, or did you rest them on your knees. With my low to the ground turkey seat, I think the knees would work out well. Also, what were the ranges for your shots? Thanks

TC Contender .410ga...



TC Encore .20ga....

My question is body shots? Head or neck shots? head shots can be difficult since turkey's move so much....Some o y'all better than others

I do head/neck with the scatter gun.

I have successfully shot three turkeys with a handgun. One in Alabama, and two inside a preserve.

I shot the turkey with the .357 in the center of the body broadside at 25 yards. Like most people, I expected a .357 to boil feathers and hammer the bird. I was wrong. Hit in one wing and across the top of the drumsticks, the bird was unable to fly or run. The turkey "swam" away; using its wings to breaststroke through the woods. I ran him down and finished him with a bullet to the head.

I thought the fast stepping and volitile .327 would be a great choice for a turkey gun. My first shot struck the bird off center in the neck where the feathers stop. A caliber hole through his neck didn't seem to affect him. In fact, I thought I missed. Shot number two passed through the body above and in front of the wing joint. Again the bird showed no reaction,he just kept walking. A third shot to the head dropped the bird. All three shots were taken at about 70 yards.

Mystified by the ineffectiveness of pistol calibers on body shots, I prepared my 22 Mag for a headshot. A 22 Mag would surely be immediately effective against a turkey head, right? Nope. Off center hits to the neck don't work. I started the shooting at 100 yards, striking the bird in the neck and throat. The bird went down, but I had to close the distance to 25 yards to finish the job. Five shots were fired with three striking the neck, but only the last struck a vertebrae and got the results I wanted. When I hefted the bird by his feet, he rained blood like a sprinkler from his head and neck.

I am still dissatisfied with my shooting results on handgun turkeys. I haven't figured out where or how to hit them. Conventional handgun bullets didn't upset on turkey flesh, and a bullet needed to stike the brain or spine to work as a headshot. I am thinking a handgun bullet needs to be fast and violent to work on a turkey body shot.

I've taken 36 birds with my FA .454 Casull with 0 misses. I hit the wing butts on top of the back on broadside shots. Straight away or facing shots I hit the neck/body junction. The only bullet I use is the old Speer 260 gr. Mag. HP. I still have about 100 of these (not made any more), but they are saved for only turkeys. Never had a bird get away from them. You'd think the HP would destroy the bird. Nope! Puts a 1 - 1 1/2" hole through the bird with no meat loss.
Most recent gobbler is on bragging board. I'm still very poor in posting it. A little help would be appreciated.
http://www.handgunhunt.com/photopost/data/500/thumbs/073.JPG

Some nice turkeys

Hitman, you are the worlds leading expert on handgunning turkeys. While many would question the need for a .454, I trust your opinion is based on real field experience .

Wish we could handgun hunt turkeys in NC.

I second that cfish2

Thanks for the info and pics guys, those are all some great trophy's.

After seeing cmnash's 22mag turkey, I ran out this afternoon and got my single six 22 mag all sighted in and ready to take along on opening day. Then I get home tonight and read the above posts, and wish I would have picked up some 454 hp's while I was at Cabelas today. I wonder if my 7.62X39 Encore would have similar results with an hp bullet?

CMnash, My selection of my .454 came after several years of handgun failures. Maybe it was due to poor shot selection, but I doubt it, since I tried to shoot them in the same place with all my guns. I think the success of my .454 is due to the combination of energy, speed, shock effect of the HP (that I didn't see with SWCs, Flat points, slow HPs).
My failures were .223, .44 Mag., .357 Mag., .45-70.
I did do one successful kill with my 6.5JDJ (120 BT) and .375 JDJ (Horn. 220 FP), but those two just seemed like over kill, plus the revolver is so much easier to carry. WV turkey season is during squirrel season, so I'm carrying a silenced Ruger MK III and my .454. Carrying them in holsters is a lot easier than lugging around a long handgun on a sling.

Full disclosure, I?ve never shot a turkey with a handgun. I would have thought that an 80% meplat flat point 45 caliber bullet would have wrecked havoc on a turkey. But I have no experience on turkeys,

I handgunned my first few turkeys in the early 80s with a 10 inch octagon barrel Contender 218 Bee with a 4x TC scope. My ammo was loaded with 45 grain soft nose bullets. I have also taken turkeys with a scoped 223 Contender with 55 grain soft point ammo and a S&W 629 with 240 XTP bullets. Others in my family and I have taken many PA fall turkeys with 22 caliber rifles. 218 Bee, 222, and the family favorite, the 22 Magnum rimfire with hollow point ammo. We all agree that the key to securing a turkey with a single projectile is to shoot them in the wing joint or just above if broadside. The neck/spine just above the wing joint if they are facing or facing away. That?s where all the structure and critical organs are. I will see if I can dig up some photos.
All of these birds were PA fall kills. Where rifles and handguns are legal. In the spring PA only allows shotguns.

David, maybe we should make a trip to the wildlife commission and see if we can't change the law. I know a few folks on the commission.

Once is enough for me

Doc I certainly trust you'd opinion on shooting Turkeys. I thought I might try a smaller caliber but conceded to the 45 with my 335 gr load.1200fps
The more I have heard about using rifle cartridges in handguns and WVhitman a and the 454,,,,makes me question my choices. Disappointed that I did not connect thus far this year. Good info from all of you. Thank you

I used cast SWCs in .357, .44 (several times), and .45-70. Thought they would be the berries. Maybe so for other people, but I lost every one of these birds. Hit them all, but never recovered any of them. With my .454 HPs the distance moved of every turkey I killed has been 0 to 1 FOOT. Maybe I wasn't holding my tongue right on the ones I lost.

I wish we could hunt them with handguns in Tn.

The issue with getting a DRT on a turkey with non expanding bullets is that the critical vitals are about the size of a tennis ball tucked between the wings plus the spine and head. Most of the body is meat or low density intentistines. They are basically a sack of air below the wings. I have seen or heard of more than a few birds center punched with a high velocity rifle round or a slow cast bullet get airborne and set their wings destined to sail off and die.

Same.

I will use either a rear grip Anschutz 22 Mag, 6x45 XP, or 6x47 XP.
Both XP's are center-grips, with the barrel taper equaling a factory XP.

You need to give me one or the other ernie. 6x45 or 6x47. Either one 😬

No handgun turkey in ky either. 🙄

I'd like to know more about .410 setups. That is the only way we can use a handgun in MO for turkeys. I've contemplated setting up a Contender for several years, just haven't gotten around to it yet. Too late now with the season upon us in a week.

Wow, I just checked the MO regulations and found you can use a .22 cal. rifle or smaller to hunt turkey. Shame they won't allow handguns.

Are you sure a handgun using .410 shells is legal? I don't have a code book available but the website says shotgun.

Better check those reg's again. The only thing legal to take any game bird in Missouri is a shotgun. The only bird you can legally take in Missouri with anything other than a shotgun are crows.

Better check those reg's again. The only thing legal to take any game bird in Missouri is a shotgun. The only bird you can legally take in Missouri with anything other than a shotgun are crows. [/quote]

I think you are right, I went to the MDC website and clicked on the regulations under turkey hunting but it seems that it takes you to general regulations and what I read was listed under deer season. I don't see any turkey hunting methods listed on the website but will keep reading.

If you're shooting shot shells, then it's a shotgun.

You cannot use a .22 caliber rifle -- or any rifle to hunt turkeys in MO. Shotguns with #4 shot or smaller -- nothing above #4 shot.

I think you are right, I went to the MDC website and clicked on the regulations under turkey hunting but it seems that it takes you to general regulations and what I read was listed under deer season. I don't see any turkey hunting methods listed on the website but will keep reading. [/quote]


Under Spring Turkey, to the right "Allowed & Prohibited Methods"

https://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/seasons

I have a lot that will work for turkey, but here is what I will be using on Saturday.

That's impressive Ernie, what caliber?

6XC with the 107 SMK around 2730 fps.

Turkeys are a Wiley adversary, and hunting them with a handgun adds to the difficulty factor. My hots off to you guys!