I posted before about purchasing a handgun to hunt with and was looking at the 7-30 waters.Since I do not reload, my next question is what would be a good caliber that I could get that has factory ammo availiable to use on whitetails out to two hundred yds? I am in a wheelchair but I will be shooting off a rest. The largest handgun I have fired is a 44 magnum with 225 grain bullets. The recoil of that gun I could handle off a rest. Are there any handguns with factory ammo that will recoil like that are maybe a liitle more but still do the trick?

Thad

I am a T-6 Paraplegic and hunt from a wheelchair. A good caliber for factory ammunition is the .308 Winchester. It will easily kill deer at 200 yards. I shoot it in an XP-100. Factory ammunition has very mild recoil. My reloads produce more recoil. My longest kill so far has been an antelope at 170 yards. I have fired factory ammunition in the T/C Encore .308 and the recoil was mild.
I shall pray for you.

Thad,

If you are considering an encore frame (or something that is equivalent), you can choose among any of the popular "rifle" cartridges. My personal favorite for your job is the 260 Rem.

Alternatively, if you are looking at the contender frame (or its equivalents), the 7-30 is hard to beat. The 35 Rem shoot a bigger slug (with more recoil) but 200 yds would be far enough for it, IMHO.

With a good muzzle brake nearly any chambering can be made relatively easy on the shooter. The 308 is one of the most versatile chamberings available, and ammo is plentiful. The 7-08 is right there as well. Either is a pussycat with a brake.

What platform are you looking at?

I was thinking 308 or 7-08 but not sure. A friend of mine knows someone who has a 308 and he is gonna get with him so I can try it out. The roblem is I really do not have a whole bunch of money to spend on a gun right now. Probably will not be possible to find one in the $500 range with a scope.

do not be too sure. Keep checking Gunbroker. Can sometimes pick up a good used one there worth the money. 7-08 is a fine choice as is the 308. IMHO the 7-08 recoils some less than the 308 due to lighter bullets in 7mm. Either will do what you want to do.

since you don't reload if your considering the Contender platform I'd go 30-30 if you go Encore I'd probably go 30-06.

thad..,

The T/C Contender in 30-30 WCF is a good choice. Ammo is plentiful anywhere in North America and the are a dozen or so factory loads to choose from. The 7-30 Waters is a great caliber; however, loaded ammo is difficult to find. Down the road if you decide to reload, you rechamber the 30-30 to 30-30 Ackley Improved. Recoil is mild to moderate depending on the load and if the barrel is ported. T/C made some factory barrels that were ported ( Hunter ). My kids and I have used the Contender in 30-30 WCF in 12" and 16" lengths ( carbine ) and have taken a bunch of whitetails, and antelope from 20 to 200 yards. No one told the animals they were being shot with a single shot firearm and an antique and "underpowered" caliber. That being said, the T/C Encore in 308 WCF is a great choice also. Plenty of ammo choices world wide, should you decide to fly your chair to an exotic hunting place.

Doc

Hard to beat a 308, if recoil is an issue go with the 7mm-08, good luck with your decision.

Gentlemen thanks for all of your help. I found a contender in 7-30 waters for $400 with a scope and the the guy threw in the reloading equipment with it! Looks like I am going to be doing some reloading now. The gun came from the TC custom shop.If anyone has some good information on powder type and bullet type please let me know. Again Thanks for all of your help and I am looking forward to shooting this gun and hopefully be able to take my first deer with a handgun.

good deal and now you'll be addicted to single shots and reloading

I'd have to look up my data but the 120gr Nosler Ballistic tip is the most popular bullet I've seen and it's given me good accuracy and terminal performance.

Sounds like you did pretty good. This is a great resource:

http://data.hodgdon.com/main_menu.asp

The 7-30 load that I use is 120 gr Nosler BT & Win 748 powder.

Great pickup Thad - let us know how she shoots and how everything comes along!

And welcome to the world of handgun hunting!