I want to to go on a mountain lion hunt, most likely in Colorado. Since "best" is a subjective term I'll use it anyway. I have .357, .44 and .454. Of the 3 listed what would be the best choice for the hunt? Load would probably be the standard 158-180 for the .357, 240 for the .44 and 240-300 for the .454. all SJHP
Anyone have any ideas/suggestions?

Thanks,

Tom

What distance do you expect to be shooting? Would the hunt be with hounds, meaning a treed animal? Cats aren't that hard to kill, provided you hit them. Which do you shoot most accurately? The 357 would be more than enough gun.

Good luck on your lion hunt Tom! One things for sure, you're going to get 3 different answers. I used my S&W 8 3/8's 357 magnum & a Keith 173 gr. cast bullet on my lion. I was up in the tree with it & the shot was about 4-5 feet away. The lion hit the ground, took one giant leap & died in mid air.
You might be shooting from the ground & the lion might be 60 ft up a tall pine tree. The guide will tie up the hounds so one of them doesn't get killed by a wounded lion when it hits the ground.
Lots of options here, others will chime in & all will be good opinions.

Dick

Hello Tom

I have a confession to make.. Im a hound guy and it is a powerful addiction. I live in Northern NM, seen a lotta lions taken over the years. A lion is a thin skinned cat and not particularly hard to kill. Ive seen them taken with 22 mags, 32 H and R and from there the sky is the limit. A Smith model 657 four inch 41 mag has ridden in my dog collar bag for years and has never failed me. Your 357 will serve you well, my only caution would be to make a good clean shot so as to protect the hound guys dogs as we some times value our dogs lives above all others!

Its a great hunt, but I can tell you that the hunt can be very short or very strenuous. When you let the dogs go you have to go get them and sometimes that has taken multiple days to get them all rounded up!

I hope you enjoy your hunt.. It will truly be a long lasting memory in your life

Best,
Billy

I've only killed 2 mountain lions, and used a .44 mag. on each, with a 240 Sierra JHC and 23/296. It worked perfectly.

I used a .454 last January on a big Tom in Utah. Federal 250 grain Barnes XPB loads proved lethal.

I'm a .357 Maggie man through and through so that is my preference but......My opinion is whatever gun/caliber combination is best for you. Meaning whatever you shoot the best and are most comfortable with.
My old S&W 65 is not only my carry gun but it has also take and has few critters (four legged kind) along the way.
It feel good in my hand. I know it inside and out and it will eat anything I feed it with almost all the bullets impacting to close the same point of aim. Weird revolver for sure...
Now that rank is over....Best of luck to you.

P.S. Anyone know how many cents I am up to. Should be 11 cents worth of B.S by now......

A thought not mentioned is weight of the handgun. You can cover a lot of ground cat hunting. Considering cats are not hard to kill, and any of your listed handguns will work fine. I would consider which one would pack the easiest.
Just My Two cents

Bob

the one that hit my fancy as i walked out the door.

I ONCE READ ABOUT AN OLD TIME LION HUNTER THAT HAD A COLT SAA CONVERTED TO 25-20 THAT HE USED ON TREED LIONS. HE WOULD SHOOT THEM, LET THEM BLEED OUT AND THEN THEY WOULD FALL OUT OF THE TREE DEAD. DO ANY OF YOU RECALL THAT STORY AND WHO THE HUNTER WAS?

Kinda leaning towards the .357, it's plenty of gun I think for a cat and relatively light weight compared especially to my Toklat .454 As far as distance, that's anybody's guess, I am thinking it could be anywhere from nearly face to face to 15-25 yards, don't really know never been on such a hunt.

That's one of the reasons I'm considering my .357, it's a 6" S&W 586, I have a Diamond D Guide's Choice Chest rig for it, nice setup!!

Sounds like you got it figured out.

45man, the fellow you refer to was a government trapper in either California or Colorado, can't remember for sure but he killed a lot of lions with that gun!
Some lion guides recommend a 22 rimfire for the same reason, shoot them in the tree, let them slowly die & they drop from the tree, not sure I agree with that but they are in the business.
When I shot mine I meant to give it a second one double action just for good measure but it hit the ground before I could even pull the trigger....they are quick!

Dick

Steve Mattes is the professional lion hunter featured in J.D. Jones and Larry Kellys book "Hunting for Handgunners". He used a Colt SA chambered in .218 Bee for the reasons you mention.

I know this is a forum to discuss at length about handguns and bullets, but your choice of sidearm will not be the most important decision. Just choose the one you are most comfortable with; carrying and shooting. Your choice of footwear and clothing will be more critical to your success and enjoyment. Done properly, a mountain lion hunt is the series of events that happen leading up to the shot. Shooting the lion is the punctuation of a successful adventure.

I have been on two lion hunts. headed out for my third in December. took my .44 special each time and the guide had no issues with it. as a matter of fact, he carried a Single Six.

Whitworth
Thats a great cat that you collected.. Those are hard to come by these days. There is a concerted effort to reduce lion numbers all thru out the West as they take the blame for lots of sheep, deer and elk, and livestock. I think there is room for them all and wish they would cut back on the tags, I know in Utah that they have increased the allocated tags and there aren't near the numbers of cats that there were even just a few years back. Lots od females being killed now and cat numbers are down.
Curious who you hunted with? The hound dog community isn't all that large and I imagine that I probably know them...
You have a great cat and I congratulate you.

Billy

I'd be curious to hear as well, debating whether to book a hunt myself in the next couple years. Curious if you guys are hunting with buddies and on your own, or booking outfitters? (or what)

Are there "better" states and/or Outfitters that any of yous would recommend to do a handgun Cat-hunt with??

Colt
One of my close friends, Van Johnson, guided bear and lion hunters for years out of Cortez CO. He sold his outfit and there is a young guy doing it now that is a good hard hunter and would be able to tree you a cat. I also know some guys here in New Mexico that guide for them. Cat hunts are knocking on the door of five thousand dollars these days? You might find a deal out there with someone starting in the business..
Best,
Billy

We have lots of Lions here in SE Idaho but few Outfitters because there are so many locals that have hounds. We have a quota on females, once that quota is met they shut the season down. We always hit the quota quite early in the season.
I live right next to a very large winter range for mule deer & as soon as the deer migrate in the lions follow. This area is only a mile from my house, many times we have deer in our yard every night during the winter.

Dick