My 15 year old son was recently drawn for a cow elk tag for December 2012 in Kentucky. He really wants to hunt with a handgun but his size and hand strength would limit him to a 10-inch contender in .357. He has killed deer with this pistol from both a tree stand and a ground blind and he shoots it quite well.

The Buffalo Bore 180 grain cast load in this pistol shoots right at 1,800 fps and so this particular load in this pistol more than satisfies the Kentucky requirements of a minimum 550 ft/lbs at 100 yards (which I guess is a debatable standard but its what is allowed).

At any rate, I sure don't want to set him up to fail and he could certainly leave the pistol at home and use a rifle. That said, I would appreciate your opinions on this setup for cow elk at 75 yards or less.

Thanks