Worked for me, too.

A life-long friend introduced me to hunting handguns when I was in my teens. I thought he was so 'cool' and admired him for his ability to shoot a 44 mag. Ruger Super Redhawk, with that scope and looong barrel. I liked it, I understood the 'why', but I couldn't afford one, nor did I have enough knowledge yet to venture further into the world of hunting handguns.

Fast forward several yrs. I bought a new shotgun from my LGS, for turkey hunting. After attempting to pattern the darn thing, I discovered the barrel must be bent as it was shooting 2 feet low, and it wouldn't eject 3" shells everytime with ease. So, back to the gun shop with it I went. The owner said he couldn't refund my money in cash, but rather I could trade it in at the same value I paid for it, on another item. I thought, why not get a handgun, something with lighter recoil and a bit less expensive than my buddy's Redhawk. The gun shop owner suggested a Taurus in .357. I agreed and said 'put a scope on it!'.

I got that handgun and fell in love with it. I shot it alot, got proficient, and shot a wild boar within two yrs of purchasing it. (I probably wouldn't hunt boars with a .357 nowadays, but it worked perfectly that time and I gained confidence). A couple yrs later I traded the Taurus in on a first year Encore pistol. I fell in love with it, too, but didn't hunt with it at all for a few yrs.

Three years later I discovered the internet! And, WOW, did that open up a whole new world! I read more about the Encores, learned the Contender came first (I'd never heard of the Contender). I found out, as it seemed to me, that alot of folks were out there hunting with handguns. I discovered SP's and Handgun Hunting's forums, read even more. Got the bug even more. Made 'friends' through these sites. Some I've met in person and a few are concidered some of the closest friends I have. And they hunt with handguns! Had it not been for the internet and handgun related forums, I'm sure I'd be stuck in a dull, dark, rifle-only world.

Sure you have to sift through what might be BS or stretched truth now and then. I consider what I read here to be pretty much gospel backed by experience that I can trust to make my own purchasing decision.

If not for the internet, I would have thousands of more dollars in my bank account. I wouldn't have owned Contenders and Encores in tens of different calibers and configurations over the course of the last 10 or 12 yrs. Maybe not my first Striker and other wheel guns. And my passion and love for hunting with handguns might not be fueled like it is now (though I'd like to think it would still). A small number to many, but I'm approaching my 20th big game critter with a handgun within a 10 yr period. It could be more but I still enjoy hunting with a rifle and ML now and then, too.

We gotta stick together. Promote our method. And realize it takes more than one tactic or method to pass along this love of hunting with handguns.