Single handgun for HD, CC and Hunting...

[glockman55]

Ruger Redhawk 5.5" .44 Mag..
Attachment 105538

[rpseraph]

Simple answer... going to be hard to conceal something you can reliably and ethically hunt with (depending what you're hunting, I've shot squirrels with a 9mm before )

So I would recommend this, with a trench coat to conceal carry, hahaha

[Obambulate]

I'll go with the 3" stainless J-frame in .38 Special (60-4). It's actually what I have in the nightstand for home defense. With a good belt it's not a problem to carry. It's accurate enough for hunting these little Florida deer and we've seen what .38 Special does to an 800-lb wild hog.

[brian33x51]

You'll get tired of CCing a glock 20 pretty quickly. I did. I think you really need 2 pistols, one for CC/home defense and another hunting, but realistically not one pistol.

[Super Sneaky Steve]

3" 686 or GP100

[bamaranger]

In a revolver, I'm thinking that Elmer may have been on the right path. One of the round butt, N-frames, .44 mag, or .45 Colt, with the Mtn Gun treatment. A 4" barrel, slim profiled as in the Mtn Gun line. For CC minimalist grips, swappable for bigger ones for hunting or competition. Stainless steel to resist blood and sweat. Then I'd darken it with one of the coating shops. I'd dehorn the rear sights a bit or look after market for something sleeker and tougher than the standard factory target rear. In a .44 mag, I'd consider .44 Spls for SD, for hunting deer, hogs, size game, the magnums. The single action trigger will allow good field shooting. The DA is fast enough if practiced, for SD. An option on this theme might be one of the newer 5-shot, L-Frame .44s (M69?).

In an auto?. Glock, G20. Lighter, slimmer, tough, just enough power to hunt the critters listed. Lots of ammo in hand. Not a .44 certainly, but the equal of the .357 for sure power wise. I hate the triggers, and the factory sights aren't much either. Likely improve on both with aftermarket.

If I had to choose. Probably the Glock. But I wouldn't tell Elmer

[Screwball]

Picking one gun for those three roles will likely cause at least one of three things to happen...

-not carry it due to weigh (people say they don't mind a heavy gun, but many get tired of it and stop carrying it)
-hunt with an ineffective handgun, possible wounding animals instead of killing them (that actually pisses me off... just saying; not just talking about caliber, but something smaller is harder to shoot)
-be uncomfortable with your home defense pistol (either too large of a caliber, no way to mount a light, or just a cumbersome weapon in that role)

I would at least break it down to two firearms, but three would be best. Find something comfortable, yet small/light enough to carry... J-frame, single stack 9mm or .380, etc.

If you wanted to combine the hunting and home defense, go with a Glock 20. 10mm is a very good hunting cartridge, and will get the job done in regards to defense... plus, you have a tail for a light.

If you can squeeze another gun, I'd get a revolver for hunting and a shotgun for home defense. Or a full size 9mm/.40/.45 for home defense and a bolt action for hunting.

One gun for multiple role like that usually requires a compromise in at least one role... sometimes all roles. I think most shooters have tried it, and got crappy results.

[spaniel]

For those purposes, that pretty much makes it 357 or 10mm depending which platform you prefer. So for me my Kimber 10mm has performed each of these roles in 10mm. It is a wonderfully accurate target gun, I have taken deer with it, and have carried CCW.

[agtman]

If you were to pick a single handgun for Home Defense, Concealed Carry and Hunting, what would it be?

The only pistol whose cartridge carries the variables in bullet-weight/styles and energy levels to handle all those tasks, and then some, is the 10mm Glock 20.

The G20 allows you to swap in a 6" or longer tube for hunting, but it's stock 4.6" barrel gives you better ballistics (fps/fpe) than the more compact G29 with its 3.8" barrel.

While not as concealable as the G29 for CCW, the G20 will carry better than the 6.2" G40 for that purpose. The G40 makes for an awesome dedicated "outdoor" and hunting gun, but it's simply too big to be practical for concealed OWB/IWB carry.

Now if open-carry is legal in your state, that's different. Then you could O.C. the G40 "cowboy"-style in a hip holster.

But for practical day-to-day CCW, and to retain the ballistic benefit of the 10mm cartridge, the G20 is a good compromise between the G40 and G29.

[jstert]

a 3" 357/38 revolver would cover all three uses enough to be useful.


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[MR.G]

I don't hunt with a handgun. My handguns are for HD and SD. For me a J frame .357/.38 is best because it is small enough for pocket carry and decent for HD.
If I needed a handgun for HD, CC, and hunting it would be a S&W 686 Plus 4" tuned with Wolf springs.

[Obambulate]

3" S&W Model 60 .357 is the best compromise, IMO.

[Don Fischer]

looking for the jack of all trade's, doesn't exist. You think you have it and you'll find to do one job it really will have to compromise another! My home defense gun would be my Ruger P-89, lot of fire power, doesn't need concealed and weight no bother as I seldom carry it. My hunting or pinking hand guns are several. Have a High Standard HD military, smith K-22 combat master piece, Smith mod 16 in 32 Long shoot's cast bullet's and a Smith 38/44 that also only shoot's cast bullet's. Hum, hunting, take your pick! For concealed carry I use a Smith MP Shield 9c. Can't hit squat with it much beyond ten yds but don't ever plan or shooting at someone farther than that. At 10 yds I can hit a watermelon!

edit: I think there may be better options that the 9mm for a carry gun but recoil get's the better of me I don't want to find out I really can't handle it in a situation where I actually need. it. Bigger heavier bullet's mean better stopping power. To me, 9mm 124gr JHP equals adequate fire power in a very light weight concealed gun.

[DeagleDan]

For fun I have a .50ae Eagle in a vertical shoulder rig. Doubt I'd ever pull it, and I don't carry that thing very often (couple times a year). I'm a big guy (6' 2", 245lbs), plus an ego to match my physical size - so it works out.

I'd have to agree with other posts on here, though - Glock 20 would do a good job to fit that bill.

[ThomasT]

If I could have only one handgun it would be a 4" 357 revolver. As long as I can reload for it it will do all I need a handgun for.

Not a very original answer but it's not a very original question either.

[Danoobie]

S&W 1006. But I really like the old genII and gen IIIs. YMMV.

[ARqueen15]

As a few of you have said the better a hunting gun it is, the worse it will likely be for CC. I've carried a full-size double stack pistol and it is very taxing and tiring (i'm a tall female so YMMW) but if i had to hunt and CC and home defense, i'd probably opt for a Glock 19. I could always load it up with less than a full magazine in order to keep the weight down and still easily have more capacity than any revolver. It has a long sight radius of a solid 6" or so, hence you should have a shot at game from a reasonable distance (<25 yards).

Obviously the 44 magnum out of a typical 4" barrel is easily more potent, but you're going to have half the capacity and 70% more weight (25 oz for the G19 and 41+ for a 4" model 29) which you'll be lugging around all day whether hunting or for CC. I mean the G19 weighs less fully loaded with 15 and 1 in the pipe than the model 29, 4" 44 magnum does empty...

I do actually hunt, just not with Glock 19's or any other handgun...

[Pond, James Pond]

If purely hypothetical then I think I'd go for a 10mm...

Probably a 1911 of some kind as it would be slimmer than most other semis allowed CCW, but still have the barrel length and trigger for hunting.

In reality, I'd either somehow learn to conceal my 4" .44Mag Redhawk, or buy a .41Mag or .357 Mag....
This is because over here, we are not permitted to carry semis in higher states of readiness than condition 3, making revolvers a better CCW option from a safety point of view.

[Paladin7]

For Home Defense, Concealed Carry and Hunting are too broad, best advice is to narrow down what you mean by these three things...

If you want a quick answer, here's some food for thought...

1. Home Defense - the gun will be on a nightstand and used when things go bump in the night. That means you need ammunition that will not blow your ear drums out or have too bright a flash which will blind you and make follow up shots very difficult. Fast Reloads are also key.

2. Concealed Carry - you want something that you will always have with you, will be light enough to carry, yet powerful enough to get the job done. How you carry extra ammo is also a consideration, as well as the weight of that ammo. Fast reloads are also good to have.

3. Hunting - I have to assume that you will use this gun as a back up to a rifle, or to have on your belt around camp for targets of opportunity or if you run into an angry bear...

Given those parameters, which are still very broad, there are a lot of trade offs you will have to make, so, I'd suggest a Glock 29 sub compact in 10MM.

The 10MM is a powerful cartridge and you get a lot of them in the Glock. The G29 is easy to conceal and carry. Ammunition weight is not onerous, and it will stop an angry black bear with multiple hits, or take down a deer at close range.

Hope that helps...

[peterg7]

State law for handgun gun hunting(big game) would dictate caliber, barrel and maybe platform. If OP is talking about small game or SHTF hunting then that broadens the field.


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[Tacticool1976]

I have Glock 20 and it would be in that, if i could only have one type of handgun... or a 1911 10mm or 45 would be my all around gun...

[gwpercle]

For Heaven's Sake...don't let our wives find out that one gun is all we need. After many years I have convinced her I must have a different gun for small game hunting , large game hunting, NRA Bullseye Target shooting , concealed carry , open carry , bowling pin shooting , steel plate shooting , long range target , IDPA Match , nightstand / house protection, not to mention how I need double action, single action , single shot , double action only and semi-auto's .... My word , She has more than one pair of shoes.
Now she's going to hear that I only need one gun to do it all with....That's not fair !

[Danoobie]

44 MAG with ratshot for venomous snakes. I do all my hunting
with a rifle.

[Kwik2010]

I would probably go with a 6" .44 Mag of some sorts. And live somewhere cold enough so that I could dress heavy enough to conceal it year round. .44 Special for HD and SD and full power for hunting.

Thank god I get to have more than 1.

[Elliottsdad]

The poster above that said Glock 29 is spot on. A concealable 10 mm. It meets all your requirements.
However, I have to agree that this whole idea is a compromise. It's hard enough to handgun hunt with a full size pistol, nevermind a subcompact. And a hunting-power cartridge in a CCW would have it's own set of problems: over-penetration, uncontrollability, etc.
I think you'd be better served with a subcompact pistol in .380 or 9mm, or revolver in .38 special for CCW, and a separate .44 mag revolver for hunting.
The 29 can do both, but is the best at neither. If money is the issue (it often is with me), choose the need you most immediately need to meet, and find the gun that meets that need best for you. The secondary need can come later.
But if you must keep it to one gun: Glock 29