ThomasT
Member
Yes. Bigfoot. Thats when I carry my 44 mag.
Preferred Woods Gun
- Thread starter Mr. Mosin
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Yes. Bigfoot. Thats when I carry my 44 mag.
tubeshooter
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Better carry a semi.
With a reload.
Might run into more than 2 bears in an encounter...
With a reload.
Might run into more than 2 bears in an encounter...
v8stang289
Member
A woods gun will have a different definition for each person, depending on needs, location, and potential threats. There's no need for the OP to list further restrictions or scenarios. The individuals here know why/when/how they go into the woods and what "woods gun" will meet their needs.
Most of the time my woods gun is a S&W M69. A good balance for me between weight and power, and a variety of loads make it versatile. I usually carry it while hunting, trailing, scouting, or just exploring. I'll sometimes carry a M66 instead, a 625, or even a G21 setup for 45 super.
Most of the time my woods gun is a S&W M69. A good balance for me between weight and power, and a variety of loads make it versatile. I usually carry it while hunting, trailing, scouting, or just exploring. I'll sometimes carry a M66 instead, a 625, or even a G21 setup for 45 super.
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NeroM
Member
shoebox1.1
Member
My ruger all the way..
.38 Special
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As others have noted, it depends a bit.
If I'm in the woods for some purpose other than shooting, I normally will carry my EDC S&W 19 in .357 - I figure I'm more at risk from two legged critters than four, most of the woods I visit.
If I'm fortunate enough to be wandering around the sort of wilderness where big things sometimes eat people, I pack my 4" .500 Magnum.
On the whole, though, I find myself becoming a single action man, so when I'm woods loafing - which for me means wandering around with the sun on my face and defending myself from man-eating pine cones - it's almost always with my Lipsey's Bisley Blackhawk .44 Special filled with Skeeter's loads and carried in a Sparks 200AW.
If I'm in the woods for some purpose other than shooting, I normally will carry my EDC S&W 19 in .357 - I figure I'm more at risk from two legged critters than four, most of the woods I visit.
If I'm fortunate enough to be wandering around the sort of wilderness where big things sometimes eat people, I pack my 4" .500 Magnum.
On the whole, though, I find myself becoming a single action man, so when I'm woods loafing - which for me means wandering around with the sun on my face and defending myself from man-eating pine cones - it's almost always with my Lipsey's Bisley Blackhawk .44 Special filled with Skeeter's loads and carried in a Sparks 200AW.
Old Dog
Member
4" S&W Model 19 with Buffalo Bore 180-grain hardcast.
.38 Special
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Is that an "old" 19 or one of the new releases?
adcoch1
Member
I like my sp101 3" with hot 38 special loads. Or my 5" super Blackhawk in 44 mag when in bear country. Honestly though, I usually have my lcp on me too. I did just purchase a 4" pinned and tapered barrel s&w model 10 (waiting on paperwork) so that just might become my favorite woods gun...
Old Dog
Member
Buckeye63
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This was my carry gun today , Charter 6 Shot 357mag 3 inch barrel ….. and I actually toted helping my buddy repair his fence in the woods .. tree fell across it ..
Light & compact ..
But I purchased a Glock 20 for that purpose… and it seems I strap on the Charter quite often ..
.38 Special
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Have you put many of the Buffalo Bore rounds through it? I probably am more gentle with mine than I need to be, but anything more than 158s at 1200 starts to make me nervous...
Thomas Mayberry
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- 298
Either a S&W model 15 or S&W model 642, obviously in .38 Special. Which one depends on how much weight I'm willing to pack that day. No bears to be concerned with (well not usually). Should handle anything I need a handgun for.
FROGO207
Member
Ruger 45 Colt on a SBH frame with Ruger only loads.Absolutely.
True indeed.
Yes, and the responses of those who explain such will have meaning.
Old Dog
Member
Probably about 24 or so, just enough to verify accuracy (excellent) but won't shoot any more through it at the range for sure...
Tallball
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When I occasionally hike with my daughter and my dog, I just stick with my EDC, which has been a CA Bulldog lately.
If the hiking were a regular thing, it would be much cooler to carry my 4.75" SAA clone.
It would be easy to carry OWB, and I've been shooting SA revolvers since the dinosaur times.
There's nothing nasty in our local woods that a well-aimed 357 won't take down.
If the hiking were a regular thing, it would be much cooler to carry my 4.75" SAA clone.
It would be easy to carry OWB, and I've been shooting SA revolvers since the dinosaur times.
There's nothing nasty in our local woods that a well-aimed 357 won't take down.
ontarget
Member
I've said it before, I'm not much of a Ruger revolver fan, but I love that one right there.
shoebox1.1
Member
I can’t wait for cooler weather so I can get back to carrying it
Paul R Zartman
Contributing Member
My setup for taking a stroll...
SASS PRO 5 1/2...
SASS PRO 5 1/2...
My favored woods-walkin’ sixgun is not much different from my favored streets-walkin’ sixgun: Ruger GP100, .357 Magnum. Stainless steel is desirable, this close to the coast.buffalo Bayou is tidal, as far inland as Houston’s Downtown. We live in a small city, which is surrounded by the sprawl of SW Houston. 125-grain JHP has long been known as good street ammo. A heavier, well-bonded JHP, or hard-cast bullet, may be indicated, as one gets farther out of town, especially at night, when hogs are out and about.
To be clear, here, in town, I do not always tote a GP100. I do tend to tote revolvers, more than anything else, but I may tote somewhat smaller ones, when I do not feel a need to carry the most-powerful Magnum loads. My street guns may be SP101 or Speed Six Rugers, or S&W K-Frames.
My avatar photo, to the left, shows me holding my first GP100. I still have it, and have added several more. I snapped that image, to show how I hold, high on the grip, for a discussion of how to shoot heavy-recoiling revolvers, on another forum. The location was heavily-vegetated, so I would not alarm anyone; therefore, the “busy” background. (I do not use any web-hosting service, so cannot post images on THR, in the discussion section.)
I used to tote N-Frames, especially .41 Magnum, but I finally admitted to myself that my hands are not built for shooting N-Frames in DA mode. My long palms may love the feel of an N-Frame grip, but, my index finger cannot really quite reach the trigger face, well enough to me optimal, I shoot a Ruger GP100 or Speed SIx, or S&W K- or L-Frame, so much better, because they fit better. I can, of course, cock an N-Frame, which bring the trigger well within reach, but if I plan to intentionally cock a revolver, as a matter of course, it would make more sense to tote a single-action revolver.
I actually really do like SA sixguns, but none of mine are stainless steel, which is a best material, for sixguns carried in our local climate, where rain happens so often, and condensation forming inside and outside the weapon is a potentially daily occurrence, especially when moves from air-conditioned building or vehicles, to the outdoors, or when one is perspiring, while wearing a rain jacket, creating a steamy environment. (Many folks forget about the condensation that forms inside the weapon.)
I’ll give honorable mention to my Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan, which has been equipped with a GP100 grip, as the grip stud is the same, for both weapons. It can chamber .45 Colt, and .454 Casull, though my days of voluntarily firing big-bore Magnums ended some time ago. This may be a “snubby,” and its grip may conceal well, but the upper part of the frame is large, so one has to really want to carry the size and mass. A longer-barreled weapon actually “rides” more comfortably, on one’s belt, at the hip. I’ll save the SRH Alaskan for the occasional trip to places where the really big bears walk, and probably mostly use a chest rig, or a front cross-draw rig.
Geographically, this is Coastal Prairie, but in the very-well-watered part, in SE Texas, not far from such places as the Piney Woods, and the Big Thicket. The riverine parts will have very thick vegetation. The bears, which are gradually returning, from SE Louisiana, after decades of absence, are small, and very, very shy, so do not affect the choice of one’s woods-walkin’ guns. My wife’s family’s rural land is bottomland along the Caney Creek, in Montgomery County, a county which has been reached by the sprawl of Houston, Texas, so, the threats are not really different than the mean streets of Houston; feral dogs, the occasional feral hogs, and of course, feral humans.
Notably, Houston, being mostly in Harris County, is just one county west of a notorious incident in which feral hogs killed and partially consumed a woman, Christine Rollins, not long ago. (She was a home health care nurse, killed in the driveway of her elderly clients’ home.) Some folks believe that a loose, large dog may have actually killed her, but the autopsy indicated hog feeding activity. Large dog, or large hog, they kill with their mouths, so, similar threat.
https://abc13.com/christine-rollins...d-dead-animal-attack-death-wild-hogs/5716849/
At my mother’s place, in eastern Harris County, close to Houston, a feral hog, being pursued by dogs, smashed through a wall of her detached garage. So, hard-cast 180-grain ammo is indicated, when one is in the more-rural parts of Harris County, and surrounding counties.
To be clear, here, in town, I do not always tote a GP100. I do tend to tote revolvers, more than anything else, but I may tote somewhat smaller ones, when I do not feel a need to carry the most-powerful Magnum loads. My street guns may be SP101 or Speed Six Rugers, or S&W K-Frames.
My avatar photo, to the left, shows me holding my first GP100. I still have it, and have added several more. I snapped that image, to show how I hold, high on the grip, for a discussion of how to shoot heavy-recoiling revolvers, on another forum. The location was heavily-vegetated, so I would not alarm anyone; therefore, the “busy” background. (I do not use any web-hosting service, so cannot post images on THR, in the discussion section.)
I used to tote N-Frames, especially .41 Magnum, but I finally admitted to myself that my hands are not built for shooting N-Frames in DA mode. My long palms may love the feel of an N-Frame grip, but, my index finger cannot really quite reach the trigger face, well enough to me optimal, I shoot a Ruger GP100 or Speed SIx, or S&W K- or L-Frame, so much better, because they fit better. I can, of course, cock an N-Frame, which bring the trigger well within reach, but if I plan to intentionally cock a revolver, as a matter of course, it would make more sense to tote a single-action revolver.
I actually really do like SA sixguns, but none of mine are stainless steel, which is a best material, for sixguns carried in our local climate, where rain happens so often, and condensation forming inside and outside the weapon is a potentially daily occurrence, especially when moves from air-conditioned building or vehicles, to the outdoors, or when one is perspiring, while wearing a rain jacket, creating a steamy environment. (Many folks forget about the condensation that forms inside the weapon.)
I’ll give honorable mention to my Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan, which has been equipped with a GP100 grip, as the grip stud is the same, for both weapons. It can chamber .45 Colt, and .454 Casull, though my days of voluntarily firing big-bore Magnums ended some time ago. This may be a “snubby,” and its grip may conceal well, but the upper part of the frame is large, so one has to really want to carry the size and mass. A longer-barreled weapon actually “rides” more comfortably, on one’s belt, at the hip. I’ll save the SRH Alaskan for the occasional trip to places where the really big bears walk, and probably mostly use a chest rig, or a front cross-draw rig.
Geographically, this is Coastal Prairie, but in the very-well-watered part, in SE Texas, not far from such places as the Piney Woods, and the Big Thicket. The riverine parts will have very thick vegetation. The bears, which are gradually returning, from SE Louisiana, after decades of absence, are small, and very, very shy, so do not affect the choice of one’s woods-walkin’ guns. My wife’s family’s rural land is bottomland along the Caney Creek, in Montgomery County, a county which has been reached by the sprawl of Houston, Texas, so, the threats are not really different than the mean streets of Houston; feral dogs, the occasional feral hogs, and of course, feral humans.
Notably, Houston, being mostly in Harris County, is just one county west of a notorious incident in which feral hogs killed and partially consumed a woman, Christine Rollins, not long ago. (She was a home health care nurse, killed in the driveway of her elderly clients’ home.) Some folks believe that a loose, large dog may have actually killed her, but the autopsy indicated hog feeding activity. Large dog, or large hog, they kill with their mouths, so, similar threat.
https://abc13.com/christine-rollins...d-dead-animal-attack-death-wild-hogs/5716849/
At my mother’s place, in eastern Harris County, close to Houston, a feral hog, being pursued by dogs, smashed through a wall of her detached garage. So, hard-cast 180-grain ammo is indicated, when one is in the more-rural parts of Harris County, and surrounding counties.
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I have twice strongly regretted not having a handgun in the woods.
In the mid 1960s, a friend and I were hiking on Taum Sauk Mountain in Missouri. There was a terrible drought. The creek was bone dry.
We heard grunts and loud noises and saw a feral hog desperately kicking aside rocks larger than softballs to find water. We wew able to slip away. The next week, I discussed the incident with a conservation office in a local gun store. He said we had been foolhardy to go there unarmed. I thought about buying a Ruger Blackhawk in .357, but I did not have the money.
In the early 200s, my wife and I were walking the Meramec River in Franklin County, MO. This was before concealed carry was lawful. A man collecting scrap from a dump saw us, checked his knife, and came toward us. We barely escaped.
A friend of my brother who had become a conservation officer told me that the Missouri woods were very dangerous indeed. The dangers included poachers, growers of weed, cookers of meth, and men in the drug trade. I think I would mitigate those risks the same way I do the ones in town.
Some time ago, I bought a 7-shot Smith 686+ with a five inch barrel, and I had a good holster made for it. I visualized strapping it on when I ventured past where the sidewalk ends. Nope. Just fantasy.
Now, a real woods-person--one who stays out for days, and who carries a tent, food, a stove, fuel, water, and water purification equipment--will not want to carry any unnecessary weight at all. A compact polymer pistol would likely be in order.
In the mid 1960s, a friend and I were hiking on Taum Sauk Mountain in Missouri. There was a terrible drought. The creek was bone dry.
We heard grunts and loud noises and saw a feral hog desperately kicking aside rocks larger than softballs to find water. We wew able to slip away. The next week, I discussed the incident with a conservation office in a local gun store. He said we had been foolhardy to go there unarmed. I thought about buying a Ruger Blackhawk in .357, but I did not have the money.
In the early 200s, my wife and I were walking the Meramec River in Franklin County, MO. This was before concealed carry was lawful. A man collecting scrap from a dump saw us, checked his knife, and came toward us. We barely escaped.
A friend of my brother who had become a conservation officer told me that the Missouri woods were very dangerous indeed. The dangers included poachers, growers of weed, cookers of meth, and men in the drug trade. I think I would mitigate those risks the same way I do the ones in town.
Some time ago, I bought a 7-shot Smith 686+ with a five inch barrel, and I had a good holster made for it. I visualized strapping it on when I ventured past where the sidewalk ends. Nope. Just fantasy.
Now, a real woods-person--one who stays out for days, and who carries a tent, food, a stove, fuel, water, and water purification equipment--will not want to carry any unnecessary weight at all. A compact polymer pistol would likely be in order.
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