Handgun hunters: holster type?

I'm not a hunter, but I do carry a 6" 686 as a woods gun occasionally. I'd recommend a shoulder holster, assuming that concealment is not an issue. It doesn't have to be something fancy, I have a cheap nylon shoulder holster that does the job just fine. It gets the gun out of the way and generally places it in a better drawing position for such a long barreled gun.

I wear a belt holster for my blackhawk, but tell ya the truth, shoulder holsters are better when sittin' in a stand and such, don't bother you as much. I carry my contender in an Uncle Mike's shoulder holster, cheap and effective.

I use a western-style drop loop holster and belt. The weight of the gun is hung from the opposite hip, which balances the load. The shell loops carry extra ammo quietly and at ready access. It keeps the gunbutt at a convenient height, and my hip doesn't hurt at the end of the day. I also use a tie-down to keep it in a consistant position relative to my leg.

I use a strong side belt holster that is leather with a thumb break. I wear it at 5ish and carry an extra mag in my back pocket. If I am doing alot of walking I will wear it cross draw so it is easier to sling my long gun. I carry a 9mm here.

I carried my 7.5" SRH in an Uncle Mikes size 4 vertical shoulder holster. It was very comfortable. As others have mentioned, wearing such a large revolver on your hip gets in the way of fanny packs, tree stands and all the other various and sundry articles you pack along with you.

I have a scoped SRH. I carry it in a shoulder holster similar to the Uncle Mike's design which I bought from Cabelas. Frankly, I carry the revolver in my hand most of the time except when I'm dragging a deer out. But then, I had a small buck sneak up to me last year with my revolver laying on a rock in front of me.

My hunting rigs (nothing fancy):

6" 686 -- Strong-side Bianchi leather w/ thumb-break.
4" 57 MG -- Open-top Desantis leather "speed holster"
Glock 20 + 6" bbl -- Leather "Tanker style" military (USMC) M9 holster

The 686 generally is what gets the nod...but this year it will be the .41.

For the bigger pistols I think the chest rigs look nice. The problem with waist setups and barrels longer than 4" is they are not very comfortable when sitting, hiking really wooded areas.