What's your choice of handgun for coyotes?

bowhunter57

bowhunter57

Well-known member
I've hunted nearly everything with a handgun and would like to take on the challenge of hunting coyotes.

What's your choice of caliber and type of action in a handgun, for coyote hunting?

Thank you, Bowhunter57
 
never considered it until about a week ago when I remembered I had my dads 25+ year old Thompson Contender.....the barrels I have now are Remington 35 14", 22LR 10", 30-30 Winchester 10" & 7mm TCU 10".........think I'm gonna get a threaded .223 barrel 10" & keep my ammo choice simple for coyotes to match my rifle & use my Omega suppressor.......has a 25+ year old Leupold M8 2x Gold ring scope I just had a new cross hairs put in three months ago under warranty....just something I been thinking about for my tree stand adventures.......Good Luck!!!!
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IMG_0598 by Stephen Reid, on Flickr
 
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I'm hoping to get away from carrying a shotgun AND a rifle, when I'm hunting coyotes. Just a thought, but perhaps a Beretta or Taurus 9mm with a holographic sight. Easier to carry, good for close range (inside 50 yards) and a 147 gr. hollow point would get the job done.

However, I'm open to other suggestions of other pistol brands.
Bowhunter57
 
Have killed a few with 44 mag Super Redhawk including killing two when a group of three came in. Think they were about as surprised as I was but did prove it's never wise to hang around when someone is shooting. If I was going specifically for coyotes I would probably carry my 30-30AI contender with 125 grain Ballistic Tips. Easy recoil and plenty of range where I usually hunt.
 
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Time to fess up. The Blaster and I have had our share of run ins with coyotes that involved pistols over the years. The only way to describe what happened would be to compare it to stand up comedy. Lots of shooting and not much hitting going on. That is if you don't count ears and such other anatomy. Pretty pathetic. So pathetic in fact that we made a deal not to ever talk about it again.
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Originally Posted By: BangPopThe Blaster and I have had our share of run ins with coyotes that involved pistols over the years. The only way to describe what happened would be to compare it to stand up comedy. Lots of shooting and not much hitting going on.

I had one such incident, this past December, when a coyote popped up outta no where, during the Deer Gun Season. I swung my 1895 Marlin Cowboy and zipped a 45-70 slug past him...only to grazed his hide and watch him turn on the jets. No excuses, but it's the only open sight rifle I own and I've since installed a 3x9 Nikon.
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I would consider a 1911 style Rock Island Armory 10mm, for the task.

Bowhunter57
 
We decided, after a long discussion, that we needed to get to be better shooters with those pistols or cut the distance we shoot them in half. I think it worked out that we needed to go from 5 yards down to 2.5 yards.
 
7.62x25 Tokarev is what I shoot. I've only killed two coyotes with it but it sure did the job on them. Probably one of the best shots I've ever made with a pistol on the 2nd coyote I shot.

I'd imagine a 9mm would get the job done as well. If they keep running after the first hit just keep shootin like you would with a rifle or shotgun. Break them down until they can't go nowhere. Use what you shoot the best. A good hit with a .380 would be better than a bad hit with a .45acp. On a moving coyote it might not hurt to have something with a lot of bullets in it. All I had in mine was 7 rounds and just happened to hit the 2nd coyote I killed on the run on the first shot which was pure luck. I also got lucky and got a head shot on both to put them down for good using ball rounds. I shouldn't have even been shooting that ammo at a coyote if truth be told.

A 9mm loaded up with hollowpoints will kill one in a hurry. I have no doubt about that.
 
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I used a 223rem in a encore pistol with a 2x simmons pistol scope. the 2x simmons pistol scope had a shorter eye relief and I did not have to extend the pistol out so far. with 50gr hornady sp it was good at face on shots while calling. now since I don't go out as much any more and a rifle is what is used. spike
 
On the wet side of the state most of the shots are real close due to way too much brush. Usually I use a 17, or 223 bolt gun to hunt, but there is a six foot eight inch cougar rug on my wall that was with in six feet of me when I busted it. sense then there is a 1911 45 in my lap when ever calling. I've had one other hit I was pretty sure was a bob cat or a lion, but never saw it. Night hunting here can get real exciting with big cats and bears in the warmer seasons that can show up at any time. They are more apt to show up at night though. I've taken three coyotes with the 45. Half inch hole in half inch hole out DRT.
 

The late great Jim Dougherty has a chapter in his varmint hunter's digest dedicated to handgun hunting. Lets see if I can get an image to work.

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I carry a Kel Tec PMR 30 in a chest holster. It is very light, and has plenty of knock down power for close shots. I carried a .40 cal XDM for years, but got tired of the extra weight.
 


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