Deer in thick timber, hogs in the bottoms, and a lot of folks just plain like the thump. The Ruger Super Blackhawk Hunter is built for that work. It is a stainless single-action revolver in .44 Remington Magnum with a 7.5 inch barrel and a six-round cylinder.

Ruger designed the Super Blackhawk to take serious loads, and the long barrel gives you extra sight radius and velocity for hunting. The Bisley laminate grips are the real story here. The Bisley shape rides the hand differently from a standard Colt-style grip, and many shooters find it tames the recoil of heavy loads. The laminate wood is tough and handles weather.

The .44 Magnum also fires .44 Special, which makes practice cheap and gentle. Shoot Specials at the range, then load Magnums when you are in the stand. That flexibility makes it a favorite for handgun hunters, and its stainless steel shrugs off rain and the humidity of a damp morning.

Mount a scope on a revolver like this and you have a serious short-range deer rig. It ships to your FFL dealer, and you complete the background check there before taking it home.