Since the dawn of man, we have been hunters. Cavemen hunted with spears, bows, and knives during medieval times, then muskets, and rifles, and after hundreds of thousands of years of evolution mankind has reached the pinnacle of technology. Hunting with bows again. Yup.

But seriously, hunting has evolved from the Paleolithic era to far more advanced and efficient ways of hunting. From gear and gadgets to guides and guns, it’s much more than just survival now.

But this isn’t a history lesson, you’re here to learn about basic hunting weapons. Here you’ll learn about all weapon types, styles, uses, mods, and more to get you started with hunting weapon education.

Always Obey Current Hunting Laws

Before you start educating yourself on hunting weaponry and practices, you should be aware of the laws in accordance with the state you live in. If you’re using common weapons during the right hunting season, then you’re usually in the clear. But ALWAYS check the local law before you plan, purchase, and pull the trigger.

The Types of Hunting Weapons

The types of hunting weapons vary greatly. What you choose will depend on what animal you’re hunting, price, feel, hunting season, strategy, or just what you prefer.

Starting with a more quiet option, a beginner’s choice might be a slingshot. It might seem like a child’s toy that’s ineffective for serious hunting. But it depends on what you’re using and what you’re hunting.

Slingshot

Nowadays, slingshots can be quite deadly. Like the pocket shot that can shoot both pellets and arrows. Or an upgraded version of the classic slingshot. It can be a great starting weapon for a teenager or beginner. But remember, it is still a weapon.

A slingshot is lightweight and portable. There’s almost no load time and you don’t have to clean them. Also, they’re very affordable. This is great as a lightweight weapon if you’re trekking long distances or trying to stay as quiet as possible.

The downside is that it’s a manual load, one-by-one, and there’s no scope so aiming is by eyeball. It’s also simplistic. If you happen to run out of ammo, just pick up a pebble nearby.

Traditional Bow

Century-old hunters used it, Robin Hood used it, and it’s still a trusted weapon of choice for its efficiency and stealth. Arrows are also diversified. Choose from a selection of wood, carbon, or aluminum shafts and bullet, grabbing, or broadhead arrowheads…and much more.

It’s also a great beginner weapon as it doesn’t have all the extra features like a compound bow. Not to mention the learning curve is quite low. With a good grip notch an arrow, pull, aim, and release.

There are also different sizes like the short bow, regular bow, and longbow. Most hunters use a normal bow for its size and reliability. Other types of bows are recurve bows, reflex bows, and composite bows.

With a traditional bow, a hunter can quietly travel long distances with just a small quiver of arrows for a successful hunt. However, no scope and minimal distance means your shots better count.

Compound Bow

An upgraded, enhanced version of the traditional bow. A compound bow is tightly round-up with mechanical pulleys so your shots go further and faster. It’s a nice upgrade to have that makes your big game hunts easier.

Compound bows also have the ability to modify. Like adding a scope, grip, triggered release, fletching, or stabilizer. All these mods can definitely help in your shooting ability, but just like all upgrades they come with a price.

The maintenance is a much higher step up from traditional bows. There are more parts, the string system, and depending on what mods you have on it could be an entire afternoon fixing and cleaning.

Compound bows are also heavier and bulkier than traditional bows. So you’re trading exactness for price.

Crossbow

The next step would be a crossbow. A bow-like weapon with a relatively easy loading time, more power, and much more distance. Mounted with a scope it can be a highly efficient weapon. Crossbows are loaded with bolts which also come in various types.

There’s a lot more mechanics involved with a crossbow than a compound bow. So maintenance involves a lot more. If that’s not a big deal to you, they might be the best alternative.

They are preloaded. So in the field, loading aiming, and firing can all be done in one fluid motion. The muscle strain is also drastically reduced. It’s simply squeezing the trigger.

With advanced tech and high-end manufacturers, crossbows are on the higher end of hunting weapon purchases.

Airsoft

Another option for beginner hunters or small-game, covert hunting is airsoft guns. Their ammo is simplistic and power is enough to put down a rabbit, squirrel, or small bird. They’ve also evolved quite a bit from just shooting your eye out.

They’re similar in look and price to some gunpowder-spitting guns. Easy to load, easy to learn, and easy to fire.

Muzzleloader

Another long-time used weapon for war and hunting. A muzzleloader has a primitive and primal feel to it. Yes, they are slower on the load time but much more satisfying on the kill shot.

More and more hunters are appreciating the challenge and skill of using a muzzleloader. There’s also the benefit of longer hunting seasons with them. Prices can vary depending on the make and model.

Handgun

Hunting with pistols isn’t usually the preferred choice. But they can be life savers depending on what you’re hunting and how you’re hunting. For instance, if you’re spot-n-stalking wild boar with a bow you’ll eventually get close enough for one to charge. In that case, it might be smart to have a quick self-defense backup.

Handguns are extremely portable, and lightweight, with a wide selection of types and ammo. Choose a .357 revolver that packs a punch but with minimal capacity, or a Glock 19 that’s not as strong but can fire 15 rounds in a few seconds.

Other than a semi-auto, handguns can have the most parts to keep maintained. However, their ability to conceal, and be used for hunting or home defense makes them highly versatile.

Rifle

A hunter’s go-to, the rifle. They are powerful, long-range, and accurate. Depending on your caliber, you can use them to hunt any game. The choices of types of ammo and accessories are vast.

For small game, a .22 LR (long range) will do. While a .308 will do for bears and elk. Then there’s 80, 100, 120 grain and more. That’s just for your cartridge choices. Other mods can add up quickly (extended clip, bipod, strap, scope, silencer, case, and more).

If you’re planning on switching from bow or shotgun there’s a learning curve involved. They shoot farther, kick harder, and require aiming up (no hip firing).

Shotgun

Bird shooting, turkey hunting, and other small game are usually hunted with shotguns. It can be buckshot or slugs, but the effect is the same…massive area damage. Hunting with a shotgun is a different kind of hunt. You’re not looking for precision and accuracy in your kill shot. You want to spot your prey and maximize your shooting radius for better results.

As far as selection, there’s single-barrel, double-barrel, pistol grip, and sawed-off, then there’s break-action, lever-action, pump-action, and more which we will discuss below.

Although the area of damage helps in hunting certain species there are some drawbacks. Like round and capacity is limited. They’re heavier, bulkier, louder, and with a shorter range. But the trade-off is power, simplicity, and easy cleaning.

Semi-Automatic

Last on the list are semi-automatics. A very popular choice among boar hunters. They double as fast a rate of fire or rifle ability. If you’re hunting packs of game or single-shot kill shots a semi-auto rifle can serve both purposes.

These rifles can come with a lot of perks and a lot of uses. Like the AR-15 that’s a great firearm for hunting (packs, spot-n-stalk, long-range), home defense, target practice, or just looking badass. It also has the most options for modifications. Scopes, grips, triggers, extended mags, barrels, stocks, muzzles, and so much more.

On the downside, they can be bulky and have poor accuracy.

Hunting Weapon Actions

Now that you have a better, or clearer, understanding of the different kinds of hunting weapons you should also know the types of firing actions. Every hunter is different and every hunter has their own preferred method of hunting.

Maybe you like sitting quietly in a tree and patiently waiting for your prey, and you want to be as silent as possible. A bow would be a great choice for that.

Or you might be a wild boar night hunter where your goal is to eliminate as many as possible. Then you might prefer a semi-automatic like an AR-15.

This is why it’s good to know your action types. These are manual (revolver), single-shot (muzzleloader), multi-barrel (double-barrel shotgun), bolt-action (hunting rifle), lever-action (Winchester Repeater), pump-action (shotgun, and semi-automatic (AR-15)