Order online, pick up at a licensed dealer in Bandera County. Bandera calls itself the Cowboy Capital of Texas and is the county seat on the Medina River, an hour northwest of downtown San Antonio through Helotes and Pipe Creek. Dude ranches, rodeo grounds and working cattle outfits sit side by side along Texas 16.
Pick an FFL dealer near you that accepts shipped transfers and name it at checkout. We confirm their license and ship the firearm to them. Ammunition, optics and parts ship straight to your door where Texas law allows.
Texas requires no purchase permit, no registration and no state waiting period. At a licensed dealer you show photo identification, fill out ATF Form 4473 and wait for the federal NICS background check; the Department of Public Safety notes that a current Texas License to Carry may be used in place of that check when you buy a handgun. At the counter, federal law puts the floor at 18 for long guns and 21 for handguns, and Texas adds nothing to that. A private sale between two Texas residents needs no state check, though it remains an offense to hand a firearm to someone you know may not legally have one.
Dealers in these communities all work for Bandera-area buyers:
Texas has allowed license-free handgun carry since the Firearm Carry Act of 2021 took effect on September 1 of that year: an adult of 21 or older who may lawfully possess a firearm can carry a handgun, concealed or in a holster, without applying for anything. Licenses are still issued, and they are issued statewide by the Department of Public Safety rather than by any county office. Schools, courthouses, polling places during voting, secured airport areas, correctional facilities and premises that draw more than half their receipts from on-site alcohol sales remain closed to carry, and a property owner may post the signs described in Penal Code 30.06 and 30.07.
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department sets white-tailed deer seasons county by county. Archery-only season runs October 3 to November 6, 2026. The 2026-27 general season runs November 7, 2026 to January 3, 2027 in the North Zone, which takes in Bexar County and most of the Hill Country, and to January 17, 2027 in the South Zone below U.S. Highway 90. Muzzleloader and the North Zone special late season fall on January 4 to 17, 2027, with the South Zone late season January 18 to 31, 2027. Any legal firearm may be used, but rimfire ammunition of any caliber is barred for deer. Bag limits and antler rules change at the county line, so read the Bandera County page in the Outdoor Annual.
Bandera County follows the North Zone dates, November 7, 2026 to January 3, 2027, with the January 4 to 17, 2027 late season for antlerless and unbranched-antlered deer. The Hill Country State Natural Area and the steep country up the Medina River hold whitetail, axis and free-ranging aoudad.
Medina Lake spreads east of town toward Lakehills, the Hill Country State Natural Area covers rough cedar and oak ridges to the southwest, and the Sabinal canyon at Utopia and Vanderpool starts the Lost Maples country.
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: .270 Winchester | Capacity: 5
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: .450 Bushmaster | Capacity: 4
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: 6.5 Creedmoor | Capacity: 5
Ships to FFLSpringfield ArmoryCaliber: .308 Win | Capacity: 10
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: .308 Win | Capacity: 5
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: .300 Win Mag | Capacity: 4
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: .30-06 Springfield | Capacity: 5
Ships to FFLMossbergCaliber: .30-06 Springfield | Capacity: 5
Ships to FFL
Ships to FFLTaurusCapacity: 11 | Barrel Length: 3.06
Ships to FFLSmith & WessonCapacity: 8 | Barrel Length: 3.1
Ships to FFLSmith & WessonCapacity: 10 | Barrel Length: 3.1
Ships to FFLSmith & WessonCapacity: 8 | Barrel Length: 3.67
Ships to FFLTaurus
Ships to FFLCZ
Ships to FFLTaurusYes. Order here, name a licensed FFL dealer in Medina, Pipe Creek, Lakehills, Bandera or anywhere in Bandera County, and we ship the firearm to them. You fill out ATF Form 4473 at their counter and they run the background check.
No. Texas issues no purchase permit and keeps no registry. You complete Form 4473 and pass the NICS check at the licensed dealer in or near Bandera that receives your order.
There is no state waiting period. If NICS returns a proceed, the dealer can transfer the firearm the same day you walk in to collect it.
Since September 1, 2021 an adult of 21 or older who can lawfully own a firearm may carry a handgun in Texas without a license, concealed or holstered, subject to the places listed in Penal Code 46.03.
The Texas Department of Public Safety issues it for the whole state. Bandera County plays no part in the application, and the fee is the same wherever you live.
Rifles, shotguns and handguns go to a licensed dealer you name. Ammunition, optics, magazines and parts ship to your address in Texas.
Cedar brakes and oak draws keep most shots under 200 yards, so a light bolt rifle in .243, .25-06, .270, 7mm-08 or .308 with a 3-9x scope covers almost every stand in Kerr, Gillespie and Bandera counties. Rimfire ammunition may not be used on deer.
Each dealer sets its own fee, commonly $20 to $75. Call before you order to confirm the price and that they accept firearms shipped from an online store.
General information, not legal advice. Rules current as of September 2026. See our Texas gun law overview and check with Texas Department of Public Safety, Handgun Licensing or a local attorney about your own situation.