Guns n Stuff

[Q9]

Quote:
How did you do that with .22? Were they in a trap or free range? Any pics? Confronting strangers with a .22, I would be careful with that... you might shoot them and make them mad.


Steve

I don't know what .22 you've been shooting

I deer hunt with one, Shot the last one in between ribs in the lung and out the other side. Deer walked about 30 feet and dropped dead. And that was my first time hunting too. It diddnt kick at all which was nice for me. I'm pretty sure its a ruger 10/22

This I have difficulty believing. You, my friend, are either an incredible shot (given the folks on here, that's quite possible), or you're thinking of the wrong gun.

I'm just trying to picture bringing down a deer with a Ruger 10/22... Now, I could see it with a Ruger Mini-Thirty, or even a Mini-14, but a 10/22? Forgive me for being a little skeptical, but I think you can see why I might require some convincing.

 

[dirtsaver]

Quote:
I don't know what .22 you've been shooting

I deer hunt with one, Shot the last one in between ribs in the lung and out the other side. Deer walked about 30 feet and dropped dead. And that was my first time hunting too. It diddnt kick at all which was nice for me. I'm pretty sure its a ruger 10/22

This I have difficulty believing. You, my friend, are either an incredible shot (given the folks on here, that's quite possible), or you're thinking of the wrong gun.

I'm just trying to picture bringing down a deer with a Ruger 10/22... Now, I could see it with a Ruger Mini-Thirty, or even a Mini-14, but a 10/22? Forgive me for being a little skeptical, but I think you can see why I might require some convincing.

Many deer have been downed with a .22LR. It is the caliber of choice for many poachers in the south where they want a firearm that is fairly quiet and also cheap in case they have to "throw it away" if a game warden shows up.

As for coyote with a .22, I have no doubt of the .22s effectiveness with a well-placed shot at proper ranges. I'm an average shooter for my area and have no reservations about carrying a Ruger 10/22 for most hunting but note that a .22LR is not legal in many states for deer. I agree that a 20gauge shotgun or a .22 mag is the best choice for most people. I do not reccommend centerfire rifles for home defense/predator control for a few reasons.

#1) the cost of ammo...as someone pointed out earlier "practice,practice,practice" and centerfire ammo is expensive so people do not practice enough with it.

#2) bullet travel. A .22LR bullet can travel over 1.5 miles with power to injure. .223,.243,.308 and their like can travel over many more miles. Think about it. Figure a 5 mile circle around your home and count the homes/people/farmsteads/roadways and livestock inside that circle. Those are the innocent your bullet may harm.

I know the Mini-14,AR-15,AK-47 and others are the "macho cool" guns and in the hands of active shooters makes a good varmit gun. The Winchester Model 70,Remington 700 and Ruger Model 77 in centerfire calibers are great guns for hunting and predator control,but again you need to do enough shooting to know the gun and it's ranges. Again, ammo costs prohibit many of us from becoming proficient with those.

Therefore.....I suggest the 20gauge with a variety of loads on hand,the .22 mag or the .22LR for most of the folks on this forum for predator control.

Larry

 

[Randy]

"Many deer have been downed with a .22LR. It is the caliber of choice for many poachers in the south where they want a firearm that is fairly quiet and also cheap in case they have to "throw it away" if a game warden shows up."


Yep.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

A .22 mag will drop them. I'd get one of them, a.410 with slugs., or even an SKS is easy to shoot & is lightweight. There are quite a few choices. May I suggest going to a gun shop & get a "hands-on" feel for them.

 

[RedReiner]

I have a Mini 14 ranch. I am not macho cool lol. I shot at a coyote today with it as a matter of fact. stalking my back yard...been hanging out a couple weeks now, and it always seems to know when I run for the rifle because it jets everytime. this time it did not see me and I stalked him back but had to run up our hill on foot to see him come out of the woods, yeah I am old so I was out of breath when I aimed, probably inhaled and pulled up but I didnt miss him by much and he did a flip and left town. best not come back. The Mini 14 is fairly light, easy to shoot. mine has a mini bi pod on it. shots 223 round and does not kick much. I shot today without ear protection and my ears didnt ring. hubby told me to open my mouth when I shot so it wouldnt pop my ears. works!!
I personally prefer a rifle over shotgun as I would like to shoot the varmint before he got close to my critters. 20 gauge he would have to be fairly close.

 

[Davaroo]

Allow me to differ with you .22 rimfire proponents.

This round offers inadequate killing power for an animal in the heavy varmint class of the coyote. We're talking a wild, wiry dog weighing an average of 30 lb. Northern coyotes are typically larger than southern subspecies, with the largest coyotes on record weighing 74¾ pounds.

Every shot you take should count, of course, but honestly - the .22 rimfire lack the punch needed to reach the vitals and cleanly dispatch an animal of this size consistently.
This includes the over rated .22 Magnum rimfire. This round is normally loaded with hollow points that rarely, if ever, perform as intended.
Yes, EXPERT shootists, poachers, "woods folk" and so on may manage to kill light and even medium game with them - heck, intrepid hunters have taken elephants with .22 LR's under the right conditions.
But there is the rub - how many of us here are skilled enough to depend on them and still guarantee the "right conditions?"
Odds are, only a few here will be persistent and savvy enough to get a clean shot at any coyote.

There is one .22 RF round that has some promise: CCI's Quick Shok, fragmented bullet. They are often hard to find, however and I would not suggest them unless you are well within 50 yards. Again, that is a tough shot to arrange consistently when it comes to Wile E. Coyote.

There is no such thing as a best coyote cartridge, but flatly put, there are some better than others. Coyotes offer a small target. Shooting at them implies some not inconsiderable skill, particularly at longer distances. One of the best ways that we can tip the odds in our favor is by using a flat shooting gun with adequate power. Modern favorites among coyote hunters are the .22-250, .223, .243, the new .204 Ruger and the .17 HMR. Frankly, I would suggest the latter is marginal if any shot may be over 100 yards.

For shooting at the longer ranges common for coyotes, or in strong winds, the .243 Winchester and 6mm Remington are top choices. They do have a moderate muzzle blast and recoil, but the wise shootist makes plans around his worse case shot. Long range and heavy winds qualify as "worse case."
There is sound logic here for using enough gun. These calibers can also do double-duty as light deer rounds, however.

The most popular caliber of all for coyotes is the .223, which represents a sort of ballistic middle ground. The .223 also has the advantage of inexpensive and widely available factory loads.

The .22 rimfire rounds are not on the list of calibers suitable for coyotes - for good reason. At the risk of offending anyone, the advice to use them widely is errant.
I strongly urge anyone who firmly intends to take coyotes with a rifle - reliably and humanely - to forgo the. .22 rim fires in favor of more proven calibers.

 

[akcharlie1960]

Looks like there's alot of weapon experts out there. Only Rufus mentioned the proximity of neighbors. Almost every weapon sugested so far will shoot a mile or more. In my humble opinion the .410 or 20 ga. will more than do the job without endangering anyone more than 150 yrds away. You don't have to be a perfect shot, and the ammo is the cheapest.

 

[dirtsaver]

Quote:
Sorry about that Red! I only meant that the mentioned firearms were "macho cool", as in they seem to be really popular with the folks that want to "play soldier" and hide in the hills or the youngsters that hang them in the back window of their 4x4 and cruise the town square. I realise many folks own them that are concientious gun owners and enthusiasts.

As for the 20gauge,I do not even see the coyote till he breaks out of the woods and that's 40 yards from the barn. At 30 yards the 20gauge with#4 shot or #3buckshot is deadly. With deer slugs I'm good out to 60-70 yards. Beyond that range the coyote is just passing thru!

Larry

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
Another good point. One assumes that if a rifle is to be used it is safe to do so.
If there are neighbors or close residents of any kind, a rifle may be a bad choice - no matter the caliber.

Under those conditions, consider trapping. No coyote is gonna stand there while you draw a bead on him. He is gonna be moving, at the first sight of YOU, and the close shot for which shotguns are known is not reliably arranged. If people are near and you fear taking the rifle shot, learn the methods to trap them and use a handgun to dispatch, once they are in hand.

Of course you could use a "shotgun trap" - which is a really effective method for dispatching rampant dogs among chickens.

 

[Turkeyrangler]

After reading all these post I have little to contribute. I own a pile of guns and all have their purpose. I guess all that I can add is pick something you can hold steady even if it's on a bipod, then shoot it until it's second nature even if it's on a bipod. When you can hit a target without even thinking about it then your ready to kill an animal and be sure where the shot is going. Beware the man who only owns one gun. He is probably really good with it. I must not be a good shot because I own a pile...but I use a bipod.