Bullets for Small Game

Am Shooting Journal ^ | 3/29/2021 | P Massaro

[w1n1]

Top loads for Popping Winter/Spring Predators and Varmints.
With our big game seasons winding down, it's time to turn our attention to the predators in the later winter and the varmints in the spring. Where the strong, stiff premium bullets – with their bonded cores, monometal construction and partitioned cores – are the darlings of the big game world, the small-bore cartridges that best handle the furbearers and varmints are the opposite: maximum frangibility is a benefit. I enjoy hunting both coyotes and foxes in January and February here in New York, when the fur is prime, and both species are beginning their breeding seasons. We have no lack of coyotes, and as they feed on wildlife and domesticated animals equally, they are actively hunted.

Many hunters also take them as a target of opportunity during deer season, as they will often be seen cruising after deer or cleaning up gut piles, and taken with the deer rifle in hand. But for those who actively pursue coyotes and foxes, specialized rifles, cartridges and bullets are the norm. Popular centerfire cartridges for these species include the .223 Remington, .204 Ruger, .243 Winchester, .22-250 Remington and .17 Hornet, and among the rimfire cartridges, the .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, .17 HMR and .17 WSM are favorites. All of these cartridges have the energy and trajectory to cleanly take the furbearers within their eective ranges, though that range will be a bit different for each of them.

The muzzle velocities and bullet shapes will dictate sensible uses – for example, the bullet shapes and velocities of the .22 Magnum will limit its range, especially in comparison to the speedy .22250 Remington – and some of them can do double duty on deer and similarsized game. Where many deer are taken each year with the .243 Winchester, those 90 and 100 grain bullets that excel on whitetails and pronghorn antelope aren't exactly what you want to use on varmints and predators. Yes, they’ll work, but not with the same dramatic eect as that of a thin jacketed 55 grain bullet at a higher velocity from the same cartridge.

THE IDEA BEHIND the varmint and predator loads is not complex: a high-velocity bullet of frangible construction, capable of pinpoint accuracy and that delivers a whole lot of hydrostatic shock to an animal of smaller stature than their big game counterparts. These species are thin-skinned, have lighter skeletal structures and (most) have a nervous system that can be rapidly switched by that hydrostatic shock.

Some of my favorite varmint/predator bullets include the Nosler Ballistic Tip Varmint, the Speer TNT, Barnes' Varminator, Sierra's BlitzKing and MatchKing (more about that in a minute) and the Hornady V-Max. All of these have the properties any varmint/predator hunter wants, and all are capable of creating the fabled "red mist" when hunting woodchucks and prairie dogs. They all either have a polymer tip or hollowpoint design, and most oer a boattail variant for maximizing downrange energy and minimizing wind drift. Let’s take a look at them individually to get a better feel for what might work best for you. The Nosler Ballistic Tip was the first American bullet with a polymer tip, used to maintain a consistent ballistic coefficient as well as acting like a wedge to initiate expansion upon impacting the animal. Read the rest of small game bullets.

[Bob434]

Been looking at semi big bore pellet guns. These things Wil. Take down cape Buffalo, large pigs, bison, bears etc. Even the .25 cal pellet rifles can take down big bores

Best thing is they are unregulated, and you can buy them right over the net too. Ammo is cheap, sort of.

Check out some of the vids on YouTube for “big bore air rifles”, pretty powerful little guns. I never even knew they existed till this last year lol

[Bob434]

Boars I meant lol

[zek157]

For someone that has obviously never had animals, you make it sound very easy.

[zek157]

I have a 22 break barrel rifle that I shoot with round lead balls. They carry some mass. Lewis & Clark brought a Girandoni .46 air rifle on their expedition.

“ The earliest known example of the Girandoni air rifle is currently on display at Stockholm, Sweden’s Livrustkammeran Museum and dates to around 1580. Featured in fairly large calibers, these pneumatic weapons were employed by the very wealthy in hunting large game such as deer and wild boar. But around 1780 an enterprising Tyrolean gunsmith named Bartolomeo Girandoni developed a rugged new model air rifle that was soon adopted by the Austrian military. Produced in .46-caliber, the Girandoni was a quantum leap forward in weapons technology.”

[Bob434]

Thanks I’ll check tht out. Sounds like a pretty large bore air rifle. They make them as large as .50 cal. Those though need compressed air, and can only shoot around 4 shots or so before the tanks lose enough air to be effective, so there is a downside to the compressed air type for the real large bore pellet rifles. The smaller caliber ones can use smaller co2 canisters and can shoot many rounds.

I currently have a .17 caliber under barrel mechanism. It shoots about 800 fps. Some though get up around 1100 fps, mine drops off pretty quick, but can punch nearly through a 1/4 inch plywood. Enough to take down pest squirrels if needed, though the Larter Grey squirrels you gotta be precise with, not so with the larger bore pellet guns. The bigger bores though smash right through even thicker plywood,, with no problems, even the break barrel ones.

Would like to get about a .30 with a magazine that holds around 15 shots or so (or however many they hold). They run around 3-400 or s, not too bad, though they ares still air rifles, should be down around 1-250 or so imo.

[Democrat = party of treason]

I think it is interesting that I keep getting attacked for the normal boring anti hunter arguments when I did indeed, up front, say that for me this was all about an “enjoyment” of killing issue.

So you guys just go on spouting your “oh my gosh it’s an anti hunter person” replies and I’ll just ignore it.

[dfwgator]

The way I see it, it takes a lot of time and practice to become a good hunter. And if a person is going to invest that much time to become a master hunter, they’d better damn well enjoy it.

[Bob434]

Nah, you said “most hunters” in your posts,so yeah either be more careful. With the wording or not.

IF INDEED you did only mean people that have blood lost, then OK, river, you thr. Go on to insult fsr ears as being stupid for not putting their Animals in cement prisons, totally isolated from the real world, claiming that they are dumb and I guess insinuating that they are unnecessarily creating varmint and pest problems.

Yo u r arguments are all over the place. You say you mean only a narrow meaning, but then broaden it in your next arguments. You also include the term “most hunters” as well.

99.9% of hunters are good people that don’t have blood lost. There is only a very few that fall into the bad realm. You made it seem as “most hunters who enjoy hunting” are “sitting there waiting to gleefully take down animanls” that “are just trying to do nothing more than survive”

Ignore the responses if you like, but you sir are bringing the responses on yourself. You can feign innocence if you like too, but your arguments betray your claim to being just about the few hunters who might have blood lust

[dakine]

Sealioning (also spelled sea-lioning and sea lioning) is a type of trolling or harassment that consists of pursuing people with persistent requests for evidence or repeated questions, while maintaining a pretense of civility and sincerity.

[Bob434]

Sorry but your arguments are trying to make it appear as though hunters “enjoy killing” things. You also brought up the classic anti hunting argument that hunters “try to justify why they hunt and take animals”.

If you are just free essay wording how you respond, we can take that into co sideration, but really. You are bringing classic anti Hunting arguments into the conversation, and whether you rea,Rea, it or not. Perhaps you don’t, which can be excusable, you are insinuating that “most hunters” enjoy killing and “try to just it” by pointing out that it is a much needed management processs

Your words say what they say. Youve gone after both hunters and farmers in your posts.. perhaps you didn’t mean to,, but that is how you come across.. That’s why it’s important a not to word carefully.

[Bob434]

Who are you accusing of thar? I’m not demanding he do or say anything. I am simply pointing out that he is either intentionally going after hunters and farmers, or unintentionally doing so.

[Bob434]

That should rad blood lust, not lost

[zek157]

Who sells that in .30?

I would like that one.

[Bob434]

Several makers. Check out YouTube for some videos and recommendations for your price range. They do a lot of comparisons between different makes and models. I can’t recall the names right off quick. There are a couple fo highly recommended ot too expensive models.

[Bob434]

There are a few things I will defend in forums, and one is the right to not just hunt, but to not have to apologize for it as well. When someone comes on insinuating that “most hunters” like to “kill animals”, and that farmers are dumb for not “properly” securing their animals, then I take issue with that. Asking someone to be more careful with how they word things, and pointing out their contradictions isn’t sea-lioning, it is having a discussion about an issue that both sides feel passionately about. There’s no pretense here. I’m making my points, he is making his, and we ARE doing so civilly for the sake of civility. Noone is pretending anything. Not sure how you come out with such an accusztion?

[Iceclimber58]

Raised in town, no doubt.

[Bob434]

Hatsan makes a pretty good break barrel .30 cal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39R3gjG3exs

more than enough power to take down game animals, and pretty accurate too-

if you ant to go for the air cannister ones, then these FX ones seem to be pretty well in reviews

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iucATtbtfwc

Amazon actually sells a number of larger bore pellet rifles- and any number of sporting shops sell them too-

[Organic Panic]

I am out in the country. The dogs stay in a fenced yard. I have a couple packs of coyotes that cruise the ranch all night. I enjoy their singing and they, along with the resident hawks and owls, keep the ground varmints at bay. The only livestock I’ve lost to wild animals are the raccoons got in to the chickens once and some raptors ate all the trout in the pond. It’s live and let live out here.

[zek157]

Was just looking at a couple Hatsuns on Pyramid Air.

[Charles Martel]

https://topairgun.com/product/30-hatsan-blitz-semi-full-auto-pcp-air-rifle/

Now this looks like fun. Pricey, though.