Hunting Calibre??

[nangell 50]

,i use 177 and .22 and they both do the job on any legal quarry (pest), but prefer the 177,its a little easier

[ghillies 209]

i always hunt calibers at night, seems they dont runnabout so much...

[Jezza42 0]

Some great posts there guys!

As ever this topic has caused great debate, much appreciated!

Ive had my .177 huntsman for 17yrs and now i think im up for a long overdue upgrade, but was wondering wether to switch to .22 or not, or even .20 if the gun i decide to get is available in that calibre as nowadays there are a greater number of available range of pellets than when i bought my huntsman.

Cheers guys

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[Jezza42 0]

Incidently, those of you who do use .20, what ammo do you use??

 

Sorry to confuse this debate even more lol

 

Cheers guys, as always your help and advice is much appreciated! :thumbs:

 

Jezza

[goz1960 52]

177 at the moment but looking to change to 22.

[Buster321c 1,010]

177 at the moment but looking to change to 22.

 

 

Why ?

[Malt 379]

177 at the moment but looking to change to 22.

 

 

Why ?

Shame?

[Buster321c 1,010]

177 at the moment but looking to change to 22.

 

 

Why ?

Shame?

 

 

Touche`

 

[Acuspell 329]

I have used all three, but the .20 has had me won over since 1996, so I have given it a good go! I still have .177 and .22, but there is no comparison and I won't take a .177 hunting ever again - nor willanyone bring one on my land to hunt. SORRY, but that is how it is.I have seen far too many woundings with it from good riflemen - pigeons hit well, seen the feathers move at the strike through either binos if spotting for others, or through the sight and they fly off and tower later, even ferals from the cow cubicles.

 

.22 is fine, but given the additional velocity available with the .20 there is a tangible benefit of the middleweight, so much os that I now have three rifles in this calibre:

Theoben Taunus

Theoben Rapid

Daystate Huntsman (modern one).

 

I also have my old and trusty HW77 that I bought new in Exeter in 1985 and a glorious Theoben SLR, both in .22. I love using the SLR, but it is heavy and I haven't put a sling on it, so I have to force myself to hump it through the woods. Finally I have one .177 left, a proper old target Theoben Grand Prix (1986) and I have used it hunting, but the puny pellets are just too fiddly and you have to be so much more critical with shot placement that for my type of see, lift, shoot it isn't up to the job. If you can lie and use a bipod and take your time, OK, but I work on the principle that you have a maximum of 3 seconds from the time you spot the quarry to get your shot away - less with scampering squirrels.

 

I use 3 pellets in the rifles. Crossman Premiers are deadly accurate, but the same weight as .22, so the advantage is lost.

H&N Field Target Trophy have always gone well in all three of my .20 guns and are perfectly acceptablegrouping wise, this is the preferred pellet in the Huntsman.

The Taunus will shoot Bisley Superfields into the same hole at 35 yards, but also puts FTTs to the same point of aim, so I can mix and match and not know which I have shot,they shoot that much the same - useful coincidence.

The Rapid also shoots FTT perfectly, but it also likes JSB Exacts and these are a bit more efficient through that barrel (been high spotted and polished) and the slight drop in velocity at the muzzle (10fps) is nothing compared to the 2gn extra in weight - so downrange energy is significantly higher than FTT and only for a pellet diameter difference in drop at 35 yards - so I use the heavier Exacts and take the extra energy as a bonus for cheating the wind.

 

The flight path of a .20 is very close to the .177- I don't care what Chairgun or other paper/theory tables suggest, out there on targets at various ranges there is so little to choose between them I cannot understand people hampering themselves with lighter, smaller pellets. But that is just me and my land - what you do on yours is up to you.

 

WHY am I so in favour of the middleweight? For the same reason I prefer 7mm for deer, boar and plains game. It has a benefit in sectional density, the marriage of pellet weight, frontal area and length all combine to give the best mix of compromises. Where .22 and .177 have one aspect going for them (.22 better downrange energy retention, .177 less arc of flight) the .20 has almost the same flight arc as .177 in practical terms and in practise, not theory, plus it has good downrange energy, plus better wind drift characterisitcs...so several little refinments that go together to make it a very useful calibre for all round hunting, up to 30ft-lbs, then the bigger calibre takes over because you can't drive the .20 fast enough accurately to go above 30ft-lbs. It isn't as if I haven't used .177, but it just isn't good enough for me.

 

This was my Theoben Olympus in .177 -it wasn't always this easy!

 

And this was my custom Air Arms, also in .177 - a real tack driver that won many high level competitions, but not with behind the trigger! I could shoot Swan Vestas heads at 35 yards with it,but I still had plenty of flyers with it.

 

.177 is just not reliable enough for me.

[Jezza42 0]

Acuspell, thanks for your input mate, nice to speak to someone who has put time into testing all 3 calibre's

Iv'e never tried .20 because when i started shooting the ammo that was available was few and far between so i stayed away from it and started using .177 instead which stood me in good stead later on when i shot 15 yrs at FT and I've never really given .22 a proper chance either if im honest but was contemplating it now purely for hunting (sub 12ft/lb), but looking at the calibre logically .20 does seem to be the best of both worlds where trajectory and power retention are concerned.

 

ATVB

Jezza

[Jezza42 0]

Incidently guys, one of the reasons im thinking of changing calibre from my trusted .177 is a couple of weeks ago while out shooting squirrels on my permission i came across one of the furry little critters on the floor rummaging about in the leaves, 30yrds away, took aim, BANG, hits him bang in the head (On later inspection perfectly placed) and the little beggar runs about 15ft along the deck heading for his favourite tree only to give up the ghost and die as it reached the base of the tree!

On inspection my Daystate Li pellet had hit a perfect brain shot and cleanly exited the other side, almost over kill, with very little impact shocking power, and this is a gun doing 11.7ft/lbs not FAC.

Just an insite as to why im thinking of changing calibre's.

 

ATVB

Jezza

[Lewis Ste 245]

Incidently guys, one of the reasons im thinking of changing calibre from my trusted .177 is a couple of weeks ago while out shooting squirrels on my permission i came across one of the furry little critters on the floor rummaging about in the leaves, 30yrds away, took aim, BANG, hits him bang in the head (On later inspection perfectly placed) and the little beggar runs about 15ft along the deck heading for his favourite tree only to give up the ghost and die as it reached the base of the tree!

On inspection my Daystate Li pellet had hit a perfect brain shot and cleanly exited the other side, almost over kill, with very little impact shocking power, and this is a gun doing 11.7ft/lbs not FAC.

Just an insite as to why im thinking of changing calibre's.

 

ATVB

Jezza

 

Had the same problem with my last squrrel I shot with my .177 ultra. Prefect head shot bang on zero range straight through the head but when I went to pick him up after bowling over and lying still on the floor I found he needed an extra bit of encouragement by the means of a neck break.

 

Thus the reason I sold my ultra as I only hunt really and didn't feel comfortable in ITS abilities.

 

This is my first hand experience with .177

 

Lewis

[Daz 7 563]

i Shoot .177, .22, .25 and have never had any problems with either Cal, Brought up with .22 Springers and only started Using .177 Cal

about 2 yr ago, but You deffo have to hit the mark more accurately with the small cal which is only a good thing to being a better shot.

just started Using the .25 Cal and for Ultimate Kinetic energy delivery it's awesome, Wipes the floor with .22 Cal and .20 :laugh:

 

atvb Daz 7.

[Mawders 595]

Incidently guys, one of the reasons im thinking of changing calibre from my trusted .177 is a couple of weeks ago while out shooting squirrels on my permission i came across one of the furry little critters on the floor rummaging about in the leaves, 30yrds away, took aim, BANG, hits him bang in the head (On later inspection perfectly placed) and the little beggar runs about 15ft along the deck heading for his favourite tree only to give up the ghost and die as it reached the base of the tree!

On inspection my Daystate Li pellet had hit a perfect brain shot and cleanly exited the other side, almost over kill, with very little impact shocking power, and this is a gun doing 11.7ft/lbs not FAC.

Just an insite as to why im thinking of changing calibre's.

 

ATVB

Jezza

 

Had the same problem with my last squrrel I shot with my .177 ultra. Prefect head shot bang on zero range straight through the head but when I went to pick him up after bowling over and lying still on the floor I found he needed an extra bit of encouragement by the means of a neck break.

 

Thus the reason I sold my ultra as I only hunt really and didn't feel comfortable in ITS abilities.

 

This is my first hand experience with .177

 

Lewis

 

I can relate to this so well! I know someone that had to put several shots into the head of a squizer to dispatch it and that was .177

 

However do t think for one minute that .22 doesn't have it's moments! I have had squizers on one of my perms require follow up shots and left me scratching my head as to why the thing was semi alive after the most perfect head shot!

 

I think squizers are just tough as feck sometimes. Never had the same problem with maggies, rabbits or pigeons so can only assume squizers are double hard bar stewards!

 

ATB

 

Mawders

[Lewis Ste 245]

Incidently guys, one of the reasons im thinking of changing calibre from my trusted .177 is a couple of weeks ago while out shooting squirrels on my permission i came across one of the furry little critters on the floor rummaging about in the leaves, 30yrds away, took aim, BANG, hits him bang in the head (On later inspection perfectly placed) and the little beggar runs about 15ft along the deck heading for his favourite tree only to give up the ghost and die as it reached the base of the tree!

On inspection my Daystate Li pellet had hit a perfect brain shot and cleanly exited the other side, almost over kill, with very little impact shocking power, and this is a gun doing 11.7ft/lbs not FAC.

Just an insite as to why im thinking of changing calibre's.

 

ATVB

Jezza

 

Had the same problem with my last squrrel I shot with my .177 ultra. Prefect head shot bang on zero range straight through the head but when I went to pick him up after bowling over and lying still on the floor I found he needed an extra bit of encouragement by the means of a neck break.

 

Thus the reason I sold my ultra as I only hunt really and didn't feel comfortable in ITS abilities.

 

This is my first hand experience with .177

 

Lewis

 

I can relate to this so well! I know someone that had to put several shots into the head of a squizer to dispatch it and that was .177

 

However do t think for one minute that .22 doesn't have it's moments! I have had squizers on one of my perms require follow up shots and left me scratching my head as to why the thing was semi alive after the most perfect head shot!

 

I think squizers are just tough as feck sometimes. Never had the same problem with maggies, rabbits or pigeons so can only assume squizers are double hard bar stewards!

 

ATB

 

Mawders

 

I had footage of me hitting a rabbit square in the head have a little shake and trot off? If I hadn't deleted it of put it up. For hunting I don't see how anyone can dispute .22 being a better cal

 

Saying all this I have had to put a shot through the head then heart of the little fuckers to knock him of the branch, it's was my first squirrel ever and what a tuff nutter he was