What caliber do you like for predator/ varmint hunting?

[yeahkkyle]

The Rave is.. it's intended for the AR15 platform, so you can just swap an upper and a magazine and bada-bing you're "off to the races".

Like I'm saying though... reading directly from Hornady, they themselves stated approaching .22-250 velocities.

Then the other day, I'm in an LGS... and since I've been considering getting a second .22 cal centerfire so both my son and I can be out together for yotes, I decided to checkout a box of .22 ARC, from Hornady. Giddy I'm expecting .22-250 velocites... only to see 3050 fps? Wa Waaaa Waaaaa....

22nosler is also ar15.

 

[TheGDog]

Gonna try the Bobcat hunting again this winter
with the RAR 5.56 and some reduced loads (22 Hornet levels).
And the 22WMR on state lands.

Forgive me if this isn't you.. but could swear the way I remember it, weren't you the individual telling about how they've been pluggin away at it in terms of making the effort to get out and go Calling/eCalling... with little to nothing to show for your predator efforts soo far, in terms of seeing things actually come in to the call?

What kinda changes have you planned to implement and do differently in terms of those bobcat sets this time?

Ya know.. thought just occurred to me that you should also be going out calling all throughout the year. Because in that time, you're likely to also have a bobcat or two come-in to your calling for the yotes.

I have a spot I go to now, where a surprising number of times it's been a bobcat that manages to come to my eCaller first. The Aholes in charge currently have a Ballot Box ban in place, so we can't touch em. They the bobcats, tend to quickly make themselves scarce well ahead of when the coyotes show up. As they don't wanna get caught in his wind.

 

[TheGDog]

22nosler is also ar15.

Oh REALLY!? Good to Know! (I can see the next rabbit-hole I'll be diving down into, hehe)

 

[flathead#2]

Forgive me if this isn't you.. but could swear the way I remember it, weren't you the individual telling about how they've been pluggin away at it in terms of making the effort to get out and go Calling/eCalling... with little to nothing to show for your predator efforts soo far, in terms of seeing things actually come in to the call?

What kinda changes have you planned to implement and do differently in terms of those bobcat sets this time?

Ya know.. thought just occurred to me that you should also be going out calling all throughout the year. Because in that time, you're likely to also have a bobcat or two come-in to your calling for the yotes.

I have a spot I go to now, where a surprising number of times it's been a bobcat that manages to come to my eCaller first. The Aholes in charge currently have a Ballot Box ban in place, so we can't touch em. They the bobcats, tend to quickly make themselves scarce well ahead of when the coyotes show up. As they don't wanna get caught in his wind.

Going to try some different ground this time, 4.5 hrs away.
My state made Bobcat legal year -round but I prefer to
go during the "coldest" months and when it's NOT deer season.

 

[TheGDog]

Yeah... sometimes in the beginning, it can feel like it's just you "carpet-bombing" across new locations until you FINALLY "get a hit" and something comes in.

When it starts feeling tedious like that, just remember that it's kinda just like you ruling-out places, sorta.

imagine yourself acting like a robot and then just concentrate on knowing you made effective and well thought-out stands within the area you passed-thru... so at least that way.. you can feel good about trying a different area the next time.

Hrmm... out of curiosity.. do you ever put up trailcams in the areas you've been considering?

I'll tell ya what! They go a long way at helping you feel like you're not "just being an idiot and wasting your time" in the beginning. Cause, ya know, until you yourself lay eyes on one of them, or see good sign while you're in an area, you can get to feeling like you're wasting your time, etc. and that it's a crap shoot whether there is or isn't your intended target species to be found in there in that area. At least if your trailcams snap something, for me anyway, it furthers my resolve to make it happen. It emboldens you since you now have proof that you COULD make it happen in there!

 

[NRA4LIFE]

My dad and I had tagged out early in SE MT on mulies and a couple pronghorns one year, butchered them all up and got them to the locker plant and had 4-5 days to spare. So we set out to do some reconnoitering and came up on a huge prairie dog town. Unfortunately, the only gun we had with us was my .243 and about 50 rounds of 100 grainers. Lets just say, that was a bit overkill for the dogs. It's fun to see them fly though.

 

[RBell24]

My all time favorite was a 6mm Ackley that I shot out. I put a 16” 6mm Creed barrel on it as a replacement. It’s handy but not the laser beam that Ackley was. It would shoot 75gr Vmax in the high 3700’s and 87 Bergers in the low 3600’s to basically the same POI.

I have the itch to do a short-ish barrel 6mm PRC. Will probably do a 9 twist to shoot bullets around the 90gr weight. I know people shooting it with longer barrels and it’s devastating.

 

[ImpactoMarmoto]

I have 22-250,22-260AI, 22creedmoor, bunch of 6mms but at the end of the day my 223s get more use. Low recoil, easy on powder, I don’t cry when I lose brass, can spot shots better, and they don’t roast my barrels. When it’s hot out shooting Pdogs, I can shoot more before having to shut it down and swap guns.

 

[MtnRedy27]

.223 is what I’ve always used for coyotes but my sister recently got a .17 HMR and so far she’s really liking that gun too for small game animals.

 

[TheGDog]

.223 is what I’ve always used for coyotes but my sister recently got a .17 HMR and so far she’s really liking that gun too for small game animals.

Oh Yeah Man... .17 HMR IMO is like THEE most fun-per-dollar rifle on the market!

Using a .17 HMR to Shoot Ground Squirrels, has helped me get a lot of practice with hurrying-up and getting on target rapidly off the kwik-stix out in raw field environments.

They're freakin' AWESOME for making Rabbits do Backflips when ya headshot 'em at like 80+yds!

You're basically point of aim out to like 125yd. Only gotta remember to hold ABOVE when target 25yds and IN.

If ya can... try not to shoot Rabbits in their mid-body (guts) area with a .17 HMR though. Try for head or front shoulder region on rabbits whenever possible.

It's great for JackRabbits. Handles coyotes too. Wouldn't try pushing the distance too much on yotes though.

Furthest Ground Squirrel to date has been 104yd off the kwik stix, sittin' on a slope, reaching along the ravine side I was on.

Right after first sighting my .17 HMR in... first time took it out into the field... found a 12ga spent round, walked over and put it onto a log, then LRF'd myself 80yds away, and with the lil' kwik stix help, hit it first try!

My .17 is freaking "Surgical". Love that thing!

 

[blackwood]

I like 243 and 223. Depends how far you are shooting though.