17 hmr failed on a fox???

W

walkercoonhunter

New member
ok saturday night i called up a big grey fox to about 80 yards..he sat there barking at the call and squeeks..so i figured take him with the 17..so i centered the crosshairs dot on his shoulder and BANG FLOP....he didnt do any kicking round so i didnt figure another shot would be necessary...layed the gun down and looked back up and he was running real slow down across the field..you could tell he was hurting...so i looked for him for about a hour..no find so i went back in the daylight and found a blood trail..followed it and it hit the thicket about 30 yards away and lost it..i was useing hornady balistic tips...any others have this problem? whats the best knock down ammo for fox?
 
my brother shoots the 20grn gamepoints and they hold togather better he has killed coyotes out to 100 yrds with head shots and well placed body shot hope this will help sorry you lost your fox
 
ats a shame he got away after a good shot.was thinking of getting a 17 hmr but have heared a few negatives wind penetration ect.shot a fox at 200 yards last night with ma 243 in howling wind reckon i would have strugled with a 17 hmr pleased i chose a 243.but the 17 does sound good on still days but we hardly ever get still days in scotland lol.
 
I equate the .17 Hmr to hunting with a bow. If you don't hit them in the right spot every time you will lose some. You can't take chances with a .17 any more than you can bow hunting for deer. They will both do the job if you do yours. Using a dot on a fox at 80 yards will cover up more of the target than crosshairs. You are shooting at a very small target, maybe two inches? You're normaly not shooting from a bench solid rest. Its a great cartrige, I have one and love it. Treat it like shooting a bow and things will work fine. I'm not convimced that the different bullets will make much of a difference on a fox. By the way, I believe that wind drift is related to time in flight, not bullet weight. That being said, the .17Hmr should drift less than the slower .22 Mag..
 
Of all the predators, it seem as though the fox is the biggest challenge,for hunters, in finding a proper cartridge. It always seems that the cartridges are either not enough or too much. Of course, I'm talking about stopping an animal quickly, with minimal pelt damage. I've heard about them being hit with everything, and I've been told of good and bad with each. IMHO, it appears to be one of the biggest challenges.
 
I agree with Tim Williams...I love my 17 HMR. All my reds went down real nice. They are not ruggedly constructed animals. Once you get rid of the fur their little bodies are not that tough to penetrate. I think the 17 is the best little fox caliber around but you have to hit the right area. I try to limit my shots to under 100 yds. tho. my 2cents
 
I would hazzard a guess, you didn't hit that fox where you think you did, probably high? A lung hit fox is not going anywhere but down, and the 22 mag isn't going to do it any better than the 17HMR.
 
I agree with Pecci...seems that fox are tough to find a good caliber to anchor them but cause the least pelt damage. I called in my very first red fox last monday with my new foxpro...it was getting very dark outside...6PM and I had my Savage 93/17...the headlamp I was using was not helping me...the shot was 60 yrds and I was aiming for center mass while the fox was looking directly at me...took the shot and the fox ran away...I'm not sure if I just missed him completely, but I just cannot image missing a shot at 60 yrds even though it was very dark outside...my point is that shot placement is critical with a 17 and I would like to have another opportunity to get my first fox kill before saturday when our season ends. I may end up selling my 17.
 
tim i also bow hunt and the shoulder shot is a deadly shot with the bow..i have taken that shot over the ribcage shot many times and never had a deer go more than 20-30 yrds and most went right down..if i hit the fox high in the shoulder i would have broke his back...and my dot in the scope is a target dot and dosent take up much of the fox especially on 10 power..but i cant say 100% that i hit it in the shoulder but i had a dead steady rest and was on target when i shot..but the wind was blowing pretty good...im not knocking the gun at all just wondered if there was a better bullet for it..i will keep useing it for fox but i will just be more careful where i shoot them...
 
I believe and hope the novelty of the 17 wears off soon or they are limited to barn rats and mice. A well hit grey fox (a big one is 15 or 18 pounds) walking off. No wait running off should be a BILLBOARD!!!!!!!!!! to anyone concerned with clean humane kills. I understand pelt damage concerns but pure logic should dictate that a 40gr 22 long rifle is better that a 17. The old Rem. 17 has about died because us old timers found it lacking in all respects to hunting anything bigger than praire dogs. And the wind. No explanation needed.
 
Tim williams
You have stated my feeling also on the 17 very well; they will take down a fox every time with a good chest hit. However, less then a perfect hit and he will run off and die. With no snow to track him, you may not find him. A coyote marginal hit and it can get hard to find him laying dead any time. I am going back to the 223 loaded down a little slower and a 35-grain v max. This does not always cause bad fur damage on a fox and can still knock down a coyote.
 
How many times have you heard:
"I should've shot him again, but I thought..."
"I've never seen one get away after taking a hit like that, so I just...."
"At that range I never would've thought he'd get away, after a shot like that."

You will never see me hunting predators with a .17HMR. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

You can never use too much rifle. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

I've had the same "BANG FLOP", from groundhogs that I shot at less than 50 yards with a .22 Mag. and then watch them get back up and run off. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif It's a bad feeling.

However, with the same "BANG FLOP" from a .22-250 the groundhog went to that big groundhog hole in the sky. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Good hunting, Bowhunter57
 
throw that 17 over the bank and get and get a 22 mag...lost three fox in one night with that gun...owned it for 1 week and wouldent own another 17 hmr if you gave it to me...shot 24 greys this year with 22 mag and havent lost one..
 
It seems as though even the 17HMR supporters and defenders, state that a perfect shot is needed. Why would anyone depend on a "perfect shot" or "perfect bullet placement". None of us are good enough for either, everytime. In fact, maybe even part of the time. Hunting is about stopping an animal in a humane, ethical, and responsible way.
 


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