17 HMR on coyotes
- Thread starter Flatliner2506
- Start date
CalCoyote
Member
WOW. The hmr debate continues... In heaven (if we all make it) we will still probably sit around and debate this. Maybe we can ask God and settle it once and for all. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Different hunters in different regions have different needs. Out here in Calif, the only time I need to use the HMR or 22 mag is when I am hunting on public ground during deer season without a tag. Otherwise I always use the 223 or comparable cartridge. If I need less muzzle blast I can reduce my load or use Blue Dot powder and get muzzle blast very similar to the HMR.
I love my HMR and will never sell it. It is a tack driver and I shoot it regularly, but it is not my coyote gun.
Calcoyote
Different hunters in different regions have different needs. Out here in Calif, the only time I need to use the HMR or 22 mag is when I am hunting on public ground during deer season without a tag. Otherwise I always use the 223 or comparable cartridge. If I need less muzzle blast I can reduce my load or use Blue Dot powder and get muzzle blast very similar to the HMR.
I love my HMR and will never sell it. It is a tack driver and I shoot it regularly, but it is not my coyote gun.
Calcoyote
Utahcaller
Active member
CalCoyote:I love my HMR and will never sell it. It is a tack driver and I shoot it regularly, but it is not my coyote gun.
I couldn't agree more.... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
Good Hunting Chad
I couldn't agree more.... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
Good Hunting Chad
CalCoyote
Member
Quote:
I use it for spotlighting and the yotes I kill with it tend to disagree with the 17hmr haters here,they find it quite unpleasant and just as fatal as a 300 wm at 100 yards.Havnt lost a spotlight yote OR fox with it,we did loose one shot with a 22-250 last time out.If you can call them in close it shouldn't be a problem to kill them with it.
I had not read this post before I wrote mine. This one strikes me as humorous. If I were a coyote I would probably find in very unpleasant to be shot with an HMR. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
The thing I think you overlook here Nonya is your years of experience in the field hunting. You are NOT the average hunter and are going to have a cooler head in the field and probably pull off more accurate shots than the average bear. Hunters with less hunting experience may not have the same stellar results with the HMR (mileage may vary).
BTW,
Your photography posts are awesome. I do not want to hijack this thread so, please send me a PM describing some of the photo equipment you use in the field.
Calcoyote
I use it for spotlighting and the yotes I kill with it tend to disagree with the 17hmr haters here,they find it quite unpleasant and just as fatal as a 300 wm at 100 yards.Havnt lost a spotlight yote OR fox with it,we did loose one shot with a 22-250 last time out.If you can call them in close it shouldn't be a problem to kill them with it.
I had not read this post before I wrote mine. This one strikes me as humorous. If I were a coyote I would probably find in very unpleasant to be shot with an HMR. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
The thing I think you overlook here Nonya is your years of experience in the field hunting. You are NOT the average hunter and are going to have a cooler head in the field and probably pull off more accurate shots than the average bear. Hunters with less hunting experience may not have the same stellar results with the HMR (mileage may vary).
BTW,
Your photography posts are awesome. I do not want to hijack this thread so, please send me a PM describing some of the photo equipment you use in the field.
Calcoyote
huntnfish08
New member
I wonder how many coyotes have been shot this past season with a 17HMR just because of these threads? 1000?
Heres my stand on the HMR.
The Good
1.As a calling rifle it works excellent. Call them in close, and kill them without damage to fur.
2.Its quite compared to a 22-250.
3.Rimefire only areas.
4.It has become somewhat of a stepping stone rifle. Not everyone that wants to start coyote hunting has a dedicated rifle. I used my HMR for my first season. It worked. I love coyote hunting. I'm now going to use 17AH. Many will say too small(see #1).
The Bad
1.No margin for error. Bone could stop penetration.
2.Range, its NOT a 300 YARD COYOTE GUN.
3.As stated earlier, Experts cartridge.
The Ugly
1.These debates!
Heres my stand on the HMR.
The Good
1.As a calling rifle it works excellent. Call them in close, and kill them without damage to fur.
2.Its quite compared to a 22-250.
3.Rimefire only areas.
4.It has become somewhat of a stepping stone rifle. Not everyone that wants to start coyote hunting has a dedicated rifle. I used my HMR for my first season. It worked. I love coyote hunting. I'm now going to use 17AH. Many will say too small(see #1).
The Bad
1.No margin for error. Bone could stop penetration.
2.Range, its NOT a 300 YARD COYOTE GUN.
3.As stated earlier, Experts cartridge.
The Ugly
1.These debates!
I used to own a .22 Mag. If I sorted the bullets by rim thickness, it shot pretty well. But the bullet selection left a lot to be desired at the time, expansion and performance on groundhogs was spotty. I got the best terminal performance from the 34 grain Winchester Supreme hollowpoints. But, that gun was stolen and I bought a CZ 452 Varmint in.17 HMR because of the accuracy and terminal performance of the bullets used in them.
Now, it appears that some of the things learned about how to make a .17 rimfire more accurate and provide better terminal performance is being done to the .22 Mag. If I had to use a rimfire for coyote hunting, the .22 Mag shooting one of the better loads would be my preference over the .17HMR.
Now, it appears that some of the things learned about how to make a .17 rimfire more accurate and provide better terminal performance is being done to the .22 Mag. If I had to use a rimfire for coyote hunting, the .22 Mag shooting one of the better loads would be my preference over the .17HMR.
The ONLY advantage of a 17hmr over a 22mag is slightly better accuracy at say 100yds. (due to bullet design and quality) When your talking coyotes at less than 100yds (this would correspond to responsible hunting) the 1/2- 1" of accuracy does not out weigh the advatage of more power in the 22. If you compare energy there is a signifigant advantage to a 22mag. I read a very good article that contrasted these difference and have shot both rifles. Personally, if I were to be restricted to a rimfire the 22mag would be the obvious choice.
The reason I researched the difference is because I got a hold of some land in the upstate of SC that is rimfire only after dear season closes.
The reason I researched the difference is because I got a hold of some land in the upstate of SC that is rimfire only after dear season closes.
I.O.N.Doyle
New member
Quote:
This question is for anyone.........
If you were required by law to use a rimfire, why not choose the 22 Mag over the 17HMR?
Here are the answers in their simplest forms.
1) The .17hmr is the latest and greatest rimfire.
2) The .22 mag is slower. How many HMR users brag about speed and then forget about energy?
3) The HMR is arguably more acurate. But not enough to make a difference in the stand.
4) The HMR uses a sexier bullet. It is probably a well proven Internet fact now that sexy bullets are the choice among discerning coyote hunters regardless of how they work.
5) For a low dollar amount you can buy an HMR and then claim to your drinking buddies that you shoot a 17. Most will think it's a .17rem if you put it the right way.
This question is for anyone.........
If you were required by law to use a rimfire, why not choose the 22 Mag over the 17HMR?
Here are the answers in their simplest forms.
1) The .17hmr is the latest and greatest rimfire.
2) The .22 mag is slower. How many HMR users brag about speed and then forget about energy?
3) The HMR is arguably more acurate. But not enough to make a difference in the stand.
4) The HMR uses a sexier bullet. It is probably a well proven Internet fact now that sexy bullets are the choice among discerning coyote hunters regardless of how they work.
5) For a low dollar amount you can buy an HMR and then claim to your drinking buddies that you shoot a 17. Most will think it's a .17rem if you put it the right way.
Ive used both the 22 mag and the .17 HMR. If required by law to use only a rimfire, I'd choose the .17 HMR over the maggie hands down. In my experience, it just smacks them a bit harder. Im not fond of the 22 mag, generally mediocre accuracy,and the propensity to pencil thru an animal, whereas the HMR reacts more on the order of a high velocity cartridge......just smaller.
Utahcaller
Active member
If I HAD TO shoot a rimfire at coyotes I would choose the 5mm Remington Magnum HANDS DOWN....Especially with the new availablity of ammo....30 grain HP bullets at 2300+ fps. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif FWIW
Good Hunting Chad
Good Hunting Chad
Last edited:
Bayou City Boy
New member
Quote:
If I HAD TO shoot a rimfire at coyotes I would choose the 5mm Remington Magnum HANDS DOWN....Especially with the new availablity of ammo....30 grain HP bullets at 2300+ fps. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif FWIW
Good Hunting Chad
Same here....but only if I HAD to use a RF...
I own a Steve Schroeder 5MM CF conversion on a Remington 591 rifle, and with 32 grain bullets it would probably work at reasonable distances.
The old Remington 5MM RF ammo of the 1970's was a decent coyote killer at less than 100 yards, but I've never tried the new stuff on a coyote. I bought two boxes of the new Centurian ammo and shot some paper and several jack rabbits, and it was only OK at both. Accuracy was not even close to being on a par with my 5MM CF hand loads, and in the two boxes of new Centurian ammo I bought, I had 11 misfires.. According to some correspondence I've had with others, my experience with the mis-fires was not a fluke. Hopefully Centurian will get that problem fixed...
As for a 12 gauge and coyotes...where I use a shotgun in heavy cover, a 40 yard shot is totally impossible. But a 12 gauge loaded with heavy shot will very effectively kill a coyote from @ 30 yards on in.
JMO - BCB
If I HAD TO shoot a rimfire at coyotes I would choose the 5mm Remington Magnum HANDS DOWN....Especially with the new availablity of ammo....30 grain HP bullets at 2300+ fps. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif FWIW
Good Hunting Chad
Same here....but only if I HAD to use a RF...
I own a Steve Schroeder 5MM CF conversion on a Remington 591 rifle, and with 32 grain bullets it would probably work at reasonable distances.
The old Remington 5MM RF ammo of the 1970's was a decent coyote killer at less than 100 yards, but I've never tried the new stuff on a coyote. I bought two boxes of the new Centurian ammo and shot some paper and several jack rabbits, and it was only OK at both. Accuracy was not even close to being on a par with my 5MM CF hand loads, and in the two boxes of new Centurian ammo I bought, I had 11 misfires.. According to some correspondence I've had with others, my experience with the mis-fires was not a fluke. Hopefully Centurian will get that problem fixed...
As for a 12 gauge and coyotes...where I use a shotgun in heavy cover, a 40 yard shot is totally impossible. But a 12 gauge loaded with heavy shot will very effectively kill a coyote from @ 30 yards on in.
JMO - BCB
