What about the old talk we used to hear when someone says
'which gun for coyotes?' Then the reply was always 'whatever gun is in your hands' bhwaa ha ha ha. All jokin aside /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif...its like this.
.243 pretty much good for all shot opportunities even ones we might call poor opportunities like a shoulder hit etc. as its got enough power to get it done anyhow.
.223 with heavy more penetrating type bullets to better deal with shoulders so your not limited to any shot opportunities that may come your way....or
.223 with frangible prairie dog bullets placed into the kill zone, still most opportunities available
.17 hmr, need to place into the vitals like the .223 with frangible bullets, don't do shoulders etc. and range is limited, one could say the .223 has a limited range compared to the .243 also...or how bout the...
Shotgun, hmmmm, range is super limited, wanna keep the pattern in the front end, opportunities here limited and best suited to thick cover where moving shots in brush are a reality. This is very limited for me cause i simply hunt mostly open country so i stick to weapons more suited to such. I also hunt some 100 yrd rolling hill acreage country type stuff and have a common range of them called in fromj 40 to 100ish yrds where the dang .17 hmr has been the best tool, its still open country. Or what about the...
Bow and Arrow?...the ole sharpstick?...how many opportunities does this weapon limit you to on coyotes? Virtually none in comparison to the others. If you want to kill the most coyotes you see then get a .243, it will prolly serve one best. If you only have thick bruck cover stuff to hunt and its fast etc. then get a shotgun. If you have to be real quiet, or limited by law, or safe due to neighbors etc. and the terrain/style of hunting suites then get a magnum rimfire.
They all kill. Personally i want to have all of them. Oh, i do. Still haven't nailed one with the shotgun or bow yet but someday. Haven't tried to hard for it either. Having to much fun, and success, with my .243 and .17 hmr, as i use them both properly and stick to my limits. Absolutely no different than any other guy with any other weapon for any other game. No different. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Negatory good buddy. Uh Uh. Nope. No different.
What a boring world it would be if we all had to do it the same way because one guy said this is the only way. A .22-250 is the only thing you should use and this is exactly where to aim and exactly what range and exactly how to zero it etc. etc. I'm glad we can choose all these different ways to hunt these animals and we get to choose all these different tools etc.
I would love to take em with a crossbow. I think that would be alot of fun and quite a bit more successful than with a bow as you wouldn't have to draw when they came in. Would work well but have limits, just like a regular bow, a shotgun, or a .17 hmr...etc. etc. The one i think people would kill the least amount with would be the bow, then the crossbow, then the shotgun, then the .17 hmr, then the .223 and then the .243....you get my point.
What makes the .17 hmr the black sheep there? Why? They kill coyotes just fine, so does a bow, so does a shotgun. Why is there a perception it is a massive wounding thing? Because people didn't understand how to use it at first? Has that happened before? Savage 250-3000(22 high power) comes to mind. Yeah, it worked if you used it right but....same thing with this thing. Nobody is professing it to be an allround do it all coyote cartridge...we are professing it to work very good in certain applications/ranges etc.....because its true.
How many coyotes wounded by centerfire from folks just blastin away at runnin dogs? How many wounded by shotgunners not in the know about loads, patterning, range etc.? How many with rimfire magnums? Its all the same thing. If you don't know how to use it properly, understand its limitations and your own limitations with the weapon/cartridge etc., then your prolly gonna wound stuff. However, if you do know what your doing then you kill stuff, simple as that.
I think its pretty funny that folks still get all wound up about topics like these. No different than the 'don't hunt coyotes when denning' topics etc. It still doesn't change the facts. Doesn't change the dead coyotes and the many to come. I not just defending the .17 hmr, i could care what people think about it, i'm merely trying to help educate it properly. Just like i would help someone understand how to better hunt deer with a bow...quit lobbin arrows at deer at 70 yrds for cryin outloud kid and you'll prolly kill one, lol, you get the point. I'm still gonna use the round. I just tried to give my experiences to help educate etc. I tried to lay it down unbiased and just present the facts as i experienced them.
These sorts of threads etc. will never change my mind about the round and its abilities, or what we all know are...lack of abilities as compared to say a .22 centerfire, but it works great. I would be using a .22 if thats all that was available to me for some of these applications where centerfire of any sort is a no no(including shotguns) due to noise etc. I just have to bring em in closer. I would use the .22 mag if thats all that was around. I feel this .17 is better though and man what an accurate little round, its a blast to own and shoot also...certainly builds confidence when you see those groups at 100 yrds. Amazing. Anyhow, i would use a crossbow if the noise of rimfire was going to be too much hassle and quarters were really tight...and i'd kill with it...i'd figure it out...just like anyone does, with any weapon.
.17 hmr is not a bad word folks, i have nothing but good to say about it, just use it properly and its easy to say good things about it.
Schools out..... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif, ha, this oughta stir up a hornets nest, not intentional mind you...its all true and we all know it to be true. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
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