17HMR and bobcats??

Trapper Luke

New member
Well fellers wat do you think of the combo? Havent actually shot one myself but from what I've read and been told bobcats dont take a whole lot to take down. Being able to bring in 300 bucks makes me wana make sure Im as fur friendly as possible. Going to be shooting 20gr XTP bullets and will only take shots with the HMR that are under 100 yards. Anything past that Ill take a chance on the fur damage and shot with my 204. Would rather have an ethecial kill maybe lose a little money than wound one and just have it run of and never be found.

Thanks,
Luke
 
Yeah popcorn! That said I have not seen (not an opinion but SEEN) any issue with a HMR for bobcats. PM is HMR unfriendly lol.

Seriously, I'm not trying to make any HMR converts or a new fan club here as you should shoot what you feel comfortable with. That said, if you have a HMR, bring it with you the next time you Yote hunt. After you kill the yote with what ever it is you hunt with (probably not the HMR. Get out your HMR with a TNT 17 and a FMJ and some 20gr HP and or vmax and shoot the now dead yote at 100 yards or so. After each shot go take a look and draw your own conclusions of what the HMR is capable of after that. I personally am amazed of what they can do. It really makes no sense to me that they do what they do.
 
I tried the hmr for predators one time. Red fox, 15-30 yards, no exact distance just close range. I know the first shot was a solid boiler room hit. 2nd was iffy may have hit may have not. I found very little blood and never found the fox. Not using fmj's either, 20gr hp.

Like said, use what you wish but for me the hmr only goes out for the rodents.
 

Head shots should work well within a reasonable range, and with a heavier bullet like a 20 gr. CCI Game Point, but you can't always rely on making head shots under hunting situations.

We shot groundhogs this past summer with rimfires, mainly the .17 HMR and .22 mag. Hogs that were head shot with the HMR went down on the spot. Body shots even with the .22 mag. had several runners.

My experience with bobcats has been that even well-placed shots from a .223 and a 6x45 doesn't always anchor them. I've had them shot completely through the vitals and still run like they hadn't been touched, requiring some very slow and deliberate tracking to recover them.

Bobcats are tough critters to drop on the spot. I would suggest choosing a larger round for cats.
 
If I had one settin there staring at me from 50 yards or closer and all I had was my .17HMR I'd go for it.I'm pretty confident that a good solid headshot from a 17gr. V-Max would drop it like a bad habit.I've killed plenty of feral cats with my .17HMR so I'd like to think I could make a good headshot on a bobcat with the same gun if I had the opportunity.

Having said that I wouldn'go out and call in a bobcat and shoot it with my .17HMR because I'm not confident that it would fall over dead afterwards.The reason for that is because I've seen one take a hit in the chest from a 55gr.HP out of a .223 and after it got thumped it got me all worried because I thought I missed.Luckily it just wanted to run 10 yards into some thick stuff before it died.So I'm thinkin the .204 would be the better choice.If everything goes right the only difference is that it will kill them deader than a hammer and leave a slightly larger entry wound.
 
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Alot of people it seems WANT to go after animals with the HMR. I don't get it. Although is a good caliber and has killed many critters. I feel its marginal at best. I wouldn't carry it primarily. That little bullet leaves alot of room for error. If I had to go small it would be a fireball or a hornet...just my 2 cents.

-FIREBALL
 
Well hmm see the original plan was to be taking a shotgun down to AZ but I couldnt get one in time (Leaving in a week and had to special order it) I was plannin on using it for any critter that came within range. Since I wont be gettin it and not so sure bout the HMR now I might just have to stick with the 204 and do a little sewing.

Where I'm goin there is alot of grey fox in the area too. What do you guys think bout shootin a grey fox with said HMR?
 
i shot a couple of fox with an HMR last week; one at about 75 and the other around 125. i didnt recover the first which really surprised me. the second had run 25 yds before expiring. there was zero expansion and the exit wound was a pinhole (right behind the shoulder). i thought they'd open right up on something that small. then i shot a coyote pup at about 75 yds in the neck. he went down drt. NO, i do not shoot the hmr often (my first and last time on fox) but wanted to try it out. maybe it was the bullets i shot?
 
I've never shot one with it, but back in the 1960s all my Dad would bobcat hunt with was a 22lr. Even a gut shot cat wouldn't go 30 yards. I think (that's dangerous) that the slow moving projectile may be an advantage on a cat.

Shayne
 
Originally Posted By: yotehunter57 I've never shot one with it, but back in the 1960s all my Dad would bobcat hunt with was a 22lr. Even a gut shot cat wouldn't go 30 yards. I think (that's dangerous) that the slow moving projectile may be an advantage on a cat.

Shayne

I've seen feral cats shot with a 22 lr. Even lung shot they'ed go more than 30 yards sometimes. Cats are tougher than people give them credit. Problem is not so much killing power of 22lr or 17 hmr,but lack of a blood trail on run offs.

I've killed more critters with a HMR than some peope could dream of killing. I wouldn't use it on bcats.

 
Originally Posted By: Trapper Luke Anything past that Ill take a chance on the fur damage and shot with my 204. Thanks,
Luke

You're gonna carry an HMR and a .204?
 
I have killed a coyote with my .17HMR. We were out shooting prairie dogs and when we pulled up there was a coyote there. I shot him in the head at 75 yards. I have shot many a prairie dog with a .17HMR and watched them take a solid hit to the body and run back into a hole. I wouldn't use a .17HMR for anything but small game!
 

The good thing about the HMR is that it is generally a very accurate cartridge, making head shots relatively easy on stationary targets.

Groundhogs generally are sitting near a den and not moving, so taking time for a steady shot is not much of a problem, and scoring head shots even past 100 yards is relatively easy. The HMR really shinned this past summer in the groundhog fields with head shots. We had one body shot last summer on a groundhog and it got into the den.

I love the HMR cartridge for crows too.

Predator calling is yet a different ballgame, especially with gray fox and coyotes. It seems that both are nervous and don't stay still very long, so getting a good head shot may not be easy.

Bobcats can be more stealthy and slow in responding to the call, so I can see that a head shot (if you have a good shooting rest) could be possible. A lot of self discipline would be needed to make the right shot with an HMR. I've also had bobcats come running in to the call and moving a lot.

Predator hunting is just different from one set to another and nothing is certain. I wouldn't want to chance letting a bobcat get away because I couldn't get a good head shot, or worse yet, wounding it and never recovering it.


 


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