.22lr or shotgun?


Jump shooting rabbits or behind dogs is basically a shotgun game. I have found a 20 ga. to be all I need. I have used a 12 ga. quite a bit, but the 20 just works for me, especially if the rabbits are a bit closer.

For squirrel hunting, I use both a shotgun and rimfire, depending on the time of year I hunt. In "cutting season" when the foliage is still on, I use a shotgun, but in the winter months when the leaves are gone, a 22 is plum nice.

I think it's good to use both since it gives a bit of variety to the hunts.
 
this year will be a Benjamin marauder in 22 mostly. plenty of range and power for bunnies, plus way nicer to use around houses and livestock as you don't have to be near as worried about richocets, or the pellet traveling too far.
 
In general, 20 ga shotgun with IC or SK2 and 6's. However, if i know there are a lot sitting out in the open in the early morning I will use a rifle. This is usually in the summer from july till deer opens. By then all the dumb bunnies have gotten smart or been eaten and I don't see them sitting out. If its behind my beagle, always a shotgun. I don't run the beagle when its hot in the summer.
 
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I tried using my CZ .22 Bolt-action Rifle but there's too much leaves on the tree's and head shots at Squirrels high up in a mature tree is tough for this Old Guy.I started using my old Mossberg bolt action 20 Gauge Shotgun and the Squirrels have been dropping for me very well....had some trouble ejecting the cheaper shells that I switch to using and got a lot of ribbing from my Hunting Partner about using an old wore out Gun that was probably made in the 1940-50's.
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My Buddy is using a new Over and Under 12 Gauge and it really reaches out well for those Squirrels that stay high up in the trees and behind the cover of thick leaves.I started looking at a few nice Used Shotguns but after a few months of debate I found a very nice Brand New Remington 870 Pump 20 Gauge on Sale that shoots great and reaches out further than My Antique Mossberg!
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Small game for me means relaxing and having fun. I pick the gun more so than the caliber or gauge. Other than actual purpose driven practical decisions I choose the gun simply because it's the one I want to take to the woods. I do have a couple of sentimental favorites though.

The first is my old Marlin M39A .22 LR with a Williams aperture sight. It doesn't have a high power scope, the trigger isn't target grade crisp and light. Whatever it isn't, it is a pure killer in the woods.



When something bigger comes around, it's still good to go. I killed a double of these dudes last winter with the old M39. They came to some ultra smooth lip squeaking and hung around too long. One did crawl into a huge log pile in a clear cut and I couldn't fish him out for the picture.


The other sentimental fav is the Belgian Auto Five Twenty .20 gauge. My dads favorite shotgun was a Sweet Sixteen. I grew up watching dad kill about everything that walks, hops, runs, crawls, climbs, leaps, bounds, flys or swims in the Ozark's with his. I like mine... a lot. A double on the first shots fired while hunting.









 
That's a great picture! A perfect pairing. In my youth it was a small pack of beagles. Grandpa and Dad loved to run those bunnies.
 
For squirrels

Leafs on early season: rem 870 or dad's old browning 16

Leafs off late season: browning BAR 22LR

We always took shotguns out for rabbits.
 
I prefer the .22lr but in Illinois we have to use a shotgun on state and county owned ground. So I took the ole shotgun for a walk this morning to clean up for deer season.
 
I like to be sporting about it....I use a Magnum Research BFR for hare in front of my pack of beagles
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I bought one years ago and absolutely love it, once I got over the price it was all win.
 
Bill,
What is the daily limit on squirrels in Illinois? Ours is ten per daily limit now in Missouri. Was six for many many years.
 
Josie great pic. I might break out my 16ga this year. It's never been shot. I bought it the day my best friend passed. Been almost 8 years. Planned on giving it to my son he was 4 months old at the time. It's a bps with the straight or English stock.
 
I prefer my 20ga H&R Single Shot. The ares I hunt are overgrown enough that if you miss, you won't get a second shot, and it's light enough to carry all day. The ammo doesn't weigh very much or take up much space.
 
Originally Posted By: GCBill,
What is the daily limit on squirrels in Illinois? Ours is ten per daily limit now in Missouri. Was six for many many years.


5 is the daily limit. Possession limit is 10.
 

I dont think that air guns are silly at all I love hunting with them ....here is a pic from last week with my newest rifle (FX Independence.22 cal) it shoots better then any of the .22 rimfire rifles I have owned and its very quiet and the cost of ammo is way less!
Jonathan
 
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