Another 17 HMR story!!

P

pyscodog

Active member
I was watching Swamp People last night. RJ and his son (native Indians to the area) dispatched a 12' gator with a Savage rifle in 17 HMR. OMG!! Did no one tell them its not a Big Game caliber? I was thinking, they must not read the Pred. Master posts on 17 HMR's. It would be a really really cold day in HE!! before I trusted a 17 HMR to dispatch a gater!!
 
Sounds like a waste of money to me! Why spend $14 a box of 50 for ammo when Troy seems to get it done with the 500 bulk pack of 22lr? I mean they shoot them from 2 feet away...
 
I ain't seen a rifle on that show yet big enough for me to use to kill a gator with.

Heck- Terrel don't need a gun, he just catchs them suckers bare handed.
 
Last edited:
Quote:Maybe he just can't count?

Now that's a real possibility, considering he's a school teacher. lol

Seriously though, I really thought it was no more than about 125 when I shot and was fairly shocked when he said 180. Complete passthru with very little bullet expansion and very little blood on the snow. CCI 20 grain gamepoint.
 
In Louisiana, they get to use rifles and even on the rez down here in Florida they get to use a rifle, but can Florida hunters off the rez use a rifle during gator season? Nooooooooo - not even a .17HMR.

We have to horse them up to the boat or shore with hand-lines and apply a bang stick to their noggin' with a 40" pole in the dark. I'd kill to be able to use any caliber from about 10 feet or so for gator hunting.

Raptor
 
Originally Posted By: 64kodiakDoggin,

Yes, it did happen. I couldn't possibly care less if you're dismissive or just plain calling me out as a liar. I've got a witness, the guy who actually stepped off the yardage who also happens to be my brother-in-law. Maybe you're just calling HIM a liar? lol


I believe you. I have killed a number of coyotes with the 17 HMR. I have one that was my truck and 4 wheeler rifle for several years, and I know it will do the job on coyotes. With that being said, my go to rifle for coyote hunting is a 223. I would only take the 17 with me if I had nothing else, but I wouldn't feel undergunned packing it.
 
Originally Posted By: 64kodiakDoggin,

Yes, it did happen. I couldn't possibly care less if you're dismissive or just plain calling me out as a liar. I've got a witness, the guy who actually stepped off the yardage who also happens to be my brother-in-law. Maybe you're just calling HIM a liar? lol

Take a deep breath. Relax.

You finished your little story (fantasy) with this:

Originally Posted By: 64kodiak
Flame on! hehehehe

You were obviously expecting to get some comments/razzing/teasing/put downs/BS calling/other....

Let's just say I shoulda been from that *other* state. That *show me * state. Missouri? I will stop short of calling you or your bro-in-law liars. But don't hold it against me if I am *dismissive* as you called it. Try to remember, not everybody on this board was born last night or just started this predator hunting/shooting stuff last week....Carry on.

Edit to add: I am NOT saying what you describe didn't happen. I know enough, seen enough, done enough to know it very well could of happened and probably did. The distance may be off a little, blah, blah, blah. But I do believe you killed a coyote with a 17hmr at some kind of incredible friggin distance. Stuff happens. Unbelievable Stuff. Amazing stuff. You do things long enough, the more goofy stuff you have happen. lol

I could tell you some stories that would cause you and plenty of other guys on here to call BS. And I wouldn't blame you or them. Heck, I would call BS on em if I hadn't been the one doing them. lol

OK, now carry on.
 
Last edited:
Oh, I get it Doggin. Lots of BS is floating around internet hunting forums. However my 'little story' is true and is an honest account of what transpired. When I said 'flame on' I knew that my post would illicit a negative response or two, that's all.

I don't think the hmr is a great coyote gun, but certainly as capable as any 22mag, which almost never gets bashed. I also don't think you have to have a centerfire every time out. In this particular instance, we were calling in an area with several farm houses nearby and wanted to keep the noise down as the shots are usually close anyway. My usual calling gun is a Sako 75 Hunter in .17 Rem.

On a side note we also called in and killed another coyote with the hmr at the same location. Distance was about 75 yards. At the shot the yote began spinning and was dead in a few seconds. Dead is dead is dead, even with an hmr.
 
ok here is my hmr story... my pred huntin partner bought one...in one weekend he killed 3, 2 freebies, 1 called,...he called me up to throw it my face and rant about his suceess.....(i told him it wouldnt do the job adequetly) next weekend we hook up and head out, with his lil pellet gun in tow, using a long valley hand call i get 1 in close at 15 yds from me, 20 yrds from the hmr, i would have had to turn to take the shot and the dogs got me pegged, finally the hmr goes off, i saw the shock roll through his fur right behind the shoulder, my buddy drilled him, yote took off in 6th gear, i stood to try and get a follow up and watched that yote run to the next county a never skipped a beat...needles to say the hmr only shoots paper now a days, i never let my buddy hear the end of it...
 
Originally Posted By: shanedoggok here is my hmr story... my pred huntin partner bought one...in one weekend he killed 3, 2 freebies, 1 called,...he called me up to throw it my face and rant about his suceess.....(i told him it wouldnt do the job adequetly) next weekend we hook up and head out, with his lil pellet gun in tow, using a long valley hand call i get 1 in close at 15 yds from me, 20 yrds from the hmr, i would have had to turn to take the shot and the dogs got me pegged, finally the hmr goes off, i saw the shock roll through his fur right behind the shoulder, my buddy drilled him, yote took off in 6th gear, i stood to try and get a follow up and watched that yote run to the next county a never skipped a beat...needles to say the hmr only shoots paper now a days, i never let my buddy hear the end of it...

That was pretty much my experience too on the one coyote I've shot with it. I got a solid neck shot, saw a lot of fur fly and had a slight blood trail. I was lucky to have shot him at the close end of a big open harvested bean field. I watched him go alittle over a quarter mile and jump into a waterway. Thats where I found him dead...

I have had good luck on red fox with it but I will never use it on a coyote again
 
Originally Posted By: Jesse lackeyIs it "ethical" to beat a dead horse this much?

I knew a guy who burnt a dead horse. Does that count?

A 17HMR, big deal, they brain shoot them with 22s all the time.
Why wouldn't the 20gr fmj work for a brain shot?

Shayne
 
Originally Posted By: bushyyou can make a drinking game out of how many times Tommy forgets to load the gun....I would get wasted.

That there is just [beeep] funny!!

I have a quick question. In one of the past shows, Willie took some "shrapnel" from what I thought was a 22LR shot because the gator skin was so tough.

If that was the case, wouldn't the HMR be worse?

I will say, for PDs up to 150yds, the HMR really shines!
 
I've watched a bunch of those gator hunting shows where they hook the gator on a line baited with chicken and then dispatch them....From what I've seen I've drawn several conclusions....

1. Gators are apparently worth a lot of money...who knew?

2. For a big animal that can rip a human arm out of the socket, gators aren't particularly hard to kill if you hit them in the brain, which is about the size of a walnut. I think I could hit walnuts all day long at 3 feet, but the gator spinning and weaving makes that shot anything but easy.

3. Hitting the brain is more important than what gun you use...Most of the guys I see use 22s...so if anything the guy with the .17 was over gunned...LOL...

4. I wonder what is more likely to harm you on a gator hunt. The gator thrashing beside the boat or your partner shooting you in the foot or arm during all the excitement?

5. Gators really like chicken.....LOL

6. I'm thinking the best gator medicine would be a bang stick....
 
Good stuff, Cal. This is the 2nd year my buddies and I were drawn for gator. Bang stick is the only thing they'll let us use down here to take.

Bang sticks have their own drawbacks. Only 40" long without an adapter and dowel which is well within a gator's dash and grab range.

We used a .357 last year (using .44 mag this year) for our two tags. The one we got with his head in the water wasn't so bad, but the one we had pulled up on the bank a bit and we all got a face full of mud and gator brain schrapnel at the shot. It was a little startling.

We're going for bigger ones this year and hoping to keep all shots in the water.

What does this have to do with the OP's topic? Well, they won't let us use .17HMRs to hunt gator, of course.
wink.gif


Raptor
 
I love those shows...I must admit...it takes a real man to pull up a line with a 500 pound gator on the other end...You know he's not going to be happy to see you...LOL..
 
Why won't this thread die?!

Oh yeah, it's because you shot it with a .17 HMR and it's dying a slow agonizing death even though you were careful with "shot placement."
 
Guys, We have one very Stupid thread running on this topic, so I'm deleting everything in this one that doesn't actually concern the firearm itself...No hard feelings, just that one is enough..

That took the whole thread from three pages to one...
 
Last edited:
Back
Top