Camo rifles; good idea or another sales gimmick?

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DakotaElkSlayer

New member
Decided to get into chasing 'yotes so I need a smaller caliber rifle. I see alot of camo predator rifles on the market, and I see a lot of guys dipping or painting their varmint rigs. Sure, it looks sweet, but is there any real advantage when hunting coyotes if your rifle is covered in camo? The answer will definitely help my narrow down my rifle choices.

Thanks,

Jim
 
Can't speak for coyote since I've never killed on, but my turkey gun just has a regular wooden stock and black barrel and receiver. I doubt it matters very much, especially considering an animal will probably coming in to you at least partially head on. That wouldn't provide much of a profile view of your gun
 
I think there is a definite advantage. It is less about color to me and more about making sure there are no shiny spots or reflections.

I personaly don't have any camo guns but all of my SS and black areas have camo tape on them to prevent the glare or shiny.

I do not like camo guns in general, so I buy black or SS and use a 12$ roll of camo tape to cover the areas that are a problem.

I think the overall color is most important in the snow cover that some areas have.
 
camo on anything is not necessary but i dont think it will ever hurt you. i like to paint my own because i get the pattern, tone, and overall look that i want. and im not forking over 100 extra bucks just for a $6 paint job.

sept for my R-15 that is /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
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You're right...it does look neat. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

But like has already been said...glare & reflection is the main problem that you need to combat. None of my rifles are camo, but they all have some type of black coating or are otherwise covered to prevent reflections. After all...isn't a wet tree branch in the woods black in color? Isn't the "wood" color of a stock the same color that other objects nearby when on stand? Glare, movement, and your bright shiny face will cost you more success than ANY color will.
 
My understanding of coyotes vision is that they do not see color as we do, mainly seeing black/white. I think this allows them to see movement much better than we can, as their brains do not have to process color.

I use camo Snakeskins on my coyote rifles. I think the more I blend in, the more movement I can get away with. So yes, I think it is a good idea.
 
I know this is not predator hunting but here goes.

I have a Rem. 870 that I used very hard for ducks and geese. It was the black matte/synthetic version and no matter what I would do, I couldn't keep it from rusting. (I know Remington had problems with that finish.) I used it hard for several seasons and never felt that I needed camo because I was scaring game.

I decided to upgrade and when I did, I went to a camo Stoeger 2000. I went camo for one reason...durability. Waterfowling is often done in less than desirable weather conditions, and my dog has been known to walk over and shake water all over my shotgun. I don't have any rust issues with the new gun.

bownut
 
Been hunting everything for 25 years and not once did my camo rifle make a kill. Oh wait - I don't have a camo rifle. Just make sure there's nothing shiny on it to give any reflection - just in case.

If you really need camo - don't spend the money getting it dipped - around here it's $175. Buy the kit from Cabelas for $20 and shrink it on yourself.
 
It's a great sales gimmick. Along with camo boots, cell phones and rifle slings. Buy into it if you like the look, but after 45 years of big game and coyote hunting with standard blue and wood rifles I sure don't see where it makes one whit of difference.
 
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It's a great sales gimmick. Along with camo boots, cell phones and rifle slings. Buy into it if you like the look, but after 45 years of big game and coyote hunting with standard blue and wood rifles I sure don't see where it makes one whit of difference.



+1

People been killing chit with none camo'd gear for hundreds of yrs
 
+2! I do love my camo though! You're never gonna know if you've killed 100% of the animals you've called anyway, or even always know why they hang up or bug out. That's the reason people go so far into camo, etc.-because they want every advantage. We're talking minor details though. Setups are the hardest part of this game in my opinion.
 
My Savage PH in MO Brush solves two issues: Shine and rust. The camo itself doesn't match everything but it's OK everywhere. All else being equal, I'd go with a dipped firearm if I had a choice. Besides, MO Brush is one of my favorite "colors". /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Camo looks great to the consumer, but as long as you are careful to cover any shiny spots and break up your outline, I doubt a critter could care less.
 
Coyotes and any other canine for that matter are color blind but they have a very acute sense of contrast. Meaning that if your background don't match natures they will pick you out. That has been shown in deer as well, it has somthing to do with the night vision abilities of animals that are diurnal meaning they hunt/ move around day or night. Color is just not as important to them, but contrast is. Cammo to cover shine is a great thing but it also needs to break up the outline, and it needs to blend into the background. Gloss just don't get it since in nature nothing is gloss, dull or matte finishes nothing real dark or real light since those extremes will not blend into the back ground and will cause an outline.
 
Our eyes may see a lot different than deer and yotes but
when I see a hunting bud walking thru the woods my eyes
imediately zoom in on the 3' long solid object in his hands.

In WI we can wear 50% blaze orange, we usualy pick a broken
up blaze/camo pattern. You flintch in a open treestand with
a solid blaze ornage on and deer will often look up and freeze, staring at you till you move. Camo cant hurt guns
is my guess.
 
I'm only worried about glare. just don't get a real high gloss setup. You can always use a camo sleve over the gun if you think it matters.
 


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