Wolf Hunting Rifle/Cal.
- Thread starter RT
- Start date
Actually it was in the space of about five minutes...we got five total. Not a big story. We were moose hunting and my buddy shot at a distant wolf with 300WM and we walked down opposite sides of a small water body to see if we could find it. I blundered into a pack of wolves that were coming toward me. I shot the first, reloaded and shot the second. My buddy ran over to see what all the shooting was about and shot another with his 300WM. Then we went to look for a wolf my buddy had shot at originally and I got the third. He got the other one that was with mine. I suspect we could have got a few more if we'd gone after the pack but we had a lot of skinning to do at that point. Once you split the pack up a bit they seem to become easy pickings sometimes, especially the youngsters. I had another mass murder on wolves another time with my .338. Got four in that group. They came in to a moose call.
Last edited:
I don't think three wolves with an ML in 5 minutes is "not a big story." I have never taken three in one location with centerfire rifles and every double was the result of a longish shot at a rapidly retreating second wolf... I'd be thrilled with a triple...
In both cases of the close up multiples....some youngsters were involved. These were pretty remote locations too....so perhaps they weren't as afraid of man as they should have been. Nothing I did other than being in the right place at the right time and reloading rapidly.
I'd be thrilled if I could harvest an animal with shot one and be able to reload the ml twice in that time frame. ... let alone actually shoot something at a distance. ...
But back to op.... as stated many times.... use a 243 minimum and a quparterbore if you can...
I'd be thrilled if I could harvest an animal with shot one and be able to reload the ml twice in that time frame. ... let alone actually shoot something at a distance. ...
But back to op.... as stated many times.... use a 243 minimum and a quparterbore if you can...
... And hitting what you were aiming at...
So are you recommending the ML for the OP??? It seems to work...
It was kind of one of those what I had in my hands at the time scenarios. An AR15 would have been ideal!
Why would you zero at 50 yards if you would be shooting 200? Also the sks in capable hands will kill wolves within 200 yards. Maybe you don't like the sks rifle but the 7.62x39 is definetly a capable round.
Also if you zero the gun for this round at 20 yards it will be zero at 200. peak poi is roughly 3.41 inches at 110 yards.
Why would anyone shoot at a running animal if they can't make the shot to begin with, know your limits and hunt within them.
Would i use this round, sure. I would only recommend using it for game within 125 yards though. I'm not a huge fan of the trajectory past 100yards.
I was just making a point in regards to the trajectory of the round.... not telling someone where to zero it for wolf hunting as I wouldn't reccomend yusing it for that purpose....
I do not disagree with you in that at 125 yards if you get the round on target it will do the job.... but the OP isn;t asking if an SKS or a 7.62 x 39 would be good to use on wolves... he is asking what is a good wolf cartridge....
While you are correct in that knowing your limits and hunting within them are smart decisions and will get the job done the OP is asking what a good wolf cartridge is and a good wolf cartridge is not one that has as many limits as you are describing.... A good wolf cartridge is a solid flat shooter past 200 yards.... and a good wolf rifle is one that is accurate out that far.....
It's not about whether I like an SKS or not... The fact is every time someone comes on here and asks what a good platform is for species X someone inevitably comes in and says an SKS will do the trick if the sun moon and stars align and the wind is from the northwest at 10 km an hour or less.... For a platform to be "good" means that it is stable and reliable and will handle the task in a regular hunting situation without limits that other calibers face due to not being suitable at prescribed ranges etc....
Very true, but unless you are hunting the open plains/mountains, most regular hunting is done within 100yards on average. Very many calibers are capable in that range. From personal experience the furthest i've shot is 350yards on a deer, the closest being 30 yards. Every gun has limits as well as shooters but you know that. Also the sks is not the only gun chambered in that caliber. handloading this round will get you sub moa with the correct rifle. The caliber is fine though.
I personally like the ballistics/trajectory of the 243 with a 58 grain bullet for wolves.
I guess we should ask OP what kind of wolves he is looking to hunt.... 243 is a good minimum wolf caliber, although I would recommend a much larger pill for bigger dogs.... My own experience is northern timberwolf hunting where they can hit well over 100 pounds... examining bait sites and trying to dog them from their beds out into open fields, powerlines and clearcuts... I have had them come out a dead run at 250 yards and I have had them almost run me over not knowing I was there on watch....
I am totally new to wolf hunting as i'm just starting this year. I know in Ontario, depending where you hunt we have a restriction to no greater that .275 calibers for small game. This however does not apply to me since i'm in the north. I wouldn't think that you would need anything more powerful than a 243 for a wolf......would you? I can't imagine them being tougher than a deer.
Much tougher than a deer..... The last one I shot through one lung an dit dropped on the spot, as I walked up to it, it was looking at me and biting at the ground and growling... luckily it perished before I had to put in a finishing shot.....
Deer is a good comparison though.... you'd typically want about a 100 gr. pill for deer and IMOP it's the same for wolves.... What part of Ontario do you live in?... I do most of my wolf hunting around the Timmins and North bay area.....
OK - so you were talking about a very special 410 shotgun, LOL. How many 410 shotguns are capable of shooting a 3" group at 100yds? Not very many of them.
Just for my own interest, who makes saboted 410 slug shells? I'd like to investigate the bullet performance a bit more. 410 is illegal for big game in several provinces simply because they are anemic and underpowered.
Compare apples to apples: a regular smoothbore 410 with a bead sight and a full choke. 3 ft groups at 100 yds would be closer to reality than 3". And you know it's the truth.
But if you want to compare more specialized guns, then let's take a scoped SKS with handloaded ammo. That should be fair, since there are a heck of a lot more scoped SKS than there are scoped 410 shotguns. 2" groups with a hand picked, scoped SKS using handloaded ammo is fairly unremarkable.
Not to mention I'll bet the SKS bullet carries more energy than the 410 slug. Of course the SKS/7.62x39 is perfectly legal and similar in accuracy and performance to the 30-30. Which is to say - light years ahead of your average 410 shotgum loaded with slugs, LOL
I know exactly what you meant - and I think you're wrong. Given the choice I'd take an SKS over a 410 shotgun any day of the week.
...and I wouldn't choose either one as a dedicated wolf rifle. I was just pointing out the problems I saw in your statement.
I know exactly what you meant - and I think you're wrong. Given the choice I'd take an SKS over a 410 shotgun any day of the week.
...and I wouldn't choose either one as a dedicated wolf rifle. I was just pointing out the problems I saw in your statement.
Actually, a 410 slug gun isnt really all that uncommon in ontario.... shows you how where we live effects our posting...lol....
Dont necessarily think its apples to apples comparing hand loads to off the shelf slugs... but I get where you are coming from...
