.22WMR gopher hunters~anybody out there??

.22LRGUY

.22LRGUY

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Hey guys, looking to hear from anyone who uses a .22WMR to hunt gophers...even those who MIGHT prefer .22WMR over .17HMR. Here's the deal. I'm planning on going on my first gopher-hunting trip in the summer of 2012 (I live in Ontario) and AS an Ontario groundhog hunter, I've cleared-out my HMRs in favor of calibers that reliably put down the big hogs here~.22WMR and .223. (among others ;) )

So, my gopher-hunting friends near Calgary have all gotten rid of their .22lrs in favor of .17 HMR and love the explosive power they offer (compared to .22lr)....but I don't have an HMR in the quiver anymore. Obviously...it would be more fun to just get another HMR, but as a western "travel" gun, I can't really justify it right now. So, looking to have someone tell me "HELL yeah, the WMR will be awesome in that roll!!" :) I know .22WMR (here) is about $5 a box cheaper than HMR, so that's a very small part of it. I also know that the power difference between .22lr and .17HMR on gophers is immense~very few gophers survive...even briefly...a direct hit from one. I just never hear of anyone discussing .22WMR on them...

Thanks for taking a moment to respond.
 
I used a 22WMR on gophers some years back, and it was pretty impressive. The farmer who's land I was shooting on was using a 22LR and his jaw dropped when he seen what the WMR did to the gophers. One of my shots went through the first one standing up and then hit another right behind him. Both died instantly.
 
I have shot gophers with both, WMR and HMR, and they both seem to do equal damage to them. The only reason I went with the HMR over the WMR was the increased accuracy at longer ranges.
 
who's ditching the 22lr for the HMR? They must be really rich, on a good day in the pastures, I can cook through a thousand rounds easy.

I have noticed that the WMR carries a slight edge over the HMR - which is a lot more significant past about 70 yards, at least when you're using the newer loads with the ballistic tip bullets. But neither of them hold a candle to what a 22 Hornet or any other centerfire can do. And I can handload Hornet ammo for about the same price as I can buy HMR
 
prosper said:
who's ditching the 22lr for the HMR?
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The 2 guys I'll probably be hunting with, that's who! lol One held-off, kept his Marlin 60 in the gopher patch until early this summer, then switched too a Savage HMR. Anyhow, my hunch is this~unless you have optics good enough to see the impact beyond about 150 yards, there isn't much use taking shots past that with the .22WMR. My Savage seems to love those 30gr. V-Max loads, but I think I'd like to move-up (scope-wise) to something in the 15x power range. Would make the 100 yard shots more entertaining I'm sure.

As for ammo cost/HMR~these guys estimated they went through more than 4K rounds this summer. :)
 
prosper said:
who's ditching the 22lr for the HMR? They must be really rich, on a good day in the pastures, I can cook through a thousand rounds easy.
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I have 95% swapped my .22lr for my .17hmr in the gopher fields. it's not 1000 rounds a day, but theres WAY less need for the occasional follow up shot.
 
A gopher standing up is only 1" across, laying down they are 1" high, so your rifle will have to group that way at the ranges used and more often then not the HMR groups better out there. As someone else mentioned however, nothing will touch a C.F. round like the hornet or the BEE!
 
choices

For any of you fellows out there that wish do 22 mag damage with reg 22 ammo, just get yourself a Paco tool and start enlarging those rather small hollow points that most of the bulk ammo comes with.
I have used this tool for a few years now and some of the hits we get on gophers are devestating to say the least. FS
 
The 22wmr is as good or better than the HMR depending on who you talk to. I have shot a lot of gophers with a 17 and love the graphics when they blow up. That being said that light bullet does tend to go sideways a little more on a long shot with a crosswind like you will see on the prairies. The heavier 22mag still long still flat stil blows em up real good with a little less sideways drift. Out here the 17 and 22mag are about the same price so no advantage either way there.
 
Always the misconception that the hmr moves sideways more then the wmr, when in fact it's the other way around. A little bit of research will confirm this. I don't feel like finding the charts yet again.
 
Fassteel said:
For any of you fellows out there that wish do 22 mag damage with reg 22 ammo, just get yourself a Paco tool and start enlarging those rather small hollow points that most of the bulk ammo comes with.
I have used this tool for a few years now and some of the hits we get on gophers are devestating to say the least. FS
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Also that CCI ballistic twin to the Stinger, the Segmented HP bullet. Wicked destruction on ground squirrels.
 
.22LRGUY said:
HEY... you're supposed to be talking me OUT of buying an HMR! lol
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haha i love my .17.
wind drift is a serious issue though. it really is. I go to it so much because of how much I have shot it and know it's performance. but that says something about my .22lr rifle.....
 
Gophers!

In Aberta seem to be dwindling rapidly. Seems every year there are less and less. I've heard stories of 100s taken a day but I've never seen anywhere that many let alone shoot that many. Best day I've had is maybe 10 and only seen twice that many at one time. Most shots seem to be over 100 yds too. Are they still out there ? Really?
 
It all depends on the field. If they have gone unchecked for a while and have access to lots of food their numbers can be incredible. Populations change every year. I haven't been out since I moved to Edmonton but I recall having plenty of them to shoot at.
 
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