First Blood With My New Ruger #1V

the spank

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A few weeks ago I came to the conclusion my wingshooting wasn't suffering for what I have been doing so much as I am not able to hit SFA with my Maxus so I switched up for the next couple hunts, used my 101 which I havent used for about 5 seasons and sure enough I am dropping birds like I used to. Conclusion? Maxus doesnt fit. Solution? Move it....so with that in mind I headed into Prophet River Firearms in Lloydminster and started checking out Varmint rifles.

I looked at a bunch of rifles and narrowed it down to a Howa Axiom in 22-250 or a Ruger#1V in 22-250. I have always wanted a #1, dreamt about it for years so I opted for it and walked out of the store with a brand new Ruger #1V and the gun safe lighter by one Maxus.

My buddy Chad headed to Saskatoon the following weekend and picked up a scope for me at Cabelas I had on hold. I topped the rifle off with a 4-16 x 40 Bushnell with an AO lens and Illuminated reticle option. I threw the gun in the truck last week, went to the range, sighted it in and went looking for yotes. Unfortunately my Foxpro was still in storage in Ontario but there is no shortage of yotes in SK and Chad and I were seeing lots during scouting and hunting so I just set out hitting the back roads and farm grid lanes. Sure enough I finally got my chance and put down this male yote at about 100 yards in a cut Canola field. So the new Ruger #1V has drawn first blood......I can't wait to put more use on it ;)

As a note of interest to some of you, DO NOT use the Winchester 45 grain JHP rounds. They may be great for small varmints up to fox size but they are not very effective on larger varmints like a coyote. I hit this coyote broadside @ 100 yards max! There was a small entry wound( thumbnail size) and NO EXIT WOUND!! Since when with a 22-250 :confused: The bullets are so light that at the 4000 fps velocity they disintegrate on contact!! This yote was hit squarely @ 100 yards and ran 25 yards full out before piling up on itself. I hit another at 200 yards and lost it, it loped off into a willow lined pothole and that was the last I saw of it. I am sure I hit it as when I shot it disapperead from sight then reappeared and it walked off with a strange gait to it's walk but it was only 10 yards from the bush and I wasnt able to chamber a secound round in time. I walked in to where it was standing after I had called it in 200 yards closer with, get this, my CROW CALL!! The grass was flattened where it had dropped and it was easy to follow into the willows but was nowhere to be found.:redface: I purchased some Hornady 50 Grain Superformance VMax to try out....if they dont work well I will be going back to the standard 55 Grain SP's.
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Nice rifle and dog.

BTW, varmint bullets are not supposed to exit, they are supposed to explode inside the animal and save the hide. The 45 gr HP you were talking about may still be not be the best choice, but exploding inside the animal is what any good varmint bullet is designed to do, whether it's a V-MAX or a Varmint Grenade or whatever.
 
Well that is good to know then.............the 45 grainers are definitely light medicine. I am hoping the 50 grain V-Max perform better. I want them to drop where they are standing, not run off into the undergrowth and die and not be found.
 
Just curious ~ You say you got him in a cut field? Would that be private property? If so, im assuming you ask for permission or are farmers typically happy you knock off a yote.

What about deer or large game in those fields?

Im not accusing you of trespassing, im genuinely curious the attitude in the prairies in regards to this.
 
Well that is good to know then.............the 45 grainers are definitely light medicine. I am hoping the 50 grain V-Max perform better. I want them to drop where they are standing, not run off into the undergrowth and die and not be found.

I'm sure, wounding something is almost enough to turn someone off hunting. I've got some moly 55 grain vmax's loaded for my 22-250, but have yet to hit a yote with them. The vmax's sure do seem to have a good repuation though.
 
Yes we have permission to hunt the fields I got him in, however in general Saskatchewan hunting regulations allow you to access any private property for the purpose of hunting that is not posted. If the landowner asks you to leave you must but you are not breaking any laws by accessing unposted land. Also you may hunt posted lands as long as you secure permission from the landowner. There are also provincial lands set aside as community pastures and croplands and those are fully accessible as well. You are not allowed to discharge a firearm within 500 metres of any buildings or livestock without landowners consent. It is a much nicer system than Ontario thats for sure......most landowners I have met in my limited time in SK have no issues with taking out coyotes and seem to appreciate you doing so. In fact many have mentioned it to us when asking to permission to hunt geese and ducks.
 
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