Gophers killed 2011
- Thread starter Hunt&Hook
- Start date
Right on! My good spots got flooded really bad last year
. Looking for new spots. PM me if you want some company with high end varmint rifles. and a sh!t load of ammo.Right on! My good spots got flooded really bad last year
i was out around the clareshom area by my parents farm. I had an IPSC match in calgary on sunday so i stopped there on saturday to have some fun!
when i saw this thread i got a big smile on my face. i have been wanting to go to alberta to go gopher hunting since i bought my first pellet gun 5 years ago. now that i have got into more power then a pellet gun i am thinking my dream will come true ( as small and everyday life it is to some people). i got a few questions about this varmit hunting. everything from ware i can hunt. do i need anysort of licence or tag (have a bc hunter number) i want to really start looking into this trip. if any one has some advice or key things i should/need to know. thanks for any help
also if they are such a problem would a farmer allow me to hunt on their property to kind of help them out?
also if they are such a problem would a farmer allow me to hunt on their property to kind of help them out?
Somebody else said this but I liked it so I'm repeating it:
Gophers are never hunted they are shot.
Therefore you don't need a tag or licence.
you need a gun and while it's a topic of debate for some people you need permission to hunt on the land. Most landowners are pretty good. say hi can i shoot some gophers and 99% of the time i'll be glad to have ya.
i have a scoped .22lr but looking into a 17hmr
so far looking like i got the makings for the trip
sorry if i am highjacking the thread i can take this to PM if needed
yup
All you need is the .22. The HMR is nice and does a good job, but for shooting 100-200 gophers a day can be rather pricey. 50rds of HMR is about $17. 4 boxes would run you close to $70. For $70, I can get 4 "bricks" of .22 or 2000 rounds.
I shoot 300rds at gophers, hit better than 200 of them, if I keep my shots under 100yds. Those 200 gophers cost me $12.
However, that being said, if you feel you NEED a .17HMR, then, by all means, get one. I would never stand between a man and another gun purchase.
204saskman
Regular
- Location
- East Central Saskatchewan
All you need is the .22. The HMR is nice and does a good job, but for shooting 100-200 gophers a day can be rather pricey. 50rds of HMR is about $17. 4 boxes would run you close to $70. For $70, I can get 4 "bricks" of .22 or 2000 rounds.
I shoot 300rds at gophers, hit better than 200 of them, if I keep my shots under 100yds. Those 200 gophers cost me $12.
However, that being said, if you feel you NEED a .17HMR, then, by all means, get one. I would never stand between a man and another gun purchase.
Im with you on this one. I used to like my 17's but now i just find them too expensive to shoot. It was fun when i was buying them by the brick for 80 bucks but at 170 brick, thats alot of 22 shells.
or a lot of reloaded 204/223/22Hornet ammo that outperforms the 17HMR any way you look at it.
204saskman
Regular
- Location
- East Central Saskatchewan
Thats why i shoot a 204 lol when i can load 50 204 for the price of a box of 17 hmr ill take the 204 lol
maby ill do my first trip with my.22 and she how i like it and how it goes. .17hmr is not usefull in my neck of the woods. thanks for the help. ill be dooing more researh into the trip. august if almost alway a fireban here and i cant stand camping with out a fire. so this could be a august trip for sure
Of course if you shop around, you can buy 17HMR ammunition for $13 per box, or even less, and even Walmart sells them from $13.50 to $14.50 per box. Another option is the 17mach2, at about $7 per box, and it shoots much flatter than the 22lr, and provides more dramatic kills as well. And if I use my 17mach2, and keep my shots to 100 yards, I will hit a lot more than 200 gophers with 300 shots.
yep, and you only spent $30 to get those 200. Or $45 for the 300rds. I simply can't make the math work to buy a .17. Not that you can't, I can't.
And I get better as the season goes on and the wind drops. Most of the missed shots are due to bracketing the dang things.
If I wanted to spend $7 a box then I'd only shoot stingers. Much flatter, fewer misses, much more dramatic kills. I shoot a box or so of these every couple of weeks, just to stretch my shooting range, but when I go out and spend a day shooting 1000 gophers, then I am happy with the bulk .22 stuff. Even 2K rounds will cost less than $100. And I shoot 2-3 nights a week and the better part of Saturday. Costly hobby if I was shooting a .17 anything.
