How far have you killed small game such as Magpies and Crows with a .177 air rifle wi

[flyr]

Yes a pigeon doesn't have much of a neck so the head doesn't seem to move much in relation to the body. They also tend to sit quite still. I've watched videos of guys hunting them and chest hits put the lights out very fast. However, for something like a squirrel or similar, they seem to move the head a lot so I question the idea of a head shot as it's a small target. Using a high velocity 177 wouldn't a shoulder hit be easier to make, especially in the field?

Think of it this way, when you shoot big game you hope that your target drops where it stands, sometimes this happens but in a lot of cases it doesn't with a boiler room shot.
You end up having to track the animal for a bit, even if it drops fairly close.
Similarly a body shot to a squirrel may not put it down immediately,allowing it to basically disappear,in a hole,or a tree,or just in the bush.
A head shot usually drops them right away.
A poor head shot usually is a miss, or a hit in the neck(usually fatal), a poor body shot can mean lingering death.
Another thing to consider is that there is very little energy transfer(shock) using a pellet, My HW 97kt in .177 almost universally gives complete pass through's on game up to rabbit size.
Pellets don't usually "bowl them over" unless you are using a big bore PCP.

 

[ronaldharold]

We would take our slavias carp fishing.There was small dead tree across the Thames river and the odd sparrow would land on it.We would take numerous shots at it. It would fly away if you hit its perch,but if you hit it it would usually drop . The distance was around 30 yards or so.We spent almost every day at the river fishing and plinking, without any video games. Our good old days!

 

[WolfyW]

Up to 40 yards off my shooting sticks and head shots

 

[Gundoggy]

About 8-9 yards. HW45 pistol with .22 pellet. Jackrabbits.

 

[The Kurgan]

sub-500 fps is simply unethical. Get a PAL rated airgun that hits at 18fpe or more.

 

[.22LRGUY]

We would take our slavias carp fishing.There was small dead tree across the Thames river and the odd sparrow would land on it.We would take numerous shots at it. It would fly away if you hit its perch,but if you hit it it would usually drop . The distance was around 30 yards or so.We spent almost every day at the river fishing and plinking, without any video games. Our good old days!

Sounds ALLOT like the way I grew-up in the mid-late 70s. Slingshot until I hit about 7 years old, then a hand-me-down Chinese model 61 in .177. Felt like the world's greatest hunter with that thing. Lots of fun tales, lots of hard-earned lessons too. I credit that gun...and those years to the person I am today. For better or for worse. lol

To the question~that was a sub-500 fps rifle shooting Crosman wadcutters mostly, then Bulldog pellets from CT. (anybody remember those?) Wish I could get .22 cal Crosman Wadcutters today. Anyhow, I shot a crow with that thing that was sitting at the top of a telephone pole..with me shooting almost straight up. I'd hear that dull, hollow-sounding "thup" sound, see a couple of feathers come off...but it took the crow about 10 seconds to begin to falter. Even as a young kid, I got the sense that it wasn't "instant" enough, and never did it again. I think it only knocked it down because I was hitting them in the belly, at the angle I was...entering below the rib cage.

My opinion on sub-500 fps, .177 rifles? Almost useless for hunting of any kind. A 500fps rifle shooting a .22 pellet? Different story. In fact, I plan on buying one myself this year for barn pigeon work. I have an HPA-fed QB-79 that I've never run over a chronograph...but it has to be running at least 500 fps. Absolutely deadly on pigeons. I plan on selling that rifle though, as I'm longing to get a springer and don't need both. I hold a valid PAL, and have my hunting license...but I honestly don't think I need more than 500 fps for what I do. I'm looking at a Diana 24.

 

[WolfyW]

Sounds ALLOT like the way I grew-up in the mid-late 70s. Slingshot until I hit about 7 years old, then a hand-me-down Chinese model 61 in .177. Felt like the world's greatest hunter with that thing. Lots of fun tales, lots of hard-earned lessons too. I credit that gun...and those years to the person I am today. For better or for worse. lol

To the question~that was a sub-500 fps rifle shooting Crosman wadcutters mostly, then Bulldog pellets from CT. (anybody remember those?) Wish I could get .22 cal Crosman Wadcutters today. Anyhow, I shot a crow with that thing that was sitting at the top of a telephone pole..with me shooting almost straight up. I'd hear that dull, hollow-sounding "thup" sound, see a couple of feathers come off...but it took the crow about 10 seconds to begin to falter. Even as a young kid, I got the sense that it wasn't "instant" enough, and never did it again. I think it only knocked it down because I was hitting them in the belly, at the angle I was...entering below the rib cage.

My opinion on sub-500 fps, .177 rifles? Almost useless for hunting of any kind. A 500fps rifle shooting a .22 pellet? Different story. In fact, I plan on buying one myself this year for barn pigeon work. I have an HPA-fed QB-79 that I've never run over a chronograph...but it has to be running at least 500 fps. Absolutely deadly on pigeons. I plan on selling that rifle though, as I'm longing to get a springer and don't need both. I hold a valid PAL, and have my hunting license...but I honestly don't think I need more than 500 fps for what I do. I'm looking at a Diana 24.

I sure remember the bulldog pellets. By the time I reached age 12, my brother and I most likely shot so many of those the backyard soil probably had an unusually high lead level lol.

Took a squirrel 17 yards with my .177 24C last season. Put it right in the ear hole and it dropped without a twitch. No pass thru but I was thrilled. Chronied it 590 fps? Wouldn't try any further, but those should be dandy for barn birds.

As for sub-500, I agree. Every season I shoot quite a number of squirrels and each season at least 2 have a pellet lodged just under the hide upon dressing them for the table. Usually a pointed or flat nose, which I never use. My guess this is done by some youngster with a sub-500.

 

[garmic]

As far as you can make a head shot, maybe 30yds. Ive killed starlings with a sub500 .22 at 40yds but it wasnt a head shot and I didnt hit the wings. It was with the QB57 in my avatar

 

[contaucreek]

My guests and I were getting harassed by a squirrel in the ravine in my back yard while we were having dinner. Took a shot at him with a 22 air rifle at about 30 meters. It was a lucky shot. Looked staged. Guests were impressed.

A squirrel killed in jest, dies in earnest. Thoreau.