Need advice for type of firearm to hunt grouse
- Thread starter Slaymoar
- Start date
"ground pounding" and "collecting meat"....give the guy a break. I'm not sure what it is about grouse hunters who like to make smarmy remarks about the way others hunt~especially when it's perfectly withing the boundaries of the law and, dare I say, an understandable/effective way to get them when you factor-in how stubborn ruffed grouse can be. (ie, sitting...not moving....even when you want them to sometimes) If you've either shot so many that you only get pleasure from wing shots, then good-for-you. If you have so many where you hunt that you can cherry-pick the ones that flush, then good-for-you AGAIN. If you're like me..and have to drive 3 hours one way, hike all day to find MAYBE 1-2 birds (maybe none)...you can bet your a** I'll shoot one whether it's on a tree branch or flying away from one. I've done both plenty of times now, and I consider both successful hunts. I never regret hunting if I don't find any either, just part of the game.
To the gun question..
Looks like I'm late to the party, but a 20ga. should serve you very well. I've found even modified a bit tight on close birds, so I bought a second barrel for my '68 Wingmaster, had it cut to 22", and shoot it with no choke at all, usually with #7-1/2s. I averaged 2-3 pellets in the breast on every bird I shot this fall~not bad at all. I shot a 12ga. with a modified choke a couple of years ago, all wing shots that year, and it was a bit too hard on the meat. The 20, especially open for thicker bush, has been a great combo for me.
On a side note, my daughter will be 12 this summer, and wants to get her hunter's apprentice license....for the sole purpose of shooting some grouse this coming fall. I've let her shoot my 20, but she's a terrific shot with her Savage Rascal .22lr. Unless she has a change of heart, it will be that gun...on sitting birds..that will define her first hunting experience and I have no issue with that at all. When she gets a bit bigger, I'll take her to the trap range and get her some time behind a shotgun. That will be the time for the wing shooting discussion.
To the gun question..
Looks like I'm late to the party, but a 20ga. should serve you very well. I've found even modified a bit tight on close birds, so I bought a second barrel for my '68 Wingmaster, had it cut to 22", and shoot it with no choke at all, usually with #7-1/2s. I averaged 2-3 pellets in the breast on every bird I shot this fall~not bad at all. I shot a 12ga. with a modified choke a couple of years ago, all wing shots that year, and it was a bit too hard on the meat. The 20, especially open for thicker bush, has been a great combo for me.On a side note, my daughter will be 12 this summer, and wants to get her hunter's apprentice license....for the sole purpose of shooting some grouse this coming fall. I've let her shoot my 20, but she's a terrific shot with her Savage Rascal .22lr. Unless she has a change of heart, it will be that gun...on sitting birds..that will define her first hunting experience and I have no issue with that at all. When she gets a bit bigger, I'll take her to the trap range and get her some time behind a shotgun. That will be the time for the wing shooting discussion.
I have used a 20ga for my youth, since it was the only gun I had. Then I got a 10/22 and used that for a while. This year all three grouse I got was with a break-action, Cooey .410. No pellets in the breast meat, not for years. Sorry, but at one point, about 17yrs ago, we shot skeet with 28's and .410's. Had this little 12yr old girl out once that was an absolute natural at it.
OP, 20ga will work just fine.
OP, 20ga will work just fine.
I used to hunt grouse 35 years ago with a .22 but picked up a singleshot .410 about 1980 and have been using it since. Nothing puts chickens on the bbq better than a .410
Seems to be a few "Holy-er than Thou" comments on the correct way to hunt grouse, but I would bet good money that these same buttholes would shoot a 180 class whitetail buck out of a tree if they got the chance.
Seems to be a few "Holy-er than Thou" comments on the correct way to hunt grouse, but I would bet good money that these same buttholes would shoot a 180 class whitetail buck out of a tree if they got the chance.
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New Camper
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Lurking in the woods near SFRC.
Your friend is correct. You won't be disappointed with a 20 gauge. If the barrel is fixed choke, get improved cylinder as the grouse are often close when they flush, and with the assorted terrain around here, they weave like yarn in a rug. I've taken grouse mostly with a 20ga, and it is my first choice, but I've used 410 bore (difficult with so few pellets), 12ga, 22lr and once because it was the only gun I had with me, an old Savage in 222rem.(I shot it in the neck about 70 yards, a shot I expect I can't repeat at will in the position I used)
If you struggle over the choice, find a drilling with a double 20gauge over a 22lr barrel, single shot 20, over 22 etc: A thought I had often because periodically a 22lr would be more appropriate, but with the 20ga in active duty, the close flushers are fair game. A combination gun eliminates the need for two guns, but who carries a barrel in backpack for that longer shot?
fiddler;8339938 but I would bet good money that these same buttholes would shoot a 180 class whitetail buck out of a tree if they got the chance.[/QUOTE said:I can't honestly say I've ever seen a 180 whitetail in a tree..............but if I did you can rest assured I would shoot it....
Start with a .223 and some coyote calls.
Since theyve pick up in the last few years i havent seen much in the way of grouse. The population has its ups and downs, i was very supprized at the number of wabbits this winter but no bushchicken for me.
As for your question, id go for the shotgun as they are pretty skittish down here and a nice headshot would be rare.
Id go for a 410, but iv never shot a 20
Since theyve pick up in the last few years i havent seen much in the way of grouse. The population has its ups and downs, i was very supprized at the number of wabbits this winter but no bushchicken for me.
As for your question, id go for the shotgun as they are pretty skittish down here and a nice headshot would be rare.
Id go for a 410, but iv never shot a 20
I agree...never shoot a grouse unless it's on the wing...there's a difference between hunting and killing! I hunt with a pointer and never shoot unless the bird is flushed ...much more personal satisfaction.
Shoot gophers on the ground and grouse/partridge on the flush.
Shoot gophers on the ground and grouse/partridge on the flush.
Sbarkowski
Regular
That might work where you hunt, but in the thick woods of northern Ontario that style of hunting/killing wont work too well. I can admire anyone who can shoot a grouse on the fly in that stuff. Most cases they are long gone before you even get your gun up.
I'd go with the shotgun myself. A single is a great tool for grouse whether they flush or not, but of course a pump will work too. This will also allow you to hunt those tasty turkeys that you will find around your new haunts! Besides, sounds like you already have a .22.
IMO what you've got here is a tailor made excuse for new gun day!
IMO what you've got here is a tailor made excuse for new gun day!
This is a response from a hunter I can respect. Well stated Longwalker.
Brutus
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
With some willingness to stay at it, even an old b@stard such as myself can be successful sometimes. Very important is if the gun fits you and usually more open chokes and a load that delivers desireable results. The two grouse I posted on this page were taken on the third day of our fall season. Both in flight, but it did take me 3 shots to get the pair of them. This shotgun has a full choke (not my first choice for this job but the gun points like a finger for myself) and the Federal brand 7.5s in a target load did the job just fine at 10 and 12 yards. With one near miss as my fault only.
My usual uplander go to gun, is a 20 O/U with IC/Mod chokes.
So any game that a hunter chooses to pull the trigger on.....that isn't in high-throttle/run-for-your-life mode...is an act of "killing" instead of hunting? That's ridiculous, but if you've adopted that approach, good on you. 1/2 the places I see ruffed grouse...you'd get a mouth full of bark if you tried to take one on the wing. To each his own. I won't say "you're a snob" for only taking wing shots, how about you stop telling people "never shoot a grouse unless it's on the wing". I swear..one of the things I like most about the shooting sports is the LACK of judgmental people, I find comments like that discouraging.
Personally I use my Cooey single 20ga (were not allowed to use rifles for grouse on PEI, not that I'd want to). I find the 20 gauge great whether it's tracking them in deep brush and catching them on the fly or picking them off on the side of the road. It takes just as much skill if not more to get a head shot on a grouse when there standing with bird shot as it does a 22lr for the simple fact that it takes real skill to only get the head with only a few pellets of #7 instead of just blasting the whole body. Both are still hunting even if some elitist don't agree and when I hunt it's for food not just for the sake of hunting so if the 20ga insures better results that's what I'm going with.
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the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
Living in southern Ontario your days of shooting grouse with a 22 are done. Like you I shot many with a 22 when I lived in Northern Onatario. Growing up in Southern Ontario though i never saw one until it was airborn....it is wingshooting or no shooting in the south!
