One year alone in the remote wilderness...

Clarke, I've seen what a 22 mag will do to 2000# hereford bulls. Believe me, it'll work just fine on moose.

The 22LR doesn't work nearly as well on cattle. Unless you hit that line on the forehead, they may just stand there and look back at you. I've seen it. The 22 mag on the other hand is lights out. Not just faster, it is a much heavier duty slug.
 
Clarke, I've seen what a 22 mag will do to 2000# hereford bulls. Believe me, it'll work just fine on moose.

The 22LR doesn't work nearly as well on cattle. Unless you hit that line on the forehead, they may just stand there and look back at you. I've seen it. The 22 mag on the other hand is lights out. Not just faster, it is a much heavier duty slug.

Sure, I've killed livestock wiht 22LR before, too, and used 30-30 on cattle, because the 22LR I felt was not up to the task. Killed a few sheep wiht a 22WM, and they went down nicely.:)

But if moose is the quarry, and they dont' feel like standing around while you head shoot them, why not just use a 30-06, and kill your moose easily?:)

The point of my post is- You are in Northern BC, there are plenty of big animals, why #### around expending all your energy trying to shoot small game with a 22, when you can make one shot wiht a 30-06 and have meat for weeks?:)
 
I'm not saying that I'd do it but a lot of poachers use a .22 magnum on moose. They scout out their bedding areas and then wait for a really shi*ty day (weather wise). They can get pretty close and the .22 magnum doesn't make much noise.

I'd still go with my Guide Gun.
 
If I could take a driling, that would be my gun of a choice with two barrels for a shot and one for a rifle, caliber?, anything above 7mm
 
I remember that John Taylor said that he could walk from the Cape to Cairo carrying a 22 rifle and a heavy revolver, and never go hungry.
 
The point of my post is- You are in Northern BC, there are plenty of big animals, why #### around expending all your energy trying to shoot small game with a 22, when you can make one shot wiht a 30-06 and have meat for weeks?:)

You're absolutely right of course. I'm thinking more of a survival situation I suppose, not homesteading in the bush.
 
That brings up another question- If you are in a survival situation, why limit yourself to grouse and small game...Why not shoot a moose, too?:)

As Mr T would say, "That's why I've got a 22mag Fool!" :p

For a full year, I'm not man enough to carry that much centerfire ammo. And in the bush, in the warm months, a moose won't be edible for more than a handful of days. And if you do sit on a carcass as a meat supply, you'll need that 30-06 as a grizzly will be asking you to move over so he can have some too!
 
I'd take a medium bore rifle or a large bore pistol if actually travelling. Forget the 22, I'd rather use a fishing rod.
 
I disagree, and only just a bit here. After much thought I still believe a 22 LR over a 20 or 12 gauge is a slightly beter choice. Especially H4831's idea of using 22 shorts to in the upper barrel.
On more abundant small game, there would be too much meat loss with the magnum IMHO.

So any of you 22 magnum hunters like to pipe in here with your thoughts?
RickF how is that 22 WMRF on little critters?
Good thread though....
 
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As Mr T would say, "That's why I've got a 22mag Fool!" :p

For a full year, I'm not man enough to carry that much centerfire ammo. And in the bush, in the warm months, a moose won't be edible for more than a handful of days.

Tha'ts why I said to make jerky!!:p



And if you do sit on a carcass as a meat supply, you'll need that 30-06 as a grizzly will be asking you to move over so he can have some too!

Now you have a bear skin rug, too!!:)
 
So any of you 22 magnum hunters like to pipe in here with your thoughts?
RickF how is that 22 WRFM on little critters?
Good thread though....

I've used one a fair bit. No question, if you are going to shoot a grouse through the breast, you'll leave a bigger hole than with a 22LR.

But with an accurate 22 mag, it's no big deal to shoot a bunny in the head, or a grouse in the head or behind the diaphram. It's not going anywhere, and the meat is not damaged.
 
I don't know what this obsession for 22's and shooting small game is...A guy could starve to death plinking ptarmigan, grouse and squirrels...

You are in Northern BC- Shoot a moose on day one. Spend the rest of the week relaxing around camp, eating fresh moose and making jerky. When you get low on jerky, shoot another moose. Repeat.:)

I too would focus my gun on big game. I think you'd be more productive with a trapline for small game anyway.
 
Are you buying?

I'll take a Merkel drilling with a 7x57 rifle barrel over a 12 gauge shotgun barrel please.
 
While non the 22 mag topic...

We could look at the 223-

Load it with TSX bullets for large game, and make reduced Blue Dot loads (like 22WM) for small stuff. And you can pack lots of ammo.:)
 
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