Hit ratio while in the field.

[spencerhenry]

Spencer, You are starting to sound to me just a wee bit JEALOUS. If you can't make the shot...don't take it.

You also seem hell bent on painting me as an unnecessary risk taker and a liar. You are entitled to your opinion of course, just as I AM.

By the way if you had very much experience shooting ROCKCHUCKS you would know that they sometimes lay around in the sun for hours NOT MOVING!

Also by the way, I am not advocating every one use my methods. I am simply stating what works for me. And as I said before the question raised is what is your hit ratio and nothing else. I believe I have answered the question.

i do not have any idea where you get jealousy from.

i have shot a few marmots, but they are not legal to kill except during a season in august that is fairly short. yes, they can lay around in the sun for hours, but they are animals and do move, the point was that there are any number of situations out in the field that can cause a shot to miss its mark by less than an inch. especially with a 20gr bullet.

i am not doubting that a head shot on a marmot is an easy task. i am not casting doubt on shooting skills here. but you went to great lengths to proclaim all the downside to a miss, and then several days later tell us all that even with all the potential risks, that you take a shot that has a much greater chance of resulting in a miss. sure, you are probably quite good, but if the risk is losing shooting ground and criminal or civil legal problems, caused by wounding a property owner's prize animal, or hitting someone's house, or just a clean miss, why would anyone take a shot at a 2" target instead of an 8" target.

from one of your earlier posts: "So I don't take the shot if there's a chance I'm going to miss."

regardless how good someone is, a larger target always has a lesser chance of a miss. so if a miss results in a life changing legal problem, why not take the lesser chance?

 

[dedogs]

"....I have to shoot around horses, llamas and alpacas...." YOUR words. " ....5% at 240yds..." YOUR words " ...17AH..." YOUR words.
WHO'S TAKING THE BIGGER RISK?

"Why would any one take a shot at a 2" target instead of an 8" target?" Because the 2" target is a guaranteed kill and the 8" target is .... not. (On rockchucks)

Just out of curiosity what IS the velocity of a .17 AH with a 20g bullet?

 

[K22]

I've made a number of head shots on ghogs but I try to avoid them when ever possible since I owe to the animal to make an ethical shot.

However when the hay is high and it's my only shot I'll take it but only if it's at a range I'm very comfortable with in making a killing shot which for me would be in the 100 to 150 yard range off shooting sticks for head shots.

I'm amused at guys who claim they never miss. While I'm no Daniel Boone, I'm a fairly good field shot but I've missed some relatively easy shots in the 150 yards range with a full side profile. On the other hand I've made some very difficult shots in the 275 yards range in ankle high hay where the profile wasn't the best and I had to wait to get a clear shot or time the shot with a bobbing up and down hog. I guess my point is if you hunt enough strange and unexpected things can happen.

But to never miss, Wow, that's extraordinary must be Daniel Boone reincarnated!

 

[dedogs]

I don't recall any one on this thread saying they never missed. Who are you referring to?

 

[spencerhenry]

"....I have to shoot around horses, llamas and alpacas...." YOUR words. " ....5% at 240yds..." YOUR words " ...17AH..." YOUR words.
WHO'S TAKING THE BIGGER RISK?

"Why would any one take a shot at a 2" target instead of an 8" target?" Because the 2" target is a guaranteed kill and the 8" target is .... not. (On rockchucks)

Just out of curiosity what IS the velocity of a .17 AH with a 20g bullet?

not much risk at all. if they wander over to where i am shooting, i just don't shoot toward them, pretty simple. if they are being a pain and always coming over to see what i am doing, i move them to a different pasture.
a 20gr vmax into the body of a marmot is a kill, maybe not instant, but it is a kill. take off a leg and that is a different story. nothing that size will survive a shot that enters the body cavity with a 20gr vmax at any reasonable velocity.

20gr vmax out of MY 17AH is a shade over 3400fps. works excellent on the wyoming ground squirrels that i shoot. it is a little small for blowing up prairie dogs, but kills them just fine. there is not one marmot on the entire 676 acres, if i were shooting those i would use something a little larger.

 

[dedogs]

So...... somehow you got the impression that I'm not responsible enough to move stock out of what ever corral or pasture I'm working on at the time. Where did you get that impression?

qt."A 20g V-Max into the body of a Marmot is a kill" end qt. Well I'm sorry but based on MY experience we will just have to agree to disagree on this point because I can assure you that is not what I have experienced. And I'm running 450fps faster than your .17AH. They can and will survive a misplaced body shot but I have NEVER in 30 years of shooting these critters had one survive a bullet strike to the head. That includes .22LR. There is far more percentage of bone in the head of a rockchuck than there is in his fat little body. Bullets at any velocity crashing into bone is an amazing lesson in the laws of physics. Ask me how I know.

 

[K22]

I don't recall any one on this thread saying they never missed. Who are you referring to?

See the initial post - no body in particular