Starting my new 40X RF Turtle rifle

[effendude]

You picked the best wood guy I know!
Scott

 

[Clavius-Walker]

Last time I went turtle shooting at the farm pond was with a shot out stw and a 338 win mag, some good times there.

 

[snert]

I have to ask..how big were those two ponds? Man, i am thinking if I ever go south this is the replacement for shooting PD's or groundhogs. How much of a target do you get? Just heads? Not real up on turtle behavior being that i spent the last 30 years where the water was ice for 8 months a year.

 

[butchlambert]

Pond is small, a little over an acre.

These young deer are to the left of our pond outside our bedroom window.

 

[Link]

Is it done yet ?

 

[butchlambert]

Is it done yet ?

In about 15 minutes. Hopefully before the end of the year.

 

[GrocMax]

Have a friend with a Rottweiler that will eat every turtle within the property, shell and all at a rate of about 3 a day, guaranteed turtle free in a month or so. Snapper, box, doesn't matter.

Big no-no to get caught messing with or in possession of an alligator snapper, they have been deemed a threatened species in TX.

 

[butchlambert]

Have a friend with a Rottweiler that will eat every turtle within the property, shell and all at a rate of about 3 a day, guaranteed turtle free in a month or so. Snapper, box, doesn't matter.

Big no-no to get caught messing with or in possession of an alligator snapper, they have been deemed a threatened species in TX.

I have no interest in any dog. I don't dislike them, just don't have time for their needs. I don't need them chasing the deer.

 

[Someoldguy]

A snapping turtle eating Rottweiler?

Well, heck. It has to be true. This IS the internet, after all.

 

[msinc]

I have to ask..how big were those two ponds? Man, i am thinking if I ever go south this is the replacement for shooting PD's or groundhogs. How much of a target do you get? Just heads? Not real up on turtle behavior being that i spent the last 30 years where the water was ice for 8 months a year.

The two the snappers were caught in are roughly 10 acres each and deepest part is 15 foot. The other two on my property are retired gravel mines and we only caught maybe a dozen in both of them, the one is bigger...The turtle man that was doing the trapping said, "they like mud, they have to have a mud bottom to stay" and the two we got them in are older ponds with soft bottoms. The gravel mine ponds have a fairly hard gravel bottom, so it sounds like the guy knows his turtles.
You have to be careful, my ponds have pretty steep banks of about 20 to 40 feet, so a ricochet is stopped. The snappers typically float up and all you see is their eyes and nose sticking out of the water...not much of a target. Rarely will they get out of the water and sun themselves here. One funny thing they do is keep resurfacing when you shoot at them and miss. I don't know why, but they come right back up. The turtle said, "they think it's thunder and they are looking for the rain that follows" he said, "they know fish come up to the surface after a rain and they are ready to go hunting."
I don't know if this is correct, but when it comes to catching turtles...a lot of turtles, he is T.H.E. man!!!
When I asked him if he would be back next year, he told me that they take about 5 years before they come back to the point it is worth setting traps again. They sell for $1.50 a pound live here and get shipped overseas to Europe.

 

[GrocMax]

A snapping turtle eating Rottweiler?

Well, heck. It has to be true. This IS the internet, after all.

True story. Loves turtles breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Loves chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, skunks, possum, armadillo and cats too.
Will literally eat the butt out of a skunk. Bon appetite.

Runs away from coyotes, though.

Lost her job there due to those factors plus not getting along with other dogs. Now 'guards' a business.

 

[butchlambert]

Now I know how Texans can walk on water...they use turtles as stones. I don't think my neighbors pond had that many FROGS.

snert,
I'm not a Texan and I do not understand this post. I'm building a turtle killing machine only. Kinda clean up your post please.

 

[snert]

Hi Butch, my mistake totally. I was sincere in my understanding that you were a Texan (a place I admire) and that all those turtles came from your pond. Considering there were that many turtles, I was jesting that one could walk on water cause of them. No offense meant, the rifle looks awesome, and I think the whole topic is really cool. I will read more carefully before saying anything else. I will delete my original if i still can but I do not think I can delete where it has been quoted.

Mea culpa.

Snert

 

[butchlambert]

Hi Butch, my mistake totally. I was sincere in my understanding that you were a Texan (a place I admire) and that all those turtles came from your pond. Considering there were that many turtles, I was jesting that one could walk on water cause of them. No offense meant, the rifle looks awesome, and I think the whole topic is really cool. I will read more carefully before saying anything else. I will delete my original if i still can but I do not think I can delete where it has been quoted.

Mea culpa.

Snert

I'm proud to be an Okie and Choctaw, but I do live in Texas. Those are not my turtles and though I have too many, I don't believe we have near as many as shown. You need not to worry about deleting it.

 

[Boyd L.]

Man, i am thinking if I ever go south this is the replacement for shooting PD's or groundhogs. How much of a target do you get? Just heads?

The turtles I've shot were sunning in the middle of a pond with the head upturned at an angle to allow the nose to be clear of the pond. Around here these are kind of skittish so there's something of a stalk to get yourself aligned with the turtle facing it "head on". From a slightly elevated position you can slip one right into the nose so that it comes out at the head-neck joint immobilizing the critter.
Place your shot wrong and the darn prehistoric beast will swim to the bottom with efferent nervous response telling it to avoid danger when it's afferent system is so slow that it's dead, just not stopped moving.
I enjoy the game. I explained it to a nearby parks and recreation director who was complaining of turtles in the park pond. He was horrified at my solution.

That's going to be one heck of a nice stock.

 

[butchlambert]

Having the craftsman that I have working on it will blow your mind away.

 

[JLT]

And when you clean things up around your pond come on over and have a go at mine......these are the little ones...you might want to bring along a Garand too....

+1 on Snert's 'Holy Crap'!

 

[JLT]

Having the craftsman that I have working on it will blow your mind away.

Butch, I probably missed it but what chambering do you have in mind?

 

[JLT]

The turtles I've shot were sunning in the middle of a pond with the head upturned at an angle to allow the nose to be clear of the pond. Around here these are kind of skittish so there's something of a stalk to get yourself aligned with the turtle facing it "head on". From a slightly elevated position you can slip one right into the nose so that it comes out at the head-neck joint immobilizing the critter.
Place your shot wrong and the darn prehistoric beast will swim to the bottom with efferent nervous response telling it to avoid danger when it's afferent system is so slow that it's dead, just not stopped moving.
I enjoy the game. I explained it to a nearby parks and recreation director who was complaining of turtles in the park pond. He was horrified at my solution.

That's going to be one heck of a nice stock.

It is remarkable and a bit unsettling - a big snapping turtle will swim quite a ways, even though quite dead. I took a couple of very large snapping turtles on my pond last year, both of them at fairly close range. I took the shots presented, one of them a head shot from the side, the other a head shot from behind as they both had their heads and the front portion of their shells clear of the water, sunning themselves. 40 gr. V-Max out of a K-Hornet, scooting along at 3K+ and no doubt about each impact - turtle skull parts were liberally scattered on the far side along the axis of the shot. Both of the darned things slipped back into the water and started to swim as if nothing had happened. Eventually, the rest of the nervous system got the message and agreed to hang up their collective jock but, wow, it's a bit weird to empty an animal's brain case and see it take off.

Three years ago, my neighbor put a 100 gr. 6mm slug from his 6mm Rem. into a big snapper sunning itself on the bank of one of the beaver ponds on his property. He hit it just high of center of the shell toward the neck. The turtle slid back into the water and we both thought that was the end of the story. Well, he shot another big snapping turtle late last summer on the same pond and he recovered this one. Shot it in the head with his .308 and anchored it right there. Wouldn't you know it? He found a battered 6mm slug lodged in the under shell just below the neck.

I don't care much for animals that can't regulate their body temperature. Especially when they have bolt cutters for jaws.

 

[rogn]

Shootin' with a pretty gun has got to be a lot of fun. I have a small pod<1/2 acre and its got a built up berm on the mash side. So when I found muskrats had taken up residence i went into a panic. Set a couple of Connibears in the burrows and cleaned them up quickly. Kept the traps set for several more days to be "sure". The two traps caught a snapper every for a total of 6 turtles. Tried it once more just digging a shallow hole in the bank. Sure enough they have to examine the holes. None of these were huge about a foot in diameter or less. They are dead when you find them. Just a thought if you live where you cant shoot. Or maintain a full turtle trap.
Sure ought to be a pretty gun!!.