DO you Squirrel?

[GoodOlBoy]

Just curious do you squirrel and what do ya use?

GoodOlBoy

[bulletpusher]

Just so you know, I'm the one that also answered, whats a squirrel.

The reason is I keep reading your squirrel reports and the way you are describing their actions I'm not sure I know anything about squirrels anymore, also I think that you need all of the reinforcements that you can get.

If anymore of those squirrels get to train in those military excerises that you keep describing, you going to need those reinforcements.

Oh, by the way, I'm available for extended duties as a reinforcement. I've been trained by some of the best in the world to repail borders and take um out at long range.

Bulletpusher:D :D :D :D :D

[Jack]

Occasionally. Don't get as much time to shoot tree rats as I woould like to.
Primarily, I use a .22 rifle. Sometimes, for giggles, a .22 pistol, or a 45 auto.

[tooldummy]

I use a CZ 452 Varmint rifle in .22, but also have a Ruger 77 in .22. Like them both. I planned on doing a lot of squirrel hunting this year. But, as usual, nothing ever works out. I start vacation Friday, and then all next week. Plan on coyote hunting a lot, but also want to shoot at a few squirrel. And I have a rat terrior pup that is just dieing to go. Come on Friday!

[Mad Reloader]

I admire them, I respect them....

Therefore I must slay them.

However, put myself on a self-imposed Moratorium on treeratz as there aren't hardly none left close to my digs (I'm near Mesa, AZ) Got to do an EXTENDED drive to find places with enough Skwerls to make it worth shooting 'em (refer to my AZ Squirrel Update thread)

I MAY just take advantage of the AZ Game & Fish regs on Trapping & Live Trapping -- and begin a Partial Resettlement scheme. Go out crawdadding (or something), with the bed of the truck full of Havaharts or something similar. Catch about 1/2 dozen treeratz. Release in the Cave Creek area. Go back out on another weekend, repeat. Several of these trips should get me close to 1 doz. Skwerls to re-release in Northern Maricopa County. Then, the relocated Skwerls will do what comes naturally, and I figure in a few years it will be a MUCH shorter drive.

Only catch is, have not convinced my lady friend who lives near Cave Creek to have HER props be Ground Zero for the Program.

...said something about "not being thrilled to have bunches of chitterdemons scampering around her place, chewing holes in the eaves to get indoors, terrorizing the locals" and whatnot.

Well, there's always the shack in Rimrock...

[Lilred]

He** yeah!

I use shotgun early in the season, and 22 when the leaves come off the trees. My absolute favorite is the eatin...eat em fer breakfast w/ some redeye gravy, put em in a stew...er eat em fer supper...mmmmm mmmm.
We dun perty good on em this season, me and the ole man whacked 12 in one afternoon, man was they good eatin too. No shortage of em here. Tree-rats..it does a body good.:D

[Jack]

..."chitterdemons" ??!
ROFLMAO
MR, that's a classic. Gonna hafta steal that word.

[GoodOlBoy]

I like that one muhself. I agree with LilRed. It does a body good!

GoodOlBoy - Shotgunners for skwerls unite!

[Tater]

I voted .22 and air rifle cuz I've used both on squirrels. I'ts a blast.

[12ga]

A 12 gauge muzzleloading single barrel is fairly challenging. Our Forest Service tree rats are in ponderosa pines that it takes two men and a boy a full day just to see the top of the tree.

Those not in the pines are eating acorns in a breed of oak tree that's green all year round.

I haven't seen a limb chicken on a bare branch for years.

12ga

[280 improvec]

Old lever action(same vintage as the venerable nylon 66) with synthetic stock. After age 40, I followed the advice of Jack O'Connor and put a William's peep sight on it. Much faster than a scope, and plenty accurate for head shots up to 4o yds.
I am convinced that i need a 17 HMR, but I haven't decided what rifle to buy....any suggestions appreciated.:)

I have to admit that when cat squirrels are active in high river bottom trees, that I am at a disadvantage to someone using a scattergun.

[TrofyBuk]

No, I haven't hunted them much in the 5 - 6 years, but, I need to get the ones where I deer hunt. Sitting in the blind last Saturday and could see at least six all at one time. And of course I thought each one of them was a deer sneaking up on me.
Too much noise. It kept me on alert and excited all morning but never saw a deer. Time to clean house;)

[GoodOlBoy]

Yeah I hate to admit it but I have given up on deer in favor of squirrel already this year.

GoodOlBoy

[TrofyBuk]

GOB
If your like me, it doesn't really matter what hunting, as long as you're out there.
Most of the videos I see about deer hunting are shot there in Texas though and I'm curious as to why you gave up on them allready? I've always wanted to deer hunt there. Looks like some huge racks around.

[GoodOlBoy]

Were I am sitting we have been flooded with big city hunters (I am on the edge of the Davy Crockett national forest) PLUS my next door neighbor just started logging. I figure I won't see another deer until sometime in July anyway.

GoodOlBoy

[billy ahring]

You darn right squirrel hunting is downright enjoyable. My favorite tactic is just setting down near an old scaley bark hickory nut tree when they're cutt'in and just sitting back and playing the patient sniper. Is this a great country or what? That's just too much fun. And the double bonus is the nice stew that follows. Tried bar-be-cue'in them once when I was a young batchelor, but man they were dried out and tuff eat'in. Not even slathering them in sauce helped.


Later,



Billy

[gregarat]

Mostly .22lr., sometimes I use a Crossmen 1377 air pistol, sometimes a .22mag.

[gumpokc]

Originally posted by GoodOlBoy
Were I am sitting we have been flooded with big city hunters (I am on the edge of the Davy Crockett national forest) PLUS my next door neighbor just started logging. I figure I won't see another deer until sometime in July anyway.

GoodOlBoy

Heh i use .22lr or 22mag.

I have a good idea where your at Goodolboy.

Was stationed at Ft. Hood, and after going to Ft Irwin for 45 days, we got a 7 day pass right as deer season started in 1987.

% of us heaeded off to Davy crokett, and we had the _most_ interesting..um..er..metting with the "sheriff of Marques texas"(maybe bad spelling).

Little bitty hole in the wall town, was so small, the local paper had a section for people to leave messages to each other, like we do voicemail nowdays :) all 3 pages for a weeks news.

we did have a blast though :)

[DaMadman]

I am with lil' Red on this one. If I get out during early fall while leave are still on I use the shotgun, normally the 410, after the leaves drop I use the .22

[earschplitinloudenboomer]

GoodOlBoy;

Yup, .32 cal muzzle loader. CVA barrel, Davis "Squirrel Lock"
Cast my own 103 grain maxi balls (they let a lot of daylight in on a squirrel).

[Mad Reloader]

There's a mold for a .31 - .32 cal Maxi?????

:eek:

:D

Who makes it???

(I may need to get me one. Bwahahahahah!) :cool:

Getting back to the subject at hand--and away from SASS type useage of nermal ML projos)

--that sounds like just the ticket to boost Crockett/Squirrel Rifle performance from ".22" levels to the realm of .32-20!

(.31 cal roundballs weigh in in the approx 50 grain range. That Maxi sounds suspiciously close to the correct weight for standard .32-20 projos)

Now must link this thread to my other one in Cowboy Action...

[earschplitinloudenboomer]

Mad Reloader;

...don't remember if it's a Lee or a Lyman mold but it is a true muzzle loading maxi ball mold (wide lube rings).

...use 70gr of Pyrodex P...dug one out of the dirt backstop at the range, looks like a nickle !!!

...could not get the patched round balls (Hornady) to shoot from my gun. The 103gr maxi's shoot great, very accurate!!

...made one .32 from scratch from 8mm mauser barrel (.323), still have it, shoots surprisingly well...barrel is 23" would love to have a good 29" barrel to try.

[Duffy]

I love squirrel, we have plenty around here, from blacks and grays to foxes and reds.

I use my Mossberg 500 20-gauge.

[Ridge Runner]

I shoot a clark custom bull barrelled Ruger 10/22 with an 8x40x56 mil-spec scope riding it. It weighs 13.5# but man does it shoot
RR

[gregarat]

The weather has ben improving this week!
And the Treerats are out!

With the snow pack making walking a pain, I decided to use my Contender, with a .17HMR barrel.
Yesterday my take was 6, I was siting along a hedge row of a farm field, I wasnt trying to walk alot ;).
I was pleasntly suprised with the shots I made, along with the results from the shots. I feel that most of the eatable meat is on the rear of the treerat. So, naturaly I try for head and torso shots.
I dont eat treerat, but I did do a post mortem on them this time.
I found that there is alot of meat still on them! I did find a tinny fragment on a rat taken aprox 30y.
Next time Im going to have my diggy for some proof(I think normaly carcace pics, are in poor taste, and abit on the disturbed side, but this is in the name of science;) )


Buddy (the cat) had himself a feast! He will now grant me 6 more good seasons, for the sacrafice! bwahahaha

P.S. Im not trying to say that the .17HMR is superior to the .22lr for treerat hunting, Just saying that it is a viable choice.

["yote"]

Win Mod 21 SxS dbl bbl. 28 ga.
Dixe Tennessee rifle in 32
Cabelas Blue ridge rifle in 32

[wsgts]

Changed over to a Ruger Mark III only this year. Getting a bit too easy with a .22 WMR with a 4 - 16 scope on it.

Later,
wsgts

[Mad_Jack]

I've hunted them with many tools. My early takings were with the shotgun and .22 and .22 Magnum calibers in rifle and handgun. Over the last thirteen years I've taken the little furry scatter rats with my flintlocks, both rifle and smoothbore. ;) I also enjoy other small game with the same tools. I also enjoy :D dressing in period correct clothing, although to be complient with current law, I put on the required minimum flo orange.:(

[deermeister]

Squirell has always been of my favorites. I use a shotgun, mostly, but also have a Remington nylon 66 .22 that I scoped for just that purpose. Went out quite a bit last fall, and limited out in about 45 minutes one day.

[JimPic]

I take the 12ga out when the leaves are still on,but when the leaves drop I usually take the .22 or a longbow--love hunting squirrels with the longbow!

[TheSollyLama]

I love to squirrel hunt, but haven't found many in huntable areas in CO.

I loved my father's old Savage model 24 with a .22LR/.410 over and under. The first gun I ever shot.

I had a box of .22 shorts that I would play hell with the local bushytail population. Used the .410 more on rabbit, but sometimes the running squirrel got a butt full of pellets. That gun is more valuable to me than most anything else I have.

But it broke and it's gone unrepaired for years. Now I like my Marlin model 25 bolt action. Says to only use .22LR, though. But it too was my dad's, just not from the 50's like the Savage. It's one of the guns that ALWAYS makes the trip to the range.

This year I got my daughter a Rossi Matched Pair Youth Model and we're doing some range time to get her ready for next squirrel season. It has a .22LR barrel and a .410 barrel.

I also take my little single action six shooter with .22LR or .22Mag in it for close up fun.

[GoodOlBoy]

CO can be a bit of a challenge to find good accessible squirrel hunting areas. Check with your local forestry service, they will most likely know which parks are open where for squirrel.

GoodOlBoy