.17HMR Hunting

[SLUG217]

I know many folks have mixed opinions on hunting coyote sized game with the .17HMR; however, I have a brand new one (Savage with a Varmit Barrel) and I am looking forward to killing some coyotes.

Those of you all who shoot a .17HMR - how many coyotes have you all shot, and what was your experience like hunting with that cartridge? What is the largest animal you have ever taken with the .17?

I am going to use it also to hunt feral hogs on a WMA here where I live because I can use only small game weapons .22WMR or smaller. Have any of you all taken a hog with the .17HMR? I know many guys here that shoot them with a .22lr so I know the .17 will do the job.

Let me know you .17HMR hunters about your hunting experiences and if you have any pictures I would love to see those too.


Thanks and Happy New Year..

[toxic111]

I haven't shot anything larger than a gopher with mine.

Now the ammo companies are starting to have a 'controlled' expansion bullet for small game hunting, instead of red misting. They might work for coyotes quite well. ALl you can do is try, but be ready to take a finishing shot, and not to let any animal suffer.

[Rocky Raab]

I can't help but think a 17 HMR is a VERY poor choice for feral hogs.

That teensy bullet will give no penetration at all on a hog, no matter where you hit it. To kill even a domestic hog with a 22LR, you have to be standing right at its nose, and shoot directly into the forehead. That is NOT a place I want to stand with a feral hog and its razor-sharp tusks.

It's also becoming a universal opinion that the 17HMR is NOT a coyote round. Even with good hits, lots of animals are being lost. It's even a bit light for fox, in most opinions. Save the 17 rimfires for rat-sized varmints, not predators.

I'm curious. What state is this that mandates 22WMR or smaller for feral hogs? Having hunted them myself and seeing what they can absorb, I humbly think this is nutso policy.

[Evan03]

i agree,

the biggest meanest thing i ever dropped with my 17hmr was badger at 75yds, badgers are tough. maybe more so than coyotes in my opion. it wasnt a one shot ordeal. took 3 from 75yds about as fast as i could cycle the bolt to be confident that he was done. badgers

i dont take the hmr out to hunt coyotes, i have centerfire rigs for that. my stylke of yote hunting leads to ranges well beyond the hmrs capabilities. wich in my opion would be 100yds and under for coyotes.

ive seen rock chucks shot with the hmr at alittle over 100yds and that also wasnt pretty. but i to have heard people talk good about the hmr and rock chucks under 200yds.

mainly the game i chase with the hmr in hand are small varmits, ground squrels mostly and the acasional jack rabbit and crow.


id go with 223 for small game, coyotes fox badger mtn lion bobcat.

Evan

[DSadler]

I have to agree with Rocky on this one, it will bring down a coyote and wild dog if you hit it in the throat (at 50yds). Have had a few get away when shot with what i thought was good shot. But a neck shot will really drop them. But as far as ferol hogs go I would not even think about using mine for that. I not that young anymore and cant run away as fast as i used to. LOL

[.243hunter]

I have not tried my 17 on any coyotes but i have kill many squirels,rabbits, coons,and crows with mine. One squirel was killed off of the front porch of the camp i head shot him at 60 yards. My dad killed a 40 pound hog at about a hundred yards.A head shot of couse. Head shots are CRUCIAL with this round. Use the new XTP bullet it holds together a little better. My gun is a marlin 17V with a heavy barrel. If your barrel is as heavy as mine then it is kind of hard to aim free handed.Good Luck

[gregarat]

I can knock down centerfire sihlouette rams at 100y with athority. The standard weight ammo seemed to hit harder than the XTP rounds.
After seeing the preformance I can get with my Contender G2 handgun, (without the triggerjob it needs) everyone was drolling. Then dreamed about the fun ya could have at the golf corse .

[SLUG217]

I live in Georgia, and that is what state allows the hunting with rimfire only on certain WMA for feral hog. I actually since posting this thread - I have killed 3 coyotes with the round with no problem at all. One of the three went 25 yards after the shot, but if I shoot it - I can track it. Also a fellow hunting buddy killed a feral hog today at 15 yards with his .17. Hit her right in the ear and down she went smooth as silk from his tree stand. I am looking forward to doing the same.

Thanks for the replies.

[Andy L]

Go shoot a couple hundred with your hummer and then report back. ITS NOT A COYOTE GUN. In the end you will cripple way more than you shoot. I did not do this test, but have read enough credible reports and talked with enough people who have killed literally thousands of coyotes to know this is true. There is no need for a test. It is not good. When someone tells you not to jump off tall buildings, do you need to do the test to see if they are lying? No rimfire is good. If you live in a state that outlaws centerfires, use 12ga with #4 buck. Light years ahead.

17HMRs are the worst thing that ever happened to coyote hunting. Period.

Andy

[gumpokc]

Originally posted by SLUG217


I am going to use it also to hunt feral hogs on a WMA here where I live because I can use only small game weapons .22WMR or smaller. Have any of you all taken a hog with the .17HMR? I know many guys here that shoot them with a .22lr so I know the .17 will do the job.

I hope your taslking about Javelina sized hogs, and not russain boars (typical feral hog in all US territories)

for Javelina types, it should be ok, but i would still personally use a tree stand, those lil bastages run in packs, and will defend group members.

For russains boars.. it _could_ be done, but then again, just because something _can_ be done, doesn't mean it should be.

Yeah well all know _if_ you put it in exactly the right spot, you _could_ kill an elephant with it, but I think we all know how stupid that sounds.

For coyote, at close range it'd probably be ok, alot depends on you as the shooter.


as for "I know many guys here that shoot them with a .22lr so I know the .17 will do the job." All i have to sya for people shoointing feral hogs with a .22LR, is that those guys have alot more balls than brains.

[Cossack]

Can't say I have shot more than the occasional crow, etc with my CZ 452. But my son in law mounted a sweet 17 BSA on his NEA 17, we shot clay pigeons at 265 yards (yes 265!). But there was nothing left when it got there. The bullets just punched a tiny hole in the center without breaking the rest of the bird.
My 17 Rem. does the job on coyotes, so I didn't even consider the HMR.

[jonthedogman]

on a comfortable summer night with the breeze close to 0 miles per hour you can safely kill prey that is a bit bigger then a house cat.
I'm not knocking the 17. heck I'm a rim fire fan myself. but from my experience past 80 yards you are setting your self up for failure.
it can be done, it has been done, I know a guy who hunts yokes with his.
but this man uses only eye shots and if it shows any sighn of wind in the forecast he takes out the 22 mag.

if it's a rougher day he pulls out the .223
if the weather really gets rough he says he would never hunt with anything smaller the 22-250.
on really bad weather days he stays home and plays cards.
dogman

[8X56MS]

I have always had a problem with guys killing animals with a marginal cartridge. When conditions are optimal, it works fine, but the chance of wounding the animal is too high. I do not kill to enjoy the animal's suffering.

[Nemrod]

I my self have downed two coyotes. First of with was in the neck. Next one a heart and lunger right in the ribs.........both didnt get more then 10' from were the took the hit. As for anything else that sizes i hit a pig with it at about 100yrds and it took around 15min for him to drop, but they are alot tougher then coyotes and i have had pigs run on me after a 30-06 hit in the chest.

Signed, Mighty Nemrod

[poly]

Andy L put it best. Why try to kill anything bigger than a squirrel with 17 grains of lead? I love hunting coyotes and the like, but there is no animal that deserves to suffer just because we humans want to see if our little rimfires can kill them. I have a CZ .17 that is wonderful for praire rats, but I won't shoot anything bigger with it.

As a kid I killed a deer with a .22. I didn't find him until a few days later and I'm sure he suffered greatly for my stupid actions. I don't intend to do it again.