Fox shooting

nedser86

Could anyone tell me if a.22lr is effective for fox shooting and if so at what ranges

The Big Fella

In my opinion 50 yards max headshot only. The .22lr is a rabbit gun really and a fox is a big animal.
Get a centrefire if your serious about shooting foxes.

declan1980

For a dedicated fox gun a .22 hornet should be the minimum

browning 12 bore

22 magnum is fantastic as well there lad but has to be head shot or though the engine room as they say or you could be doing a little running as they say

kildare.17hmr

The Big Fella wrote: »

In my opinion 50 yards max headshot only. The .22lr is a rabbit gun really and a fox is a big animal.
Get a centrefire if your serious about shooting foxes.

I never understand this headshot only thing imo they are for heros, yes i have taken a couple when another shot was not possible but i wouldnt go out to do it. chest is a much better option imo. Less room for error.

Agree about going centrefire if gettin serious into foxing

The Big Fella

Thats why a .22lr isn't suitable for shooting foxes. I only ever shot two foxes with my .22lr one was a headshot at 40 yards and the second a chest shot and he ran! A shotgun is more effective with a 3'' magnum. I like to put foxes down quick. I agree with declan a hornet should be the min as a dedicated foxing rifle.

johngalway

Shot four foxes when I had my 22, 2 brain shot 55 and 80 yards, both dropped. One surprised me in close, shoulder shot and ran. The last one I had a poor rest, neck shot him but he required a follow up kill shot. Great calibre but it gives you no room for error. Not a fox specific calibre.

cavan shooter

forget the 22lr for foxes its not worth the hassel even though years ago I have shot them with it. 22 Magnum ,imi,um at 100-120 yards aim for the chest. I shot for years with a magnum and know a lad who traded a 223 and went back to a magnum. (weight and awkwardness only)

I have a 22 hornet which over the land I shoot is perfect for foxes but dont use it on a rabbit;)

moby30

I shot around 20 foxes last year with a .22 Lr. As Bigfella says though it can only be a head shot and ideally at around 50 yards between the eyes. In all honesty I think it has more to do with experience as to what you should use- somebody new to it shouldn't really use a.22lr. I am very comfortable using it as it suits me for some of my permissions and I enjoy the challenge of getting the fox up as close as possible even when using the.243 The most important thing is making sure its going to be a good clean kill.

charlie10

i had a 22lr and i traded it in for 223 and i think its the most forgiving round as it is as flat as you can get .but word of warning DONT getrid of 22 like i did cause some nights i would love to have it for the bunnies:cool:

pigeon shooter

Basically if your using a rim fire rifle you simply have to be more precise on where you place the bullet and get the fox in that bit closer! With centerfire you can afford to be less accurate because your dealing with more take down power!! For instance if you shoot a fox at lets say 100 yards with a .223 and its a gut shot(badly placed shot) the fox 99% of the time will hit the deck on the spot!! If you take a .22 magnum and same thing gut shot 100 yards the fox will run on wounded!!

johngalway

charlie10 wrote: »

DONT getrid of 22

Amen to that.

4200fps

My opinion and lots on this is right anything from a hornet and up is best and with a well zero'd in rifle.
anything below a hornet may kill at close range but if i hadn't anything stronger than a hornet i be taking the shotgun loaded with something like BB's

Invincible

4200fps wrote: »

My opinion and lots on this is right anything from a hornet and up is best and with a well zero'd in rifle.
anything below a hornet may kill at close range but if i hadn't anything stronger than a hornet i be taking the shotgun loaded with something like BB's

Just because you have an inaccurate shot doesn't mean everyone else has

pigeon shooter

4200fps wrote: »

My opinion and lots on this is right anything from a hornet and up is best and with a well zero'd in rifle.
anything below a hornet may kill at close range but if i hadn't anything stronger than a hornet i be taking the shotgun loaded with something like BB's

I agree with you on anything from a hornet up is best for foxes!! But I enterily disagree that a shotgun is better than a .22magnum(BELOW A HORNET)!! A hornet is obviously going to be better than a magnum but defo not a shotgun!! Goodluck to you trying to shoot a fox out to 100 yards with a BB load! Because thats what a magnum would do with a rightly placed bullet!!

garv123

4200fps wrote: »

My opinion and lots on this is right anything from a hornet and up is best and with a well zero'd in rifle.
anything below a hornet may kill at close range but if i hadn't anything stronger than a hornet i be taking the shotgun loaded with something like BB's

Good luck shooting a fox at 100 yards with a shotgun instead of a wmr or hmr.

Both well capable of doing the job if you have a brain.

Farmlife

My uncle told me if you cut an x across the tip of the round its more effective on foxes, not sure how true this is tho

slingshot88

rgugliel wrote: »

My uncle told me if you cut an x across the tip of the round its more effective on foxes, not sure how true this is tho

ya i heard that to,but have yet to try it..

fodda

Thats called a "Dum-Dum" bullet used in WW1 which was a savage war and caused massive horrible wounds. In fact so bad that the use of these are outlawed by the Geneva convention or something.

If you were caught with any, the other soldiers shot you with them in a way that you didnt die instantly but in agony because of the wounds they caused (so the stories go).

They are highly inaccurate after a certain range and i am not sure if they are legal in any situation. I should imagine not legal ? and quite rightly so.

garv123

rgugliel wrote: »

My uncle told me if you cut an x across the tip of the round its more effective on foxes, not sure how true this is tho

Illegal to tamper with ammunition though.

fodda wrote: »

Thats called a "Dum-Dum" bullet used in WW1 which was a savage war and caused massive horrible wounds.

They are highly inaccurate after a certain range and i am not sure if they are legal in any situation. I should imagine not legal ? and quite rightly so.

I'd imagine if each bullet didnt have the exact same "cut" it would effect the accuracy for each shot.

Spunk84

The Box O' Truth #32 - Dum-Dum Bullets and the Box O'Truth -
Below should answer your question;)
Check out link http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/bot32.htm

Had a few folks ask me recently about Dum-Dum bullets.

Let's see what we can find out about them on the Internet:

"The 'dum-dum' was a British military bullet developed for use in India - at the Dum-Dum Arsenal - on the North West Frontier in the late 1890s.

The dum-dum comprised a jacketed .303 bullet with the jacket nose open to expose its lead core. The aim was to improve the bullet's effectiveness by increasing its expansion upon impact.

The phrase 'dum-dum' was later taken to include any soft-nosed or hollow pointed bullet. The Hague Convention of 1899 outlawed the use of dum-dum bullets during warfare."

Some folks have heard rumors of soldiers and others cutting an "X" in the nose of pistol bullets to "improve" performance.

Today's question: Does altering the nose of a bullet make it more effective against living targets?

4gun

fodda wrote: »

Thats called a "Dum-Dum" bullet used in WW1 which was a savage war and caused massive horrible wounds. In fact so bad that the use of these are outlawed by the Geneva convention or something.

If you were caught with any, the other soldiers shot you with them in a way that you didnt die instantly but in agony because of the wounds they caused (so the stories go).

They are highly inaccurate after a certain range and i am not sure if they are legal in any situation. I should imagine not legal ? and quite rightly so.

I dont think the Geneva convention covers foxes Fodda.

clivej

rgugliel wrote: »

My uncle told me if you cut an x across the tip of the round its more effective on foxes, not sure how true this is tho

Doh don't they call that balistic tipped ammo now?????

And is available to buy in your local gun dealers.

Hunter21

It's written in many articles that Michael Collins was killed by a dum-dum as noted in the autopsy there was no exit wound. But a big bad entry wound.

Sparks

garv123 wrote: »

Illegal to tamper with ammunition though.

Just in case folk missed it the first time round...

4200fps

pigeon shooter wrote: »

I agree with you on anything from a hornet up is best for foxes!! But I enterily disagree that a shotgun is better than a .22magnum(BELOW A HORNET)!! A hornet is obviously going to be better than a magnum but defo not a shotgun!! Goodluck to you trying to shoot a fox out to 100 yards with a BB load! Because thats what a magnum would do with a rightly placed bullet!!

I didnt say id shoot a fox at 100yards with a bb??? 50 yards no bother. I can say a good man will call a fox into shooting range of a shotgun.it has being done for years when 22hornets was the highest caliber people could get for foxs many years back and the highest cal anyone could get years back was 220 swift or 22-250.The law changed with firearms so better selection of calibers.some didnt bother with rifles years back only shotguns and still to this very day its a very popular method and successful

4200fps

Invincible wrote: »

Just because you have an inaccurate shot doesn't mean everyone else has

at closer range i mean.50 yards aprox and i done it.

4200fps

garv123 wrote: »

Good luck shooting a fox at 100 yards with a shotgun instead of a wmr or hmr.

Both well capable of doing the job if you have a brain.

oh ur so funny :D:D

The Big Fella

4200fps wrote: »

oh ur so funny :D:D

But you yourself said you would rather have a shotgun.;) A magnum will knock a fox at a 100 yards with a well placed shot.

4200fps

The Big Fella wrote: »

But you yourself said you would rather have a shotgun.;) A magnum will knock a fox at a 100 yards with a well placed shot.

I would,100 yards you would id say but any further and it be taking the p!ss as it would bounce of him and scare him off.we have some dummy's around here lamping and shooting foxs with rabbit guns and they are wounding/missing them,they would think a hornet bullet is an anti tank round if they seen one.they are missing and scaring them of lamps.thats why you will see fox's which are lamp shy. Some learned the hard way

fodda

4200fps wrote: »

I didnt say id shoot a fox at 100yards with a bb??? 50 yards no bother. I can say a good man will call a fox into shooting range of a shotgun.it has being done for years when 22hornets was the highest caliber people could get for foxs many years back and the highest cal anyone could get years back was 220 swift or 22-250.The law changed with firearms so better selection of calibers.some didnt bother with rifles years back only shotguns and still to this very day its a very popular method and successful

I experimented with buck shot once (9 shot) and i was shooting a plywood cut-out at 40 yards.

If the shot hit it then it would go straight through the plywood no problem with plenty of power.....trouble was the spread is unreal and you would be lucky to get one buck shot on target never mind in the right place.

I wouldnt use a shotgun on a fox unless it was up closer. They just arent designed for large animals or distance shooting unless you have specialized cartridges.