5 big fox squirrels with my crockett .32 this morning,

[Howie1968]

when the rain stopped I made a mad dash to the property with my .32 6 shots 5 big fox squirrels are in the freezer a total of 13 since Saturday. my load 15 grains pyrodex p .310 rb .010 patch low noise no recoil. it flat out knocks them out of trees

 

[JoJoLesh]

Awesome job.

I've got one of those Crockets but haven't taken it out for anything other than paper yet, and that only once. It is really the significant other's gun, so I don't take it to the range if I am alone. I got it for them thinking that they would come hunting with me, bit I am thinking that it is unlikely now.....

Anyway, great job, and thank you for supplying the loading info too. With that load, what is your max effective range on bushy tailes?

 

[Howie1968]

I'm not s ure of maximum f2f distance as I have it sighted in about 1/2 high at 25 yards I did m a ke a couple shots at about 30 yards which for my shooting ability is a b out maximum for me on a squirrel sized animal

 

[gabedard]

Good eating there! Learned to hunted those and rabbits as a kid. Only grays around here that dig up my lawn and drive my dog goofy.


I

 

[JoJoLesh]

Good eating there! Learned to hunted those and rabbits as a kid. Only grays around here that dig up my lawn and drive my dog goofy.


I

I always thought Grays are better eating than Fox.

 

[Kansas Jake]

We have Fox squirrels here and the season doesn't open until June first. Howie, you make me anxious to get back out and see if I can put a couple in the stew pot.

 

[JoJoLesh]

What is the terminal damage on a squirrel from a 25 - 30 yd shot from a .32?

 

[ny griz]

Congrats,good shootin.NY GRIZ

 

[1861colt]

Used to hear of "barking" a squirrel to kill them. Is that a bragging shooter's tall tale or is it really that the only way to take them down is to just plug 'em.

 

[Howie1968]

What is the terminal damage on a squirrel from a 25 - 30 yd shot from a .32?

If I hit them in the head pretty much the head is ruined if I hit them in the front shoulders they are. Wrecked rib shots both front and rear quarters are edible. It seems to be on par damage wise as a 22 caliber stinger round. I don't know if I'd push it any faster or more powder I'm gonna carry it when I run my traps I normally carry my .54 Lyman plains pistol when trapping but this will be good my .32

 

[hanshi]

I used 30 grains of 3F in my Crockett to kill squirrels and agree the damage is about like a .22LR HP even with the hotter load. I found that as long as you stay away from the shoulders and hind quarters the damage is nil.

 

[1861colt]

Yah but is barking real and would you have to use a larger caliber to get the bark to fly faster. But yet, you could end up deflecting and ruining a good snack.

 

[JamesT]

when the rain stopped I made a mad dash to the property with my .32 6 shots 5 big fox squirrels are in the freezer a total of 13 since Saturday. my load 15 grains pyrodex p .310 rb .010 patch low noise no recoil. it flat out knocks them out of treesView attachment 30567

Nicely done! I can't wait to get out for squirrel but unfortunately we have no spring season in my state. Gonna have to wait until the Fall. How are the foxes any different than grays in taste? Any tougher or easier skinning them?

 

[JamesT]

Yah but is barking real and would you have to use a larger caliber to get the bark to fly faster. But yet, you could end up deflecting and ruining a good snack.

I am fairly certain it is a real thing although I have never personally done it or seen it done. I have read of it several places it seems so there may be some truth in it.

 

[Bassdog1]

Nice job and good shooting. I believe that hunting squirrels with a small caliber is one of the best ways there is to keep up your shooting skills. I hunt as often as possible with my 32 and 36 Senecas and Cherokees but sure wish I could hunt squirrels through the spring and summer. Went Turkey hunting yesterday and had at least a half dozen near my brushed in blind most of the morning. I also would keep my gun in hand while mushroom hunting if legal.

 

[bushytail]

Nice! Good shooting.

 

[OldRust]

Great shooting as always Howie ! I can smell the squirrel pot pie cooking now.

 

[Notchy Bob]

Howie, your fox squirrels are different from ours. I live in Florida. We have the Sherman's fox squirrel, which has a black scalp and more yellowish underside, and another rare variant that is almost all black. The Sherman's variety, which I see relatively more often, is very slow moving and easily twice the size of a common gray squirrel. I doubt if I've seen more than two or three of the black ones in my life. I think fox squirrels are still legal to hunt in Florida, but the season and bag limits are very restricted. They are getting scarce, at least where I live, as they prefer a specialized longleaf pine environment that is disappearing before our exploding population growth. I killed a few of them many years ago, but don't hunt them any more. I'm glad you still have fox squirrels in huntable numbers where you live. I remember they were pretty good eating.

Squirrels have tough little skins, and a fox squirrel skin is big enough to be worth saving. The rawhide is surprisingly strong, and makes good whangs. I remember keeping the skins of the fox squirrels I killed, but that was a long time ago.

Anyway, you did some good shooting! I enjoy your posts.

Best regards,

Notchy Bob

 

[Bassdog1]

A town near where I live is home to a healthy population of all black squirrels but most of central Indiana has fox squirrels with pockets of grays here and there. I really like hunting all of them but my late father preferred grays and we used to drive to southern Indiana each year to hunt a few.

 

[Notchy Bob]

This thread prompted me to look up some more information about fox squirrels. It looks like we have one species here in the south, but several subspecies. It looks like the Eastern Fox Squirrel, or Bryant's Fox Squirrel, has a pretty wide distribution in the eastern US, and is considered a "species of least concern," which explains how Howie was able to find and bag thirteen of 'em in the past week. However, the subspecies we have living in my area, the Sherman's Fox Squirrel, is considered threatened, and is now protected in the state of Florida.

I see one or two of them around my area once in a great while. I took these snapshots out of my car window a couple of years ago:

The top board on the fence is a rough-cut 1x6. The horizontal fence wires are four inches apart. This should give an idea of the size. these are big squirrels!

Notchy Bob