Hog Hunting

[wtilenw]

I'm going Hog hunting the week between Christmas and New Years down to California. I have never hunted them with my muzzleloader. I wonder if any of you have and if you have any stories or advice on the subject. I have killed them before and am aware of the armour over the shoulder area. I will be taking my .54's loaded with 80 grains of pyrodex select and patched round ball. I guess I'm just excited about the trip and want to shoot the breeze about it.
Thanks All,
Idaho PRB :redthumb:

 

[vanstg]

Idaho PRB,
I shot a decent size hog (224 lbs) last year in Florida. I used my .50 cal caplock rifle, loaded with PRB. The ball broke a rib in the way in, went thru both lungs, and stopped under the hide on the far side. Even though the pig didn't go far, I had a hard time tracking him because he ran into some nasty saw palmetto bushes, and there was no blood trail at all.
Good hunting!

 

We shoot them here all the time. I have a 45 and a 54 but I usually use the big rifle unless I know for a fact that there are little ones to be had. I think you have plenty of gun and should have a lot of fun!

 

[Slamfire]

I don't know, an alien carryin' an assault weapon in Calipurnia? Sounds like a hangin' offense to this Escapee from L. A. :shocking:

 

[noahmercy]

I hunted Piney Woods Rooters in my native Florida, and they were pound-for-pound one of the toughest critters on earth. (And that's not just my opinion...several well-traveled hunting authors have opined the same.) The biggest one I had to deal with was 375 pounds. Even after having a 45 caliber hole blown through both shoulders, he tried to get to me, despite not being able to get his front end up off the ground. Now I don't know if the porkers on the left coast are as big, bulletproof, and surley as those, but in my experience, there is no such thing as being overgunned for hogs. It might also be a good idea to have a pistol with you or a trusted hunting buddy as backup, just in case something doesn't want to "give up the bacon" and decides to make a fight out of it. :: That being said, a good hunt to ya', Idaho! :thumbsup:

 

[Rat]

Why not go up to 100 grains? Seems like that would be a more normal heavy hunting load for a .54...80 grains is pretty much the standard for a .50". As far as I know hog hunting is usually a 50 yard and closer proposition, so I would not worry too much about your 100 yard group opening up...

Yeah, as much as I prefer hunting alone, (when actually out of camp and in the woods) (sing to the tune of "I drink alone") I think on hogs I'd do the buddy-system so that one guy could get in a second shot, if needed. Sidearm would be a must.

Rat

 

[Dances With Coyotes]

I'd carry a big caliber handgun for a sidearm. .357 or bigger, as them hogs can run at you faster than you can reload unless you've got a tree to climb in or a pickup bed to jump in, :blah: I don't know about you but if I had some big ole hog chasing me I wouldn't have any problem scaling a tree. :crackup:

 

[jgray]

Sounds like some good advice, but I don't think the Peoples Republic of California will allow Idaho the option of carrying a handgun for a back-up; so try the buddy system or a tree stand.

 

[wtilenw]

My Buddy will be right with me, carrying my other .54 loaded and ready to go. Hopefully, we wont need more firepower than that. To answer Rats question about using more powder....I havn't experimented with larger powder charges with my current patch/ball combinations. I did, initially when I was working up loads but I settled at 80 grains because it gave me the best accuracy. I wont have time to see what an additional 10 or 20 grains will do to my accuracy and point of impact before I go, so I will just stick with what I've got for now. I will, however, experiment with that later on. Until I found this site, I was unaware that it was common to have both a Hunting and Target load for each gun. I am so glad I stumbled on this site it is really exposing me to a wealth of information that was unavailable to me here in Idaho. Thanks for all Your help. I will be leaving in the morning for my Hog hunt and will let You all know how it went when I get back. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of You! PS sure wish I would have won that custom Flintlock in the Raffle!! Oh well, Next Year for sure!
Idaho PRB :redthumb:

 

[uncrichie]

Hey Idaho, you won't need a second rifle. being your friend is going along you only have to be able to run faster than him. Ha, I couldn't resist. Uncrichie...

 

My son just had an interesting incident with feral hogs. He and his blue heeler were out for a walk on a big ranch and they stumbled into a group of about 70 pigs. He started throwing lead with a 30-30 carbine but didn't pick and choose - just shot into the pack 4 times - then he was out of ammo. He wounded a middlin' size hog, which maybe went 150 lbs. The hog came at my boy clacking teeth when the dog rushed in from the side and knocked it down, then clamped onto a leg. My son pushed the hog's head aside with the butt of the rifle and cut its throat. The heeler was not trained for this work but looks like we now have a hog dog. My boy shot the pig broadside at about 30 yds and found the bullet stopped under the far side of the gristle plate. Hogs would rather run than fight and are not as dangerous as African lion but they are stout, tough and don't like being wounded so can be a handful when cornered. I carry a C&B revolver when I hunt hogs with an ML rifle - better safe than chewed on...I can explain to the game warden later if necessary.

 

[muzzman]

woa