rabbits with a pistol

[dsuursoo]

just throwing it out there to see if i'm the lone wild-haired nut to be doing this...

for years i've hunted rabbits with a pistol. i know a lot of folks use a shotgun, but i like the easier packing and quicker tracking of a pistol. i've used a bow, during bowhunting season. it's effective but overkill(and getting a twofor on one arrow was hilariously wrong. they both went running in the same direction)

i've been primarily a modern firearm hunter for years(switching to blackpowder this season), so i'll use my past experience as a reference.

my prime pistol has been a .357 magnum for rabbit hunting, loaded with .38 special in a soft lead round nose or wadcutter. aim high, and it works a treat. no meat destruction beyond what is normal for using a single bullet instead of shot, one shot tends to knock them top over teakettle, and i always had shotshells loaded after the two rabbit rounds in case of runners.

but i've got a .36 cal 1851 navy pistol, it needs a little tuning, but i'm thinking it'll be a fair rabbit pistol as well. the velocities are about comparable to the .38 special, from what i can tell, so i'm not worried as far as that's concerned.

i'm debating on conicals or round balls, i think they'd be equally effective.

am i alone in this, or does anyone else hunt rabbits with something other than a shotgun?

 

[Bretwalda]

I am testing the effectiveness of a .56 cal smoothbore pistol with shot. i will post some results as soon as I am done testing.

 

[dsuursoo]

i've read a LOT of smoothbore with shot posts. sure, it looks really effective... maybe a howdah pistol to have that second shot available?

i've been a big fan of being able to take multiple shots with small game, because sometimes there's another one that'll go bounding across the first one.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

I have taken both rabbit and squack w/my '58 but never went intentionally after them. just happened to be out scratching around and up they popped.

 

[Nifeman]

Shot one once when I was a kid. Had a Hawes Army model .44. And after 40+ yrs. of huntin that was one of my most memorable shots. he was about 20 yds from me and took him thru the front of his ribs...

 

[Tkendrick]

As a kid in SW Kansas, I hunted jackrabbit with a '51 Navy.

I didn't get many, I would try to wait til they ran before I would shoot. Really good practice, and oddly enough, I can still hit better on the range with that gun than any other pistol I own.

More than enough oomph for rabbits of any kind, IMHO.

 

[dsuursoo]

As a kid in SW Kansas, I hunted jackrabbit with a '51 Navy.

I didn't get many, I would try to wait til they ran before I would shoot. Really good practice, and oddly enough, I can still hit better on the range with that gun than any other pistol I own.

More than enough oomph for rabbits of any kind, IMHO.

that's the idea. you don't want them getting up.

i'm content to take one rabbit out of a group if they're being still. call me patient.

 

[biermeister]

Started hunting Cottontail with my Euroarms 1851 Navy in .36 back in 71. Later I started hunting with a 1858 Remington in .44 :grin: with adjustable sights. Both revolvers worked just fine with a well placed shot. Now I hunt with either my T/C Seneca with either the .36 or .45 barrel with RB's or my Remington conversions in .45 Colt. All work very well.

 

[biermeister]

Forgot, I have also hunted rabbits with a bow an old Bear 45# recurve from the 50's. I used the blunt tips and the metal judo tip. Had better luck
with the standard gamepoint.

 

[buttonbuck]

I get a couple with a longbow every year, use judo points. I dream of using my 32 crockett pistol on cottontails I think brown bear hunt rabbit with a crockett pistol.