?s about the small bore squirrel guns

[tenngun]

I was about to buy a .40 drop in per another post (drops in a cabelas hawkin) but after a beer(s) I decided I was gonna send Mr Hoyt a .36 traditions barrel that I could never get to shoot a good group and have it bored to .40. Therefore lies my question...is a .40 TOO heavy for rats? I can shoot light of course but as bad as the .32 tears em up (even with 15 grn) I wanna ask those that know. Saving alot this way and I do still have the crockett. Always wanted a .40 (flintlock, mines caplock) but I believe this is the way to go. So whadaya think?

For years Arkansa fish and game let you huntt tree rats with .40 and below, and deer with .40 and above. Had lots of friends that made lots of dumplings with a .40 over 25 grains 3f.

 

[Pete44ru]

For years Arkansa fish and game let you hunt tree rats with .40 and below, and deer with .40 and above.

Same here, in Southern New England - My state mandates that a small game frontstuffer be under .40 cal; and big game (deer) frontstuffers be over .40 cal.

Makes one wonder what game can be legally hunted with a .40 - small/big/both ?

:idunno:

.

 

[Pete G]

Any one have any information on small bore squirrel gun

We have a lot of small bore squirrels around here, so I like .32. You can buy a box of buckshot and have enough balls for a long, long time.

 

[Crewdawg445]

Ya, .32 all the way in a pedersoli scout. :hatsoff:

 

[Rifleman1776]

needed to be swabbed between every shot or the fouling got to where it was too difficult to properly seat a ball.

Yep. That is a downside to the tiny bores.
I am sorta a ram rod safety nut. If a rod breaks and runs through your wrist or hand, that could just ruin yer whole day and/or let you bleed to death in the woods. :shocked2: With tiny bores you need a tiny (weak) rod. IMHO, synthetics or steel are the only way to go in that case. Not 'authentic' but the 'authentic' alternative is to die a gruesome death alone in the woods. Just saying. Do consider a .40 cal. or larger.

 

[hanshi]

Rifleman, I can't quite understand why some shooters report more fouling in small bores than in the large ones. It must have something to do with patch thickness and/or the lube being used.

I've owned 2 .32s and a .36; I still have the .32 Tn rifle. I've never, ever had a fouling problem with these small bores. I've found they foul no more nor less than my .50 and .54. I use .311" and .350" ball respectively in my rifles. The patch is .024" ticking and the lube is Hoppes #9 Plus BP Lube. Spit works just as well as do a few other lubes. Grease lubes do leave a gummy residue so I only use them for the first load in the woods. They do require swabbing every 2 to 5 shots. Hoppes and a thick patch allow me to shoot dozens of rounds in an afternoon with no swabbing. Black Solve, WW fluid and some others are fine as well.

What load do you use in the tiny bores? I can try your load in my guns and see first hand the fouling problem; and that may illuminate the problem. Try mine and see if your load performance is better.

There is, of course, no downside to swabbing after each shot. But my preference is to NOT swab the bore unless it really needs it.

 

[bob308]

on that rebore give .38 a thought. you can use balls for the .36 pistols which are easier to get. I have two old shot out rusted .32-.36. they are going to be .38.

 

[Treestalker]

Here in Arkansas a .40 cal can be used on small game and deer, if I understand it right. So a one gun careful hunter could live with a .40 for everything but birds and turkey. (No rifles on turkeys) I would reccommend a .32 for squirrels, its just a natural fit. Had a longrifle in .32 when I was younger and would sit at the kitchen table the night before the hunt cutting out patches with a penny for a template. Walnut and brass glowing in the corner, little round balls of lead, a can of caps, and the first good cool winds sneaking around the restless trees, and the harvest moon like a yellow lamp in the cloudy evening sky. A sipping shot of sour mash southern whiskey. Oh yeah, thats the life, and the gun to get, either flint or percussion. You'll love it. George.

 

[azmntman]

Here in Arkansas a .40 cal can be used on small game and deer, if I understand it right. So a one gun careful hunter could live with a .40 for everything but birds and turkey. (No rifles on turkeys) I would reccommend a .32 for squirrels, its just a natural fit. Had a longrifle in .32 when I was younger and would sit at the kitchen table the night before the hunt cutting out patches with a penny for a template. Walnut and brass glowing in the corner, little round balls of lead, a can of caps, and the first good cool winds sneaking around the restless trees, and the harvest moon like a yellow lamp in the cloudy evening sky. A sipping shot of sour mash southern whiskey. Oh yeah, thats the life, and the gun to get, either flint or percussion. You'll love it. George.

AND the correct whiskey as per above!! :thumbsup:

 

[nkbj]

A medium twist medium bore could be really nice.