?s about the small bore squirrel guns

[JamesCrowe]

Any one have any information on small bore squirrel gund

 

[mooman76]

What are you wanting to know in particular?

 

[JamesCrowe]

A good brand to statr out with good loads and cal.

 

[Grenadier1758]

I think a relatively decent starter squirrel rifle is the Traditionsâ„¢ Crockett .32-Caliber Percussion Rifle. You can often find this rifle on sale at the big box stores.

Use a 0.310 ball or the 30 caliber shot size (#1 buck). 20 grains of 3fg powder will dispatch squirrels nicely.

 

[buford87]

I agree with grendier about the load. I have a dixie deluxe cub rifle made by pedersoli. It shoots wonderfully with a .310 ball pillow tick patching with stumpy's moose snot lube and 20 grains of fffg goex. I haven't shot it very much at 50 yards but from the bench at 25 yards I have shot quarter inch groups.

 

[Billnpatti]

That Dixie Deluxe Cub was the second muzzleloading rifle that I owned. I bought it way back sometime around 1972 to 1975, I don't remember the exact date. It was a nice shooting gun but I never did get it dialed in as well as you have yours. I was getting about 1 inch groups off the bench at 25 yards with a .310 ball in a .010 patch with Bore Butter as my lube. My powder charge was 20 grains of Goex 3f. It was a dandy gun but, like most all small bore guns, it needed to be swabbed between every shot or the fouling got to where it was too difficult to properly seat a ball. With proper care and feeding, it was a dandy squirrel gun.

 

[azmntman]

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?

 

[99whip]

I have a .32 CVA squirrel rifle. I think it's a good gun. Took me a bit to get it dialed in but at fifty yards now it's pretty tight. Like somebody else said, swabbing between shots really seems to make a difference. My best load seems to be 20 Grains of 3F, .310 ball with a .015 patch.

I don't know what they go for used now but I think they are fairly common.

Hope that helps you some.

 

[deermanok]

Over the winter, I picked up a Crockett 32 kit at the Traditions show room in Old Saybrook Ct. I got a good deal as the box was open for some reason. They sold me the kit for $300.00 After building the rifle, I took it to the range and it shoots pretty good. I have only about a dozen shots through it so far. Still need more sighting in work. 310 round ball and .10 lubed patch, 30 grains 3f. My groups weren't very tight at all but given enough time I'll get her shooting good. I'd recommend a 32, you'll enjoy it.

 

[Spikebuck]

A good brand to statr out with good loads and cal.

The Traditions Crockett in .32 is a pretty good squirrel rifle. But, my Pedersoli Frontier in .36 was a better tack driver (and they are available in .32 as well, which I personally think is a better squirrel/rabbit caliber). Of course, the Frontier is pricier.

 

[Jim C]

"is a .40 TOO heavy for rats?"


That's exactly what I intend to do with the .40 cal GM barrel for my GPR that I just ordered the other day, hunt tree rats :wink:
I've been using my 50 up until now, BUT, I've got her dialed in so tight she'll do ragged one hole groups out to 30 yds, or 35 yds (from the bench) on a real good day. Makes it really easy to hit 'em in the head. Occasionally I'll miss the head once in a great while but I still have the back legs to throw in the dumplings :grin:

 

[Rat Trapper]

Since the 36 is pretty hard on things you want to eat, with a 40 you better aim for the head. If you can get either to shoot with light loads you might be ok??

 

[Jim C]

Well, 70 grains in my .50 GPR ain't exactly a light load, but if I go any lower than that I start losing the pinpoint accuracy needed for the head shots. I've taken quite a few rabbits with it also and never failed to hit 'em in the head. As for the .40 cal I'm about to start working with, if for some reason I can't get it dialed in as tight as I have the .50, I just won't hunt with it, but I don't see that happening. I should have no problem finding a combination that will produce ragged one hole groups from the bench at 30 yds, just like the .50
BTW, I have never ever aimed for anything else but the head, even w/ a .22LR

 

[BrownBear]

I'm shooting snowshoe hare rather than squirrels, but used to do a lot of squirrel hunting before moving to Alaska, and before taking up muzzleloaders.

In my own personal nutshell, anything but a head shot is a meat waster, no matter what I'm pointing. It's not just the actual tearing up of meat, but the spread of bloodshot well back down the body, even with neck shots.

In muzzleloaders I kind of hit the extremes in rounds while bypassing the calibers in the middle. I use 36, 32, and 30 cal in the smaller bores, as well as 50, 54, 58 and 62 caliber in the large. No experience with 40 and 45, but I can't make myself believe there's any special magic there.

I've also run the gamut of velocities, whacking them with full power loads in the big bores while on big game hunts, greatly reduced large bore loads, fast and flat small bore loads, and greatly reduced velocity small bore loads. They ALL do too much damage with anything but head shots.

Big considerations in picking a round are legal limits in some states, and for squirrel shots in trees, range or "carry" of balls beyond your target in populated areas.

Put it all in a pot and shake it real good, and you'll find what is best. I'm fascinated with 40 and 45 right now, mostly because I don't own them. But the up side of using my big bores is lots more field shooting and carry time, which has big payoffs when I move from small game to large.

 

[Jim C]

"But the up side of using my big bores is lots more field shooting and carry time, which has big payoffs when I move from small game to large."

Absolutely! Squirrel/rabbit hunting with a ML is not only challenging, but you get a lot of shooting action out of it as well, most of the time anyway. That's one reason why I like to do it, the other reason is that I had to give up deer hunting due to back problems. Can't get 'em out once I get 'em down. Some might say, well, you're wasting lead and powder using a 50 on small game. I say that if I were not shooting squirrels and rabbits I'd be punching paper exclusively because I can't big game hunt anymore. I don't own any small bores, at least smaller than the .40 GM barrel I just bought, and have no desire to own one any smaller. I just don't see any point in it when I can hit a squirrel in the head with my big bore anyway, and I already have them from back in my deer hunting days.

 

[Billnpatti]

Personally, I prefer a .32 or a .36, but I don't think a .40 is too heavy for squirrels so long as you don't load it too heavily. No matter what caliber you hunt with, it is always best to hit them in the head....if you can. But, even if you shoot them in the heart/lung area, there isn't any meat there to be messed up. As you well know, all of the good meat is in the legs and in the backstrap. Not much edible meat on the ribs. As long as you don't mess up any of that meat, you will be okay.

 

[BrownBear]

As you well know, all of the good meat is in the legs and in the backstrap. Not much edible meat on the ribs. As long as you don't mess up any of that meat, you will be okay.

I can't agree. Blood shot is a real issue even at lower vels. Don't have to hit the eating meat at all to spread lots of blood shot out through it. Shoot as you want, but so will I.

 

[Billnpatti]

I agree that having bloodshot meat is always an issue when shooting a larger caliber or when shooting higher velocities. But, if you don't have a good .32 or .36, you just have to accept the colateral damage of some bloodshot meat when your only available shot is a shot to the body. If the shot is high up around the shouldere area, it is true that you may ruin some of the front leg meat or in the casee of a gut shot, you will likely mess up some of the hind leg meat. But, if as I suggested, you use a light load in a .40 caliber this colateral damage should be minimmal when a shot through the heart/ lung area is your only choice. Of course, if you are good with your larger caliber rifle, you could always "bark" the squirrel and end up with little to no damage to the meat. Barking or head shots are always your best bet to minimize colateral damage to the meat......if you can do it.

 

[nchawkeye]

I converted my Bob Watts that I bought in 1977 to a .40 in 1988, have been using it for squirrels ever since...

Blood shot meat is no problem, I don't eat the brains so I shoot them in the head...

 

[hanshi]

Head shots make the most sense. Still, I believe in matching the gun to the game. If I specifically go out after squirrel I'll tote a leetle rifle. If I go out after bigger stuff specifically, then I'll tote a beeger rifle. If I simply go out "ranging", then whatever I'm toting gets used for everything that isn't too beeg for it.