[Topgun]

Suburban environment. CLOSE. About 10 - 15 foot max.

Shot? CB? Probably rifle for noise although pistol would be far handier by bed.


Any info appreciated.

They shrug off direct hits with BB gun.

:banghead:

[TheeBadOne]

Powerful air rifle. If not available, .22 lr bolt action or single shot with .22 CB Caps. CB Caps out of a pistol is still damn loud in an urban environment.

[labgrade]

"What's the QUIETEST load for raccoons?"

Hav-A-Hart trap & very deep tank of water.

No kiddin'. ;)

Coons can be pretty tough critters, even w/a head shot & a "minimal pentrator." Only reliable load will be too loud.

Trap 'em first & then decide what you'd want to do regards disposal - your call.

Either relocate, or weight the cage in a tank of water.

[Topgun]

Got a good air rifle. Skeered to leave it cocked for a long time. Might try it as he let me cock the BB gun 3 times and shoot him before he left.

KNOW what you mean about PISTOL report w/ CB. Found out the hard way. I thought it would go ...pooot...like the rifle.

NOPE!

:eek:

[Topgun]

What bait? Not lookin to catch our ol cat. Prunes maybe?


Oh, and of course a drum of water. Wouldn't want to let him go home without a good bath. Say........20 minutes subsurface. That should get him clean enough.

:D

[labgrade]

"What bait? Not lookin to catch our ol cat. Prunes maybe?
"

Whatever the coons are eatin', 'course. ;)

Great thing about a "live-trapper," is you get to harmlessly release anything accidently caught. You get to decide. Catch the neighbors' cat & let 'er go, catch The Coon & off to the Witches Stool. ;)

You do get to choose.

There's nothing as effective, or as quiet.

You don't have to be there, as "an opposing force," or any time spent in "sniping position," you have deniability, you have options, & what could be more better?

'Sides, anything that'll do a coon reliably (.22 LR head shot) WILL make some noise.

[CZ-100]

Crossbow.:neener:

I purchased a trap at Home Depot, I think it was $35. I put a can of cat food in it and the next morning I have a Racoon or possum.

Drop them off in the swamp on the way to work.

I cant see killing them for just trying to survive.

[0007]

I found that a large grapefruit thrown from about twenty feet will knock them out of a tree... :D :D

[El Tejon]

I use those 60 grain .22s from Mexico. (You know, in the black box, SSS or something like that). A suppressed 77/22 makes all the difference.:)

Critter=dead.

[MrPink]

22LR suppressor. I wouldn't say go to the trouble and expense just to pop coons. But they are great fun to shoot - very quiet.

A great rationalization to the wife for a new toy!

[DeputyVaughn]

Blow gun and poison darts.

Scott

[El Tejon]

SenorRosa, no tengo.:D

The joys of bachelorhood--more $ for guns, ammo and gun camp. When I get lonely, I walk down to the basement, look at my safes, smile and think happy thoughts and go back to work.:cool:

[TrapperReady]

I've only dispatched one racoon, and I did the deed with an Oneida Eagle compound bow at about 10 yards.

A trap would probably be the best bet. If you're someplace where you're looking to be really quiet, then a firearm wouldn't be the best choice.

[45R]

Colibris made by Aguilar. Primer only with .22 bullet

Oh and if you dont want to dispatch them. Look on the forum for non-lethal racoon claymore post somewere.

[TallPine]

I found that a large grapefruit thrown from about twenty feet will knock them out of a tree...
Now, we must start a campaign to ban those "assault fruits" :rolleyes:

No honest man needs a piece of fruit bigger than an Marachino Cherry. :)

[RustyHammer]

A Dog!

[gburner]

More laws to cut down on those 'drive by' fruitings.:p

[Keith]

Coons are pretty tough critters! You owe it to the animal to shoot them with enough gun to dispatch them humanely, so please dn't riddle them with air rifles, etc...

A one liter plastic soda bottle duct taped to the muzzle of a .22 rifle will render it quiet - not quiet silent, but neighbors won't hear it. You'd need a scoped rifle to see above the obstruction of the bottle.

Of course that would be illegal so you can't do that...

Keith

[Balog]

Keith wrote: A one liter plastic soda bottle duct taped to the muzzle of a .22 rifle will render it quiet - not quiet silent, but neighbors won't hear it. You'd need a scoped rifle to see above the obstruction of the bottle.

Wouldn't that hurt your accuracy? Theoretically, of course. Firing through a heavy wool blanket should work well too. I love the idea about the 60 gr SSS Aguila loads, but don't you need a different twist rate to properly stabilize them? I'll second the crossbow idea, and add that a wrist rocket (with ball bearings or lead balls, either black powder ammo or buckshot) would work well if you took the time to practice.

[Keith]

Wouldn't that hurt your accuracy?

Probably, but we are talking about a range of 10 to 15 feet here.

What with the statute of limitations being well past, I can relate that when I was a kid we'd sneak around in my semi-suburban neighborhood to "pop" pike in little sloughs in the spring. These big fish would come up in the little shallow streams and lay on the surface at night. You could sneak up and put a light on them and shoot them with a bow, or a "silenced" .22. If you hit them just right through the back of the head they'd just go stiff right there and you could just jump in and drag them out. The sound is not much more than a popping balloon.
I'm sure that violates a whole bunch of laws, both federal and state. but the only time we ever got caught was by a local town cop who was more interested in the size of the huge pike we were carrying than in the fact that it was poached with an illegal suppressed rifle. He just oohed and ahhed at it and sent us on our way.

I wish I hadn't done that now, because those fish were coming up in that shallow water to spawn. But they were delicious and if I hadn't been doing that I'd have been getting into some sort of trouble...

Keith

[Frohickey]

No access to a good 'coon hound? :D

[Balog]

Keith wrote: Probably, but we are talking about a range of 10 to 15 feet here.

A lot of suburban backyards I've seen could easily present 30 to 35 foot shots. And I'm assuming you'd want/need a head shot. A coon's head is a pretty small target. But you doubtless have more experience than me, so I'll heed your judgement:)

[Keith]

Well, the guy asking the question said ten to fifteen feet max, so... That's about the same range we'd shoot those pike - just lean over the bank and "pop"!

Now, I'm thinking about this and will have to see how it affects accuracy at longer ranges next time I go plinking.. I'm just kidding of course! I would NEVER violate federal law by taping a pop bottle to a .22! Nope, no sir, not me...

Keith

[synoptic]

Doesn't the duct tape get all sticky on the hot barrel? Maybe Gaffer's tape instead would work better?

[Balog]

Keith wrote: Well, the guy asking the question said ten to fifteen feet max, so... That's about the same range we'd shoot those pike - just lean over the bank and "pop"!

Yeah, I was thinking about others who might follow your misguided example:p .

[Dr.Rob]

You have obviously never heard a bluetick/redbone/blandandtan bay at a coon.

The exact opposite of "quiet".

Colibri 22's worked well on urbano squirrel infestation. The real trick was staying inside the garage where the nieghbors couldn't see. Pellet rifle didn't have enough oomf. 22 Colibri delivered plenty of it. Make sure its a head shot. Wounded racoon is smething you don't want in your house.

Funny thing.. my 80 year old grandmother bagged a raccoon in her basement a year or two back.. she used a none too quiet chunk o' wood.

Tough raccoon, tougher granny.

[El Tejon]

Balog, too late!:D For me it was shooting gar out of the river. .30-`06 works a lot better than a measly .22. They must be more sporting out there in the hairy-chested West.:cool:

[Keith]

El,

I grew up in southern Michigan, not the "hairy-chested" west. We didn't have northern pike around in the rivers and lakes in that part of the state, but every March on the first warm days of spring, they'd swarm up these little creeks at night from the great lakes. They'd spawn and then disappear before morning and hardly anybody knew about it.
They probably do that in Indiana too (from Lake Michigan), but I doubt small town cops are as easy-going about poaching, or supressed rifles, as they used to be!

We loved to show off those big pike - some of them went four feet or longer! We'd show people and when they asked where we got them and what we used, we'd make up stories about where we caught them and what lures worked best. If they noticed the bullet holes we'd just say they were snapping at us after we caught them and we had to defend ourselves...
And if they came back a week later complaining about how they'd been fishing every spare moment in the "secret" hole we'd told them about and not caught a single pike, we'd just sort of "tut, tut" and roll our eyes at them. Some people just can't fish, you know?

Keith

[Sunray]

Why do you want to catch him? Shooting him is likely considered hunting out of season at the least or harrassing a wild animal. Want to keep him away, you need a steel garbage can kept in a steel shed/container on a concrete pad. Moth balls scattered around may work.
If you really want to tangle with a frightened, 35-40 pound beastie with teeth that can tear a house cat apart, use regular cat food.
Plan "B" is to get him to move under your garage. Had an uncle that had a coon under his garage for years. In Spring it'd move its family in. They'd stroll up and down the alley knocking garbage cans over, etc. Everywhere but my uncles. Never touched his. Not once. Didn't dig in his garden. Eat his veggies. Nothing. Excellent neighbours all round.

[TheeBadOne]

They'd stroll up and down the alley knocking garbage cans over, etc. Everywhere but my uncles. Never touched his. Not once. Didn't dig in his garden. Eat his veggies. Nothing. Excellent neighbours all round.
Not very responsible to your neighbors, is that? ;)

[ballistic gelatin]

Keith a plastic soda bottle and duct tape DOES NOT work on a Ruger 10/22.
(I saw it on tv)

[TallPine]

Just use an axe; works for bears.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?s=&postid=554855#post554855

[CWL]

Dealing with family of 5 racoons (dog treed them once). They like to run on the rooftops late night, sounds like bowling balls dropping. Love to drive the dogs wild.

My remedy was/is wrist rocket & .50cal lead balls.

[Keith]

Keith a plastic soda bottle and duct tape DOES NOT work on a Ruger 10/22.

You mean the shot isn't quiet, or the rifle fails to feed the next round?

Keith

[El Tejon]

Keith, "look out, Ned, the fish is coming right at us!":D

[ballistic gelatin]

Not quiet.

[Topgun]

was in my clawfoot bathtub planted and filtered fish pond. I made a wire mesh an PVC cover, but left the ends open.

Well today the ends are closed an I have motion detector floodlite on the wall.

The whole mess is bungee corded to the lip of the old tub.

IF they (was 2 of em) get thru that, I am goin to a Barrett .50

AND....as it is REAL close to the bedroom door, I may just go with the 22 UNSUPPRESSED....or even the .38.

I live with a schoolyard (big) behind us and a creek down the way.

I've called the cops a few times after hearing SHOTS at nite.

NOW.....I think I know wot the shots are about.

And a couple shots at 12:30 AM ain't gonna cause much stir if I dont answer the door or do sumpin stoopid like turn on the lites an go grab the coon an dance around in the back yard wit his carcass.

;)

[0007]

At least they weren't "evil _black_ assault" grapefruit... :neener:

[kernal_panic]

DON'T usa an air gun. 1. they don't have the punch. 2 they are way too loud. get a .22 with a long barrel. i have a remington 582 it has a 24 inch barrel i paid a whopping $47 otd for it. cci cb shorts or remington ceebee longs. they are much quieter from this gun than my chinese qb-88 and alot more punch.

[Dave Markowitz]

I love the idea about the 60 gr SSS Aguila loads, but don't you need a different twist rate to properly stabilize them?

I've seen barrels advertised made especially for these rounds, with a faster than normal twist. However, I tried them in my Winchester 9422 and the rifle LOVES them. They are accurate and feed very smoothly. They are pretty quiet from the 24" tube of my Winchester. I just wish they weren't ~$20/brick.

Another option nobody's mentioned so far is Remington's .22 LR Subsonic load. It's a 38 grain HP loaded to 1050 fps MV, which is right below the speed of sound. I haven't tried them yet, but I did pick up a box at Cabela's for a whopping $1.49 and plan to shoot some on Saturday.

[ShaiVong]

Hey, are those Colibri 22 rounds really quiet? I have some squirrels around here I'm trying to get rid of, but anything less than a head shot they seem to shrug off and run (cheap Wallyworld rifle). I've killed five of them, but shot at another ten or so (could be same one, they all look the same). Sometimes I even see the pellet flash and disappear into the background of the squirrel. Only thing keeping me from using the 22 is its bad mojo to discharge a firearm in town, and i really like owning guns. :uhoh:

[El Tejon]

Shai, yes, the hummingbirds are great. Try a box and shoot (where legal to do so).:)

[Guy L Johnson]

7.9 gr Crossman preimer and a spring piston air rifle that will do just under 900 fps

[Greybeard]

Unfortunately, an old coon shooter/trapper here. IMHO, Colibis way too wimpy for a coon. For head shots real close on a squirrel maybe, but not civilized for coon. Minimum CBs. And the longer the barrel, the quieter.

Aquila 60 grainers are excellent coon medecine and probably accurate enough out of most rifles for at least relatively short distances. Out of my rifles, they generate similar noise as Remington 38 grain Subsonics, a very consistent "go to" round here.

Yea, a coon will eat cat food - or almost anything - but if ya really wanna have them tell all their friends about your place, try canned sardines. :D

Edited to add: Seriously, if ya don't go the trapping route, a cross bow is a much more "legal" method to dispatch coons in some jurisdictions. No "bang" in the middle of the night, just a sharp "TWHACK/thud". I've got an extra 150 pounder that I might part with. PM me if interest.

[4v50 Gary]

Farco Air Shotgun with a .43 caliber lead ball.

[Balog]

However, I tried them in my Winchester 9422 and the rifle LOVES them.
What's the rate of twist for that rifle?

[Futo Inu]

Beeman R7 and RWS 46 are the quietest full power air rifles - Beeman being the best/quietest. Get a .177 if it's your first or only.

Someone had a post here awhile back on highly-downloaded .45-70 handloads - they barely make it out the end of the barrel, but are apparently very very quiet somehow. Do a search. It was in the rifle forum. You have to be very careful when testing until you find one that makes it out of the barrel. :uhoh:

.22 cbs are still pretty loud - if you use one, it had better be a long gun with a closed action - turnbolt, pump, or lever. Or, manually hold the bolt closed with the charging handle while shooting if using a semi-auto. You can also fabricate a simple but effective silencer from a 1-liter soda bottle. I like that heavy .22 idea (the aguila 60 grainers), in combo with the soda pop silencer. It's easy if you're willing to put tape on your blueing job. :scrutiny:

.22 colibri and super colibri are very quiet - quieter than most airguns (I like the super colibris), but they are still pretty darn weak too. You'd better go for a head shot only. Same goes for airgun though. Still prolly underpowered, as pointed out, even with headshot.

[ShaiVong]

I had a public speaking professor who told me a 30.60 loaded down to about 800 FPS is ideal, and quieter than an airgun. I cant say for myself.

[Topgun]

Into......HUNTING...

Very very ...........appropriate.

:barf:

Don't you think?

Guess if there's not a clear reason to CLOSE it, just move it where no one will find it. Maybe should run a POLL......How many suburban raccoon "hunters" on here?

:fire:

[ballistic gelatin]

How about suburban possum hunters?

[Gordon]

Remington makes low noise .22lrhp 's although the same type RWS .22 lr hp's are better/quieter. Out of a 27inch barreled Win 67 0r 69 or equivalent 24" or so barrel you won't hear report more than 300 feet unless you are listening for it. These 40 grain bullets at 950fps or so expand and penetrate dog skulls -trust me! I like to shoot them in a Nylon 66 as they funtion 100% so you can pour in 6 or 10 for certain quick kill! The Nylon 66 is VERY slightly louder. :cool:

[OneShot]

Why not, trap Em, Transport them away from neighbors or into garage or basement then do as you will to dispatch them?

[RustyHammer]

Crossbow ... make sure of background.

[Sunray]

"...What's the QUIETEST load for raccoons?..." For what purpose? Coons are game animals in most places. You want them to go away? Use moth balls.

[Kevlarman]

The Colibris are really very quiet. Here's a video of me firing it out of a Winchester 190 with a 21" barrel.

These are the normal Colibiris, and not the "super" ones.

You'll need DivX 5.02 to view it.

http://student.ucr.edu/~robilj01/colibri2.avi

[Horsesense]

The plastic Pepsi bottle works fine, however, you need to change bottles for your next shot.
If you're lucky, you could draw coons into your yard every night and by the end of the season have enough hides to sell and purchase another gun.

[ballistic gelatin]

Cool little video. Sounds like your using a Red Ryder BB gun.
Ever have any ricochet with that concrete backstop?

The Colibri velocity is only like 330 fps and 5 foot lbs of energy.
Is that powerful enough to penetrate small game skull?

[Kevlarman]

Yeah, I did get quite a few ricchochets... good thing I put up a proper backstop now! Be safe, and always wear eye protection!