The “Chicken Coop” Defender. Another rifle debate.

JShirley said:

LEPs will throw a coherent beam to 800 meters or more. I have one on a scoped AR.

View attachment 1080009

This Odin Mini will throw well past 200M, for less than $150, including mount.

Even this little PL-2 will throw 100 meters, for less than $100. I have one on my home defense handgun.

I had (expensive, admittedly) lights that would throw over 300 meters 16 years ago. The same performance can now be had in a light 1/3 the size and cost. No NODs or thermal required.

John

Click to expand...

I have an odin on my AR. And a Javelot I can mount. The beam is too focused on the javelot for any real use. It may reach 1300 meters but it still only lights up a 10ft square. Lol. Both use the same magnetic charger. Good lights

When I was a kid on the farm in the 50's, raptors or four legged critters feral or wild, were shot on sight. Back then game birds were more plentiful, and our chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys were safer. Predators have to kill lots of other animals constantly to survive. If you think you can live off the land you have a great deal of competition. But everyone thinks they know best and need to save the world. Oh well.
P.S. It was entirely legal then. If fact there were bounties on some critters.

I'd get the 22 mag and use federal 50gr ammo because coyotes are in the mix. That said, when I've pondered this very subject myself, I've concluded I'd like a 25-20. Everything about a 25-20 is STUPID expensive; but I still want it!

CoalTrain49 said:

He eventually netted the entire pen with some type of polymer netting. Eagles got caught in the netting for awhile until they figured it out.

Click to expand...

That's why we used the deer fence. It's quite a bit heavier "strands" than the fine netting meant to protect trees from birds, and they seem to be able to see it soon enough to avoid a collision. We've never had one get tangled.

d2wing said:

When I was a kid on the farm in the 50's, raptors or four legged critters feral or wild, were shot on sight. Back then game birds were more plentiful, and our chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys were safer. Predators have to kill lots of other animals constantly to survive. If you think you can live off the land you have a great deal of competition. But everyone thinks they know best and need to save the world. Oh well.

Click to expand...

You bring an interesting point about the way we used to treat raptors and other predators. These days when I drive through the country seems like there is a hawk on every other fence post. When you stop and think that everyone of them is hunting for it's next meal, that's a lot of carnage. As a 10 year-old kid 65 years ago used to shoot at them with my .22 whenever I got the chance. Frankly, I don't recall hitting them, but some of the kids did. And we ALL shot at them. I do recall sitting in the woods squirrel hunting with my dad when a hawk chased a covey of quail that lit all around us. My dad shot the hawk and said, "Leave those quail alone you SOB."

I know from experience that a .22 LR is plenty for coyotes because I've had the occasion to kill a few stray dogs with my 10/22. Loaded with HP's they all dropped on the spot and all of them were much larger than the coyotes we have around here.
Regarding chicken pen material, I have had some sort of animal wreck the 1" chicken wire that comprises one of my pens, but the other is built using 2" x 4" welded wire and nothing has ever gotten through it.

35W

I love the .22 mag, but the the Ruger would be more versatile and more lethal on bigger varmints.

Here is a review from a guy that uses his Ruger for a chicken coop rifle...

Larry in wyoming said:

That said, when I've pondered this very subject myself, I've concluded I'd like a 25-20.

Click to expand...

Same. I think it'd be pretty good for mid-range varmints, plenty of thump and decent range. But, I'd really like a 25-35; that pretty well covers all the bases in this area.

Mac

Actually 25-20 held it’s own for many years as an iron-sights range jack of all trades cartridge… quiet enough not to bother anyone, while able to take a deer in a pinch, and more than capable on varmints and small game. It’s a great option except that in 2022 finding a rifle chambered for it is ridiculously expensive because they’re mostly all collectors items, and finding ammo is equally threatening to your wallet. Pretty much a handloading proposition too. Very possible, but you can probably achieve the same thing with a light-loaded 22 hornet or 223 for that matter.

If I could find the right one....85gr cast flat point of pure lead. Either powder coated or hi-tek....

The 25-35seem like too much of a good thing.

Sorry to hijack the thread.

KansasTrapper77 said:

Would the .22 Mag out of a 17in barrel be too loud to shoot comfortably? I understand that we really shouldn’t be shooting anything without hearing protection but c’mon when you have a .22lr rifle (outside) it’s often not necessary. Is the .22 mag similar?

Click to expand...

Definitely. The rimfire magnums are loud, even from a rifle. Maybe okay for a shot or two but I wouldn't make a habit of it. I know I have hearing damage from guns I 'thought' were hearing safe but weren't. The only thing I'll shoot without earpro, aside from hunting situations, are suppressed rimfires with subsonics. In the field I like to carry those soft plastic plugs on a string that can be quickly popped into the ears.

KansasTrapper77 said:

Would the .22 Mag out of a 17in barrel be too loud to shoot comfortably? I understand that we really shouldn’t be shooting anything without hearing protection but c’mon when you have a .22lr rifle (outside) it’s often not necessary. Is the .22 mag similar?

Click to expand...

Not similar. But I have been known to torch off a 22-250 without hearing protection.
Since tinnitus set in. I started hanging a set of muffs on the varmint rifle... Don't give yourself tinnitus. It doesn't go away. It's hard to fall asleep with ringing in your ears.

KansasTrapper77 said:

Bummer, I’m not surprised by you fella’s answer on the loudness but it’s making me reconsider what I’ve been thinking.

Click to expand...

Low profile ear muffs are pretty quick to put on. I have them on before I get out the door using one hand. Carrying the rifle in the other.

crestoncowboy said:

I have an odin on my AR. And a Javelot I can mount. The beam is too focused on the javelot for any real use. It may reach 1300 meters but it still only lights up a 10ft square. Lol. Both use the same magnetic charger. Good lights

Click to expand...

I have an older Javelot on my AR, I like it and it definitely throws a very concentrated beam. I have red and green filters for mine as well, kind of nice because they actually disperse the beam a bit and don't kill night vision. I don't hunt with it orbanishing, more just a novelty for me at the moment.

For hunting lights, I really like Sniper Hog Lights. They have adjustable beams and swappable emitters including white, green, red, and two different infrared wavelengths for NV. Made a believer out of me when I had a NV scope.

Bfh_auto said:

Low profile ear muffs are pretty quick to put on. I have them on before I get out the door using one hand. Carrying the rifle in the other.

Click to expand...

I like electronic in-ear protection as well. A little more pricey but IMO very worth it. I got mine for under $200.

BigBL87 said:

I have an older Javelot on my AR, I like it and it definitely throws a very concentrated beam. I have red and green filters for mine as well, kind of nice because they actually disperse the beam a bit and don't kill night vision. I don't hunt with it orbanishing, more just a novelty for me at the moment.

For hunting lights, I really like Sniper Hog Lights. They have adjustable beams and swappable emitters including white, green, red, and two different infrared wavelengths for NV. Made a believer out of me when I had a NV scope.

Click to expand...

The older one has about 5x more dispersion of the beam. I have an older one and the newer turbo. The turbo has a super focused beam. Far better range though. If you use both at once, the turbo will pretty easily wash out the pro javelot. But the beam is almost stupid small. At the coast the turbo really shows up better at distance. For anything under 500 yards or so I like the pro. For out to 200 I like the warrior or even the Odin. Only bad thing about the Odin is how hot it gets in short time. Fine if it's mounted but not so great handheld

I've enjoyed reading all this. I also raised chickens and other animals for a while and can relate to a lot of the anecdotes and observations I've read, and will echo the enthusiasm for a well-trained dog. A shepherd (Malinois) I had once actually ran down and killed a fox that was after my birds. Even if it's informal though, training needs time, dedication, and sensitivity, and without it your livestock dog is worthless. Or worse.
I've had and deal with all sorts of things come after my critters, from short-tailed weasels (that will get through 1" chicken wire), minks, raccoon, black bear etc. Hawks were probably the most significant predators though, and frustrating to deal with because they are protected. I typically had more than one rooster, and occasionally they would fight. One time I could hear and see there was a dust-up in the chicken house and figured I'd have to break up a petty spat between my roosters so I moseyed down there without a great sense of urgency. Opened up the man-door and an enormous hawk flew right past my face and past me. I was so pissed off if I had known I would have grabbed the damn thing and wrung it's neck, although a wildlife specialist friend later told me it was a Cooper's hawk and it might have been a real handful. It had gotten in through the little chicken door that was only about 8" x 10" or so. Amazingly, although it drew blood it didn't mortally wound any of my birds and didn't scratch me.
Anyway, shooting a raccoon that's in there with the chickens only needs a .22, but snap-shooting a mammalian predator that's chasing your animal around the yard can be a tall order. Best I've found so far is a 12 gauge 870.
But yes, I also agree that you should get both a .22 WMR and the Ruger PC Carbine.

Oh yeah, now I remember what I originally wanted to say!

CCI makes .22 LR cartridges: "Quiet-22" and "Quiet-22 Semi-Auto". In my opinion from a rifle-length barrel they are both hearing safe, the semi-auto being a bit louder. From a pistol-length barrel though they are a good deal louder. I am pretty protective of my hearing, but your mileage may vary.

Well, I got in from job #2 about 9:30 last night, went to close the chicken pens and there was a damned skunk in one of them, eating out of the feeder. Other than having to hold a flashlight along the forearm while aiming, my old Savage Model 24 (22 LR/.410) did the trick. Pretty simple and effective.

35W

CCI Quiet Segmented is hearing safe from a rifle. It may not be sufficient for a coyote sized animal but raccoons and similar it is enough. So far the segmented projectile is not offered in the slightly stronger CCI Quiet Semi-auto. I think the segmented is available in SV.

3C