Rimfire rifle vs shotgun for squirrel

Rimfire rifle vs shotgun

  • Total voters
    89
My dad, who has loved eating squirrel sandwiches for his whole life, prefers rimfire rifle.
I never developed a taste for them. He insists it is a gamier version of chicken, of course.
 
I hunt with both depending on conditions. If I’m leaving my property to squirrel hunt I bring both as I’ve been out before and wishing I had brought the other gun.
If I had to pick one it would be the shotgun. It’s what I would grab if I’m trying to bag as many as I can. 12ga I use 1 1/4oz of #4 or #5 (#4 preferred) through a full choke. For 20ga I use 1oz of #4 or #5 (#5 preferred for higher pellet count not much difference but some)again with a full choke. I feel the full choke is important, tall trees make for poor shots with anything else where I’m at.

When I shoot a .22 it’s usually my 10/22 shooting subsonic hollowpoints. Preferred brands being Fiocchi and Aguila. The Remington and cci offerings are not as accurate in my gun. Still a big mini mag fan but I like the quieter rounds.
 
I love hunting them with both. My 10/22 or Winchester 9410. My favorite is getting under them when they are cutting nuts up in the tree in the early season when the leaves are still on the trees and shooting straight up at them with either gun.
 
Blue Jays said:
My dad, who has loved eating squirrel sandwiches for his whole life, prefers rimfire rifle.
I never developed a taste for them. He insists it is a gamier version of chicken, of course.
Click to expand...
To me it's a gamier version of pork unless you soak it in buttermilk overnight then the gamey flavor goes away. Also a large male is tough as nails, small females are the best eating
 
Barbaroja said:
I hunt with both depending on conditions. If I’m leaving my property to squirrel hunt I bring both as I’ve been out before and wishing I had brought the other gun.
If I had to pick one it would be the shotgun. It’s what I would grab if I’m trying to bag as many as I can. 12ga I use 1 1/4oz of #4 or #5 (#4 preferred) through a full choke. For 20ga I use 1oz of #4 or #5 (#5 preferred for higher pellet count not much difference but some)again with a full choke. I feel the full choke is important, tall trees make for poor shots with anything else where I’m at.

When I shoot a .22 it’s usually my 10/22 shooting subsonic hollowpoints. Preferred brands being Fiocchi and Aguila. The Remington and cci offerings are not as accurate in my gun. Still a big mini mag fan but I like the quieter rounds.
Click to expand...
I definitely agree on the full choke especially for anything smaller than a 12. Most effective in my experience is 12 gauge #6 1 1/4 oz
 
In North Dakota for the early part of the season I used to hunt squirrels with a Ruger Mark2 Target. As they got more cautious I’d change over to a scoped Marlin bolt .22 Mag for the increased range.
 
I keep a 410 single shot (New England Firearms Pardner) near the back door for shooting squirrels chewing on my deck. Couldn't find my hearing protection quickly enough and shot this one without ear pro. I was surprised by the lack of punishing report of a 410 shotgun. Missed on the 1st shot and got him on the 2nd with no ear ring.

Squirrel.jpg
 
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Patocazador said:
Exactly. If the leaves are on the trees, the answer is shotgun. No leaves means .22.
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^^^^^^^^ THIS!

Except, the older get, I grab the shotgun more and more.

Gun of choice?
.410 3" 4s in 870 or SxS. Every now and then, I take Grandma's Iver Johnson 1915 single shot. Looks just like drobs.

.22LR is Winchester M61 or Browning BL-22 loaded with Winchester Super X

.22 MRF is Marlin M57 with Tasco 3-9x40

During deer season, Rem 700 .223 loaded with 5.0 Unique and 40 gr Winchester at 1700 fps.

Regardless of rifle or shotgun, a Ruger Single Six is on my hip. Very challenging, but oh so fun.
 
I voted rifle. I use both but there are fewer and fewer places where I feel okay with a .22 rifle aimed upwards. So, it just depends. I like my .410 for that reason in either my Central Arms single shot, Stevens double barrel or now my Mossberg 500 pump .410. It throws a nice, tight pattern and with the new TSS Turkey loads is okay for turkeys at up to about 30 yards. I still prefer .22 for most things like rabbits or varmints. I also use a PCP pellet rifle, less likely to ricochet off into the hinterlands or as far.
 
I use both depending on the situation. I like hunting with an accurate 22 to simulate and practice big game hunting with a rifle. But some locations just aren't safe to shoot a rifle. Often, I just grab a lightweight shotgun and go for a walk in the woods. Squirrel, rabbit, quail, dove, anything in season that presents itself is going to get shot at. I have one of the 870 youth 20 gauges with a 21" barrel that gets called on for this.
 
My Dad hunted squirrel with a single barrel shotgun. My brother Jeff and I helped him clean them when we were small. Each one had more than one pellet to pick out.
When I squirrel hunted with Uncle Ed, he used a 12ga single barrel shotgun, I used a .22 rifle. His dog Henry was good at spotting trees with squirrels. I took only head shots and learned not to shoot at runners. The last hunt I had 8 kills, 2 clean misses.

Why a rifle and head shots only?
_ I still remember biting into shotgunned squirrel and finding a missed pellet.
_ .22 was cheaper than 12 ga and I had to buy my own ammo out of my allowance.
_ 12ga single barrel shotgun recoil was intimidating.
 
Appalachiannative said:
Also a large male is tough as nails, small females are the best eating
Click to expand...

One of the first times I hunted and cooked up some gray squirrels, my buddy and I processed about six. The all were shot within a few hours, were transported and treated the same way, cooked the same way, etc. They were all delicious but the largest one was unbelievably tough compared to the others; the meat was like rubber. We could hardly believe how much that one big squirrel was different than the rest... pretty much inedible. I guess that was the big old buck of the area!

jmorris said:
I am not a huge fan of shooting rifles into the air, where they are and where I am at make a difference.

I think the question itself is why I have always enjoyed the versatility of the Savage 24 in 22lr/20ga.
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I greatly prefer a rifle (actually, a 10" T/C Contender pistol w/.22 match chamber), but that's not always the safe choice in many areas.
 
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If there are houses around 410. No houses 22lr. Leaves play an important roll. But a good hunter can get a shot on one regardless of the leaf situation. Just have to be patient. Killed many with a 177 pellet rifle and single shot 410. Have to get close with both.
 
I prefer a .32 muzzle loading flint lock.I have hunted squirrels since my youth, using shot guns, .22 rifles, and .22 hand guns. By far, the most challenging hunting is with a muzzle loader. Aim small, miss small. That is all I hunt squirrels with now.
 

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