Boar Hunting, Best caliber to use ? ? ?

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I live in WNC, and generally regard the Boar as being harder to kill than the Black Bear. Of the weapons you listed, I've found the .357 levergun & .30-30 to be fine for the Bear, but I'd go for the 12ga slug for the Boar as I've seen both .357 & .30-30 leverguns fail to safely & cleanly kill the Pig and nearly everytime you get a good shot, you're inside of 15yds, go with the 12ga pump, they offer excellent power and rapid, accurate follow-ups, those Pigs are very dangerous and the often charge.
 
I started hunting wild pigs with a Reminton 870 slug gun. Now I use a Marlin .30-30 lever action with a 3x9 scope. Both work great but the rifle is a better all around gun IMO.
 
I would use the 300 as hogs can go up to 350 lb and a wounded hog is dangerous. It would not hurt to have the 45 if you have to go into the brush to find a wounded hog but the 300 should stop them cold. A sow will protect her pigs so be careful. Best time to hunt IMO is early morning or late afternoon. If I had to choose one I'd go early morning. Clean them out as they are pests destroy crops and ruin land.
 
You guys are going to have this ol' boy scared to death over a pig! :neener:
hehehehe :p
Ever wonder why they use dogs to hunt hogs?

Honestly though... a lot of guys in FL use a shotgun with 00 buck.
We just got over the blackpowder hog huntin', it was to say the least... dry!

We did however manage to slay several of the demonic flesh tearin' beasts.... with the ol' cap and ball revolver, Ruger Old Army.

Hogs are not as mean or as tough as many have made them out to be on some of these hunting shows. They are however a great nuisance and destroy many acers of land, habitat and resources for the other animals.
 
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You haven't mentioned distance or terrain. Of your choices, at reasonable ranges (under 100 yards), everything except the .45 should work fine (assuming a heavy loaded .357 in the lever action).

If you're up very close, or if you're out further, that will change your options. There is no "best", but there are better choices for certain circumstances.

Welcome to THR. :)

John
 
Depends on how you're hunting them and in what kind of terrain/cover. If you expect shots to be close and quick, I'd go with the 30-30. It will certainly do the job with proper bullet placement. If you expect to have relatively open shots at any kind of distance, I'd go with the 300. I've shot them with just about everything imaginable here in California for decades (270, 300 WSM, 257 Wby Mag, 30-06, 308, 44 Mag, 50 Cal muzzeloader, etc., etc.) but I now tend to stick with 30 cal. medicine for quick kills/short drags. I shot one just last Tuesday with a 338 Fed and 185 grain triple shocks. Hog was DRT. One tip: always be ready for a follow-up shot. They are tough animals and can go a long way if not properly hit on the first shot. I've seen hogs bowled over, 4 feet sticking up in the air, and hunters well into congratulatory rituals when the hog jumped up and ran off. If you're still undecided... go with the 300.
 
Also... I would NOT follow one up with a 45. I've seen a hunter jog alongside a big wounded hog and empty his magazine into the hog with NO VISIBLE EFFECT. I personally shot one right between the eyes with a 44 Mag, which just pissed the hog off, believe it or not. It took a round behind the ear to put it down. I've also shot them with a 44 with traditional heart/lung placements, and had no issues.
 
Technically, it was two shots between the eyes to start with. It would be fair to say I was starting to get a tad concerned after that second shot. For the record, I was actually deer hunting and my *esteemed guide* who had been bragging all day about what a great shot he was, spotted some hogs and asked I minded if he shot one. I didn't, and he promptly wounded the hog -- right in the "hams" with a 270 -- and we were obliged to follow it up in thick brush. I retrieved my 44 from the truck and found the hog first, or rather, it found me, all snortin' and snarlin' (the hog, not me). I did a fair amount of snarlin' at the guide afterward...
 
I've seen all of your choices used to take feral hogs in FLA.
a lot depends on shot placement and a lot just depends on the particular hog - some will lay down and die after the weakest hit and others will fight WAY past already being dead.

Personally the Saum would be my 1st choice with 12 GA slugs running 2nd.

If you plan on running them with dogs, the pistols can be effective too - but you can be pretty sure they won't go right down that way either.
 
Depends on the range you will be shooting but I would probably go with the .30-30 and I would definately have the 1911 on my side. I had a pretty intense incounter with a big boar and would have killed to have a side arm of any kind. Since then I have always carried my gun at the ready and not slung over my shoulder.
 
I carry a sidearm when deer hunting (hogs are also targets of opportunity). Had a good friend and fellow forum member who was a bit taken aback when he almost walked into a herd of hogs right after nightfall...especially since he had a lever gun with pointed bullets (one in chamber, one in tube only)! Pretty sure he would have been delighted to have his .357 or even his 9mm on his side right then. Heck, I saw some of those hogs that week. One was at least 500 lbs. Shame I couldn't get a shot.

(I also learned a lesson that night about not only taking a decent light, but good batteries. I could hear hogs all around my tree stand, but had bought cheapo alkaline batteries for my MagLite...so I couldn't see them. Last time that ever happened!)

John
 
I have killed probably 20 Boar, most with a bow, but I can say this--they are hard to kill and the 30-30, as recommended by many here, isn't a good choice; it simply lacks the penetration needed on big pigs. Considering TN is know to have a large Russian population, and these pigs can easily get up to 400 pounds, you need something with a little ass behind it.

My minimum would be a 308 Win and the only rifled you listed that, IMO, is suitable is the .300 saum; you could use the 12ga but why limit yourself to short range. The only animal that has ever tried to kick my ass, after being cleanly shot, was a big Russian Boar in Texas. It is not a good feeling having a 400 pound pig charging you in tall grass at 20 feet.
 
Pea shooters!

Get a Ruger .480! That would take its head clean off!

In all seriousness I would go with something like a 30-06 if you want a definite kill. I own a .30-.30 Win. lever action, and you would have to get pretty close I would think. Boar have thick skin! I don't think a 12 ga. would work with slugs or buckshot due to the lack of velocity. Maybe if you were within 50-100 yards or so, then the shotgun would be effective. Personally I wouldn't want to get even that close to a boar! I would NEVER try to hunt them with a lever action .44 or .357 unless I was hunting tiny boar, also known as pigs! LOL

I would definitely go with a somewhat high power rifle like the 30-06. Then you would know it is dead, even from around 450 yards. I test various rounds on milk jugs full of water to test ballistics for different calibers at various distances. A 30-06 will explode a milk jug into a fountain of water at 500 yards. A .30-.30 will put a clean hole at that distance, but it isn't an easy feat with open sights, but I have done it!

Also, to the guy who said a heavy, deep penetrating .30-.30 round is odd. With that caliber it is one or the other. If I were to hunt the boar around here with my .30-.30 I would use a 150 grain Remington Core-Lockd. Shoots with laser precision up to around 100-150 yards while retaining it terminal ballistics.

The 7.62X51 (.308) Would be my less powerful choice. I bet it would get the job done.
 
Uh, buckshot sucks rocks on hogs, but slugs work well. .30-30 ammo is usually either 150 grains or 170. I'd prefer the 170s, but it's not a big deal. Generally the heavier the bullet, the better the penetration per caliber.

The OP was talking about Crossville Tenn., which should be brush country and steep hillsides. As mentioned, the terrain will drive the gear or the shooting distance. The .357 carbine will limit the engagement range the most, the .300 the least.

Couple of things to note: Check with the guide for a real recommendation as he should know the terrain. Unless someone here knows which part of the Cumberland Platau the property is on, we're just guessing. :D Also, use tough bullets - hogs can get quite thick. And, the heart lung shot on a hog is a bit tricky as the heart/lungs are forward from a deer's. I always try to bust a shoulder with the bullet, either going in or coming out.

As regards handguns for back up, always remember that on snouted animals, the brain is between the ears, not the eyes. Shooting them between the eyes from a downward angle does little. I use a 9mm with Gold Dots and it works fine.

PS. Shot placement is critical. :)
 
I have to take issue with the "always bust a shoulder" advice as I am a lifelong heart/lung shooter on hogs and just about everything else. A solid heart/lung shot has never failed to anchor a hog for me -- and it wastes less meat than tearing up shoulders.

I would also pass on using a 9 mm on hogs under any circumstances. Can it be done? Sure. But I wouldn't try to make a living at it. With handguns, I reiterate, don't mess around. Just use a 41 -- 44 mag and place your shots.
 
Well, I've always hunted hogs close to thickets and swamps, so limiting their mobility seemed like a good thing. :)

Maybe I wasn't clear - the handgun for me is for back up or going into the thick stuff after one. It's only head shots then as I think handguns are much closer to arrows (bleeds'em out) in effectiveness. IMHO, handguns are not rifles.
 
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