CCI Mini-Mags: Too much gun for squirrels?

Tallinar

Tallinar

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I know this topic has likely been beat to death, and I've read other threads from other forums on the topic, but would like input.

I went on a successful squirrel hunt with a friend this weekend. This was my only my second time hunting and the first time I've taken any game myself. I went home with two squirrel's worth of meat. Had a blast. Looking forward to going again.

We were shooting on the property of an acquaintance who was kind enough to let us on. The property used to be a golf course, and has since been overgrown and repurposed for crops. It's fairly remote, with not a lot of structures nearby. I was using a .22 LR bolt action with a 4x fixed scope, shooting CCI 36 grain Varmint Mini-Mags. This rifle and ammo made for some pretty clean kills. I shot one squirrel in the head from about 7 yards away just at the base of a tree. The other one I shot was about 20 yards away, and up in some branches. I hit him in the upper side, and had an exit wound out the base of the neck.

What occurred to me, however, is that I think this ammo is probably overkill for squirrels -- at least at these close ranges, and for making tree shots. Even though I was cognizant of the direction I was shooting at all times as relates to nearby structures in the vicinity, shooting a rifle at an upward angle into a tree like this feels like it breaks conventions of firearm safety, even though it's just a .22. If the bullet doesn't hit a squirrel, a tree, or something else to dissipate its energy and modify trajectory, I know that bullet is capable of flying a good mile or more, depending on angle. I think I can be more responsible here. At the very least, if I am going to use a .22, I feel like I can pick a better round.

So let's say I want to keep using a .22 LR bolt action. Let's say I'm not interested in moving to a shotgun or a pellet rifle. What ammo would you recommend for tree shooting inside of 40 yards or so? Just enough juice to easily down a squirrel, while anemic enough to limit over-travel with missed shots. Would CCI Quiets be the ticket? .22 Shorts? What do you like to use?

Thanks.
 
IMHO it doesn't matter a whole lot, if you hit the meaty parts you're gonna damage the meaty parts.
I shot squirrels with everything from shorts to stingers as a kid, today I'd use plain old standard velocity 40gr.
Full power shorts are OK too.
Quiets, CB caps and other low velocity rounds will work but in my guns accuracy falls off pretty bad past ~20 yards
 
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It's the ammo I use, cause it groups well in my Ruger 77/22.

Never thought about squirrel over-kill, but I guess there's only one degree of squirrel dead. I normally head shoot, or "double lung" them, so the quarters are fine.
 
The mini mags certainly group well with my rifle, so seemed like a no brainer to use them.

Maybe I shouldn’t be concerned about the over travel. In theory, these may travel further than lighter loads, but when the bullet does start descending, I imagine the terminal velocity equation is still the same. Distance is still a factor, but actual lethality at terminal velocity will still be the same.

Am I overthinking this? In the end, it seems I just still need to be wise about which shots to take and which not to.
 
Tallinar said:
So let's say I want to keep using a .22 LR bolt action. Let's say I'm not interested in moving to a shotgun or a pellet rifle. What ammo would you recommend for tree shooting inside of 40 yards or so?
Click to expand...
I've never hunted tree squirrels, but I've killed hundreds, maybe even thousands of ground squirrels, and in my .22 bolt action I prefer Winchester 40gr Power-Points because they just seem to "kill better." However, with their flat noses and sharp edges, Power-Points don't feed real smoothly in my Ruger 10-22 - they'll feed, just not real smoothly. So, I switch to CCI Mini-Mags for ground squirrel extermination with my 10-22. :thumbup:
 
I think the assumption is correct that there would be very little difference in maximum range, or "over travel" between different loads. So the best choice would be the most accurate in your rifle. On the other hand, "hyper velocity" really fast stepping loads do seem to be "overkill" to me.

I'm a big fan of the "Quiets", but I hunt grouse rather than squirrel, (we only have small Pine Squirrels)(which of course I'd shoot and eat in a survival situation, but otherwise...nah) and have found that a load producing around 900fps is "best" for me. Of course, a grouse is more delicate compared to a squirrel. But that velocity seems to damage the least meat. On the other hand, I don't think that velocity would fail to drop/kill a squirrel.

Again, what is most accurate in your rifle? In all of my rifles, the Quiets are laser accurate. In my pistol, (S&W Airlite) not so much, so I use Winchester 36 grain HP in it, which are the most accurate. They come out of the pistol at 940fps, and the HP does not open up on grouse. I believe that if I was to hunt squirrel, I'd just avoid a hollow point, and go with whatever was most accurate.

It never hurts to over-think. Over think is good.
 
Remember you shouldn’t be shooting up in to trees with a rifle in the first place. If you are sure you will hit the tree as a backstop then maybe, but even so.
Know your target and what’s behind it. If you don’t know what your bullet is going to hit if you miss then don’t shoot.
Don’t get me wrong, I love squirrel hunting. They are yummy. It can be challenging to catch them between you and the tree though. They love to scurry around to the far side and peek around at you.
Bring a mongrel dog to worry them from the base of the tree and they get more careless.
BTW, scratching the ridges of two quarters together is a great squirrel call. It sounds like a squirrel breaking nuts and they get jealous and greedy and will come to you.
You might want to look in to a .410 or 20 gauge shotgun for tall tree hunting.
 
.308 Norma said:
I've never hunted tree squirrels, but I've killed hundreds, maybe even thousands of ground squirrels,
Click to expand...
I forgot about that! Same here. When my son was an infant, I'd take him out in the field with me, lay him on a blanket, and shoot ground squirrels with .22 shorts to keep the noise down. The shorts did not bother the baby. Anyhow, yeah, the shorts were not "great" as far as killing power, although the ground squirrels are quite a bit bigger than tree squirrels. But, judging from that, I'd avoid using shorts or Quiets. Of course, much closer range with the tree squirrels, whereas shooting the ground squirrels in a field was more like 50 to 100 yard shooting. Just a thought. Again, I think I'd stay with standard velocity, non-hollow point loads.
 
From what I get from the OP, the question is not “overkill” on the squirrel, but rather how much farther the bullet will travel if it penetrates or misses and hits nothing else to stop it.

In that situation, with an unknown Re-entry area down range, the lower velocity Quiet or even a standard velocity short might be the better choice. People hunt them with pellet guns, either of the ones I mentioned would seem to be adequate if they prove accurate.
 
Speedo66 said:
From what I get from the OP, the question is not “overkill” on the squirrel, but rather how much farther the bullet will travel if it penetrates or misses and hits nothing else to stop it.
Click to expand...

Thank you for clarifying, you are exactly right. It's the travel I am concerned with.

I should also probably add, for the one I hit in the head at about 7 yards, I did not find an exit wound. I didn't dissect the head to go looking for a bullet to confirm, but it was enough to suggest to me that mini-mags are not "too" powerful from an actual lethality perspective. If the bullet was able to get stuck inside the skull, I feel pretty good about the power level from a "DRT" perspective. Even then though, I imagine I could go with a lighter round and get the same essential result.
 
I use the CCI standard velocity myself since they work best in both my rifles and my pistol that I use for squirrel, but I wouldn't hesitate to use the Mini-Mags, though I would use the round nose instead of the hollow point. That's just because I've found over the years that the RN kills just as effectively but with less blood shot meat when you hit them in the body, not due to any failures.
 
Squirrels aren't hard to kill ... they are lightly structured and break easily .
My old Daddy probably killed more squirrels with a Daisy Red Ryder BB gun in our back yard , eating his pears , than he and I ever did hunting with shotguns and 22 LR's .
They are small targets ... so accuracy trumps bullet velocity . I like to use HP's for when I make a long body shot , if you only make head shots ... solids work fine ... but accurate solid points are fine .
I gather up all the different ammo I can get ... and see what 3 brands / types shoot best - Most Accurately and use that ammo . Don't neglect 22 Short ammo if you are concerned about range after the shot .
The lower velocity 22 Short was at one time popular for squirrels and rabbits .

Now ... if you are concerned about far ranging shot s... you might consider a small bore shotgun .
My Uncle had a Sweet double barrel .410 and I started with a single bbl .410 , my buddy had a 28 Gauge pump that was deadly on squirrels and rabbits ... in my later years I started hunting both squirrel and rabbit with a 20 ga. model 17 Remington pump and then a 20 ga. Turkish Double Barrel ... light 20 ga. loads are pleasant to shoot and don't carry far .

Hunting squirrels has been one of my favorite pastimes ... I enjoy walking into the woods , sitting under a big oak tree and just watching the Sun rise and the animals come to life ...
Sometimes I don't feel like cleaning squirrels , so I just sit and watch and get close to God .
It's such a nice way to spend a morning !
Gary
 
I think I will chime in and second the pellet gun idea. I have taken many squirrels at out to 50 yards with my .22 pellet rifle. Even those monster 2 lb Grey tuft ears that are sooo cute and yummy. They are arguably the best game meat in North America. Clean em when they fall though or the hide glues itself to the muscle when it cools.
 

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Corpral_Agarn said:
I use CCI mini mags all the time on squirrels.

I don't eat the squirrel, I just don't want it taking forever to die. CCI mini mags work great
Click to expand...
From that statement alone ... I get the impression ... you aren't from Louisiana are you ?

Squirrels eat real good ... simmered in a rich brown roux gravy and served with buttermilk biscuits ...
man you missing a real Cajun Treat !
Gary
 
Some of you have heard this story before, if so I apologize.
In a past life in Arizona I and my daughters were card carrying Girl Scouts. One adventure weekend when the troop was desert camping and exploring Sinagua cliff dwellings it happened to be during squirrel season. Having plenty of adults I ventured off and came back with a brace of Aberts squirrels. Stew was on the menu that night so being the chef de jour I made up a pot of beef stew and (to a rousing chorus of “ewwww”) a pot of squirrel stew and a Dutch oven full of pull apart rolls.
At the end of the night the squirrel stew pot was wiped clean and there was beef stew left over, though none of the girls would publicly admit they liked it. Lol
 
Tallinar said:
I know this topic has likely been beat to death, and I've read other threads from other forums on the topic, but would like input.

I went on a successful squirrel hunt with a friend this weekend. This was my only my second time hunting and the first time I've taken any game myself. I went home with two squirrel's worth of meat. Had a blast. Looking forward to going again.

We were shooting on the property of an acquaintance who was kind enough to let us on. The property used to be a golf course, and has since been overgrown and repurposed for crops. It's fairly remote, with not a lot of structures nearby. I was using a .22 LR bolt action with a 4x fixed scope, shooting CCI 36 grain Varmint Mini-Mags. This rifle and ammo made for some pretty clean kills. I shot one squirrel in the head from about 7 yards away just at the base of a tree. The other one I shot was about 20 yards away, and up in some branches. I hit him in the upper side, and had an exit wound out the base of the neck.

What occurred to me, however, is that I think this ammo is probably overkill for squirrels -- at least at these close ranges, and for making tree shots. Even though I was cognizant of the direction I was shooting at all times as relates to nearby structures in the vicinity, shooting a rifle at an upward angle into a tree like this feels like it breaks conventions of firearm safety, even though it's just a .22. If the bullet doesn't hit a squirrel, a tree, or something else to dissipate its energy and modify trajectory, I know that bullet is capable of flying a good mile or more, depending on angle. I think I can be more responsible here. At the very least, if I am going to use a .22, I feel like I can pick a better round.

So let's say I want to keep using a .22 LR bolt action. Let's say I'm not interested in moving to a shotgun or a pellet rifle. What ammo would you recommend for tree shooting inside of 40 yards or so? Just enough juice to easily down a squirrel, while anemic enough to limit over-travel with missed shots. Would CCI Quiets be the ticket? .22 Shorts? What do you like to use?

Thanks.
Click to expand...
Cci standard, cci segmented hp
 
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