Rifle on Turkey?

[Titan6]

I normally hunt turkey with... a turkey gun. That is a full choke, long barrel 12ga.

Today when I arrived at my range there were half a dozen turkeys out there and all I had were two rifles, one in .30-06 and one in .308. Both loaded with 150gr SP. Now I was not going to take any as it is no longer the season here and we still have leftover's from Thanksgiving but I was thinking what would happen if I did take one with one of the rifles?

So I guess I am asking if anyone here has ever taken a turkey with a large rifle and how much meat was left? I imagine there would not be much of it left but this is just a guess. I table all animals I shoot so I am curious if it would have been worthwhile (had they been in season).

 

[eliphalet]

****

 

[Titan6]

Laws vary so If it is against the law in your area I don't want to hear about it.

 

[skinewmexico]

Only one I've ever shot was with a 17 HMR, at about 100 yards. Shot it at the base of the neck, and that was that. I would guess a 30 caliber might go thru and not expand. But there's only one way to know.

 

[marksman13]

I've heard of folks killing turkeys with a 30-06. Said they shot them in the butt. I don't know personally, because it's illegal here, but these guys swear by it.

 

[stownsend]

It is legal to use a rifle in South Dakota and I have seen a 22-250 create quite a large exit wound. I think that was mainly because this was a varmint load that probably fragmented. I would think that a large 30 cal. bullet would not expand too much and not ruin a lot of meat, but anything is possible. If you did happen to catch some bone I am sure there wouldn't be a lot left to put on the table. If its legal, I would make sure you aren't using a bullet designed for varmints that expands quickly, you want something that's going to hold together through the turkey...it doesn't take much to bring them down.

 

[rantingredneck]

Not legal here so never done it. NC only allows shotguns or archery for turkey.

 

[Bitmap]

It all depends on where you hit them. A round through the breast with one of those will ruin a lot of meat. My two oldest sons both got turkeys this year with rifles. One was a 7.62x39 with JSP ammo, the other with a .30-30 with Remington Managed Recoil JSP ammo. Amazingly, both made almost identical hits. Rounds entered and exited just below the lower edge of the breast, about where you split them open to gut them. Neither one ruined more than a few ounces from the breast. One went through both thighs and they were completely destroyed. The other caught the edge of one thigh. I don't think I could reproduce that shot if I tried but it is close to the recommendation of shooting them in the rear end.

My recommendation for a rifle is to use something like a .22WMRF or a .30 Carbine with FMJ ammo. A .357 with hard cast bullets will also work well. My favorite turkey gun is a .38 Special revolver with 158gr. LRN or SWC ammo.

Shooting turkeys with a deer rifle using ammo that you would use on a deer usually results in a lot of meat destroyed and an ugly cleaning job.

I've seen a number of people miss turkeys with a deer rifle. Usually they are shooting at one too far away. Sometimes they knock a few feathers out of them and then complain "Turkeys sure are tough. I hit it with a .30-06 but it didn't stop."

 

[alsaqr]

i killed a lot of turkeys with a .30-06 when we lived in WV: Hunting turkey with a rifle was legal in WV then. The other rifle hunters and myself all used military ball ammo. It does not expand and just punches a neat hole through a turkey. Unfortunately, the hole is almost always full of feathers and parts of feathers.

 

[Legionnaire]

Not legal in my part of PA or NY, the two states I hunt most regularly. If it were, my implement of choice would be a Savage 24 .22WMR over 20 gauge combo. The .22WMR has sufficient takedown power for a turkey at reasonable ranges, and the 20 gauge would do fine if the range were close in. Flick of the thumb makes either available. But, as I say, not legal for turkey in either state. Squirrel, on the other hand ...

 

[Jimmy Newman]

The people that I know who do it use a .223 and shoot them in the neck. I don't know why you couldn't shoot them in the neck with a .30-06 or .308.

 

[Bitmap]

I don't know why you couldn't shoot them in the neck with a .30-06 or .308.

You can, but it's a LOT harder to do.

FMJ ammo will work but it will still make a mess if you hit what passes for big bones in the turkey.

ETA that increased difficulty may well be part of the exercise.

 

[MCgunner]

Shot one with a 7 mag once, target of opportunity and legal in Texas. It didn't damage much at all. Shot it high in the craw area off the breast and broke it's spine about 100 yards. DRT, of course. I was resting over my pickup's hood. I'd just gotten back draggin' a doe out of a draw about a mile from the truck. It was one of those biathlon shots, calm the heart down, slow the breathing. LOL

 

[Triple S]

Shoot them at the base of the neck and you will be fine. Higher is better, but you can do it and not mess that much meat up. However, if you go too low, the breast will be destroyed.

 

[El General]

A .22 Hornet Hollow Point at 120 yarsd will make an exit wound about the size of your fist. I hate to think what a .30 caliber bullet would do.

 

[.41 magnum man]

I shot one gobbler through the neck with a .270, and two others with .22 magnum in the body with very little meat damage. Rifles are legal to hunt turkey in Virginia.

 

[Twig]

Shotgun and bow are the only legal methods in Minnesota. They finally have a season in the spring of 08 where I have land to hunt. I hope I draw a tag. I will need advise if I do.

 

[NASCAR_MAN]

My Very-Old Uncle used to shoot them with hard FMJ from a .243 Deer Rifle (he shot a totally non-frangible bullet for Turkey) - he loved it, and the turkey meat ended up just fine (well...as fine as a tough bird like that can be). Anyways, if you use a totally, non-frangible bullet then I think you'll be just fine.

NASCAR

 

[627PCFan]

17hmr with the 20 grain controlled expansion hornady's work well. 223, handloaded with 60 grain nosler partitions work well too if the velocity is loaded down. The key is to minimize expansion, and therefore avoid shredding of the bird-

 

[Rembrandt]

Sgt Alvin York took many a Turkey with a rifle....make sure you wet the front sight first, then hit em' in the eye.

 

[Steve in PA]

It is perfectly legal to use a rifle to take fall turkey in PA. Most use something along the lines of a .223 or .22 Hornet.

Personally, I've taken a few turkey with a Marlin .22magnum.

 

[rcmodel]

It's against the law in Kansas as well, although I don't have a clue why.
I guess they think it's a safety issue because you can't wear blaze-orange when turkey hunting. (Well, you can, but you won't see any close-range turkeys.)

If I were to do it though, my first choice would be a scoped .22 WMR, or .218 Bee. or .223 varmint rig & head or neck shots.

The old 25-20 & 32-20 WCF has a strong following in some places.
The heavy lead flat-point at those velocity's puts them down hard without much if any meat damage. I imagine a .357 carbine with light loaded lead SWC's would do as well or better.

I have also been told that the leg/body joint shot from the side is the best way to do it if you can't hit them in the head.

Supposedly, if the thigh joints are both broken, they can't jump off the ground to get airborne, and they sure can't run off.
It also doesn't ruin any worthwhile meat.


rcmodel

 

[rhubarb]

I'd heard that shooting turkeys from the side just in front of where the tail feathers reach the body wouldn't damage the meat. Then I saw one shot perfectly across the body in that area with a .270. The breast was one big bruise.

Head shots? Good luck catching them with their head still.

I've shot at a couple of turkeys but haven't hit one yet. Give me a big target with four legs and enough usable meat that I can afford to ruin a little.

 

[rcmodel]

Every one I have called in & shot with a shotgun has had his neck sticking straight up and his head still.

Pretty quite sure I could have easily shot any one of them with a rifle if it were legal here.


rcmodel

 

[Art Eatman]

If you aren't comfortable with a head shot, try for cross-body just behind the legs. Kills and cleans in one swell foop.

Main thing with a head shot is to remember the trajectory. Most '06 sight-ins are two inches high at 100...

Art