Would Tungsten #9 work for raccoon hunting ? (12ga).

[highup]

Would Tungsten #9 work for raccoon hunting ? (12ga).
There seem to be differing opinions on this on the internet.....
with some even saying you need #4 buckshot (0.25inch diameter pellets).
My speculation: Unless you are shooting it in the butt as it is running directly
away from you, the #9 tungsten seems it would probably work.
Additionally, I won't be hunting in super-large areas. So, I don't want large
pellets skipping half a mile down.......

 

[entropy]

Sure. And you could shoot gold-plated 4's at turkey, but why waste rounds that are $$$$ on raccoon? 9 shot Skeet rounds will do the same job at @ 4/1 cost ratio.
Will you be shooting in a non-toxic mandated area? Then the question becomes why would you hunt raccoon in such an area?

 

[MacAR]

High brass number four shot, full choke. Any good brand will do, I prefer Winchester Super X 1.25oz myself. Shotgun pellets aren't going to "skip half a mile"; they're going to go up and come down and won't be harmful when they do. There's no need for tungsten shot either. When we coon hunted a lot, I used a 22 rifle with shorts though we were trying not to damage the pelts. If fur damage isn't an issue then a shotgun is fine.

Mac

 

[Muddydogs]

My 7/8 or 1 oz reclaimed lead trap loads kill raccoons just fine. No need for fancy.

 

[Laphroaig]

Cheap low brass#6 shot is my General Purpose 12 ga. load. It's killed every coon that I have shot at, as well as every squirrel, rabbit, grouse, and porcupine.

 

[slinkster111]

Why not use a standard trap load of 71/2 of 8. If you are close shot size will not matter. The pellets will not carry more than two to three hundred yards even if fired into the air at 45 degrees.

 

[9x56MS]

Tungsten loaded shotshells $8 each. 22lr she’ll 10 cents each. Your decision.

 

[Weflyfast]

why not just load platinum....????

 

[N555]

Back in the day #9 lead shot in trap load was sufficient at less than 10yd.

 

[hunt127588]

Back in the day #9 lead shot in trap load was sufficient at less than 10yd.

Yep, TSS is a totally different animal. 9 shot TSS has about the same weight/density as lead #5s.

 

[highup]

Yep, TSS is a totally different animal. 9 shot TSS has about the same weight/density as lead #5s.

According to the below chart, Tungsten #9 penetrates gelatin the same at 70yards
as lead #5 does at 57yards.

The difference in shot ballistics with different shot...

I have seen guys on Duck Hunting Chat and Gobbler Nation Forums show the different ballistics with the different shot sizes and different shot densities. If you want to spend the extra dollars you can make some deadly loads for the 410 and 28 gauges for turkey and waterfowl. It is a real mind...

www.trapshooters.com

 

[MacAR]

That's all well and good, but if you're shooting coons at 70 yards you need a 22 magnum, not a shotgun. Heck, I'd want a rifle anyway but a good shotgun is fine for treed coons. No need for expensive shells as we've all said above. But it's your money, spend it how you want.

Mac

 

[Mannlicher]

The last masked marauder I dispatched went quietly to a better place, urged on by a single CCI quiet 40 grain .22 LR cartridge.

 

[Axis II]

Racoons are tough so I would go with #4 high brass shot and full choke.

 

[Gordon]

I keep an SG ready to go for the huge buck Coons that kill koi in my pond. It's also good to repel borders. I don't shoot it much anymore, but it has dumped marauding coyotes at 100+ feet with one barrel of its 50#4 buckshot. It is stored up at 7 feet off the ground and hidden from sight but accessible if someone knew where it is, which they don't except me. 10 Gauge Magnum 20" sawed off goosegun double with a big old front bead. I have a family member that was attacked by a rabid coon and had to have the anti-Rabies routine and stitches for the bites on her. A 30+ pound buck Racoon is a nasty pest, and I want one-shot devastation if one is around, they are sometimes aggressive around here if you try to shoo them. I shot a couple with .38 spl, too. Seriously, at least #4 birdshot with a close-range pattern. Number 9 shot at a rathole distance of up to 20 feet, I'm sure, is deadly, BUT!

 

[Sniper66]

I prefer 870 wingmaster 30"full choke with high brass #4, #5, or #6, all of which I have in abundance. Or for longer shots, my Bergara BMR-X 17HMR....head shots preferred.

 

[PapaG]

I have shot coins with a .25 cal springer air rifle (15 yards), 22, 9, 38, 357 and 45acp. 20 and 12 ga. No special loads in any of them. #6 in a 12 should be plenty. When I was a kid we used a Ruger standard auto and lr hp with no problem.

 

[WisBorn]

How are you hunting raccoons?
Bait?
Over hounds?

My cousin hunted raccoons for years over hounds. He invested more in the light he carried than the 22lr bolt action he shot them with.
I never hunted raccoons, but I know from experience that a field point on a arrow works well.

 

[highup]

How are you hunting raccoons?
Bait?
Over hounds?

My cousin hunted raccoons for years over hounds. He invested more in the light he carried than the 22lr bolt action he shot them with.
I never hunted raccoons, but I know from experience that a field point on a arrow works well.

I am still a newbie at raccoon hunting. I called once with a Foxpro Patriot and got nothing. But I saw
rabbits; so, I turned it into a rabbit hunt.