Author Topic: pig killed with airgun (Read 12076 times)

jamaldog87 · « **on:** April 17, 2007, 01:15:26 PM »

well we had been setting around think about if kill a pig with a .177cal airgun could be done. well after some talk the doc as we call him said" i going to do it and see whats what" and he ask for me and tom to help out because we have hunted pigs alot. we got at his house the next day and we came with the best guns for pigs. I had my noble 12 with ball and deer slugs, tom had a 45/70 lever gun and the doc had his Dakota traveler in 375H&H and his gamo HUNTER 890S with steel tip daisy and GAMO Rockets. so this pig was going to die. we got to the grounds were most time we hunt beaver and nutria but there were lots of pigs here. the doc got up in a tree stand by a feeder for deer. me and tom were by the bottom of the tree. I had only had one slug for my shotgun so i was useing his 375H&H( which i hoped not to fire) well after 5 hours one small pig came to the feeder and was kill with one shot to the head at 20 yards with a rocket. the pig was only 15 pounds but a kills a kill. so yes you can kill a pig at close range with steel tip pellet with a 177cal gun but unless you got some real heat don't do it.

John R. · « **Reply #1 on:** April 18, 2007, 05:31:15 AM »

To each his own, but I prefer larger holes.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #2 on:** July 30, 2007, 03:43:01 PM »

If you want to use an airgun on hogs up to about 250lbs, get yourself one of these and have it modified. Click on picture for slide show. All groups at 25 meters.

For bigger hogs; PM me for info on the real-deal in monster hog-slaying air rifles.

BUTCHER

Cabin4 · « **Reply #3 on:** July 31, 2007, 11:59:21 AM »

I think there might be more than just air in the air rifles at work here

~Ace~ · « **Reply #4 on:** July 31, 2007, 12:20:50 PM »

Unreal..... $:-\$

jamaldog87 · « **Reply #5 on:** July 31, 2007, 01:51:17 PM »

i had a Quackenbush airgun that i got from a airgun letter ad. those guns = power and they can take big game.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #6 on:** July 31, 2007, 03:58:44 PM »

Quote from: cabin4 on July 31, 2007, 11:59:21 AM

I think there might be more than just air in the air rifles at work here

What do you mean by that? I can't figure out if you think I'm filling my rifle with some other gas or if you are calling me a liar. I'm sure others are having the same dilemma understanding your meaning. Maybe you could be a little more clear? I'll tell you right now that the rifle was filled with nothing more than about 3000psi of the air your breathing right now with a bit of any moisture that may be in it removed.
If you are calling me a liar than I will post video proof of whatever you'd like proven. You needing chrony readings or groups video'd or both? I will then accept your apology in the form of REAL's and Maxi-Balls made from dead-soft lead. If you make me produce both videos I will want a box of Buffalo Bullet Company's 180 grain BP Pistol Bullets as well. I split a deer rib I found at 25 meters with this gun on the first try the other day with a 180 grain BBC BP Pistol bullet. Looking forward to some free bullets.

BUTCHER

Cabin4 · « **Reply #7 on:** August 01, 2007, 09:35:50 AM »

Quote from: BUTCHER45 on July 31, 2007, 03:58:44 PM

Quote from: cabin4 on July 31, 2007, 11:59:21 AM
I think there might be more than just air in the air rifles at work here

I can't figure out if you think I'm filling my rifle with some other gas or if you are calling me a liar. I'm sure others are having the same dilemma understanding your meaning.

Looking forward to some free bullets.

BUTCHER

I'm not accusing you of being a liar or filling your rifle with some other gas.

No free bullets for you

jamaldog87 · « **Reply #8 on:** August 02, 2007, 06:50:01 AM »

big bore airguns can kill these bigger then pigs. here some pics, not my pic's, of some

leserz · « **Reply #9 on:** September 05, 2007, 05:13:57 PM »

they kill cows with 22 shorts at meat packing houses. shot placement and a bit of luck can go a long ways.

Cabin4 · « **Reply #10 on:** September 05, 2007, 07:18:51 PM »

yes, nothings more rewarding then a little cow hunting at your local slaughter house with a 22short at point-blank range or air rifle hunting in a barn yard for farm raised cheese goats and meat buffalo....

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #11 on:** September 06, 2007, 12:12:14 AM »

Airguns have their limitations (mostly range) however their power is greatly under-estimated. If one was to run the numbers using the formulas like Veral Smith's and Thornily rather than just fpe alone they will find that they are more powerful than they may have thought.
I just ran the numbers using the Thornily formula on my .45 airgun using 230 and 262 grainers and it says it has killing power equal to a full-house(1468fps)125grain.357 Magnum and also a.40S&WFederal Hydra-Shok 180gr.JHP, and also very, very close to a 44spl w/200grainer.
If killing power equal to a .357 out of a modified factory airgun using strictly air isn't impressive than you are pretty tough to impress!
How about an African Safari? I haven't checked to see if these were from the barnyard but somehow I doubt it.

http://www.bigboreairguns.com/southafrica2006.htm

I'll be going to Oklahoma to hunt hog, fallow and sika deer, varmints, and possibly a ram/goat if I see a spanish goat or four-horn or something of the like that I want on the wall. Doing it this Oct. using my .45 airgun. Limiting my range and precision shots, of course. Practicing on the nutria everyday I can up until then.

Qaz · « **Reply #12 on:** September 14, 2007, 06:50:19 AM »

Buther- I am no expert, but I don't think any of the above mentioned rounds are appropriate for bison. I wouldn't shoot one with a 357, 40S&W or a 44spl.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #13 on:** September 14, 2007, 08:45:31 AM »

Must be a misunderstanding. I agree that my rifle is not suitable for a bison (unless you are out to make him really mad and that's all, LOL). I didn't say I was after Bison with this rifle and I wasn't involved in any of those hunts.
I'll be going after hogs and Sika deer with it in Oct, though. Maybe a ram.
The guy that took the Bison pictured shot him with a MUCH more powerful air rifle than mine, using two 500+grain bullets through the lungs. He will be at the hunt in Oct I am attending.

alsaqr · « **Reply #14 on:** September 16, 2007, 10:22:00 AM »

Air guns have been around for hundreds of years. Lewis and Clark had two of them on their trek to the Pacific Ocean-200 years ago. They used them to impress the Native Americans.

daddywpb · « **Reply #15 on:** October 20, 2007, 01:05:53 AM »

I'm missing something here. Can someone explain why anyone would set out to kill a bison, or a hog, with any kind of airgun? How close do you have to be? Are you trying to prove a point, and if so, to whom? This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever read here. Maybe Lewis and Clark forgot their 45/70. Educate me.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #16 on:** October 20, 2007, 03:05:57 AM »

Quote from: daddywpb on October 20, 2007, 01:05:53 AM

I'm missing something here. Can someone explain why anyone would set out to kill a bison, or a hog, with any kind of airgun? How close do you have to be? Are you trying to prove a point, and if so, to whom? This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever read here. Maybe Lewis and Clark forgot their 45/70. Educate me.

The man told me himself why he killed the bison less than two weeks ago.
He did it to prove to people like yourself that big game hunting with these fully-capable, big-bore airguns is not "ridiculous" as you put it. They said the same thing about bowhunting and handguns. Now everyone knows an arrow is a very efficient killer. Try telling handgun hunters their revolver's can't do the job.
These air guns have been to Africa and taken a wide variety of big-game there including Kudu Bull (a real big one).
Trying to prove a point? Yes I am. I am working to prove to the State of Oregon (as was proven to the satisfaction of the states of Kentucky and Missouri) that big-bore airguns are very effective hunting tools for big game hunting and should be included in the regulations.
This is also one of the reason's I shot this ram with a 254 grain pellet from my .45 caliber airgun and the result was far from ridiculous I assure you. That is the boiler-room exit-hole on the shoulder facing the camera. The ram died very quickly about 15 yards from that shot hitting him in no time and I was very impressed. I have heard of many rams shot with centerfire rifles through the boiler room going a whole lot farther than this one did. My air rifle has half the power of many out there and is still fully capable of taking deer sized game.
To quote Veral Smith "When an animal dies quick there is no further argument."
I like that, Veral.
How close you have to be depends on the power of your rifle and the quarry you are hunting but it is generally between bow and handgun range. Put the stats into any killing power formula you prefer and check out the results. A couple of time-honored formulas will tell you my rifle shooting the 254grainer at over 650fps is suitable for deer hunting. I like to say comfortably 50 yards and 75 yards would be a good long shot for me to stay in a four inch area on the deer and still have ample power for a pass through.
Part of the fun is getting close.
Lewis @ Clark brought that rifle along in case their powder got wet and also to impress the Indians.

pastorp · « **Reply #17 on:** October 20, 2007, 04:04:53 PM »

Butcher, I was looking at a airgun like yours at the airgun shop in Anchorage, AK a few years ago. I believe he had them in 38 and 45 caliber. Told me one of his customers in the Arctic used one to kill his caribou each fall for several years.

Fellows these are not like your dasey red ryder. These operate at extreme air pressure and give velocities that equal a muzzleloader. Thats why the Lewis & Clark ones impressed the Indians so much, and theirs were repeaters not single shots like the flint locks they also carried. Regards, Byron

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #18 on:** October 20, 2007, 05:11:13 PM »

I'll probably see roundball go into the low 900's before to long on mine.

jacksbark · « **Reply #19 on:** November 19, 2007, 09:22:52 PM »

While i personally don't agree with the notion of using 'powerful' air rifles to hunt large animals (deer, hogs, or larger), the fact is that air rifles have been killing large animals for centuries. As most of you will know, there were air-rifle-armed infantry regiments in the Austro-Hungarian and/or Prussian armies back in the 18th Century. And, our own intrepid Lewis & Clark did carry and extensively use a air rifle on the treck to and from the mouth of the Columbia. Its certainly worthy of further evaluation.

NONYA · « **Reply #20 on:** November 20, 2007, 08:51:26 AM »

Quote from: cabin4 on September 05, 2007, 07:18:51 PM

yes, nothings more rewarding then a little cow hunting at your local slaughter house with a 22short at point-blank range or air rifle hunting in a barn yard for farm raised cheese goats and meat buffalo....

LOL EXACTLY!I dont see any game in these pics that wasnt killled in a pen(High fence hunts),like to see you take a doe wt/md with one where I hunt!

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #21 on:** November 20, 2007, 02:32:43 PM »

Quote from: NONYA on November 20, 2007, 08:51:26 AM

Quote from: cabin4 on September 05, 2007, 07:18:51 PM
yes, nothings more rewarding then a little cow hunting at your local slaughter house with a 22short at point-blank range or air rifle hunting in a barn yard for farm raised cheese goats and meat buffalo....

LOL EXACTLY!I dont see any game in these pics that wasnt killled in a pen(High fence hunts),like to see you take a doe wt/md with one where I hunt!

I live in Oregon and still-hunt on public land almost exclusively for the few animals I can legally hunt. I went to Oklahoma to hunt hogs and rams (the hogs were the wildest and wariest animals I've seen). There were several hogs taken with airguns that weekend.
If you live in Missouri, Kentucky, or one of the few states where it is currently legal to harvest deer with an airgun I would be happy to come hunt one there with my airguns. If it is legal where you live and you REALLY want to see it, hook me up with a hunt next fall and I'll be there to make it possible. The hunter who's deer goes down the slowest can buy the other dinner.
I shot this ram to prove to the non-believers, the OSFW Department, and also to experience for myself that these airguns are legitimate hunting tools that will kill about as fast as anything when placing a shot into the boiler room. That ram went down very fast after a very short attempt at a run. Another friend of mine took his ram a month later with a one-shot DRT. I know of one person who shot his ram three times with a 7X57 Centerfire and it didn't go down nearlyt as fast as these did and they were well-placed shots.
I do not understand this opposition from other hunters to these big-bore airguns. As hunters they should support other hunters that legally and cleanly harvest an animal. If they as hunters took an interest into looking at the true killing power of these guns they would likely change their tunes. More deer have been taken this fall with airguns by more people than ever before as far as I can tell. Most all of them have been one shot kills and DRT's.
Know why? Could be because we pay about $22.50 for 500 rounds and can afford to practice all the time? Or maybe because airguns are AT LEAST as accurate as centerfire rifles within an airguns effective range (about handgun range). They certainly have all the power necessary to do the job. The rifle I took this ram with is fully capable of taking ANY deer out past 5o yards and is half as powerful as my next big bore airgun and many others like it.
I showed Veral Smith the pellet design I had on hand (255grain with a .32 meplat) to use for this hunt and he gave me the OK to use it as a hunting pellet. When using the proper pellet along with proper shot placement, these big game animals are going down quick. So what's with the opposition from our own ranks? Complete penetration, big wound channel, short runs, quick deaths; what more do you want? Really? Where is your case against coming from in light of these facts?

Here are the only two groups I had time to shoot the other day (.5 and .9 inches center to center) with my .45 air rifle along with an example of an airgun deer hunt for you I dug up real quick (a bit bigger than most doe, though). I'm getting the same rifle by my next hog-hunt at the Shiloh Ranch in May(Bontrager Magnum Hunter) but mine will be in .50 caliber throwing a 325 grain bullet around 765fps. No deer wants to get hit with that, either

http://www.network54.com/Forum/414006/message/1194727069/The+Bontrager+magnum+Hunter+scored+on+its+maiden+voyage+this+morning.
http://www.network54.com/Forum/414006/message/1194793046/Pics+as+promised

NONYA · « **Reply #22 on:** November 20, 2007, 02:59:10 PM »

I could kill a cow buffalo with a .177 pellet rifle if i wanted to bad enough,doesnt prove its a good choice for hunting biggame.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #23 on:** November 20, 2007, 03:17:21 PM »

Well of course a .177 is not suitable for anything but the smallest game and to kill a large animal with one is nothing but a stunt to sell pellets. It does not have the ability to completely penetrate a large animal through the heart/lung area and create massive damage by force like the big-bores do.
It will take awhile for it to sink in for the more stubborn-minded but that's OK. It was the same "that is irresponsible" deal with handguns and the bow and arrow and it certainly doesn't stop them from killing thousands of game animals annually.
We will be videotaping our big game airgun hunts whenever possible to prove their effectiveness.
After a few dozen clean kills are thoroughly documented the nay-sayers will have no choice but to accept that these are very effective short-range big-game rifles. They would just make themselves look silly in light of the facts before them. People can't really present a valid argument against the big game bigbore airgun for to long with animals running twenty or forty yards (if that) and hitting the ground dead more often than not. That right there does prove it is indeed an effective big game rifle unless you require something other than accuracy, complete penetration, and massive internal damage causing fast kills. That about covers it for my big game hunting needs.

NONYA · « **Reply #24 on:** November 20, 2007, 05:02:18 PM »

"Its all about shot placement,put that .177 in the right place and you could kill anything......",as far as being a VERY effective big game rifle it wont matter how many penned animals you kill,it will still be worthless out here where shots over 100 yards are the norm.Come on out and kill a free ranging antelope or elk with one and ill give you the benefit of the doubt.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #25 on:** November 20, 2007, 08:58:30 PM »

These rifle's have their limitations; no question about that.
I have no delusions of them being some magical game-dropper in itself. Of course shot placement will always be the primary factor. Part of airgunning is getting as close as you can to the game. It is a "hunters" method rather than a "shooters" method. Much more sense of accomplishment getting close.
NONYA it sounds like you are in some pretty open territory where 100-200+ yard shots are the norm. Point taken. I imagine a bow and arrow or a handgun would be equally worthless as well but that doesn't make it reasonable to assume they are only good for "penned animals", does it?
100 yard shots may be the norm where you live but in Willamette Valley Oregon (and much of the rest of the world) 50-75 yards is about as far as you will have to shoot for the most part. I certainly would not use an airgun on a big game animal past 100 yards with any airgun that did not have the proper trajectory for it (coyote on the other hand...time for the .308 airgun). You would be hard pressed to find an air rifle that would meet my personal trajectory criteria at that range for big game. The trajectory drop would be multiple inches every 5 yards at 100 yards in most bigbore airguns with sufficient power to take big game. That IMO would be a ridiculous trajectory to try to hit a big game animal with.
My own criteria for a big game air rifle is no more than two inches high of POA out to 50 yards and no more than four inches below POA. Four inches of drop is usually about 65-70 yards with most big-bore combinations when zeroed at around 50 yards. Better range than a bow and about the same as most handgun hunting. I am limiting myself to broadside boiler room shots (top of the heart) at around 50 yards so I know I'm under 60. I feel I can compensate 4 inches of drop at that range and still hit the heart with good energy.

NONYA SAID "Come on out and kill a free ranging antelope or elk with one and ill give you the benefit of the doubt."

If this is a genuine invitation and not a rhetorical statement, and it is legal to hunt antelope with an air rifle in your state, I would be more than happy to come out and hunt antelope with my .452 BigBore I am getting in December. It throws a 205 grainer at over 1000fps and has about 120 more FPE on impact at 100 yards than I hit that ram with. He wasn't in a pen, by the way, but that is neither here nor there as the pellet could not tell the difference, the ram could not tell the difference, and any deer or antelope would have met the same result with the same shot placement wherever he is (remember these guns are very accurate). The whole point of shooting the ram was to show that these airguns can do the job well. I will continue to travel wherever I can legally hunt big game with my big bore air rifle.
So if the accuracy is there (it will be) then it has the power for 100 yards kills on deer. Though it misses my personal trajectory requirement at that range by almost half an inch so you will have to settle for a 95 yard shot instead

For Elk you will have to wait until I get my .50 caliber and I have finished testing it to see if it meets my criteria. Elk are kinda big, you know

moxgrove · « **Reply #26 on:** November 21, 2007, 05:51:44 AM »

When it comes down to it, the 45 airgun is pretty6y close to a 50 cal roundball overr 70gr of ffg. I have taken deer with that and no one thought it was a stunt or accused me of only being able to take "penned" animals. I think the better ballistic coefficient and shape are better at the same ranges. I really see the big airgun as like a traditional blackpowder gun using compressed air.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #27 on:** November 23, 2007, 09:19:04 AM »

Thanks for contributing your thoughts, Moxgrove. I appreciate your sticking to the issue at hand; the ballistic performance of the airgun. I must add that for hogs I would strictly take head-shots until I find a hardcast bullet that proves to have the performance to penetrate one's heart and BOTH lungs as I understand they can survive on one lung.
I crunched the numbers on the power of my up-coming .452 and .50 caliber custom air rifles. The .452 shooting a 255 grain WFN has a Displacement Value of 80.1 and the .510 shooting a 325 grain WFN has a DV of approx. 83.
Whatever gets it through the heart with one of those is not going to go far assuming it doesn't just DRT which is just as likely.
Until then I will make appropriate use of my current .454 air rifle with a DV of 65.7
I did some scouting last week for coyote hunting and found an ideal location to call in. A partner is going to call one in for me; we will do our best to get some video of the kill to make available to those interested in seeing it.

moxgrove · « **Reply #28 on:** November 23, 2007, 11:31:08 AM »

I find your airgun hunting intriguing. I find it amazing the prejudice that sometimes pops up. Now adayss noone denies that bowhunting and handgun hunting are legitimate. Your .452 200 gr bullet at 1000 fps is definitely as capable as most handguns. The big fifty will really be a close range thumper. I think peple get obsessed with muzzle energy and velocity instead of impact. If some of the people who bad mouth the performance of your airgun to the numbers their weapon of choice at 50-60 yards for yours vs some of the 300-400 yard shots I hear so much about, the gap narrows. For what it's worth I've never seen numbers on a sheet of paper or computer screen ever drop anything. I do know what a big heavy bullet at close range will. I was amzed at the penetration of a 240 gr lead bullet out of a 44 Russian at a little over 700 fps. I would, definitely think it would be at least as effective a bow and arrow.

BUTCHER45 · « **Reply #29 on:** November 25, 2007, 05:56:57 PM »

I have recieved three additional airgun kill reports today, two bucks and one boar hog weighing 140lbs.
Shot placement on one of the deer was at the top of the shoulders and it went through both, grazing the spine and lodged in the skin on the opposite side using a 200 grain RNFP Cowboy bullet. The deer dropped in it's tracks.
Shot placement on the wild Oklahoma hog was broadside behind the elbow using the exact same bullet design I took the ram with except this air rifle is putting an additional 100fpe of energy behind it; a 255 grainer with a .32meplat achieving complete penetration.
Hogs are tough; he made it 50 yards before collapsing.
Don't know about the other buck yet but the other deer and the hog were both one shot kills.