RE: Turkey with a rifle???
It is legal to use handguns, rifles, (rimfire, centerfire) shotgun,archery in the harvesting of turkey in Texas. We have a 4 gobbler per liscense yearlimit.
Personally over the years I have used everything just mentioned. If it's legal in your state I dont see why a person wouldnt try it. Yeah some will say there is no sport in taking a turkey with anything other than a rifle. I have taken birds called up with a Ruger MK ll 22 pistol, an open sighted 10-22, shotguns, bow and arrow,various T/C Contenders. With rifles such as 22 Hornet, 223, 22-250,220 Swift,30-06, 7mmSTW I have head/neck shotfrom 10 to 300 yards. Each bird has it's own challange to me and it should for anyone. We are all different in our ways we live and think, what's good for me might not please another butsuch as life. Again, as long as it is legal there is no reason not to give it a try.
Try calling a bird in to 30 yards or so and lining up the open sights on an old Stevens Crackshot 22rfon a turkeys head and squeezing off a shot or the same situation with a 3 1/2" 2oz turkey load having hundreds of pellets or a single bolt fired from a scoped crossbow.
Which one of those is more "sporting"?
In the end it's a personal choice that we all have to live with, who am I to judge another's way of legal hunting.