The Rev

We're hunting hogs, not elephants..

M92

Hunting hog and wild boar here in NC is very different from that in TX. Often times you will not get a head shot, and there are times when you are not allowed to run dogs, in some counties you aren't allowed to at all. So sometimes you need something that can reliably punch through their armor.

ecorrigan

With all due respect Sir, that's about like saying that Deer hunting over there is very different than it is on this side of the country. Either way, shot placement is key. A larger arrow weight accompanied by a heavier draw weight on a bow is not needed on one side of the country for a specific animal versus another side of the country. If you can place your shot and put it in an effective area on the animal, it shouldn't make a difference what side of the country you're on.
If you're hunting a pig, it's just the same. Shot placement rules wherever you're at.

Rebel Hog

Totally Agree!!

M92

Now dont take that the wrong way. What you just said is totally ignorant (remember there is a difference between ignorant and stupid). There are people down here that are taking deer with .38 spc. Try that on one of those big corn fed Iowa deer I grew up on. General deer behavior (or for that matter animal behavior) does not change too much. But when you talk about the intricacies of the behavior region to region, coupled with the changes in environment from region to region, and the differences in state laws hunting state to state is very different. Am I going to take my M92 in .357 mag to hunt in OK? No, Id never get close enough for a shot because of the great open land. Am I going to take a 7mm ultra down to Florida? No there wouldn't be any meat left. Smell what Im stepping in?

And as there are counties where you can not run dogs on hogs here like you can in TX I would once again say your statement is totally ignorant. As many places will not allow you to run dogs, and a lot of times your shots will be further than a few feet like when you run dogs you need something that can punch through that gristle plate on their back. Come on down here and hunt in the Carolinas before you talk please. I wouldn't dream of telling you that hunting in your home state is the same as mine, because I have zero experience hunting in your state.

ecorrigan

My thoughts are that pigs don't differ much, key word being 'much'. I wasn't saying that the hunting was the same, I meant the animals are pretty much the same. If you place your shot well, you can do it with something smaller than what is typically thought to be needed for the animal.
WDM Bell hunted elephants with the equivalent to a .30 Caliber rifle and figured any rifle in .30 Caliber that would shoot a bullet over 200-grains was perfect for elephants. My point being, there is no need for a large caliber rifle if a person can place their shot well. I look at like this: I hunt with a .308 rifle. There is nothing in the United States as far as wild game, that I would feel I couldn't effectively take with that rifle and that caliber if I do my job and place the shot well.
My point being, it's all about shot placement. Regardless of what you're hunting and where you're at!! All the knockdown power in the world ain't gonna make a bit of difference if the shot isn't going in an effective place!!

(By the way: "(remember there is a difference between ignorant and stupid)"... Now you're talking to me like I'm stupid. I would be willing to bet I'm a little older than you think!!)

M92

No. I am not talking to you like you are stupid, ignorant simply means you don't know. Age has little to do with it. Ive met men twice my age that know half as much, and kids half my age that know twice as much.

And yes, shot placement is key, and if you can get proper shot placement you can kill em dead. However because of our terrain, and lack of dogs, often times you will not get the shot placement required when using a .22. A .22 lr can kill a man dead during a defensive shooting. But given the choice, and knowing that you likely wont get the perfect shot placement required would you rather carry a .22 or a 9mm?

Also, yes, animals are different state to state.

And while you can kill an elephant with something that small, most found it best for the big bore deep penetrating stuff.

A .44 mag might sound like overkill, but really it isn't. It just has good penetration, and using good HC lead there is very little meat destroyed with the shot. A good 80% of the hog hunters Ive spoken to in my area say most of their shots are from 50 yards or more, though moderate to thick bush, and a body shot, not a head shot. Very different from running dogs in a wide open field, or what not.

ecorrigan

I've shot competition .22 for years. Most of that at distances twice what you mentioned here. 50-yards was where we'd start, shoot a few warm-up shots and then move out, engaging targets at 10-yard intervals starting at the 50-yard line and going all the way to 100-yards. Being able to put about 10-rounds in a group approximately the size of a ping-pong ball while kneeling, sitting, prone and if we're lucky, offhand. It's not easy. I'm not trying to be argumentative but rather trying to show that it's easy to make a shot with something smaller if you practice. Although you mentioned taking shots through brush, which is sometimes required during hunting. If a shot like that were to be taken with a .22 the bullet likely wouldn't hit the target due to deflection.
I guess I just don't see the need for all the large calibers when it can be done with less. Hell, people spear pigs and from what I've been told, will take them with nothing but a knife (now this I've got to see... while sitting out of reach of the pig) and they do it successfully. Why do we need something big to do it? The head of a pig isn't that small, I guess I just don't understand why something smaller can be used.
Is this anything like my enjoyment of shooting gophers with a .223? Actually probably not. I do that at distances farther than my Anschutz will shoot.

M92

And how much energy do you think those bullets have at that range? Even using the hottest standard load I could find, it only has 204 ft.lbs at the muzzle. Or about 120 ft.lbs at a hundred yards.

I would highly suggest that you read my previous posts again. As I said, accuracy is but one factor that changes things.

The wounding mechanics of a spear or knife are completely different from that of bullets. Also those folks that spear, or knife their hogs also run dogs. Ya see, your bay dogs go out first and chase and circle the hog, keeping it in one spot, then you send your catch dogs in and they latch on. Then the handlers will either tie the hog to a tree and stab it, or hog tie it, and then make the kill.

Because as I said earlier, without the use of dogs, the hog is free to move as it pleases, the brush is very thick here, just like when deer hunting, you are more likely to get a body hit than a head hit, To get through the gristle plate, even at 0 range, you need more than the .22 can offer. My son's pellet gun offers 160 ft.lbs of energy at the muzzle. So as that is close to many standard loads in .22 would you recommend that I use that when most of my shots on hog are 75 to a hundred yards and a head shot is more often than not, not an option.

Nope, it is being an ethical hunter that wants to reduce the amount of suffering my game will feel, and reduce the chances of loosing an animal.

The Rev

hehehe, the shield is fat and muscle, not iron..