Shoulder shots on rabbits with .22 air rifles? Any experience?

[mannyrock]

Dear guys,

  I'm reading a whole lot of text about folks making head shots on rabbits with their air rifles, to great effect. ("Just shoot them throught the eye.")

   But, what about shoulder shots?  Does anybody have any experience with making shoulder shots on rabbits, at say 25 yards, with a .22 air rifle, with muzzle velocity of around 800 fps?  I know it wouldn't anchor them stone dead, but rabbits are very fragile, and I'm wondering if this wouldn't knock them down/immobilize them, until you could get a finishing shot in them, or whether anyone has seen them just run away?


Thanks,  Mannyrock

[White Foxx]

A shoulder shot will kill most rabbits, however, who want to eat old lead?  Their head is plenty big enough so aim for that!  The only other drawback would be that they can escape, like darting down a hole.  However, I did shoot a rabbit through the shoulder some years back, with a 117 caliber pellet.  My shot went low and that rabbit screamed like you would not believe.......   No more body shots on rabbits for me….   

White Foxx 

[mannyrock]

White Fox,

   Thanks for the info.  It's kinda what I expected.  So, hearing this, I won't be doing any shoulder shots on rabbit.

  I live out in the country, but in a subdivision, where the lots are 3 acres and 5 acres.  Mine is 3 acres.  So, I can occassionally shoot a few rounds from my .22 rifle in my back yard, using the .22 CB longs, without any complaints from the neighbors.

  A few weeks ago, I shot a rabbit at about 25 yards, through the shoulder, with a  CB long.  He violently flipped over sideways and was instantly dead.  So, I guess I will stick with these.

Thanks,

Mannyrock

[lamerabbit]

Or was that barin of thought?

[White Foxx]

Hi Mannyrock:

That is a good choice, but watch for ricochets, I live in the same type of neighborhood, and I use to shoot all my guns, but it has gotten so populated that I have stopped.  The guy behind me has horses....

I use to shoot the cb longs all the time, but had one come back at me from my old and rather hard backstop.  I still shoot them but I make sure that I have a box full onf news papers to shoot at. 

I saw that remington has a new cb cap.  It is a long rifle, with a 33 grain bullet.  Has a bit more punch, but I think that the best improvement will be in accuracy.  The longer bullet should shoot better in most rifles.   Midway has them, but they are out of stock, last I checked.  Can’t wait to try them.

BTW, that was supposed to be 177 caliber, but that's my typo's rearing their ugly head again....   In air rifles I shoot mostly pcp's in 177 caliber.  They are more accurate that most of my rim fires, as long as the wind is not blowing.   


White Foxx

PS maybe lamerabbit was the one I shot

[Larry Gibson]

I've shot a lot of rabbits (jacks, snowshoes and cottontails) with my RWS M54 .22 cal. It pushes a 14.3 gr Crosman Premier right at 800 fps and Crow Magnums at 660 fps.  If I'm hunting the rabbits to eat (snowshoes and cottontails) I use only head shots. With the CPs I can head shoot to 60 yards with almost 100% recovery of the rabbits. I no longer use the shoulder shot with CPs or domed pellets, the reason being is with shoulder (heart/lung) shots I bat about 50% on being able to recover the rabbit.  The others make it down holes.  On shorter range shots I use the Crow Magnums for the shoulder shots as they seem to "thump" the rabbit harder.  I still have one tin of the Vortex Lampreys left.  These are short range (out to 30 yards) killers extraordinaire on shoulder shots!  I have almost 100% recovery on rabbits shot with these, but alas they are no longer made......

Larry Gibson

[S.S.]

I have hit rabbits with a single #6 pellet from a 410
and kill them graveyard dead. But a little while back
hit one with a small game arrow from a 50 pound pull
recurve bow that passed right through the rabbit.
It ran off and we never found it.
Nothing is certain but death and taxes!