Is a .17 caliber an acceptable round for the hunt?

[kfouts2]

What rifle would you believe best for this?

Ken

[stimpylu32]

The 17HMR is more than adaquate for shots out to 150+ as is the 17M2 out to 100+ , both shoot flat and do not move with the wind as bad as i thought they would .

Both were used at this years GBO/handi shoot with very good results on the little suckers .

[quickdtoo]

What rifle would you believe best for this?

Ken

An NEF Sportster if a rimfire is your choice, what else!!

Tim

[kfouts2]

Thanks for the info.  I have been very impressed with the little round so I was hoping to take it.

My son taped a quarter to a piece of cardboard at 50 feet and shot three times.  I asked him if he hit and he thought so.  I suggested we go looking for the quarter but found it still taped in place with three neat holes.  It hit so hard and fast it did not disturb the tape!

Ken

[mookster79]

My brother has .17 hmr sportster, and caused me to buy my .223 stainless as a result of how much I like it.  I love my little ruger .22lr for the yard here, but that .17 is a great step up for rimfire.  He is in the process of building the contender into a .204 as we speak.  If I can make it this year, he might just lose both of those for me to add to my collection for the hunt.  At the same time I may have one last purchase in my pocket before that, only question is.....What will it be?

[georgeld]

You guys shooting p/dog's with the 17M2.

Do them a favor and ONLY head shots ok?

My first trip out with one I was unhappy with the results. I shoot p/d's all summer every summer and have since the late 50's.  I don't like to see anything suffer. Shoot 'em and blow to piece's is fine, but, wounding and let 'em die a long lingering death is not.


At 60yds I hit one in the head and it did a flip. Beautiful shot & results, half the head was gone.
Another nearby went over to check it out and wouldn't stand up, just laid across the mound sideways to me.  What the heck.
shot it about the middle, near the diaphram area.  Then drove 1/4mi to the other end and started back shooting others. When I got to this first place decided to go see what kind of results it was giving.

Found that one with the belly shot laying there still alive!!! A full half hour later.

That's unacceptable to me.  When ever I hit one that's not outright killed I'll keep shooting at it til it is.  This one was in such shape I just stepped on it's head to finish it up.

So please, take head shots with such a small cartridge.

George

[tuck2]

I use the 17 HM2 for shots out to about 80 Yds and the 17 HMR to about 150 Yds when shooting prairie dogs. The shot not to take is one in the guts.  Hits to any other parts of the prairie dog is a killer. During the 05 year I shot about 1,500 prairie dogs with the 17 HMR and last year I shot about 500 with the 17 HM2.

[NONYA]

NO WAY!!You would be way undergunned with that 17 on P dogs  would recommend the 30-30 for those precision longe range shoots(200 Yards). ;DThe 17 will implode the lil rats out to 200 NO PROBLEM,I took a fox with mine not long ago(one shot) and several jack rabbits this winter out to two hundred yards with the hollow points,v max.I have found that the hollow points are the only way to go on critters as big as a jack.

[jim dab]

Just spent the last couple of days shooting the little guys with one  I bought last fall.  Accuracy is great its a CZ with the heavy barrel. Anything bigger I don't think so. Hit one at 85 yards did not get a pass through just a little hole in the chest. He jumped about 3 feet in the air as dead as the bullet that killed him but I'm thinking this is maxing this bullet out. I'm using Remingtons V MAX boat tail. Granted I haven't use the HP or the 20gr game points I'll try these out later in the year when I have the time.

Jim
Alberta

[Ditchdigger]

Wes was dropping them at 175 yds. with my 917very regular,the first year we had the shoot. Its best to start out with the rimfires first to avoid spookiing them so much.   Digger

[ironglow]

  Stimpy;

  Yes; I noticed that the .17 HMR doesn't drift with the wind nearly as much as some folks claim. Makes me wonder if any of those that claim the large wind drift on .17s ...actually owns one.

[buffermop]

Not to change the subject, but who invented the 17 caliber in the first place? Hornady??

[snowbelt45]

I'm planning on bringing my .17 Remington on the hunt this year.  Spectacular things happen when you hit a small critter with a 25 gr. HP at 3700 fps.  I thought I read that another company was coming out with a new .17 caliber round this year.  Has anyone heard of one being manufactured?

[stimpylu32]

buffermop

Here is a little background on the 17HMR as well as many other cal.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.17_HMR

stimpy

[jim dab]

Oh are these .17 bad for wind drift? I'm sure glad no one told me or my rifle for that matter. 
I've been banging away with it the last week or so and was quite surprised how little the wind was effecting it, and it was blowing quite well at times.

Just came in from taking the neighbor's son and a couple of his friends around in the fields with the truck. They had Dad's 22 Hornet and a 22 Short. All three of them were waiting in line for the .17 HMR. The neighbor's son asked if there would be a problem if he were to buy some bullets would it be ok to borrow it. I told him as long as he quit shooting towards my property, the reason I was talking to them in the first place. Like father like son I had to mention it to his Dad when he was doing it, toward the road and towards my pasture with show horses in it, I could here some of the shot ricochets hitting leaves in the bushes. The man gives the coarses for hunter safety. Go figure eh. The response was, there wouldn't be much energy left in them anyways. A litle bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Jim
Alberta