Choosing a caliber

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joshuacolvey

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Jan 7, 2020
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Arkansas, United States
I currently have a impact m3 compact in .22. The compact uses a 500mm barrel.

The reason for this was to dispatch squirrels when out deer hunting if the day had been uneventful for deer and it allowed for easy transport in and out in a backpack.

Now some option have come open for me to be able to do a little coin hunting out to about 50-max 75 yards if that far. I am wondering if the .22 would be enough. Whatever caliber I decide it would more than likely stay on it for a long period of time.

Since the m3 offers replacement parts to change to different calibers. What are your thoughts.

A fair amount of my pesting is also done in city limits back yard.

Thanks.
 
25gr slug. The m3 has a barrel that is well suited to medium weight or light weight slugs. For coons, I'd choose a solid, non-expanding slug. And go for proper headshots. If doing body vital shots, go with something like a griffin ldc slug, or fx hybrid. The gun has plenty of power in 22 for this. My fx crown Mk1 has plenty of power for this with a 500mm barrel, granted it is modified... But the m3 would still have more and ample power
 
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I agree with the heavy 22 projectile comments but I would also add that I think a bigger hole tends to stop critters quicker. For pesting, I like it when they don't travel far after the hit. Out of 20 squirrels hit with one of my 25s in pesting, only two ran and the furthest they went is about 15 feet. Squirrels hit with 22s went further but that is not fair because it was my 18 fpe Prod. I haven't had an opportunity with the much newer P35-22 (over 30 fpe).

22 will penetrate more, 25 should drop them quicker. 25 will use more air if you shoot heavier pellets at least as quick.
 
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IMO once caliber gets to 22 cal its more weight than dimension. I have 177, 20, 22, 25, and 30. You are going to get better ballistics our of a 22 in these high power air rifles if all things are equal. Most want to keep velocity around 1000 fps or so. You do that with weight and with all weights equal the 22 cal will have the best BC and range.
 
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I have confirmed that slugs indeed increase lethality.

I was of the idea that .177 was a caliber restricted to closer to 70 yards and for small critters.

My Vulcan 3 .177 with NSA slugs is very accurate at 190 yards and have also confirm lethality on big birds.

A .22 with slugs should be much better than my .177.

Slugs with a rifle that send them fly correctly, make the rifle to improve at least one level (. 177 with slugs isn at least, as lethal as a. 22 with pellets)
 
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Recarga said:
Since you have the M3 compact with the smaller air cylinder if you jump to a larger caliber your air consumption might take a drastic drop. If you have the STX liner or Sup heavy I will try some heavy slugs some heavy slugs almost have same energy of a 25cal.
Not an expert just what I had experienced in my own
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Thanks, i didnt think about the smaller air cylinder but no more than they cost i would probably just upgrade that. Ill look into slugs as well as some heavier pellets. I still have the oem barrel and that's the Smooth Twist X Superior Line
 
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elh0102 said:
IMO, 75 yards is stretching the humane, effective range of a standard power .22 air rifle. If you shoot a few groups at that range, I expect you might find that they are considerably larger than the lethal area of a squirrel. But, perhaps I am influenced by my own lousy shooting!
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This would be a max. Most will be 5 or heck 25 and under 95 percent of the time.
 
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HMMM ? no one has mentioned cost and availability ? why spend for .25 or .30 projectile and air ? for pesting . AND what about pass through where is that projectile going after the pest and if you miss where is it going or what is it putting holes in ?
the next question is IF your getting rid of pests , why not bait them in to say 10 or 20 yards ?
 
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beerthief said:
HMMM ? no one has mentioned cost and availability ? why spend for .25 or .30 projectile and air ? for pesting . AND what about pass through where is that projectile going after the pest and if you miss where is it going or what is it putting holes in ?
the next question is IF your getting rid of pests , why not bait them in to say 10 or 20 yards ?
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If you read title this is mostly used for deer hunting times. I just say pesting. Feeders are at 30 yards normally.
 
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I shoot very similar ranges and also in a suburban backyard. You have to be very careful with slugs since they carry their energy much further downrange. Because of that I prefer pellets in my backyard and will never shoot slugs at any flat or upward angle. I have taken a few pests with slugs when shooting down from an elevated position where I was confident the slug would go into the ground quickly if I missed.

I was using a 22 caliber Maverick with a 600mm barrel. That combo took out MANY critters including a couple very large racoons at 35yds. I ended up picking up a 25 caliber barrel kit, also in 600mm, to gain some knock down power for the big coons. I had one get away after taking a headshot from the 22. I'm sure shot placement wasn't perfect otherwise he would have dropped immediately, but that's why I upgraded to the 25 to give me a little more room for error.

At the end of the day your current setup has what it takes for your conditions, but a 25 would certainly give you more of an advantage. But with that comes greater responsibility about pass-through, higher ammo cost, and more air consumption. Me personally, I love the extra smack the 25 caliber gives me.
 
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elh0102 said:
IMO, 75 yards is stretching the humane, effective range of a standard power .22 air rifle. If you shoot a few groups at that range, I expect you might find that they are considerably larger than the lethal area of a squirrel. But, perhaps I am influenced by my own lousy shooting!
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My fx crown mk1 will shoot roughly 1/2 moa at 100 using 36gr . 218 slugs at 65fpe. That is smaller than the size of a squirrels brain. However, flight time and trajectory/drift must be accounted for and does leave some room for the critter to move between shot fired and impact. I prefer to hunt 50 yards and closer if at all possible. But if a squirrel is posted up on a branch, not moving, I've taken them MUCH further out. I also prefer lighter, expanding slugs at higher speeds and a shorter barrel. (500mm instead of 700mm). But a harder alloy non expanding projectile would be my choice for coons.
 
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Long_Gun_Dallas said:
My fx crown mk1 will shoot roughly 1/2 moa at 100 using 36gr . 218 slugs at 65fpe. That is smaller than the size of a squirrels brain. However, flight time and trajectory/drift must be accounted for and does leave some room for the critter to move between shot fired and impact. I prefer to hunt 50 yards and closer if at all possible. But if a squirrel is posted up on a branch, not moving, I've taken them MUCH further out. I also prefer lighter, expanding slugs at higher speeds and a shorter barrel. (500mm instead of 700mm). But a harder alloy non expanding projectile would be my choice for coons.
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Like I said a coon here and there if at all. That’s not no where near as common while at or in a blind as squirrels. Most will all be under 50 if not mostly under 25 a majority of the time. Heck the m3 with outshoot my ability as a marksman any day of the week lol.
 
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