Tally to date, chippers and tree rats.

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rhbrink said:
76 for me as of yesterday, it has been really hot, and activity has really slowed down. I use Hades in my .22 and Poly Mags in the .177, something I discovered with the Poly Mags pull the red plastic tip out of the pellet and they expand much better. Works for me your milage may vary! No chippers in my neighborhood.
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I ordered some Hades in this batch, but I have not had any luck with ANY hollow point pellets so far as to accuracy/precision. I have better luck with heavy for caliber domes in .177

Nearly ordered some .177 slugs, but decided that for my relatively short range pesting (with the rare ~75-80 yard exception) pellets are my best choice.

Unless this fall/winter picks up quite a bit, it doesn't look like I will even match your numbers on tree rats this year.

Oh well, that just means I have been VERY successful over the last 4 years on tree rats! ;) (chuckle/grin)

Also, when the leaves fall off the trees I *should* have more "safe shot" opportunities. (fingers crossed)

As for the chippers, although I didn't start until the fall 2 years ago, it is really obvious that I have made a dent.
However, once the young pups start to venture out for their own territory, I might eat those words.:D
 
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I got two more yesterday for a total of 78, it looks like the action is picking up but they are only active very early in the morning. Our weather (Southeast of Kansas City MO) has been nice early in the morning but as soon as the suns gets high in the sky the temps take off and have been getting close to 100 every day. Not much wind and high humidity makes it hard on everything.

I have never tried the Hades is the .177, they shoot good for me in the .22 and .25 and are not a hollow point but they do kind of mash around a bit and seem to give up more energy that a domed pellet. They shoot minute of squirrel head out to 50 yards or so but after that the domes seem to shoot better for me especially out to 100 yards. The BC is poorer than a same weight dome so that probably accounts for so of that.

Keep after them and never give up! We'll win yet!:)
 
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Huncowboy said:
How do you dispose the carcasses?
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There are a few neighborhood cats and sometimes Opossums that take care of them. If a carcass is still there after a day/night, I bag it up in plastic grocery bags (at least 3) and spray each one, including the rat with a mixture of water and bleach to keep the stench down and slow the decomposition. Then it is thrown into the garbage can the night before they pick up the garbage which is usually about daylight.

I don't eat rats, tree or otherwise. I have eaten them and may eat them again if the SHTF and I have to.

But for now, they are only pests and I don't HAVE to eat them to survive. ;)(y)
 
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rhbrink said:
I eat squirrel a couple of times a month the rest go into a grocery sack and into the freezer until trash day and away they go.
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Nothing wrong with that! I simply don't care to eat tree rats unless my survival depends on it and the way things are going that time may come sooner than many people think...
 
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rhbrink said:
I got two more yesterday for a total of 78, it looks like the action is picking up but they are only active very early in the morning. Our weather (Southeast of Kansas City MO) has been nice early in the morning but as soon as the suns gets high in the sky the temps take off and have been getting close to 100 every day. Not much wind and high humidity makes it hard on everything.

I have never tried the Hades is the .177, they shoot good for me in the .22 and .25 and are not a hollow point but they do kind of mash around a bit and seem to give up more energy that a domed pellet. They shoot minute of squirrel head out to 50 yards or so but after that the domes seem to shoot better for me especially out to 100 yards. The BC is poorer than a same weight dome so that probably accounts for so of that.

Keep after them and never give up! We'll win yet!:)
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Yes, the Hades IS a hollow point. A fancy styled hollow point, but still a hollow point.

I have never had to really *search* for the *magic pellet* as the CPUM pellets have done so well for me in several guns. However, now (of course, after the pellet prices have gone up wildly) I am going to do what I should have done a long time ago. ($igh)

For me, if I can't get at least 1 MOA from 25-50 yards, then it isn't a good pesting pellet. I'd rather shoot domes that have 1 MOA or less than shoot hollow points (Hades included) that have less than that accuracy/precision. In .177 especially, accuracy/precision is the MOST important factor in pellet choice. Expansion of any HP pellet is of no concern if you can't hit your target with precision.

Shot placement is everything. Location, Location, Location! ;)
 
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Finally got one more chipper on Friday. It was at my neighbor's a/c unit and only exposed its head. So I took the head shot. I thought it was a good kill, but after I took the gun back inside and went over to collect the dead body, it was gone. There was a hole (entrance/exit) to its burrow within a just a few inches from where I shot it. Another hole to the same burrow was about 3 feet away.

The shot was about 10 yards using the Fortitude in my sig.

Anyway, I have no doubt that it expired inside the borrow, simply based on the swarm of flies that appeared around the hole Saturday.

Yes, I am counting this one as a kill. That makes 30 chippers and 68 tree rats. Still WAY less than I have been averaging for the last few years.

I did take pics, but they only show the blood it left and the entrances/exits to the borrow.
 
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Flintsack said:
I was overrun last year mid to late summer. It’s OK to miss one hatch, but if they get through two breeding cycles it’s a problem.

The squirrels still believe that this is haunted land. I literally never see one. And one winter I shot about 40.

Mike
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This summer has been hotter and more humid than any since I bought this house nearly 5 years ago. I *think* that may have something to do with it along with my own efforts at pest control.

I know when a tree rat comes on my property that has never been here before. It doesn't run away when I open the sniper window! (grin)

Anyway, I expect this fall to get more active on the tree rats and I will have more safe shots after the leave fall, but I am not sure about the chippers. All I know is that I really want some targets and as you know, I don't like shooting paper except when necessary for tuning. ;)
 
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Just a reminder for ME about pellets I have tested (see link below) in the DAR Gen2 .177. I tried all of these in the Fortitude as well and found that the CPUMs still work best in that gun.

The FX/JSBs seem to be closing in on 1 MOA. I forgot that I haven't shot very many pellets (less that 200 for sure when I started this testing) through the DAR, so it may still be getting "seasoned". (fingers crossed) The regulator seems to have settled in at a very consistent 850fps with 10.3 pellets.

I WAS going to try and adjust the regulator and HS to make the DAR shoot well at 750fps (same ballistics for holdover, etc), like the Fortitude. But, I gave up on that idea. I don't like to tear a gun apart to adjust the regulator. I don't like to "tinker". I don't mind "tuning", but only within the range the gun is designed for. (yep, I am a wuss when it comes to that...chuckle)

The DAR is, IMHO, best used as it comes, with VERY minor adjustments to the HS. It may be a "tinkerer's" dream, but not mine.

Airguns are tools for me. I like them to be more like a hammer. Simple, yet accurate/precise in the right hands. So I have opted to leave the DAR Gen2 .177 as it came. I just wish I hadn't waited nearly a year (the warranty period) before I picked it back up and started seriously finding out if I could attain 1 MOA with it... with ANY pellet.

What did you shoot today?

97° F loaded the mag. 10 shots at 30 yards, seven pumps each. Off hand. The first three in center. Next one close. Then I went to S#@&. must of been the heat. or probably the shooter Xisico B5-10 .177 multi pump pneumatic 7 pumps maximum 10 pellet feed system Slide safety Hooded front sight...
www.airgunnation.com www.airgunnation.com
 
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Kerry,

I just found this thread of yours.

My respect and applause: 👏🏼👏🏼

You are doing everyone a favor:
• Your neighbors (their attics...)
• The pellet manufacturers
• Your airgunning buddies on the forums (we get to enjoy your reports)
• Yourself (your attic, and your entertainment).
😊



I have similar problems with my own pest animals (pigeons). This year is the worst, they seem to know exactly WHERE lead poisening is awaiting them — and simply avoid those spots.

When a new batch of freshly hatched pigeons arrives, they act as dumb as their gargling sounds — but just for a few weeks.
Then they're all dead (by pellets, feral cats, and falcons) — or they wised up and roost elsewhere.


Keep up the good work. 😊

Matthias
 
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JungleShooter said:
Kerry,

I just found this thread of yours.

My respect and applause: 👏🏼👏🏼

You are doing everyone a favor:
• Your neighbors (their attics...)
• The pellet manufacturers
• Your airgunning buddies on the forums (we get to enjoy your reports)
• Yourself (your attic, and your entertainment).
😊



I have similar problems with my own pest animals (pigeons). This year is the worst, they seem to know exactly WHERE lead poisening is awaiting them — and simply avoid those spots.

When a new batch of freshly hatched pigeons arrives, they act as dumb as their gargling sounds — but just for a few weeks.
Then they're all dead (by pellets, feral cats, and falcons) — or they wised up and roost elsewhere.


Keep up the good work. 😊

Matthias
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Many thanks Matthias!

Now, if you and I could only figure out how to make a living at it without screwing anyone. (chuckle)

I am getting antsy because I have not only not had a "safe shot", but I haven't SEEN any pests in quite a while. (heavy sigh)

Now I know what it means to be successful and not be able to enjoy it... (chuckle)

Thanks again!

Kerry
 
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BackStop said:
I am getting antsy because I have not only not had a "safe shot", but I haven't SEEN any pests in quite a while. (heavy sigh)

Now I know what it means to be successful and not be able to enjoy it... (chuckle)
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Same here with pests only visible in unshootable places....

And the curse of success — it's grown in my own life so much as to become a real problem....


I report on this sad but rather widespread condition here... — with some pointers toward a solution (thanks to my psychiatrist).

😳 The CURSE of Success: Are you a victim?

🔷 The CURSE of Success: Are you a victim? 🔷 ⨁ Are you hunting down pest animals to kill them? ⨁ Are you any good at it? Then, you might become one of the victims of success.... 😳 I will briefly describe my depressing descend into the successful pester's abyss: I started out as a lousy...
www.airgunnation.com www.airgunnation.com


Matthias 😉
 
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JungleShooter said:
Same here with pests only visible in unshootable places....

And the curse of success — it's grown in my own life so much as to become a real problem....


I report on this sad but rather widespread condition here... — with some pointers toward a solution (thanks to my psychiatrist).

😳 The CURSE of Success: Are you a victim?

🔷 The CURSE of Success: Are you a victim? 🔷 ⨁ Are you hunting down pest animals to kill them? ⨁ Are you any good at it? Then, you might become one of the victims of success.... 😳 I will briefly describe my depressing descend into the successful pester's abyss: I started out as a lousy...
www.airgunnation.com www.airgunnation.com


Matthias 😉
Click to expand...

LOL! I refuse to see a head shrinker as I believe I am normal or above normal and I am definitely NOT a victim of my success... or am I?

I am just tired of not having shots like I did when I started. Back then, if I had had a quiet gun, I could have killed 8 or more (tree rats) in a day easily. (grin)

However, I started off with a Crosman Fire. What a LOUD, hard to control, inaccurate POS!

I'll leave it there... (smile)

p.s.

If only I was making money based on my success in pesting... and I am not really THAT good! I simply started off with a LOT!!! of targets! (smile)
And I improved with my marksmanship and equipment over time. (grin)
 
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So far, no possible safe shots for August. In fact, I haven't even seen any chippers and the only tree rat I have seen was a young one and seems to be very smart. So, I haven't even had a chance for a shot. (Boo Hoo):cry:

Totals for July were only:

14 tree rats with one "?" That is, I could not verify the kill on that one, but I am confident it is dead. (smile) Never-the-less, I don't count it as kill.

Only 2 chipmunks.

4 years of war on tree rats and 2+ years of war on chippers has made a difference. (smile)
 
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