Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Hog gun

50 yards and under?...get a Marlin 336 or Winchester '94 in the plain old 30-30 cartridge.If your not up to snuff with the iron sights mount a low power variable scope,1.75-5 , or a 4X or even a 2.5X.With 5 or six rounds at the ready and the quickness of a lever action you shouldn't have many get away.The Eldorado StarFire ammo in 30-30 would be a good one to try. YoungHunter's suggestion of the 35 Rem is a good one. I have that same rifle...but no hogs around here,..unless you count the pink ones.

Help me out here, 45/70 shooters. Shooting flushed pigs in the woods, are you really going to be able to get the recoil back under control for the second shot with that much powder? No denial of the killing power. But GA had concerns about the .308's recoil.
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<br>I think the .308 recoil in the Model 7 Remmie is worse than the .270 recoil in the Browning Stainless Stalker (still not bad, considering...)
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<br>The Ruger semi auto in .44 with a good peep seems like a natural here.
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<br>Curious -- I haven't shot the Guide Gun, but I'm glad for Marlin's sake that they are so popular. Haven't shot hogs either, but I would much like to see one that could take a .44 round and live at 50ish yards. And I'm willing to help eliminate all hogs that can be had with the .270, .223, 12 bore, and .50 cal Black Powder rifle. Oh yeah, and bow and arrow. I'll buy gas and food.
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<br>Jeff

Best hog gun I've ever found was a Winchester 94 in 30-30.
<br>For shots under fifty yards this is a perfect gun/cartridge. It will handle piggies at longer ranges too. You don't need massive firepower nor high tech to smack a few pigs.

I think a Mauser 98 would fit the bill. Just add a peep sight or ghost ring and you'd be set. Since you want something with a clip, just buy a few stripper clips and go for it. You'd only be out a few hundred and could easily comstomize to fit your needs.

Here's the latest, I went back to the gun store yesterday and looked at Browning BAR's, one Safari with a steel receiver in 308 and a lightweight with an alloy receiver in 30-06. The 30-06 handled like a much smaller caliber gun (it was light with a shorter barrel), but I can imagine it would kick pretty good. Both are pretty long though. I have a drop basket on the 4-wheeler and like to put my guns in it, but both BAR's would stick out a little. Anyway looked at the deerfield again, it felt good too. Couldn't make up my mind told them I'd be back.
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<br>Today I went to check a little dove field I planted and out in the middle were 3 big hogs, the biggest I think I've ever seen wild. The biggest gun I had was a Mini-14 with a 1-4 scope. I got out of the truck and leaned against a tree and let one rip, the hog starts running toward the woods, then I fire 3 more times at one trotting across the field, Nothing! I don't know if I can't shoot worth a flip or what. It didn't look that far to where the hogs were, but I decided to measure it. 135 yards to where the closest one was. So much for "close" shots. Anyhow sounds like a good excuse to get 2 guns!, one for "close" and one for "far".

You should be able to hit a pig at 135 yards with the mini 14. Try setting up a 100 yard target and seeing what kind of accuracy you get. Shoot over sand bags, resting the stock not the barrel on sand bags. If you can keep the rounds inside 4" then you should be able to hit a pig at 135 yards.
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<br>If your gun is not accurate enough then check out your scope and mounting system first.
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<br>If the the gun is sufficiently accurate then you should take a look at your shooting. How are you holding the gun ? Are you resting the gun on a hard surface ? Are you taking up the most steady position you can ?
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<br>Consider getting a more accurate bolt action. The Savage 10FP with a 20" barrel in 308, Remingtons LTR in 308 with a 20" barrel, or the new ruger compact with 16.5" barrel in 308 would all be great choices. I would put your 1.5-6 power leupold on this gun. Put a reddot on your mini-14.

I have shot at browning BAR in 30-06, they are very soft shooting compared to a bolt gun. I'd go for that one. Accurate to boot. Found that 165 gr BT are very accurate in mine.

You owe it to the animals to stop wounding them until you can figure out what the problem is. If you're taking body shots with a 223,you're in for a long disappointing ride.
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<br>Get a BAR 308 or 30-06,put a good low power scope on it and practice,practice,practice. The BAR's soak up a good bit of recoil,if that's the deciding factor.
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<br>I have taken several hogs and while they don't require a big belted mag to hammer them, they are tough enough that you don't want to body shoot them with a varmint caliber. If you insist on using a 223,I would only take head or neck shots and that requires very precise shot placement.
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<br>Not trying to offend but hate to see you wounding every hog you see.......

Chehea, not offense taken. I'm pretty sure I didn't hit the "body". The hog was broadside and I was aiming for the head. The next hog was trotting and I was aiming for the snout. Honestly I think the inherent inaccuracy of the mini-14 with a heavy trigger pull and lots and lots of creep combined with my abilities (inability) resulted in a clean miss. I have a custom 10/22 with a Volquartsen barrel and trigger group (3lb trigger) and a 4-12 scope and these shots would have been a piece of cake for it. I do like the idea of using a bigger gun. I'm going back to check out the BAR. If it has a decent trigger, I'll buy it. I've found for me personally the trigger is the limiting factor for accuracy. I have several pistols, some are very accurate and some I can't hit the proverbial barn. I bought a trigger guage and not surprisingly the gun I shoot the best (ie S&W 41) has a 2lb trigger and the gun I shoot the worst (Browning Hi Power) has an 8lb trigger.

Some hogs take a lot of killin'. I've killed as high as 5 out of a bunch at night with a spotlight. In daylight- around here - getting one killed plumb dead is about par. Here are some rifles I've tried on hogs and no longer own: Model 742 in 30 06 [ It's what I killed the 5 with,but I put 4 180 gr in the shoulder of a big hog one night and he still made it 80 or so yards to the brush and got away] mini 14 in 223[ never found ANYTHING it was good for]77 ruger in 220 Swift [ head shots on sideways hogs work better in theory than in practice].
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<br>I've killed 'em with 22 mag and 41 mag handguns. Now I use a 1895 marlin in 45 70 and a Ruger No.1 in 416 Rigby. A ruger no.1 is the handiest pickup rifle I've ever found.With a decelerator pad,recoil from " pickup position" is not bad provided you have your elbow on the outside of the steering wheel and I'm speaking of the Rigby with full power 400 gr handloads. In 45 70 or 375 H and H,it should be a piece of cake.
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<br>An exta round or two in the ashtray makes for plenty quick reloading. With the big bullets,you can take body shots on a running hog,knowing you will make a humane,if not instant kill. I trailed a gut shot big sow I shot running with my 338 Ultra for over a half mile. Same size hog gut shot with a 350 gr 45 70 has never made it out of sight.
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<br>You can figger out my opinion on the subject if you are so inclined,these are just my experiences and I'm sweaty from an unsucessful hog hunt as I write. If I had known when I left the house that I wouldn't find a hog,that Ruger Single Six would have been the perfect hog gun today!Much lighter than the Rigby.

GA_Hunter,
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<br>Not sure what part of Ga you're in but there is an old gunsmith in the Anniston,Al area that will hone down the BAR trigger to around 3 lbs or so. I had him do that to a couple of BAR's that I used to own. That and have him install a decelerator pad to your required length of pull and you will have a very comfortable shooting gun, good luck....

Gene, I'm not sure I'm ready for a gun quite that big yet. Let me work up to it in stages. To be honest, I'm not sure how big a deal the recoil is. I have unpleasant memories of being 16 years old laying prone in the back of a pickup in the middle of summer trying to sight in a Winchester 30-30. That was 27 years ago. I haven't shot anything bigger than a 243 since then. I've shot plenty of 3 inch magnums in 12 gauge though.
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<br>Cheaha, I may have to take you up on the gunsmith. I looked at a new BAR tonight and the trigger was just awful. I think it was worse than my mini-14. Major disappointment! I had convinced myself to get one, but trigger had alot a creep and was very heavy. For comparison, I looked at a Ruger 77 MarkII (that I understand is not known for a good trigger) and the difference was unbelievable (as in much better).

go here, http://www.teppojutsu.com/prod01.htm the 458 socom works great for black bear! the round in awesome in an AR!
<br>RR

Chechea, GA Hunter-
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<br>any chance we could plan a weekend of hog hunting?

From what I have heard, it seems as though the Deerfield may be best for you. It is not as powerful as a 308, but at short ranges, even as long as 100yds, I am pretty sure that you would not notice much of a difference. Then again, ammo would be a big difference. Which reminds me, a Deerfield will pretty much take any 44 mag ammo that you can stick into it. The action is extremely strong, but the chamber is not long enough for the really heavy stuff.
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<br>That said, I would still go with a Guide Gun. If you are worried about safety, then keep the hammer down, or better yet, work the lever when you are ready to shoot. A 45-70 really gives you alot of flexibility. Lighter factory loads will drop a hog without knocking you out!
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<br>Good Luck

I like the guide gun in .45-70 idea too, but the only rifle I've ever dropped a boar with was a .444 Marlin. Didn't have a problem doing it either. They drop fast, and you can keep the chamber empty till you're ready to fire, and that's pretty darn safe. I used Buffalo Boar 300 grain JSPs. Turns them into breakfast sausage with one solid hit.

I'm still debating the "perfect" hog gun, haven't been able to decide what to buy yet. I did however put up a ladder deer stand on the edge of the field where I have been seeing the hogs on Saturday. Yesterday afternoon (Tuesday) I went to see what I could find. I parked the truck a couple hundred yards from the field. I grabbed my mini-14 ranch with a 1x4 scope and started walking to the stand. I caught some movement to my left and a big black hog (boar?) ran across the road right in front of me. Would have given anything to have the Deerfield that I looked at with iron sights, didn't shoot though.
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<br>Got to the stand and there was a sow with about a half dozen pigs less than a foot high about 130 yards away. I didn't feel comfortable the mini-14 that far and watched them for about 15-20 minutes. Then the sow put it's nose in the air and ran off with the pigs following.
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<br>Next a big black boar comes trotting out in the field about 150 yards away. He sticks his nose up and runs off. (I never knew I smelled so bad!). Next 10 hogs about 2 feet tall at the back (all the same size) start slowly walking across the field about 130-150 yards away. Now I'm wishing I had an accurate bolt action with something to rest the gun on. I watch the hogs for at least 30 minutes while I'm reading a "Cheaper than Dirt" catalog. Several times I put the scope on them, but just didn't feel comfortable taking the shot.
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<br>Now this group is about 100 yards away getting real close to what I think I can hit and then at the far end of the field, 200+ yards more movement. 6 more hogs come out in the field, now I've got 16 medium size hogs in mowing the middle of my dove field!
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<br>I put the scope on one then the next waiting for them to come a little closer. Now to my right in the woods I catch a glimpse of movement. 8-10 more hogs are working their way through some oak trees toward the field. I ease the mini-14 around waiting for them to break into the open. Two walk in the field about the same time. I fire once at the first one, 15 yard head shot, his lights go off, then I catch the next one in the shoulder, his lights go out. Then all heck breaks loose and I'm watching hogs run everywhere, then its all over.
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<br>So now its obvious, I need 3 guns (4 counting a pistol for backup)! One bolt action for the "long" shots, one semi-auto for the close multiple shots and a carbine for quick running shot with a red dot or iron sights.
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<br>In any event, I'm thinking of sticking with a 223 to shoot from my stand and just picking my shots. I'd really like something better than the mini-14. Maybe a nice bolt action? or an AR-15 with a scope? Oh well, I'll keep looking.

You obviously need some help, when should my son, grandson and I come up? We will bring real guns.LOL

Any short-barreled repeater that can be scoped and will take pointed bullets would do nicely. A Savage 99 in 300 Savage or 308, or a BLR in 308 leap to mind, as do any Remington pump or auto... (The Steyr Scout rifle is excellent, but I prefer a stronger scope.) I would not pick a carbine that shoots a pistol cartridge, as they lack the reach to get much past 100 yards.
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<br>My first choice is a bolt action carbine, but you have to practice to get really fast with one. I grew up shooting the National Match course, and watching master bolt gun guys hold their own in rapid fire at 300 yards against guys with M-1, M-14 and M-16 rifles. It's not that hard.
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<br>Most people work the bolt in four moves: up, back, forward and down. They also take the rifle down from their shoulder to do it. This is wrong, wrong, wrong. Instead, leave the rifle on your shoulder and work the bolt in two moves: upandback, forwardanddown. (If this doesn't make sense, go to a High Power match in your area and get someone to show you how to do it.) Also make sure to work the bolt hard, so the empty is thrown well clear of the rifle. Bolt guns are made for this, so don't worry about hurting the rifle.
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<br>Several other things can help you.
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<br>1. A stock that fits. It's easier to be fast with a stock that fits correctly, or is a little too short. If you have to strain to reach the bolt handle when you look through the sights, have the stock cut down. The compact rifles built for women and kids are just about perfect for me, but I'm stubby and barrel-chested. Also, a rubber recoil pad helps the butt stay on your shoulder while you work the bolt.
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<br>2. A slick action. If you don't know what one feels like, check out one of the UNREFURBISHED Czech M-24 Mausers that sell for under $100. They are just about perfect because their actions have been opened and closed a million times and the bolts are perfectly mated to the receivers. Of course, proper lube is key as well.
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<br>3. A shooting sling. This is very easy to use from a stand, it increases your range by about 30%, and it's easier to work the bolt quickly with the rifle locked into your shoulder.
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<br>Either way, get yourself a short-barreled rifle in a major caliber with a good sling, a crisp trigger and a low-powered scope. Your hog-slaying troubles will be over very quickly. Hope this helps, Okie John.

Well, I just ordered a gun a few minutes ago, hopefully it will be here tomorrow. Bushmaster Varminter .223 with a Leupold illuminated reticle scope. Then its, practice, practice, practice, head shots only! The way I look at it, I just "saved" money by buying one gun to do the work of 2 (long range & semi-auto). LOL, lets hope I can convince the wife!