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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 94
Campfire Greenhorn
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OP
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 94 |
Have been invited to go rabbit hunting this coming weekend and curious as to what size shot I should use. I haven't hunted rabbit in almost 50 years and that was with a single shot 16 ga. I plan on using a 12 ga pump this weekend but all I have on hand for shells are 2, 4 or 8 shot. I'm leaning towards the 8 shot but might be able to find other shot size if you don't think any of these will do. Thanks for your help.
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 4,858
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 4,858 |
any of them will work...I prefer 6 shot, but if I had 8's I wouldn't hesitate to use them....rabbits are pretty delicate and not hard to kill....
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 4,858
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 4,858 |
ps....hope there are some beagles involved....huntin rabbits over a merry pack of little dogs is one of the most fun things you can do with your clothes on.....
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Joined: May 2004
Posts: 10,877 Likes: 1
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 10,877 Likes: 1 |
I most often use number 6 low brass, but the 8's will work. As said above they roll pretty easily.
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 94
Campfire Greenhorn
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OP
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 94 |
ps....hope there are some beagles involved....huntin rabbits over a merry pack of little dogs is one of the most fun things you can do with your clothes on..... Thanks, I'll give the 8 a try. The fellow that invited me has 4 beagles. They jumped 12 last weekend and manage to shoot 7 (which isn't bad considering the area they hunted).
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Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 8,573
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 8,573 |
I don't hunt rabbits often but I've always used low base #4s. Just a couple of those will put the rabbit down, and "over penitrate" so there's few shot to remove from the body.
Am I wrong?
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 7,374
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 7,374 |
Have used #6 shot most of the time.
"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." Hunter S. Thompson
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 370
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 370 |
I hunt over my hounds, using a 410 or 28 ga.sxs. If, and when I shoot a rabbit, I use #5 early season, and 6`s or 7.5 late season. (less cover to shoot through) I have noticed that the larger shot drives the hair further into the meat, but a sharp little knife will solve the problem. Larger shot is easier to find in the meat also. Nothing like chomping down on a piece of shot.
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 370
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 370 |
I hunt over my hounds, using a 410 or 28 ga.sxs. If, and when I shoot a rabbit, I use #5 early season, and 6`s or 7.5 late season. (less cover to shoot through) I have noticed that the larger shot drives the hair farther into the meat, but a sharp little knife will solve the problem. Larger shot is easier to find in the meat also. Nothing like chomping down on a piece of shot.
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 2,337
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 2,337 |
Just me I head shoot but with a 22 I would ask with a shotgun that they were gutted on retreivel. Simple squiese twords the ribe cage and work to te back using your nee if neseasery on the bucks. Then dress out later but the meat unless bad gut shot should ???
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 2,337
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 2,337 |
#4 I dislike hunting pellits when cleaning.Just me...
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 3,249
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 3,249 |
Hope you had a great day today. Got rained out in NC. I prefer #6 but have shot a few with #8.
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,311 Likes: 23
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,311 Likes: 23 |
Eight shot {and 7.5's} sucks for rabbits unless for some strange reason you like broken teeth and/or the taste of lead shot. Fours or 5's are best if you're flingin' at least an ounce of them from a 12, 16 or 20 gauge gun. If you can't fling an ounce of shot {.410 or 28 gauge users} best switch to 6's to help fill out your patterns. I've shot literally thousands of rabbits from in front of my beagles with various shot sizes over the past 40 odd years and these are my findings.
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Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 17,812 Likes: 3
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 17,812 Likes: 3 |
Haven't shot bunnies in front of a hound for years, but liked 1 1/8 of 4's best...
Molon Labe
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 746
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 746 |
6 is my go to load. I switch to 4s if I am in heavy brush.
If you plan on a 12 gauge, I'd go with low brass and a light load unless you plan on letting them get out there a bit.
The Constitution shall never be construed... to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms.
Samuel Adams
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 94
Campfire Greenhorn
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OP
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 94 |
I sure appreciate all of the advice, but I could have taken a sling shot as we didn't jump a single rabbit all day. One of the dogs took off after a deer or something and it took about 2 hours to find him using his GPS tracker. After that we hunted with one dog as they didn't trust the other two and it never hit on anything. I still enjoyed myself but it would have been nice to have seen a rabbit. Again, thanks for all the help and perhaps I will get to try again next year.
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Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 32,044
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 32,044 |
Have been invited to go rabbit hunting this coming weekend and curious as to what size shot I should use. I haven't hunted rabbit in almost 50 years and that was with a single shot 16 ga. I plan on using a 12 ga pump this weekend but all I have on hand for shells are 2, 4 or 8 shot. I'm leaning towards the 8 shot but might be able to find other shot size if you don't think any of these will do. Thanks for your help. I have hunted rabbits since i was big enough to walk and # 6 is the best i have used.
A Doe walks out of the woods today and says, that is the last time I'm going to do that for Two Bucks.
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Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 4,327
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 4,327 |
I hunt rabbits over beagles and use both #6 and #7.5.
Have not been able to notice any difference.
I just buy the cheapest low brass I can find in that shot size.
No need to over-complicate it. Just go hunting and have fun.
Steve
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Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 32,044
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 32,044 |
20 GA and 1 oz of 6 shot is pure poison on cottontails over Dogs
A Doe walks out of the woods today and says, that is the last time I'm going to do that for Two Bucks.
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,311 Likes: 23
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,311 Likes: 23 |
I always noticed alot of the rabbits I killed with small shot tended to resemble a spaghetti strainer and weren't fit for the table while the ones I shot with 4's or 5's were just as dead with far fewer holes in them.
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