This is my first post here. I am a pretty good Rabbit hunter here in Arizona. I hunt Rabbits in the Desert year round. Here in the desert a lot of hunters stop hunting in the summer,because it is to hot. I hunt in the morning hours while I can still stand it. I love the desert and all it offers. I Dove hunt, Quail hunt ,and smallgame hunt. I am getting into Coyote hunting and loving it. My friend just bought a blind and wants to try it for Coyotes and he bought a new Remington .223 just for smallgame. So it looks like I will have to get out and get me one. I have been looking at .223 and 22-250 cal., but can't make up my mind on witch one to buy. Any feedback would be great. Thanks. Some Bunny pictures.
Don't think you could go wrong with either one. The .223 will be a bit cheaper to shoot and is more than capable of taking all our predators with the exception of a bear. The 22-250 will shoot further and flatter that the .223 but with most calling situations you are going to be shooting 100 yards or less. I have both but it seems like the .223 is the one that always ends up in the truck.
.223 Thanks Chief, It looks like the .223 for me. You said the magic word CHEAPER. :mrgreen: I'm sold on the cal. . Now what manufacture? I have to stay under $1000.00 with a scope and all. Do you have Bi-pod on your Gun? I have shooting sticks and Mono-Pod. Wife just doesn't get it.
Mine is a little Sako Vixen (L461) that my wife bought me about 24 years ago. That guns has more nicks and scratches on it than I do! I don't use shooting sticks or bi-pods for calling. Sometimes the action is just to fast and they don't make for a smooth swing on a running coyote, at least not for me, I'm sure others will disagree. As far as rifles go I would look at the Howa 1500 - CZ - Savage all 3 are reasonably priced and have a good reputation for out of the box accuracy. I would stay away from the heavy barrel guns for predator calling, normally your not going to be shooting a lot in a day of calling and you don't need the extra weight walking from stand to stand. Additionally they don't swing that easy and do have a tendency to be cumbersome. I do own a few "heavies" a Rem 700 in 22-250 and two Savage 10P's one in 22-250 and one in 308 and I do use a Harris Bi-Pod on them, just not for calling situations. As far as a scope goes most of my rifles have Leupold's on them HOWEVER a few years ago I needed a new scope and a friend of mine suggested a Weaver GrandSlam. I bought a 6-20X40 AO with fine crosshairs and a dot reticle with a black matte finish (Model 800476). I now have 3 more GrandSlams on various rifles and as I need to replace a scope or just simply get the urge to have a new scope it is going to be a Weaver GrandSlam. Having said all that please be warned - rifles and scopes are like women - not all are built alike and some are a damn more easy on the eyes and wallet than others but in the long run they all get the job done. :lol:
Rabbits PS. I use a 12ga. for hunting Rabbits by the way. Some old photos I think 2004. Some Dove . Rabbit on ground with Dove My son's first shot guy and first season hunting. 2004 more Back yard
I grew up in Coolidge and grew up hunting small game. One thing we learned was, during the long hot summers, rabbits will lie in the shade of bushes and dont want to leave to conserve energy. We would sneak on them and shoot them with our bows. Then, in the late afternoons, we sat waterholes, and tried our luck on coyotes. One thing that is really cool is, find a waterhole and sit in the shade of the mesquites, (watch for snakes). You will see all kinds of wildlife, and it is really worth dealing with the heat.