# 17. cal Any use to squirrel hunt i need help



## zzz22zzz (Nov 20, 2008)

*Okay I bought a savage 17 cal brand new I bought a brand new scope sighted it in deadly accurate at 100 yards but I took it yesterday with some higher grain bullets and they were dropping like 2 inchs at 50 yards I was hitting tree branches instead of squirrels so I shot the gun at a target at 100 yards they were dropping like 3 inchs while the lighter grain was dead on any advice on what to use to hunt squirrels *


----------



## bradym54 (Oct 8, 2008)

use lighter grain it should kill them easily


----------



## Thunderhead (Feb 2, 2002)

Uhhhhh, hello? 100 yards for squirrels ? 
How about sighting it in at 25 - 30 yards.


----------



## Sandwich (Nov 25, 2008)

Thunderhead said:


> Uhhhhh, hello? 100 yards for squirrels ?
> How about sighting it in at 25 - 30 yards.


 
I'm thinking he might be hunting the California Redwoods for squirrels....I've lived in California and sure enough there was a squirrel  in every tree and on every block...:cwm27:


----------



## steeliehunter (Mar 3, 2008)

Thunderhead said:


> Uhhhhh, hello? 100 yards for squirrels ?
> How about sighting it in at 25 - 30 yards.


 

i got a 17 i use for squirrels 100 yard shots are easy you can shoot you limit of squirrels from sitting in one spot the hard part is remember where they all are.

but they are a little over kill if you dont hit them in the head theres really nothing left and i had the same problem i switched to the heavier 20gr. bullet for shooting ***** and yote but they do drop alot compared to the 17gr. bullets.


----------



## oaks (Feb 10, 2002)

Why would you sight in with one load, then go hunting with another? Kinda defeats the purpose of sighting in, don't ya think?


----------



## steeliehunter (Mar 3, 2008)

oaks said:


> Why would you sight in with one load, then go hunting with another? Kinda defeats the purpose of sighting in, don't ya think?


 
i bought the heavier bullet after it was sighted in for the other ones because i wanted to see if they worked better on yotes than the lighter ones but i did sight it in for the heavier bullets and thats what i use now.


----------



## LyonArmonial (Nov 17, 2008)

umm.....yeah....trees in these parts dont normally go over 50yds. so why bother sighting it in for 100? you planing on shooting a squirrel at the other side of a football field?


----------



## rnradventure (Sep 6, 2008)

I've gone out with my .17 and it is a tad bit hard on the little critters. Never shot the 20gr bullet maybe they won't do as much damage. but as far as 100 yards thats how we hunt for tree rats down hear, sit on a log with a thermo of coffe and a buddy and plink them all day long we shoot alot with in 70 yards but some are out there in the 80 to 100yrd range


----------



## steeliehunter (Mar 3, 2008)

the hornady 20 gr. xtp bullet does just as much damage as the 17gr. v-maxs maybe and alitttle more. the v-maxs blow up on impact and the xtp blow up once its inside and it shreads anything that it goes through.


----------



## ESOX (Nov 20, 2000)

Thunderhead said:


> Uhhhhh, hello? 100 yards for squirrels ?
> How about sighting it in at 25 - 30 yards.


Yep Tom, 100 yards, easy. My bull barreled Ruger 77/17 with Hornady ballistic tips sighted in at 150 will tag them every time. I set up my portable bench on one side of an old clear cut, and watch the oaks on the other side. You can cover a lot of trees at once. For a challenge we shoot at dimes hanging from mono fishing line at 150. .17 HMR is a superb round. After 165 they drop off pretty quickly.


----------



## wartfroggy (Jan 25, 2007)

I've got a marlin .17 and knock em down at 100 yds all the time. 17 grain is all I have shot out of it. And as was stated above, they do rip them apart pretty hard, try for head shots. I like to dial the 3x9 in on their cute little noggin and squeeze one off. Not sure why so many people seem to have "issues" with shooting rats at 100 yards. I usually set up on a ridge, and can shoot anything from the bottom of the valley all the way to the next ridge over.


----------



## cj. (Oct 8, 2005)

Don't use a .17 HMR.. get the mach2 too. Less damage 

My RugerM77 mach 2 is sighted in at 50 yards, drops maybe 1.5" at 100 yards. I've shot plenty of squirrels in the last 4 years at 60-90 yards.

I have a savage .17 mach 2 for sale if anyone is interested


----------



## zzz22zzz (Nov 20, 2008)

ive never seen one under 100 yards 30 to 40 would be a gift


----------



## milmo1 (Nov 9, 2005)

No hijack intended, but, those of you with a Savage bull barrelled 17 hmr, which rounds seem best in your gun. I'm still looking for the best round for mine...


----------



## jjc155 (Oct 16, 2005)

zzz22zzz said:


> *Okay I bought a savage 17 cal brand new I bought a brand new scope sighted it in deadly accurate at 100 yards but I took it yesterday with some higher grain bullets and they were dropping like 2 inchs at 50 yards I was hitting tree branches instead of squirrels so I shot the gun at a target at 100 yards they were dropping like 3 inchs while the lighter grain was dead on any advice on what to use to hunt squirrels *


Are you shooting the same ammo that you sighted in with? If not re-site in with what ever ammo you are gonna hunt with and see what happens. 3grs doesnt seem like much (17gr to 20gr) but at 2300fps etc its gonna matter.

If so there is something wrong with the scope not holding the zero. If you sighted in at 100yards and were on, then shot at 100yards after you had problems and were 3 inches low I am guess the zero moved. As for being low at 50yards with a 100yard sight in that is true (sometimes due to trajectory) but I dont think that it would be 2 inches with a .17hmr, they are very flat shooting to about 150yards.

Also my Savage took about 50 rounds through it before it started to settle down. Also i dont clean my rim fire rifles until they start to show signs of groups opening up (usually about 500rounds) Rim Fires tend to shoot better dirty.



milmo1 said:


> No hijack intended, but, those of you with a Savage bull barrelled 17 hmr, which rounds seem best in your gun. I'm still looking for the best round for mine...


Mine shoots the Hornady 20gr XTP best and most consistent. Alot of people have found that to be true about Savages as well.

J-

ps check out rimfirecentral.com for all kinda of rim fire info, including lots on .17's


----------



## rnradventure (Sep 6, 2008)

This thread kinda gets me fired up for some bushytail plinking, low stress and alot of mess! kinda like woodchuckin in but with out the bugs "be sure to leave some for seed"
I have found after alot of rounds that a hornady ammo seems to work best out of my savage, and I try not to swab the barrel till I start missing my marks. By marks if I aim at the eye and miss after a few in the pouch I'll give her a swab and after about ten shots it's right back on target.....


----------

