Solids or Hollow Points?

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4onaside

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My son has started squirrel hunting with a rifle this season with some success. He has a Model 60 Marlin that my buddy gave him. We both think that shorts would be fine for squirrels, but this rifle says long rifle only, so I suppose he will continue to use LR. He is using hollow points, which do some pretty serious damage. Question: Does anyone use solids, which obviously should not destroy as much meat?
 
I shoot solids, remington subsonic .22lr for squirrels through a suppressed 10/22 rifle with a scope. I don't take questionable shots, and I don't lose squirrels that have been shot.
Solids have worked fine for me.
 
I've been hunting squirrels with a .22 for nearly 50 years. Quick or questionalble shots should not be taken. An ethical hunter will kill quickly and humanely. A well placed shot with a .22 long rifle round will kill just as quickly as a shot from a .22 hollow point, and produce less damage to the edible portions of the animal. If your son enjoys the sport of squirrel hunting with a .22, talk him into taking head shots only. If he is a good marksman and hunter, he'll bag all the squirrels he wants and have a great time doing it. I think we owe it to the game to do everything we can to ensure every shot is a killing shot. If you're not confident the shot is a certain kill, pass it up. If you any kind of a woodsman, you'll get better opportunity to take a shot very soon.
 
My Remington subsonics are hollow points. I have used hps pretty much exclusively as they work much better on body or chest shots if I choose to take one. But if you take headshots only the solids work fine of course. PH
 
Hickory Nut said:
I've been hunting squirrels with a .22 for nearly 50 years. Quick or questionalble shots should not be taken. An ethical hunter will kill quickly and humanely. A well placed shot with a .22 long rifle round will kill just as quickly as a shot from a .22 hollow point, and produce less damage to the edible portions of the animal. If your son enjoys the sport of squirrel hunting with a .22, talk him into taking head shots only. If he is a good marksman and hunter, he'll bag all the squirrels he wants and have a great time doing it. I think we owe it to the game to do everything we can to ensure every shot is a killing shot. If you're not confident the shot is a certain kill, pass it up. If you any kind of a woodsman, you'll get better opportunity to take a shot very soon.
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My son is a seasoned hunter and marksman,age 36, and has switched from the shotgun to the rifle this season for the obvious reasons of sport, etc. He generally passes up high risk shots on moving animals, etc. But we were just pondering how effective the solids would be in lieu of hps, as the latter did some serious damage to some of his kills thus far this season. I might add, not damage that destroyed the meat, as many of his shots have been head shots. IMO none of little bullets has the potential that a full choke load of #6s does in the meat destruction area when the target is too close!
 
If numbers are important go with hps. I know, iknow on a head shot it doesn't matter but chances are with this much foliage, you are not going to get 10 headshots every morning and if u are gonna get a limit you will have to take some body shots and hollow points will definitely increase your recovery percentage.
 
4onaside said:
Hickory Nut said:
I've been hunting squirrels with a .22 for nearly 50 years. Quick or questionalble shots should not be taken. An ethical hunter will kill quickly and humanely. A well placed shot with a .22 long rifle round will kill just as quickly as a shot from a .22 hollow point, and produce less damage to the edible portions of the animal. If your son enjoys the sport of squirrel hunting with a .22, talk him into taking head shots only. If he is a good marksman and hunter, he'll bag all the squirrels he wants and have a great time doing it. I think we owe it to the game to do everything we can to ensure every shot is a killing shot. If you're not confident the shot is a certain kill, pass it up. If you any kind of a woodsman, you'll get better opportunity to take a shot very soon.
Click to expand...
My son is a seasoned hunter and marksman,age 36, and has switched from the shotgun to the rifle this season for the obvious reasons of sport, etc. He generally passes up high risk shots on moving animals, etc. But we were just pondering how effective the solids would be in lieu of hps, as the latter did some serious damage to some of his kills thus far this season. I might add, not damage that destroyed the meat, as many of his shots have been head shots. IMO none of little bullets has the potential that a full choke load of #6s does in the meat destruction area when the target is too close!
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I guarantee early season squirrel hunting with a 22 has humbled many a seasoned hunter and marksman. I have seen it many times.
 
Thanks for the input,guys. I suppose that its the universal deal, which is best Chevys or Fords? Your answer to that depends on which one you drive. I'm sure we will continue to use Long Rifles(our auto loaders specify that), even though I knew an old timer who killed them regularly with a single shot with open sights, using shorts. He normally shot them behind the shoulder just like deer hunting(bigger target). He also held extra bullets between the tops of his fingers of his left hand for speed in reloading. lol Even though ammo is very cheap relative to the big bore stuff that we buy,and most everything else, we will probably continue to use hps, certainly for a while, because that's what we have on hand.
 
Redblood, You're right about the early season humbling hunters. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to get a shot on a single squirrel and he keeps out-maneuvering me. Sometimes I think they're just toying with me. Probably two or three up in that tree laughing the little squirrel butts of about how stupid that human on the ground is.
 
I shoot CCI SGBs(small game bullet) They are a flat point solid, and have put every squirrel I have shot with it down in a hurry. Thay shoot well too.
 
I think it comes down to how percentages. For guys who go once or twice a yr and kill a half dozen squirrels a season, their numbers will probably not be much or any different using solids vs hps. You will start to notice a difference when you harvest totals begin to stack up, day after day in the woods. I love solids and have to admit they typically shoot a little better. But have noticed squirrels can move just a bit on shoulder shots once they hit the ground and in thick understory, a little is all it takes for those squirrels to become unrecoverable
 
i dont do shoulder shots on deer or squirrels :) ,shooting them with a 22 is like shooting a deer with a baseball sizewise & it dosent take a balistic tip or hollow point to kill either,now they are tough & no matter what round you use you will lose a certain amount depending on how you hunt & if your after #s,when you have a limited time to hunt a rushed shot at a squirrel that has been alerted is a lot bigger chance of a miss or a lpk shot.lots of fun & i have been shooting them since the late 60's,been all rimfire for the last 35,mike243
 
mike243 said:
i dont do shoulder shots on deer or squirrels :) ,shooting them with a 22 is like shooting a deer with a baseball sizewise & it dosent take a balistic tip or hollow point to kill either,now they are tough & no matter what round you use you will lose a certain amount depending on how you hunt & if your after #s,when you have a limited time to hunt a rushed shot at a squirrel that has been alerted is a lot bigger chance of a miss or a lpk shot.lots of fun & i have been shooting them since the late 60's,been all rimfire for the last 35,mike243
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i certainly wouldnt consider a 22lr overkill on squirrels, especially fox squirrels which make up a respectable percentage of my kills
 
i never said a 22 was over kill,only that hollow points & ballistic tips from 22's were not needed,kinda likea 243 vs 3006 ,both will get the job done 1 just has more thump :) ,your a lucky fellar to have a good supply of fox squirrels,i may see 1-2 here in 1 season,i have hunted with a bunch of guys from rimfirecentral up in Ill several times & they have a good supply of them up there,hope to make it back next year if every thing works out,mike243
 
Dodgeball said:
Never shoot a squirrel in the head the brain is the best eating for sure.
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Interesting. I wonder how many eat the brain nowadays? My dad and his buddies ate the brains, but they obviously were a generation ahead of me, and I'm an old man. I have always discarded the head. Some of these old timers also ate the jaw muscles.
 
twra has put a statement out to not eat the brains,best to hold off this season till they do a bunch of tests & see if the madcow disease in our wildlife allready,mike243
 
I like short hps. The old guy I hunt with also shoots shorts, and has over 150 so far, of course he hunts every day. Not only does he save all heads, he also keeps every liver. He shoots a model 61 Winchester pump, with a Leupold scope, and he's as good as I've ever seen. He bought that gun when he was in his early twentys, and now he's in his mid seventys.
 
Don't eat the brains. I've read there are some serious warnings about a virus found in squirrel brains, siimilar to Mad Cow. Reports of deaths in Kentucky, suspected cause is eating squirrel brains. TWRA has been collecting squirrel heads to see if the virus is in Tennessee. Squirrel brain may taste good (I wouldn't know), but I'd wait until the evidence is all in before I eat them.
 
Yep solid balls are great for squirrels, especially hunting with tree dogs, dont do so much damage! Now if im still hunting and head shooting them, hollow points are fine.
 
Exactly what I use. Most accurate bullet I have shot out of my Henry .22. Also don't lose a lot of squirrels.
 

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