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  1. #1
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    Default .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    Hi All,

    Have only been a member of this forum for a few weeks, so probably going to make a few enemies, but when reading through one or two of the threads just had to comment.

    The .22 centrefires (22H, 222,223,22-250,220 swift etc) are NOT suitable antelope calibres
    MInimum is 243 by law, it is illegal to hunt with a 22 centrefire.
    Anyone can handle the recoil of a 243 or 270, and if you cant fit a silencer.
    These cartridges wound ALOT, only difference is quote often you think you missed and dont find blood or visible damage to animal after being shot with one.
    I have many times shot blesbuck at the end of the season with 22 holes in them, and they only started to show signs of injury two to three months after being shot.
    Anyway most game ranch owners dont allow head shots or .22's. (for good reason).
    In 12 years of guiding clients, I can count the number of clients who could regularly pull off head shots on one hand. This excludes warthogs, as the head is so damn big, and they are normally shot at under 50m.
    This advice is especailly for Dads who want to buy a .22 for his beginner son, the only hands a 22 should be in is those of an expert.

    Also please use premium grade bullets when hunting, the cost of losing an animal is far greater than the difference in ammo cost.

  2. #2
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    Well I for one agree with you on all you said.

    Culling is a different matter though imo.

  3. #3
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    I'm not a hunter but this makes great sense.

    Prefer for a lot of whinging though about how in some okes (who once saw a rifle in a magazine)"opinion" 22-250 is perfect for Eland and how dare you question him.

  4. #4
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    'Prefer'? Ol' Master Fat Fingers there means 'Prepare' as I'm sure you have figured out by now

    Small, light projectiles moving fast...like most .22 caliber centefrfires, 'can' kill spectacularly as you would know, and in the states we have access to updated 75-77gr bullets that work very well even on hogs up to 500lb...IF placed precisely at close to intermediate ranges.

    Very little of this applies to fair chase hunting anywhere (feral pigs are vermin) and in Africa where bullet selection is more limited, and both game animals and (often) big money are at stake, things are even more critical. I know the .22-250 is an awesome cartridge, but on large game animals...no...just no.

    Khumba has stated the same as your position before on premium bullets and chancing loss of game...just not worth it IMO either, even thought the only animal I ever killed (besides a pidgeon or 300) in SA was a rooibok. Seems to me that one hunts for sport and how enjoyable is it if you leave knowing some poor schmuck of an animal is out there suffering because you tried a trick?

    You, sir, are spot on IMO. I will also throw up a pic that shows how I feel here...

    Suitability.jpg
    Run Fast, Bite Hard!

  5. #5
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    You are a brave man. Prepare for the whipping..

    I prefer big bores, and agree that .22 and to a certain extent, even the holy .243 Win is just too light and too fast for antelope. Unless of course you prefer your meat pre-minced and ready to make wors.

    Culling by a competent shooter, that's another story.

  6. #6

    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    I am nineteen and to date have hunted only with a 220 Swift with 50-55gr projectiles. I have killed more antelope that I care for counting and have wounded only one animal (that I killed with a second shot minutes later).

    Just because you cant place a bullet and squeeze a trigger, doesn't mean anything is wrong with a light caliber rifle. The .22 center fire is adequate for any animal say up to a eland, as long as you have a clear shot of the heart/lungs and or head.

    I would much rather trust a hunter with a light caliber rifle than one with a 303 (Sported????) rifle!

    Patience and shot placement is the key in ANY hunting scenario!

  7. #7
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    Dear Ivan

    Quote Originally Posted by IndianLima View Post
    I am nineteen and to date have hunted only with a 220 Swift with 50-55gr projectiles. I have killed more antelope that I care for counting and have wounded only one animal (that I killed with a second shot minutes later).
    Wow. GFSA will just love your ignorance of the law.

    Quote Originally Posted by IndianLima View Post
    Just because you cant place a bullet and squeeze a trigger, doesn't mean anything is wrong with a light caliber rifle. The .22 center fire is adequate for any animal say up to a eland, as long as you have a clear shot of the heart/lungs and or head.
    Thank the lord that I can decide who hunts on my farm.

    Quote Originally Posted by IndianLima View Post
    I would much rather trust a hunter with a light caliber rifle than one with a 303 (Sported????) rifle!
    Care to explain?.. on second thought, don't bother.




  8. #8

    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    All that I am trying to say is that the 22 center fire calibers are suitable for hunting antelope, although it is against the law. It stays suitable!

    Some of the bigger names in shooting and ballistics, like WDM Bell and PO Ackley would have agreed with me.

    I have seen more animals being wounded with other (larger caliber) rifles, like Sported 303's with Tasco 4x40 scopes and "old army ammo" than with cartridges like the 22-250 and the 223rem?

    ---------- Post added at 14:06 ---------- Previous post was at 14:02 ----------

    "There is scientific evidence that hydrostatic shock can produce remote neural damage and produce incapacitation more quickly than blood loss effects." - Wikipedia.

    Hydrostatic shock - read up on it a bit.

  9. #9
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    Wikipedia the you magazine of the Interweb.

  10. #10
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    Default Re: .22 centre fires NOT an antelope hunting calibre

    This is an amusing thread! Someone even said the 243 was too light!!! I ask you with tears in my eyes! The 222 was used for decades to hunt countless Springbuck - why is it suddenly now too light. Are the Springbuck tougher nowadays? No .... we are just mediocre to poor shots! Come on chaps - surely you do not believe the gumpf you are spouting? I agree that many clients hurt animals with 22 centerfires but perhaps we must look at who these folk are and how competent they are before we make bold statements about the 22 centerfires being too light. The 5.56 is the cal adopted for killing humans by our defence force but you are telling me it is too light for Springbuck sized game - makes no sense to me!
    Sorry - as much as I respect many of the things you chaps say on this forum I disagree this time!

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