The Best Varmint Killer…

TonyE · #1 09/11/08, 08:15 PM

What is the best varmint killer as to a 22 cal hand gun out on the market? I have several pesky varmints to get rid of and I need something that is silent but deadly… don’t want to alarm my new neighbors you know!

Ed Norman · #2 09/11/08, 08:39 PM

I have plenty of 22 cal handguns. None of them are silent. I have an old Benjamin 22 cal air rifle that is very quiet and very deadly on squirrels or rabbits or one unlucky prairie dog once.

My favorite is a 7.5" S&W Model 41 that I have used on everything forever. I currently use a Ruger Mk 2 with a bull bbl and it is alright but nowhere near the old Model 41. I have good luck with a Taurus revolver, the one on the 38 frame that holds 6 shots, I don't have the smaller 9 shot model. Yet. They are all accurate, the Model 41 is match quality, the Taurus is next, and the Ruger a close third.

TonyE · #3 09/11/08, 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed Norman

I have plenty of 22 cal handguns. None of them are silent. I have an old Benjamin 22 cal air rifle that is very quiet and very deadly on squirrels or rabbits or one unlucky prairie dog once.

My favorite is a 7.5" S&W Model 41 that I have used on everything forever. I currently use a Ruger Mk 2 with a bull bbl and it is alright but nowhere near the old Model 41. I have good luck with a Taurus revolver, the one on the 38 frame that holds 6 shots, I don't have the smaller 9 shot model. Yet. They are all accurate, the Model 41 is match quality, the Taurus is next, and the Ruger a close third.

Ed, I tried a pellet gun one time and I think I wounded the fella (didn’t want that to happen!) One time I used my 22 long went completely through one guy and he ran away! Which of your 22 hand guns makes the smallest amount noise?

CGUARDSMAN · #4 09/11/08, 09:53 PM

i would get a ruger .22 single six and shoot shorts.

Highground · #5 09/11/08, 10:15 PM

I'd just use my bow.

Ed Norman · #6 09/11/08, 10:47 PM

Well, if you just have to have a handgun and make it quiet, I would get a Contender with a 14" barrel and shoot CB Longs in it. Of the handguns I listed, the Model 41 is quietest because it has a 7.5" barrel and is a semi auto, the Ruger auto has a 6" bbl and the Taurus has a 6" bbl plus the cylinder gap makes things louder.

Any reason you can't get a good bolt action rifle and shoot CB Longs? Out of a 27" target barrel, they are as quiet as a 22 Long Rifle from a suppressed rifle.

TonyE · #7 09/11/08, 10:57 PM

Great information gentlemen! I just purchased a few boxes of Aguila .22LR Colibri Ammo-it contains no gunpowder; lets see how they work out!

http://www.natchezss.com/product.cfm...dID=AU1B222337

SCRich · #8 09/16/08, 08:54 PM

I got a couple of bricks of that which I bought a few years ago while living in a part of Florida "gone bad" (ie: very "democratic") and did target practice in my 30x40 garage. Good stuff that Aguila.

BUT make sure you do not shoot it in a semi-auto or long rifle. They warn you about it and it is possible to get a squib. A semi-auto pistol will probably not cycle but even if it did or not the pressure lost in blowback operation MAY cause a partially lodged bullet. Same goes for long barrel single shot rifles. I'll shoot the stuff out of my Single Six or my son will shoot it from his Cricket but other than that I would not risk it. All you need is one squib and follow it up with another round and a good amt. of damage can be done.

Ed Norman · #9 09/16/08, 09:12 PM

The Colibri is good ammo, but I still prefer the CB Long when I can find it, because the case is easier to handle with my fumble fingers, and more of the chamber wall is protected by case.

VA Backwoodsman · #10 09/16/08, 09:13 PM

You can also use subsonic long rifles out of a rifle barrel, they come in hollow points and if you only shoot once it makes it harder to tell where the shot came from most of the time. They have more knock down than a colbri or super colbri. Just my .02 worth.

poorboy · #11 09/17/08, 11:07 AM

is made for pistols only,Super colibri I believe is safe in rifles, somebody please correct me if I'm wrong. that said, I had rotten luck with the colibri's terminal performance. Won't even do a humanem job on rabbits at close range, switched to the cb's much better.

dogo · #12 09/17/08, 11:33 AM

Have you thought about trapping ? And then take care care of it.

mdharris68 · #13 09/19/08, 09:47 AM

I have a box of subsonic shorts that I use for squirrels. Sounds like a cap gun. I protect my nut trees every year with them and get some food at the same time. I think they are CB's as well. I use them in my old pump 22 rifle. As with any hunting/shooting, the key is to get close enough to not miss the target. I can legally shoot at my house but don't want the neighbors getting scared. One of my neighbors uses a 12 guage, and it kind of gets others wondering whats up.