22 mag trapline rifle

C

Catsniper97

New member
I have just recently came to the conclusion that the 17 grain vmax bullet fragments too much for trap line use(another post in itself) would a 22 mag suit my needs and if so what make or model.
 
Ruger stainless sythetic 20" barrel light weight and get the Leupold compact rimfire special scope 4X or 2x7. I get one and carry it with me all the time. For ammo use Win FMJ or CCI Game Points.
 
Scope is useless on a trapline, and to be honest, so's a 22mag.
22short, or 22lr. Shoot Coon in the head, and Cats, Fox, or Coyotes in the lungs. Or better yet choke em out with a catch pole.
If ya just gotta have a 22mag though. Henry's little lever gun is cheap, reliable, and super accurate.

Least mine is.
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Or, if ya like hand guns the good ol Single Six shoots either 22LR or 22Mag.

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Ruger mkII target is what I always used on my trapline. .22lr rem target loads no coyote can take that right between the eyes at 20ft.
 
A buddy of mine has a fairly new Savage 22mag with a 13in barrel,open sights and drilled for bases. I don't think they make them anymore and may have only been sold in Canada.
I can't seem to find the model for it.
 

RePete has some good advice in my opinion. You don't need a .22 magnum for a trapline gun, nor a scope. A good .22 short to dispatch a trapped animal is all you need. In my mind, more power does more harm than good. Again, as RePete said, you don't even need a gun for some animals, like fox. You can dispatch a fox easily without firing a shot. I've done it many times without putting a single hole in the pelt.

If you can shoot a handgun well, and since you will be up close near the trapped animal, you may find that might suit you well and you would have much less bulk to carry about.

This rifle is a Winchester 94/22, the old model. I should have my sorry butt kicked for trading it off.

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I guess it all boils down to what you want or shoot well.

RePete, nice firearms and cat.
 
Originally Posted By: VarminterrorAnother vote for a Ruger Mark II (Now Mark III) .22lr pistol....

Not a semi-auto guy myself, but that's probably the most popular trap-line gun ever.
That or the Heratige Rough Rider.

6MM,,, in retrospect, I'm starting to wonder if the OP might not have been referring to something to take along for targets of opportunity. In which case the 22Mag's a great choice, but I'd still go with a lever gun. I'm sure he'll be along shortly.
 
I gotta agree with the .22 lr or the .22 short. just shoot em between the eyes or thru the ear and itll put em down. I dont really have one rifle that i carry to check traps. It is which ever i choose between a henry lever action, an old winchester automatic model 190 and a ruger 10/22 stainless.
 
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Originally Posted By: VarminterrorAnother vote for a Ruger Mark II (Now Mark III) .22lr pistol....

Make that a third vote for the ruger Mark III, been using one on the trapline for about 10 years
 
As stated above, 22 mag is overkill on a trapline, as is the 17. When I ran trapline I carried a single action 22 pistol with shorts, and a Marlin model 60 with LR to pop skunks I'd let out of the traps, (livetraps only in Florida), after they'd got off from the trap a ways.

Magnums at close range are just going to blow holes in your pelts, be hard on your ears, and cost twice as much as Long Rifle or shorts. You can drop damm near anything with a 22 short, if you hit it right. When they're tied to a stake in the ground, they are't going to run very far or very fast.
 
I use a 22 auto pistol with a red dot style pistol scope. I typically check traps in the dark so the red dot is pretty handy. I also use sub-sonic round nose bullets, not hollow points. There is no need to make any more noise than necessary, or make a one ore two bigger than necessary holes in the fur.
 
I carried my 17HMR on my small line for fox, coon, possum, and skunk. I had my XLR 250 light on top of it and did my checks around 5am. It worked pretty good, so long as I shot them from about 20-40yds. Everything was head shot with the CCI 20gr. Gamepoints. No exits on any of them and no hide damage, but lots of blood and lots of risk of spreading rabies. I also used the rifle for free ranging targets so it worked out. This year, if I get to trap, I'll leave the rifle on the ATV for free range targets and carry my Ruger Single Six with .22 CB Shorts and use a catch pole. My understanding is that rabies resides in the fluid around the brain, so head shooting is discouraged. I plan to dispatch fox with the chest step method and shoot anything else in the neck or lungs. Skunks will likely get the HMR to the lungs since I don't care to crowd them
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. The prettiest skunk I'd ever seen was in a trap of mine a few years ago. Dispatched him with the farmers 22mag with my typical head shot. Blew his face off compared to the pinhole in no exit I normally get with the HMR. Last time using the mag for me. I think he had the 33gr. ballistic tips in it FWIW.
 


I carry a Mark II with CB Caps most of the time with a clip of Long Rifles in my pocket.

CCI makes CB's in long that I can hand cycle.
 
Personally, I bought a kids Cricket .22 rifle. Its super light, and small enough to fit in my trapping pack! I use shorts in it and it works great. Next best thing to a .22 pistol, but I cant have a pistol in NY for two more years untill im 21.

I shot a few foxes in traps with my Savage 93f in .22 Mag and it made way to much of a mess. It was a pain in the butt to skin the head with the impact of the .22 mag

Bryan
 
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