Originally Posted By: 6mm06SnowmanMo nailed it on the head. I think too many people dwell too much on the thought of the proverbial "overkill" and lose sight of the fact that a lot of guys (myself included) just like to do things different sometimes. Half the fun is at least gained by the equipment we use. Dead is dead. Granted, Coyotes are taken regularly with some very small calibers and there's nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong with using a lever action 30-30 either. There's no set standard that everyone has to live by. I see this topic pop up every now and then and I guess it kind of bothers me that some have this strick code in their mind that everyone is supposed to dance to the same tune, and they want to be the one to name the song.
To me, it can become boring quickly if I use the same gun / caliber all the time. I like to mix things up to keep it interesting not to mention a bit of experimenting with different bullets of different calibers. Fur hunters will have a priority for a specific purpose. Other than that, use what you want.
For instance, I have taken several antelope with a 25-06. After a while I wanted to try something else and began using a very accurate Remington Sendero 7mmSTW. The STW is very flat shooting and packs a punch at longer ranges. It is pleasing to see 400 yard antelope drop right there. One PM member wanted to criticize me for using it (as if he is an authority on the subject). I call it narrow-mindedness. I don't need an STW to hunt antelope but I sure do ENJOY it. I have taken deer with a 6x45, 243, 270, 7 mm Mag, 7STW, 300 Win Mag and even a 338 Win Mag, as well as with a 35 Whelen and 444 Marlin. I enjoyed using every one of those rifles / calibers but could just as easily have used the 243 for all of them. I used the other calibers because I could and because I wanted too. It's just that simple.
When shooting coyotes, I tend to bounce back and forth between a bolt action 17 Remington and an AR in 6x45. That's me. It just seems to get old when I use the same gun over and over. Other guys like to stay with a tried and true rifle / caliber.
People are different and thank goodness we all are. Otherwise we might all be shooting a 30-06 for everything since after all, that's "all we need." As most of us know, it's not about need (gun grabbers try to tell us we don't need ARs for hunting), but rather it's about using what we want and enjoying every minute of it.
Now, if you happen to have a 375 H&H collecting dust, get it out and take it hunting. You don't have to have Cape Buffalo running about your lower 40 to have some fun. My son took his groundhog hunting! Think out of the box a little bit.
Very well put! I've always been a gun guy first and like using different stuff. That said I will usually pick a rifle and go with it for the whole season. I thought this would be the year for the 22 Nosler, but I just got the 6 Predator tuned with 70 NBT so it's getting the nod now. The better bc coupled with a tougher bullet just gives me the warm fuzzies I just don't get with the smaller calibers.
I used it's sister 243 lbc last year and it's just about ideal IMO. Really didn't get bad fur damage and sometimes none at all.
I thought about taking the 204 this year but the bad bc has me doubting it. There's just too many windy days and days that start out nice but by the time you get back to the truck from a long walk making stands in the hills the wind is blowing 20 mph. Plus it's not an AR.
The last few years the ones that didn't give me enough confidence were a 17/223, and a 264 lbc, for different reasons. The 17 was a laser, songbird accurate to 200 yds off sticks. Yet I missed my first coyote, or think I missed because it ran off. The grass was fairly tall and I'm not so sure that tiny bullet didn't disintegrate on a blade of grass on the way. I can still see the sight picture and my hold was good.
The 264 is just lacking speed with the available bullets. I spent too much time thinking about the trajectory. It really needs a 75 gr vmax IMO to get it flatter to 300 yds.