22's an turkey's?????????

[eastkoot]

Thanks Gate, will give it a go..

[SHAKER]

Havn't done it yet but I know them yanks like them deep fried! apparently it's also one of the leading caused of house fires in Onterio every spring. Note for anyone trying this and I was very strickly warned: dry your bird off very well BEFORE it goes into the oil! Your recipe sounds good Gates.... might have to try that some time.

[meat eater]

sound's good!!! has anyone tried making jerky out of them yet??? i know the geese i got at the end of the season last winter i turned into jerky and they came out great!!!

[huntwriter]

They penetration is not the problem. I've recovered birds in the past that have been shot by guys using .22s after the bird took flight jumping off the hillside. Not to mention the obvious danger when other hunters can be in such close proximity.

You're absolutly right and that is the reason why most jurisdictions in North America outlawed .22 for turkey hunting and I absolutely agree. Back in the days when I outfitted turkey hunts and .22's where legal in my area I had a few times trouble recovering shot birds and consequently didn't permit the use of that caliber in my area.

If a turkey is shot in the head with a .22 it will die but the head is a very small target and easily missed or end up in a crippled bird that will fly away never to be found again. Shoot a .22 bullet at the birds chest and the bullet can and often will bounce right of off the wing feathers.

As for shooting hogs, a .22 works fine on a domestic hog shot directly in the forehead. Hogs have very soft forehead bones compared to other animals. However, a .22 WILL never work on a wild hog, completely different animal to a domestic hog.

[Gateholio]

.22 bullets will also pierce the skull of a male sheep or goat. They smash heads together pretty hard, so I doubt thier forehead bones are softer than feathers.

[BillBraskii]

I knew huntwriter would chime in and clear up all these uneducated comments.
Thank you Othmar.

[huntwriter]

.22 bullets will also pierce the skull of a male sheep or goat. They smash heads together pretty hard, so I doubt thier forehead bones are softer than feathers.

Actually sheep and goat skulls are made of very porous bone to absorb impact and shock better and are less prone to fracture. Also the bullet of a .22 will only penetrate the skull of a sheep, goat or even a bovine at pointblank, keep the barrel a foot or two away and it is a different story. Back at my fathers abattoir we killed many animals with .22 when the pneumatic bolt stunner broke and we had to wait for the replacement been fetched. I quickly learned at what range a .22 was effective and at which one not. Each missed or not properly killed animal meant a deduction in the wages as punishment for spoiling the quality of the meat.

The reason a small soft lead bullet can and often will bounce of a turkeys wing is because the feathers are very though and in addition there is air between each layer of feathers. When I was trained as a sniper in the Swiss Army we use to conduct very simple bullet penetration tests to amuse the civilians. For this we would hang a phone book loose onto a frame and another one with the pages firmly compressed. The bullets shot from a common army assault rifle would penetrate the compressed pages of a phone book without problems. Using the same rifle and same caliber shooting at the uncompressed phone book the bullet would only penetrate about half to 2/3 of the way. The air between each page created enough resistance to slow the bullet down. The same principle applies to a turkey wing.

[Gateholio]

Yes, loose media will slow a bullet down faster. Don't shoot through wings for a body shot with .22's or shotguns. Frontal feathers aren't an issue.

No, the bullet from a .22 will not only penetrate at point blank range. Shoot a goat or sheep between the eyes with a 22 at 30 yards and it will penetrate the skull. Keep in mind that a bullet with *less* velocity will expand less and therefore penetrate further. (within reason) Been there, done that.

If you want to hunt turkeys with a .22, use a good hollowpoint bullet and aim for the head or where the neck meets the body. Avoid side shots into wings, just as you should avoid them with shotguns.

Many of us BC boys head shoot grouse with .22's, a turkey has a bigger target than a grouse, so it's no big deal. Don't stretch the distance too much, make a good shot, and if the turkey is still flapping, go finish it off, no difference than a grouse.

I've hunted turkeys with a shotgun a wee bit, and I've head shot lots of them with .22's. They all die.

[180grainer]

I'd think because of the size of the turkey, hunting with a 22 would be illegal. Just to much of a chance of wounding the bird to make hunting them with a 22 sensible.....IMHO

[digger dogger]

17 hmr, shotgun size hole @ 200yds
saftey?? There is no way that little bullet is gonna bounce back and hit ya at that distance.
problem solved! lol jk