Opinions on .177 air rifles-pump action

Red Horse · Oct 2, 2017

bigdeano said:
I think the OP just wants to sting them, not injure them, thus a pellet gun is the way to go. A .22 would be better than a .177 due to the larger frontal area which will be less likely to penetrate, especially with flat nose pellets. The break action guns are very convenient and fast to load but would penetrate a coyote hide. Maybe the main spring could be shortened a little bit to reduce the power.

Don't use a firearm any place you're not supposed to or where it's unsafe. You can get into a lot of trouble.

Correct- I don't want to kill them-just "remind" them its not a "safe place" And I'm thinking a "pump Up" gun is the best bet for doing that. I have a Crosman pistol that I bought for getting squirrels out of my bird feeders and discovered that at 20' even 3 strokes was deadly. And correct on the safety issue- against the law to fire within 500 ft of a house.

MarkF48 said:
If the OP has a 'cheap' 22 bolt action rifle that can load a single shot, try a 22 nail gun cartridge 'blank' and fairly cheap at Lowe's. The sound may be enough to spook the coyote from coming back. Otherwise a 177 pellet rifle, which is good as well for small pests. I have a Benjamin break action 22 pellet rifle that will hold air for a week or better.
I sort of know the town where the OP lives and guessing most that reside in the town (as work in Boston/live in the 'country') are 'sensitive' to things like firearms and gun shots. Difficult to get normal 22LR in MA, never mind varieties of subsonic loads and mail order is out of the question.

I do have an old single shot bolt action 22 but that is not an option as stated above-also have a nice Marlin 39A that holds about 13 LR's but again not an option. And I still have a few 22 "bird shot" shells-most people never heard of them- but they are probably 50 years old-and when I was a kid my next door neighbor bought the single shot for squirrels with the bird shot-needless to say not good for rifling in barrel! He gave me the rifle and the shells. And you are right- I have neighbors that would go nuts if they knew I was shooting anything. My house was built 28 years ago on what was an open farmed field-never saw any critters back then-today? Coyotes and bobcats!

the old grind · Oct 2, 2017

Any gun or crossbow will have a sound that neighbors would recognize from someone practicing, so do that elsewhere.

I like the slingshot idea, and Barnett's 'Diablo' hunter for .. dropping hints to scoot.

See it here: Hunting Slingshots | Barnett | Target Slingshot Accessories And check out your local WalMart or sporting outfitter to buy.

<$20, but I'd use 00 or 000 buck shot or 3/8" ball bearings vs the ~1/4" 'practice' ammo I've seen.

'Second shot?' :laughing: After a whack you might not get a second sighting.

thatguy · Oct 2, 2017

go big or go home LOL

>> Hunt Big Game With The New Benjamin .357 Bulldog

1965 · Oct 2, 2017

the old grind said:
Any gun or crossbow will have a sound that neighbors would recognize from someone practicing, so do that elsewhere.

I like the slingshot idea, and Barnett's 'Diablo' hunter for .. dropping hints to scoot.

See it here: Hunting Slingshots | Barnett | Target Slingshot Accessories And check out your local WalMart or sporting outfitter to buy.

<$20, but I'd use 00 or 000 buck shot or 3/8" ball bearings vs the ~1/4" 'practice' ammo I've seen.

'Second shot?' :laughing: After a whack you might not get a second sighting.

I buy a bag of marbles for amo, cheep and very effective. The neighbors dog has found elsewhere to crap.

tjkubota93 · Oct 2, 2017

If you actually hit a coyote with a wrist rocket and a marble I bet it would be funny as all get out

MarkF48 · Oct 3, 2017

1965 said:
I buy a bag of marbles for amo, cheep and very effective. The neighbors dog has found elsewhere to crap.

If one is going to be close enough to even possibly hit a coyote or similar with a slingshot and marbles, best to have a backup plan in case the animal is rabid. Things can get ugly pretty quick with an aggressive rabid animal. Haven't heard of many rabid coyote attacks, but a few infected bobcats and foxes in Massachusetts have gone after people.

This guy lives in my town. His wife brought him his S&W when this happened and he put it down.
Bobcat attacks Mass. man in his garage - CBS News

1965 · Oct 3, 2017

MarkF48 said:
If one is going to be close enough to even possibly hit a coyote or similar with a slingshot and marbles, best to have a backup plan in case the animal is rabid. Things can get ugly pretty quick with an aggressive rabid animal. Haven't heard of many rabid coyote attacks, but a few infected bobcats and foxes in Massachusetts have gone after people.

This guy lives in my town. His wife brought him his S&W when this happened and he put it down.
Bobcat attacks Mass. man in his garage - CBS News

The slingshots we are referring to are good up to 60 - 80 yards easy. I have dispatched a rabid fox in the past (with a rifle) and it is easy to see they are sick, they look visibly bad not all clean and pretty like the photo of the bobcat they used in that article. The coyote the OP is seeing is doing just what they do in my area, hunting small dogs or cats, they are easier food then their usual prey. I use the .270 on them, they don't come back.lol

MarkF48 · Oct 3, 2017

1965 said:
The slingshots we are referring to are good up to 60 - 80 yards easy. I have dispatched a rabid fox in the past (with a rifle) and it is easy to see they are sick, they look visibly bad not all clean and pretty like the photo of the bobcat they used in that article. The coyote the OP is seeing is doing just what they do in my area, hunting small dogs or cats, they are easier food then their usual prey. I use the .270 on them, they don't come back.lol

The other thing I had sort of forgotten about....... slingshots are 'presumably' illegal in Massachusetts where the OP and myself reside.
Section 12

Most online sporting goods retailers similar to linked below will not ship to Massachusetts as well as other states and no stores carry them. When I was kid I remember being able to buy one easily.
Shipping restrictions by location -- Pyramyd Air

1965 · Oct 3, 2017

With all the rules and regulations that are sucking the fun out of it maybe just have animal control come and put up a live trap if it is frequenting the area that often, providing there are not a lot of dogs running loose that would get in the trap.