On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 16:22:29 +0100, Tim Auton
wrote:

wrote:
"Stephen" wrote:
[snip]

Would this pellet gun be an effective way to kill pigeons and squirrels?

A good slingshot loaded with ball-bearings or Dollar Store Marbles
works very well on rabbits. The "tree rats" are a little harder to hit
than cotton-tails.

Can you get a clean kill that way? I no anti-hunting freak, but I
think if you're going to kill something you really ought to do it
quickly and cleanly.


Tim
Quite true. Humanely is the only way to kill a critter.

The 1000 fps pellet gun is more than enough to kill the little
varmints. In fact..it may be a bit much, unless you are sure that you
have a clear and inpenetrable backstop. That pellet at 10 -15 yrds
will zing clear through them. Id Strongly recommend using a blunt
nosed pellet or even better, one of the hollow pointed ones that are
available as this tends to make the pellet break up or deform faster,
making a better and faster kill, and preventing the pellet from
traveling much farther with any force.

Whild head shots are the prefered way..it is a small target for a less
experienced marksman, so a shot directly though the body, from the
side, through both the shoulders will generally anchor them quickly
and destroy the heart/lung area and the shoulder bones blowing up will
send additional shrapnel into the vital organs causing them to bleed
out virtually instantly, if the blunt force trauma hasnt shocked them
into cardiac arrest.

Keep in mind that pigeons, like most birds, tend to be a skinny body
with a ballon of feathers around them.

With bb/pellet guns, I prefer to shoot them from the backside, at the
juncture of the wing/neck area. A vertical hold will put the pellet
anywhere in a line from the neck/spine area down to the heart lung
area, so if you misjudge elevation, the pellet will still penetrate a
vital area, usually also shearing the spine so they cannot fly away.

Of course for the squeamish..by aiming exclusivly at the head, if you
miss, there is unlikely to be any wound at all and virtually all hits
will be instantly fatal ones. They will flop around a bit as the
nervous systems fires at random, but the lights have been turned off
and no one is home. Quite humane and there is no suffering.

And of course if you are an atavistic animist, be sure that you give
your weapon a drop of blood from your first kill. On the barrel just
in front of the forestock is the best place as the acidic blood only
discolors the bluing minimally. Blooding is a eons old tradition
passed down from our ancestors insuring your weapon will kill well and
cleanly. Shrug... ask any shaman.
G

Gunner

"In my humble opinion, the petty carping levied against Bush by
the Democrats proves again, it is better to have your eye plucked
out by an eagle than to be nibbled to death by ducks." - Norman
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