Good post. My Maverick .25cal is running about the same power as yours (33.49 at 995fps). In my state, TN, a .25cal air gun is the biggest you can hunt coyotes with.
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25 cal for coyote
- Thread starter Hard2hurt223
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You don't want the harder, unleaded ammo, because you lose too much power because of the weight reduction.
You just have to take the proper shot. I've killed several raccoons with less powerful .25 cal airguns with headshots using H&N Grizzly slugs with ease. Right between the eye and ear activates the raccoon break dance of death.
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Well I can't comment on the pellet bouncing off the scull I've never had that happen before but for that high of ft-lbs I wouldn't hesitate to take a body shot on a coon or coyote with a jsb diablo 25.39 or better yet the 34 grain diablo or hades all would be great options as for an area I would stay away from the semiautos I have one and have had a lot of problems with it I don't have any experience with the non semiautos but it seems like they would be less prone to problems but I would go for vitals or head if you can get it just my take the one at the top of the thread was taken with a vitals shot
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This is kinda of what Im getting at. The regular H&N slugs are reportedly a harder lead alloy than say a Javelin. There are lots of differences in hardness among lead alloys used in the air industry. Im trying to figure it all out, and have limited hunting experience with slugs. But I know lots of you guys have been around the block a few times lol.50fpsfpe with a JSB Exact or most any slug is plenty for a headshot kill shot, if that headshot is between the eye and ear.
You don't want the harder, unleaded ammo, because you lose too much power because of the weight reduction.
You just have to take the proper shot. I've killed several raccoons with less powerful .25 cal airguns with headshots using H&N Grizzly slugs with ease. Right between the eye and ear activates the raccoon break dance of death.
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Good tips thanks. We were looking at the bolt or side lever versions of the aea, simple is better =)
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Check out the aea challenger pro very high power and sounds like it likes slugs according to YouTube I've heard a lot of good about it but I don't have any personal experience as for being new to the airgun world I've only been in it for a few years and I've learned a ton from here and some YouTube channels like airarmshuntingsa shooter 1721 teds holdover aeac but ive by far learned the most from 68 whisky great guys I highly recommend that you check them out hope it helps
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Hello mate,
The boar seems to be arnd 35 yards. When you said......."25 cal between 55 to 60 fpe " (lastline), was it at the muzzle or the terminal end ??
Regards
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I think it's important to remember a few things we all know. Slugs have better bc and almost all are hollow points with a better chance of expanding than a lot of pellets. But they do not magically turn an airgun into something more powerful. They are better at long range shots but I wouldn't bother (and don't) inside 50 yards. It is also harder finding one your gun likes in my experience.
To kill an animal we have to make a large enough deep enough hole to either critically destroy it's central nervous system or shut down it's blood supply capacity. Hit it's brain or heart/lungs. Putting the projectile into the right spot is by far the most important criteria. Next is sufficient penetation. I think a 25 caliber with 50 fpe or less should stick with a non-expanding projectile for a coyote to ensure enough penetration. That is my suggestion, not a law of nature or anything. I would further suggest a heavy for caliber projectile. A JSB 33.95 would be first choice but a H&N Baracuda would also be good if more accurate. I would expect a body shot coyote with a 25 caliber projectile that does not expand to run. If that is a problem, I would shoot it in the head. A smaller caliber with less fpe would also make a clean kill with a head shot. If you have plenty of fpe for penetration, then and only then would I think about an expanding projectile to make a wider hole. I do not think wider holes mean much if anything on brain shots but I'm convinced they do on body shots.
If the subject shooter can reliably put a pellet into the brain of the subject coyote I think he has enough gun. I think he can also kill it with a body shot but it may go some distance before it realizes it is dead. If you need to anchor it with a body shot, I would want a larger caliber.
To kill an animal we have to make a large enough deep enough hole to either critically destroy it's central nervous system or shut down it's blood supply capacity. Hit it's brain or heart/lungs. Putting the projectile into the right spot is by far the most important criteria. Next is sufficient penetation. I think a 25 caliber with 50 fpe or less should stick with a non-expanding projectile for a coyote to ensure enough penetration. That is my suggestion, not a law of nature or anything. I would further suggest a heavy for caliber projectile. A JSB 33.95 would be first choice but a H&N Baracuda would also be good if more accurate. I would expect a body shot coyote with a 25 caliber projectile that does not expand to run. If that is a problem, I would shoot it in the head. A smaller caliber with less fpe would also make a clean kill with a head shot. If you have plenty of fpe for penetration, then and only then would I think about an expanding projectile to make a wider hole. I do not think wider holes mean much if anything on brain shots but I'm convinced they do on body shots.
If the subject shooter can reliably put a pellet into the brain of the subject coyote I think he has enough gun. I think he can also kill it with a body shot but it may go some distance before it realizes it is dead. If you need to anchor it with a body shot, I would want a larger caliber.
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I wish that were true in Alabama. We are visiting the In-laws and the Al regs are nothing smaller than .30. I'd rather use the .22 at 1000FPS vs the .30 at 800FPS and lobbing in artillery rounds.
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That was a wonderful shot with excellent results on that one coyote. When you finally shoot 10 or 15 with that gun, you will have a better perspective of just how effective your setup is. I’ve been killing animals for 42 years and can promise you that the next coyote you shoot might take off in a dead run never to be found because your little pencil hole didn’t leave a good blood trail. You can shoot 20 animals with one gun or bow and 75% of them die a completely different death. You caught that coyote perfect. Not enough energy to floor it right where it stood. Not enough energy to even get it to react like someone smacked it on the a$$. You slipped a dense projectile right through the boiler and the animal was still trying to figure out what stung it when it fell over dead.
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To me it’s a lot more about fpe and projectile weight/speed than caliber. There is a huge difference in your 25 cal setup than a run of the mill 42 ft/lb rig shooting 25.39 pellets.
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I agree. And that's why a number of 22 cal air rifles are easily suitable for coyote. Although 42 ft lbs will do if you hit the kill button while retaining enough down range energy. For frontal shots I like starting at over 50ft lbs setup. I did video 3 kilt Coyotes with airgun this year. All with 25 cal. It's lethal as f
Here's one
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At the muzzle,....if I mention FPE of a gun it will always be at the muzzle, on this particular hunt I was shooting the 28gr Benjamin pellet.
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