big enough?

[rileyp]

so im new and fairly new to air gunning i started with a beeman grizzle 2x which served great for the mouse infestation in our yard this last winter we didn't get much snow in northern Utah this year and they were like shooting ground squirrels (i kinda miss them guess ill go shoot ground squirrels) between my dad and i we shot some 400 mice in our yard/field my uncles and a lady down the road

but i recently upgraded to the Benjamin marauder 22 cal and absolutely love it so my question is if i go on a pig hunt which is still not for sure with a head shot at a close enough range would it be capable of killing a mid to small sized pig your input is appreciated and sorry for the grammar

 

[Michael]

Assuming your .22 M-Rod is shooting about 30 FPE, I'd say you're a little under-gunned. One of our resident pig hunting experts (NomadicPirate) has taken some feral pigs with a .22. However his .22 was shooting closer to 60 FPE. Pellet choice is also very important, for example the Benjamin Domes are a much harder alloy than the soft lead of JSB's. In my book a 30 FPE M-Rod might be pushing the limits of an ethical kill (unless its a really small pig, at really close range). 

 

[FearnLoading]

"rileyp"so im new and fairly new to air gunning i started with a beeman grizzle 2x which served great for the mouse infestation in our yard this last winter we didn't get much snow in northern Utah this year and they were like shooting ground squirrels (i kinda miss them guess ill go shoot ground squirrels) between my dad and i we shot some 400 mice in our yard/field my uncles and a lady down the road

but i recently upgraded to the Benjamin marauder 22 cal and absolutely love it so my question is if i go on a pig hunt which is still not for sure with a head shot at a close enough range would it be capable of killing a mid to small sized pig your input is appreciated and sorry for the grammar

Too little power for a pig. I agree with Michael. While our friend nomadic pirate has taken pigs with a .22, he has been super accurate with respect to his shot placement. Get a .30 cal at least. A .25 with 50+ fpe should also do the trick. But I would still go for a 30 cal just to ensure a clean kill. 

 

[rileyp]

thanks for the info if i cant obtain somthin biger ill use my longbow

 

[Nomadic Pirate]

"FearnLoading"

"rileyp"so im new and fairly new to air gunning i started with a beeman grizzle 2x which served great for the mouse infestation in our yard this last winter we didn't get much snow in northern Utah this year and they were like shooting ground squirrels (i kinda miss them guess ill go shoot ground squirrels) between my dad and i we shot some 400 mice in our yard/field my uncles and a lady down the road

but i recently upgraded to the Benjamin marauder 22 cal and absolutely love it so my question is if i go on a pig hunt which is still not for sure with a head shot at a close enough range would it be capable of killing a mid to small sized pig your input is appreciated and sorry for the grammar

Too little power for a pig. I agree with Michael. While our friend nomadic pirate has taken pigs with a .22, he has been super accurate with respect to his shot placement. Get a .30 cal at least. A .25 with 50+ fpe should also do the trick. But I would still go for a 30 cal just to ensure a clean kill.

In todays airgun offerings I rather go for a powerful .25 than a .30 cal that is limited to the JSB pellet, furthermore I rather take a 60 FPE .22 shooting the EunJin pellets than an 80 FPE .30 shooting JSB.

Small calibers ( and I classify .30 still as small caliber ) are limited to Brain shots, a smaller caliber with harder pellet will penetrate better and be more efficient.