addison - There is a difference between a single projectile weapon and a multi-projectile weapon (shotgun) which is designed to shoot moving targets. Some people are practiced and proficient with shooting moving targets with a single projectile but they are one in a million. Hence the numbers of deer found dead in the woods that were shot in the gut, hind end, or even had a hind legs blown off. These deer died a slow painful death.
The title of this thread (Dirty thirty .30 cal) rang a bell with me and was the reason for my comments. Therefore, I felt discussing it might be beneficial to us all. Maybe I could learn something and at the same time maybe someone else could.
After my childhood introduction to shoot using a Crossman BB gun I immediately moved to a large caliber centerfire ( a 7.7mm Japanese rifle my father brought back from the war) for deer hunting in my teens. Among everyone I knew the consensus was that the bigger the caliber the better for whitetail deer hunting. In my 20s I got into benchrest shooting and woodchuck hunting using 222 cal. rifles. I quickly realized the benefits and capabilities of smaller caliber rifles. The ease of shooting, the great accuracy (which meant quicker, cleaner kills with the resultant reduced loss of meat) and the lower cost of shooting. So as all of my friends were moving to larger 300 magnums I settled on a smaller 243 for whitetail deer. My shots were now headshots rather than body shots.
I later got involved with rimfire benchrest which led to squirrel hunting using rimfire. The private range I shot at had homes nearby and I could shoot the rimfires with confidence that I wasn't disturbing anyone nearby. I could shoot more and longer throughout the day and WOW was it inexpensive. Most importantly, not having to reload freed up more time for shooting. But it still had it limitations. I had to go to the range to shoot and was still loud enough to scare off nearby game after the first shot.
You guessed it, the next most logical step was air rifles. The question was what caliber. I felt .17 was probably good for birds and rodents but would be marginal for squirrels and woodchucks under 100 yards. So I went with 22 cal. I was quickly blown away with the accuracy/ I could confidently shoot out the eye of a squirrel at 50 yards. As I read further I found that people were shooting small critters at up to, and over 200 yards. So the next rifle I purchased had a .25 cal barrel. Nevertheless, I still plan on using the 22 under 100 yards as I just feel that 25 caliber is overkill at that distance for small critters.
Have I thought about .30 caliber???? YES, but I have been struggling and trying to fight off the temptation to go in the opposite direction and fall into the trap of bigger and bigger.
Hence, my initial question as to if .30 cal is overkill for squirrels under 100 yards. I wasn't trying to shun anyone or be argumentative. It is a question I have been struggling with and the title of this thread seemed to fit the bill for such a discussion. However I have to say that I just don't find an answer such as "because I can" as valid rational for doing so. I have discovered that bigger is not always better. My expectation was that people in an air gun forum would be on board with that concept and be able to provide rational input.
If anyone still feels this is off topic given the thread title - I apologize!
