May 2013

I was anxious to see how the 17 would perform so when I spotted a groundhog on my property I knew I would have something other than paper to shoot at. So about an hour later I headed for his proximity with the 17 in tow.

Turned out there were at least 2 of them and they were quickly dispatched with the 17. They were short range shots but effective none the less.

The next weekend a friend asked me if I wanted to go coyote hunting with him. We agreed on a time to meet and see what we could accomplish. I took the 17, my Fox Pro and MoJo Critter decoy.

My 17 is wearing a 6-18 Scope with AO. I expected 100 yards to be the max shot so I set the objective accordingly and just glanced at the power level and it was toward the low end. I started with a rabbit squeal and after a few minutes switched to a coyote pup distress. In probably around a minute a coyote sped into the decoy from my right. No warning, never saw it coming. Spotted it just in time to see it reach for the decoy with it's nose. I think the coyote actually got slapped in the face when the fur spun on top the decoy because the coyote jumped and took a couple steps past the decoy then turned to look at me. It probably saw the glove fall from my mouth as I pulled it from my hand with my teeth. Leveling the reticle I squeezed the trigger and it was over.

Through the scope at the huge distance of maybe 75 feet, the coyote looked like a coyote should. A few minutes later, when it was time to move to a different spot we found that the coyote was probably last springs pup. Small and clean with nice white teeth. Checking my scope I found it set on 8X so at 75 feet I had a nice full screen of coyote.

We did not get any other response that morning but had a great time. Saw deer and turkeys and lots of good spots to try next time out.

Bill

Update 5/7/2015

I used the 17 Hornet on Prairie dogs in 2014 and it was amazing. I'm still using Accurate powder, 11.9 grains pushing a Hornady 20 V-Max bullet lit by a Remington 6-1/2 primer.

One morning on the trip we rolled into a new dog town and prepared to shoot. I grabbed the 17 Hornet and went to work. What a riot! No recoil, low noise and visible impact. I was one for one for several minutes at ranges of 50 to 125 yards. Somewhere along the way I switched rifles. I don't remember what I switched to or why but probably did so just because I could.

Last fall my assistance was requested in eliminating a "problem coyote" that was killing chickens. A small property with several homes nearby it looked like the perfect setup for the 17 Hornet. So for a few mornings I attempted to sweet talk the coyote into showing himself but no such luck. I thought maybe an evening hunt just before sundown might bring different results. It did, the mosquito's nearly carried me off. I gave up and lit a cigarette to keep them at bay but it didn't last long enough. As the ember reached the filter I was thinking it's now or never so I squeaked on the call. And within 15 seconds I was eyeball to eyeball with a red fox that stopped maybe 20 feet to the left of me. Even if I could have shouldered the gun fast enough, the back drop would not have been a good direction to shoot.

The fox sped away and vanished over a rise in the pasture in front of me. That direction would have been an OK shooting lane so I squeaked a couple more times and guess who came back to the party? The fox pranced right back over the rise and froze facing me when I shouldered the rifle. My brain kinda said "here, catch this you somebitch" and it did, just inside the shoulder and dropped like a sack of crap.

I carried it out and showed the land owner what I had accomplished. He exclaimed "I never heard you shoot" and that right there was goal number two. The land owner was thrilled so I asked a few more questions. Like, did you ever see a coyote? or "why did you think it was a coyote"? Poor coyotes get blamed for everything.

Kidding of course, but I was surprised to discover that it was a fox having been told it was yotes. The fox arrived on the scene so fast that it must have been bedded in nearby hay bales and grabbing chickens when it felt like it.

The problem went away briefly but not permanently so when I get a chance I continue to try to help.

The point is the 17 worked perfect for this project. Quiet, quick and accurate. Doesn't get any better than that.

I never did bend the bolt handle down like I intended to do but it's still on my list of things to do. The gun is still annoying in that with its small port it's nearly impossible to spoon feed. And from the magazine, there is no "easing a round into the chamber", you have to be direct, deliberate and relatively quick about it. Put another way, it's no Remington 700.

But as to the caliber, I'm hooked. Just one really fine little cartridge but with a parent like the 22 Hornet, I expected nothing less.

Bill

Last Modified: Thursday, May 7, 2015 5:22 PM