CCI CB Shorts out of a revolver

2ndsojourn

New member
I found some CCI CB shorts at a gun show last weekend with the intention of taking care of a couple pesky ground hogs tearing up our garden. The idea here is not to get the neighbors upset with gunshots. Originally intended to use one of a few 22 rifles.

Anyway, last night I picked up my new to me S&W 17-3 and am wondering if I can use these shorts in it. What's the down side - fouling the chambers?
 
^^^this^^^. Not much energy there do you have a place to test em? Shoot into a pieceof plywood and be amazed at the lack of penetration
 
I've been there & done that on cottontails and crows. Knocks em dead, but I'd stick with the rifle if you don't want attention from the neighbors.
 
Unless you grow 'em different than we do here in MI, I kind of doubt that those are going to do much to a woodchuck - regardless of if you use a pistol or a rifle. I've shot a lot of woodchucks over the years and even a LR can have problems. I remember one old one that when I hit it with a LR acted like it had just been bitten by a mosquito and went right back to eating.

If you are having problems and can't use a more potent cartridge on 'em . . consider live trapping them - then either kill 'em or transplant them. Don't try a muskrat trap or a "con-bear" . . . if trapped in something like that, they'll just chew their leg off to get out. Don't ask me how I know . . . .

The important thing is to be "humane" about it. Either put 'em out of their misery quickly with a cartridge that will do the job or live trap 'em and transplant them somewhere where they will be able to adapt and live without doing damage to property or crops.
 
Best luck on barns hog control;Rem514,22Sht.,Headshot line-up(no LT damage) Works well for years.
 
OK guys, I'll get a have-a-heart trap for the ground hog(s).

But what about using the CB shorts in the revolver? Other than possible fouling the chambers and giving LR cartridges sticking problems, (which can be cleaned out), is there an issue with the long 'jump' to the barrel that the shorts have? I have plenty of squirrels that are a bit of a nuisance as well.
 
I actually shoot a fair amount of CB, shorts, & Colibri ammo in revolvers & have not generally seen the kind of accuracy needed to shoot squirrels with... though to be honest... 3/4 of those guns shot were antiques... I've not really tried a CB cap in a target grade revolver...
 
Be careful of ricochets with CBs. A regular 22LR will penetrate or splatter when it hits something. The low velocity CBs will bounce off and take off in a new direction.
 
Someone has to answer your question:

I've shot may thousands of shorts and CB caps out of my 17. Nothing ever went wrong. Had a heluva lot of fun. I do clean my chambers after use.
 
In my limited experience, the only issue is chamber fouling which can make it difficult to chamber a lr due to build-up.

This may be even more of a problem in your Model 17, some of which have notoriously tight chambers in the first place.

Shouldn't have any problem if you keep 'em clean.

mmn was quicker on the trigger than I.

Also, as mentioned, don't expect the shorts to be particularly quiet through the revolver.
 
OK, thanks y'all. I'll save the revolver shooting for the range or my brother's farm. But I'll give the rifle a shot this weekend.
 
Having shot CB's in a High Standard Derringer and shot several Wood Chucks with .22 LR (in a rifle and handgun), use at least .22 Shorts on chucks and shoot the CBs at just targets. A CB will not kill a wood chuck humanely.
 
I found that the Remington C-Bee (long rifle case) is accurate and the hollow point bullet kills well for such a low powered round. I use it exclusively on the trapline. The noise is reduced significantly below normal HV ammo from a 5.5" pistol and very quiet from a rifle length barrel.

FYI Re; Trapping groundhogs
More difficult that expected in most cases. Try some lettuce that's "over the hill", fruit, or vegetable cleanings(sweet corn husks, green bean/pea pods) as bait. My experience is it's hard to catch a mature GH in a NEW live trap. May take a while to catch the culprit even with a body grip over the burrow entrance--don't use a body grip if pets are present. I cleaned out a pole barn last spring and it took 3 weeks to catch 3 mature GH by setting a 330 Conni-bear over the burrows.
 
+1 on scoped rifle vs pistol for the shorts. Considering the marginal energy involved, placing the .22 implant behind the ear with surgical precision is critical. Miss by an inch or two and the cat.... I mean woodchuck.... makes enough noise after the shot that the stealth of the short/CB is wasted.
 
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