Gator Gun

[tahunua001]

yes, there is a sweet spot, no they don't use special armor piercing 22 ammo. a lot of the rifles they use are 22 mags rather than 22lr, little more kick but not much. basically they shoot them at the base of the skull and sever the spine.

 

[Panfisher]

I enjoy the show but have noticed many times when they were fighting the gator the shooter was holding rifle A, when they switch to the "kill shot" footage suddenly they are shooting rifle B. The big splash happens when you are shooting into water not a critter. Also noticed in the newer episodes there are a lot of new Savage rifles with big savage emblems on them, reckon they got a new sponsor? Earlier episodes had several marlin 22 mags, a few rugers, and the Houma boys always had their 17hmr. As for the fight heck yeah it would be boring if they didn't fight them, or snag them and fight them that way. I do however remember one episode when the girls had a BIG gator on the line and simply eased hi back up and kapowed him with a .22 mag, a perfect kill I thought. And as a final thought I enjoy it more when they go beyond the running of the lines, they have showed Bruce skinning and processing them, his brother building boats, squirrel hunting and lots of good looking eats.

 

[Mobuck]

One thing to keep in mind: these guys are WORKING not playing. They're not taking time to put on ear protection and related crap. Using a handgun or centerfire rifle over and over through the day is hard on the ears and expensive. I use a 22lr handgun and low noise ammo on the trapline but it still rings the ears after 15-20 shots per day. In addition, most are using the cheapest(although I've seen some $500-600 rifles in those boats) Marlin and Savage rimfires available. I've seen most rimfire calibers from 17HMR to 22WMR used and it seems that 22 WMR is quite common although one of the rifles shown(judging by the appearance which may be deceiving due to the lack of detail and amount of rust) was originally offered only in 22 LONG(not LR).
Absolutely, they dramatize the catch. You don't excite and jazz up the critter with the chance of losing it before making the kill. Far easier to simply lift the gator to the surface and pop it instead of having it fight, roll, and flail around-not saying some don't fight from the get go but just easier options.