was told" .308 too light for hog!"?

I would normally say that a .308 is enough gun for a pig. A few years back, I was out spotlighting pigs. I had a very nice Parker Hale C4 sniper rifle, with the issue Khales scope. I was using Norma dual core 180 grain bullets. My mate had a .222 ( but is a great shot) and the other guy had a .280. Anyway, We saw a HUGE pig. I mean massive. The boarasaurus. I leveled the 7.62 and let her rip. BLAM! THWOCK! The bullet, as it turned out entered in the shoulder blade, put a hole in that, stayed together, and smashed all the organs in that area. Then the pig turned around and looked at me! And it looked annoyed! "Holy s**t" said I , and let another go. BLAM! THWOCK! and down it went. My mate looked at me and said "Dude, I am scared". So, fr all but the biggest hogs the .308 is the ticket. This pig was 6 feet from nose to end of its tail. It was a monster.
 
I took a nice 160 lb Russian Razorback in TN with a .45 Colt out of my Blackhawk.

On foot...no tree stand...with a guide and 2 dogs. First shot when he charged us, 2nd shot to put him down.
 
It depends on the weight/size of the pig.

I don't know much about Javalina, but they are small and I understand that while possibly dangerous... they aren't particularly difficult to kill. :cool:

Ferral Hogs are something else again. Young adults can weigh from about 125 lbs. up to about 500 lbs. The record from Hollister, Kalifornica is a whopping 700+ lbs!

In Dixieland for many years the 30-30 was THE ferral-hog gun! :D

In the Big Sur (Kalifornica) we hunted with .44 Mags. The brush is pretty thick and you often have to push through it, or even crawl under it. Easier with a hand gun. :)

At Fort Hunter Liggett (also Kalifornica) the off-duty GI's would hunt them with the 1911 45ACP!! I wouldn't recommend this, because when you meet a pissed-off Sow or even a Boar, that might be on the heavier side... you'll want the extra penetration to pass down through the snout and continue into the vitals. The .45ACP is more than a little iffy in this situation.

By the way, an ex-Navy Seal and a tired old Green Beret I know, and their friends, hunt them with large hunting KNIVES (The $200 + variety).

They hunt with pit-bull dogs and when the dogs distract the "pig" they jump on his back and cut his throat... :rolleyes: Go figure!

There are very few critters in the woods that are meaner than a mad hog... it's better to kill 'em than piss 'em off. ;)

The guides and dog handler's will go out and get the 100 pounders and, again, while the dogs do their work... the guides will grab the pigs by the hind legs and flip 'em on their backs (Helpless as a turtle.) and castrate them!
When they hunt them later on, they will taste better.

The bottom line? You don't need a hot magnum. :cool:
 
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Pointer: I remember reading about an island in the tropics where the rite of passage from boyhood to manhood was to skill a shark with a knife (no scuba, no nothing). I am not sure if I would have made manhood there :D Maybe if everyone else does it, and you grow up with that... sounds pretty alien and scary though.


Ah yes, there was a tribe in Africa where the rite of manhood was to kill an adult Gorilla with a spear - this guy can literally tear you to pieces with his bare hands. The technique was you challenged him and pissed him off, and he chased you while you ran like hell with spear down the trail. At the last instant, you fall to the ground, jamming the butt of the spear in the dirt, and as he dives onto you, he is diving onto the spear. Also sounds, pretty... interesting. :eek:
 
I have shot most of the wild pig I have shot with a Remington Model 7 in .222- it is a favourite walk about rifle and it has been what I have had on me when the chance has arisen. Needless to say with a light calibre like that bullet placement is everything and I would not take a running shot.

I have shot a lot of others with 7.62x39 and 350 Rem Mag.

Obviously the 350 is the best killer, but your .308 is fine. Infact a 130 gr load marketed as 'feral fix' in Australia is essentially what most government departments here use on pig.
 
This thread has an interesting array of equipment mentioned. I've never hunted hog, but have read on another thread that those Inuit living in Greenland favor getting very close with .223 and shooting bears behind the ear. They think we're all nuts to use chew up meat with heavy calibers.

On the other hand, I like chewing up meat if it speeds up the kill, and have never heard they have wild boar in Greenland. So, I was wondering whether, if light and whalloping is the most desirable equipment, has anyone here tried one of the 45-70 guide gun variants on hogs?

Nick
 
Wow!! I guess I have been very lucky not to get attacked and eaten by these terrible hogs....I say lucky because I did not know any better and hunted those hogs with an old thirty-thirty and a Hornady 170 grain bullet...even though I have killed many I will never do that again...Am in need of a good hog rifle now...does anyone have a .416 Rigby for sale.........???
 
Wow!! I guess I have been very lucky not to get attacked and eaten by these terrible hogs....I say lucky because I did not know any better and hunted those hogs with an old thirty-thirty and a Hornady 170 grain bullet...even though I have killed many I will never do that again...Am in need of a good hog rifle now...does anyone have a .416 Rigby for sale.........???
Click to expand...

nice...lol...
 
My friend and I both use .270's and have taken hogs up to 200 pounds using Corelokt 130 gr stock ammo. They drop dead, right now and the rounds have always gone clean through. I have only had one hog, a sow of about 150 lbs, run after I shot it from 200 yds, and just starting to run. It got about 100 yds. When I went to clean it, all that was left inside was the heart and half of one lung. These animals are as tough as advertised so as everyone else says, place your shot carefully...
 
Well Trigger.... it sounds to me like "its out of your hands" and you must purchase a .300 winchester mag out of necessity. I find that the issue of whether or not I should buy a gun is often "out of my hands" as soon as I find an outlandish excuse for myself to by one. Hell, I've bought guns simply because they were so cheap I figured "I'd be a fool not to" and then I succeeded in firing them once and just addin them to vault to be forgotten about.

If you ask me trigger, you'd be a fool not to buy one.
 
Hogs can be hard to put down, and keep down.
I have used a 30-30 more than anything on hogs. I find my handloaded Speer 170 gr FT to be satisfactory. I also use a .44 Mag marlin 1894, and on my last hunt, a SOCOM in .308 Win. These all work well for me.
I have to say, that hogs are darn tough. I also use a Winchester Model 70 in .458 Win Mag, with 400 gr SP at times. Even with this rifle, I have seen hogs run and run after taking a good hit.
 
"By the way, an ex-Navy Seal and a tired old Green Beret I know, and their friends, hunt them with large hunting KNIVES (The $200 + variety).
They hunt with pit-bull dogs and when the dogs distract the "pig" they jump on his back and cut his throat... Go figure!"


Just a second.....I need to put my boots on.....OK, I'm ready, tell me some more stories. :)
 
I have never shot a Texas hog, but I've been a guest on a few Maverick County hunts and I have two memoies. Number one the size of the hogs. Number two is how effective the 30-30 can be.....Essex County
 
Being a traditionalist, I shoot big bore rifles and pistols. I do not enjoy high velocity rifles that shoot for miles and render a ton of meat inedible. I use a 45.70 frequently, a 375 H&H a lot as well. I have seen and taken large pigs with a 270 Win. that dropped like Thors hammer hit them. It is not rifle as much as it is the shooter. As one of the respondents replied, he used a 45 Colt. Many people use 44 Mags. as well. The 300 Win. mag as a suggested round is nothing but stupid. Be a hunter. A large bore, slow moving bullet will kill anything on the planet very effectively. Your 308 is more than enough to do the job. Hell, Jack Conner, shot the big five African trophy's with a 270.
 
dude

:barf: the guy that said my .308 was too small showed up with a "cetme" and said he traded his .450marlin for it!!!!!!!! give me a break!!!!! :barf:
dude Im glad I didnt believe him. still would like to have a 7mm rem mag. but thanks for giving me a shovel and a good pair of rubber boots!!! :cool: :)
 
I went spear hunting for boar once...

And I don't think I'd go boar hunting again with anything less than a bazooka. But...that's just me...

Nio
 
Heh. Maybe it is too light. Perhaps all those who keep killing hog with .308s are lucky. Consistently. :)

My preference is a good 180g load (such as the FailSafe), on the few occasions I've hunted hog with a .308. Funny, but no one ever questioned my use of an '06 for hog. I guess ~100 fps really makes all the difference, huh? :)



Say, don't be alarmed-- I'm kicking this thread over to The Hunt, where it belongs.
 
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