Which Caliber for Gator?

M

MTT TL

New member
My National Geographic came the other day and it had short piece in it about gator hunting. I have never hunted gators in my life but it got me to thinking about it. The picture (blurry) showed what looked like a long barrel Ruger Blackhawk shooting the gator in the head at close range after drawing him to the boat.

Anyway I was wondering what you guys that hunt gator use and why. Also if anyone else read the piece and can identify the revolver I was wondering about that also.
 
Which caliber for gator.. Sounds like a trick question.. Thats something I would not hunt myself. But I would go with a 12ga slugs or buck shot. And hope for the best. To many teeth for me to be hunting. And whats the bait???
 
Actually this is not really a firearm (as most of you know it). We use 'bangsticks', it's a chamber on the end of a pole. I like 12 ga.

For bait we usually use past due chickens that are available at your local grocery store. Leave them in the sun and they turn pretty quickly and gators love them.

A gators brain is small, towards the back of the head and V shaped. It's also a very primitive animal. If you don't know what you're doing, you can be severely injured.

The sport is not for lightweights which is why I now just run the boat.
 
Years ago I was a machineist/ engineer developing powerheads for commercial fisheries. Yep, most of what you see on TV is bogus, those guys don't take many chances on losing $1K fish.

Daggit, everything is different underwater. Yes, the original BangStick was just a pole with a chamber at the end. Way back they tried the 30-06, .303, .357 and some weird stuff like a .38 with a .44 case over the round.

Later they were attached to the spears of "addict guns". These were popular in the 70's. Custom built guns powered by CO2. Shark hunting was at it's peak here from '67 to '72. Everybody wanted a sharktooth necklace. I helped and used 12 Ga.

Today powerheads are mostly used by commercial divers for food purposes. I don't know what they use anymore. A .357 shold devastate most food fish and shock many more around it.
 
The short answer: Bangstick, with a .357 being more than sufficent.

The long answer:

The head of a gator is hard, small brain and lots of bone. What you have heard about bullets bouncing off of them is true to a extent on the really big ones.

I have on more than a couple of occasions set the bangstick off to far forward with the result that the bullet simply bounces off the skull. As stated before you want to hit them right at the base of the skull where it joins the spine not actually in the head.

We use reloads most of the time with a 180 grain rifle bullet like would be used in a .35 Remington. ( Yes I know the standard is a 200 grain in the .35 but you can get 180s.) The reason is that it will not expand and the shape of it allows it to penetrate better. This is not a issue on smaller ones but when you get up to the 10 foot and over ones there can be some meat to pass through before it hits the spine.

In addition to the obvious safety concern generated by the fact that a bullet can bounce off a gator skull there is a Florida regulation that prohibits the use of pistols and the like to dispatch gators. Other states may be different.

As for bait. We do not use it. For a lot of reasons which I can go into if you are really interested...........
 
Oh come on guys. Gators aren't that bad. IF I were to ever hunt gators;), it would be with a bowfishing rig and a .22 LR. It would be sporting, challenging, and a helluva rush. No need for some gigantic cartridge to destroy that good meat and hide. 9mm would do just fine too;)
 
22LR

An old Cajun trapped gators on our Duck Lease in the LA marsh in a high sided "mud boat". They were trapped with a hook embedded in a chicken thigh attached to a 14' cane pole. He use his old 22 rifle because he wanted no damage to the hide. He was shooting straight down at about 10 feet.
 
In addition to the obvious safety concern generated by the fact that a bullet can bounce off a gator skull there is a Florida regulation that prohibits the use of pistols and the like to dispatch gators.
Click to expand...

The photo in NG was taken in LA. I don't know what the rules are there but I can see the concern. That would have to be a pretty thick skull for a .44 mag round to bounce off of though.

Ok so this is bang stick? I think I have seen them used for humane livestock dispatch.

BangsticksAS.jpg
 
I'd use FMJ if you're going to use a pistol round. In TX you can shoot them using pistols--catch them with hooks, pull them in close and shoot them in the brain.
 
Oh come on guys. Gators aren't that bad. IF I were to ever hunt gators, it would be with a bowfishing rig and a .22 LR.
Click to expand...


if you really want a challenge, jump in the water with a knife. fair fight that way.:D
 
if you really want a challenge, jump in the water with a knife. fair fight that way
Click to expand...
Fair fight is to bail off into the water with just yer wits and swim trunks and wrestle the mucker to shore where the roll of tape awaits...:eek: That is how I do it ever since losing my knife...:cool:
Brent
 
Mtt tl many a gator has meet its death to a good oll 22 rifle and don't ask how i know this. Use a top water plug and just tease or pull them right up to the boat or maybe 10 feet then shoot them.The brain is small for sure but the impact even if not died can stun them enough to grab the nose/mouth and cut the neck/ spinal cord right at the bend in the neck when bent over a boats side.
 
An older guy (34) that worked for my dad was the one that started haul'n me to the woods when young(13) I do remember him and one more gator getter use to try to bait or wait out a gator to shoot it but would also flip a coin to see who would go down and place a rope loop over the gators head and then pull it up. They would swim right into the gator cave with it. They still have all there fingers too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top