Min. calibre for fox?

pajero2005

Hi all,

Just a few questions re fox shooting. Would a .22 magnum be suitable or would I need something a little bigger? What, if any, season applies to fox shooting? And finally, would a .223 be a good move in the future from my current .22 magnum? As ye can probably guess i'm fairly new to shooting but am really enjoying it so far. Thanks for any replies and happy hunting.;)

endasmail

pajero2005 wrote: »

Hi all,

Just a few questions re fox shooting. Would a .22 magnum be suitable or would I need something a little bigger? What, if any, season applies to fox shooting? And finally, would a .223 be a good move in the future from my current .22 magnum? As ye can probably guess i'm fairly new to shooting but am really enjoying it so far. Thanks for any replies and happy hunting.;)

.22 magnum suitable for foxes=depends on range,imo twould be at 100 yards
fox season=paddys day ,to end of august,september(rearing the cubs)
and yes a move to a .223 would be a good idea unless your going shooting deer ,to which you will need to go up in caliber .eg .243,,22-250,270

pajero2005

Cheers, clears up a few issues.

bunny shooter

enda is totally correct however there is no defined fox "season". Most shooters observe a cease fire period while they are raising cubs somewhere like the time period referred to above

spideog7

I've a .22magnum and I find it great. It's deadly accurate out to ~120yds. I wish I could say I know from experience but I've only had a few nights out after foxes unfortunately due to being away from home finishing up at college and I haven't had any luck with them so far.

I've had one fox injured that I never got, which put me off shooting them for a while, until I was really certain of my shot, but I've it well zeroed now and I've taken plenty of rabbits since (head shots out past 100yds). Had one other 'miss' because there was no bullet in the chamber (that was REALLY annoying), but I've only been out a handful of times.

The brother used to have a .22magnum though and he took plenty of foxes with it. Occasionally you'd get a walker but they'd never go far and I've heard that happen to a lad who shoots with a .22-250. If you're shooting at night you really need to be getting them in to around 80 or 90yds anyway.

Foxes are vermin so there's no closed season as such, most people would hunt them mostly over the winter and when the game season finishes up out to around Easter. Around November or December when they're mating is often a good time to shoot at night, although they won't come to the whistle that well, they won't take much notice of a lamp either, they'd be too busy

pajero2005

Thanks a million for the info. Big help. I'll stick to rabbits for the moment so.

Deer Hunter DL

my father uesd to shoot foxes with a standard .22 foe years then he moved to a .22 mag and now we use a .22 Hornet great wee gun for the foxes

Caoimhín

Deer Hunter DL wrote: »

my father uesd to shoot foxes with a standard .22 foe years then he moved to a .22 mag and now we use a .22 Hornet great wee gun for the foxes

Yep, my .22 Hornet is the bane of the local Sionnach/ Madra Rua population.

Note, how bloody uninspired is Madra Rua? Red dog?

pajero2005

Thanks lads.

I was just a little worried about tagging one and not giving it a quick send off, but now that I know the gun is up to it, it's time to get my eye in to make sure that i am!! Late august/September is time enough to head out for the little buggers?

Caoimhín

pajero2005 wrote: »

Thanks lads.
Late august/September is time enough to head out for the little buggers?

Sure is, get your eye in by popping off some pesky wabbits over the summer. Happy hunting.

westwicklow

I use CZ 527 in .223 Rem c/w Schmidt & Bender 7X50 Klassic (German) with devestating results on foxes at night out to approx 150 to 200 yds, light and easy to maintain though rapid reload may sometimes jam up!

curts243

if you are still looking for a suitable fox calibre a .22 mag would do but for further range so you wouldnt have to be annoyed by being 50 yards out of range i would advise something bigger i personally use a 22-250 and a 243 for foxes.

and if you are wanting a good all round calibre i would choose a 243 as you could then start deer stalking and not have to have two guns

hope ive helped

Dusty87

endasmail wrote: »

.22 magnum suitable for foxes=depends on range,imo twould be at 100 yards
fox season=paddys day ,to end of august,september(rearing the cubs)
and yes a move to a .223 would be a good idea unless your going shooting deer ,to which you will need to go up in caliber .eg .243,,22-250,270

is a 22-250 big enough for deer?
Sorry, but not big up on deer shooting

jwshooter

NO ,is the simple answer it was designed as a varmint round.

pajero2005

Is it possible to get a licence for a .243 without having access to deer or deer hunting licence? I'm planning on getting something a bit bigger later this year (was thinking .223)and would like to get into deer stalking at some point. But I cant see that happening for a year or two. It would be great if I could get one gun now and not have to trade up again.

bunny shooter

jwshooter wrote: »

NO ,is the simple answer it was designed as a varmint round.

It is legal for deer shooting, and I know 2 people who use it for same, it is the "smallest" calibre allowed according to NPWS, although they "recommend" .243 as the minimum.

kakashka

pajero2005 wrote: »

Is it possible to get a licence for a .243 without having access to deer or deer hunting licence? I'm planning on getting something a bit bigger later this year (was thinking .223)and would like to get into deer stalking at some point. But I cant see that happening for a year or two. It would be great if I could get one gun now and not have to trade up again.

Yes it is possible to licence a .243 without Deer,hunting licence,depending on your situation.
If your going to stalk in near future then i would advise to try get Deer licence now as it costs very little plus little if any price difference between .223 and Deer calibre gun.

kakashka

jwshooter wrote: »

NO ,is the simple answer it was designed as a varmint round.

Yes as BS said 22-250 is legal deer calibre
And like BS i also know lot of ppl using same,one in particular taking some of the biggest Reds i've ever seen without any problem,
more more more calibre wont make you a good marksman.
Having said that NPWS are holding 22-250 section applicant's to ransom!!!