Bummer

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We have been invaded by Hogs, my partner and I have killed 60 in the last year. After Hurricane Rita dropped 70% of the oak trees in our county it is virtually imposable to get into the woods. We are having to set up feeders on pipe lines and high lines. I have a feeder set up at 50 yards,500 yards, and 1000.

Last Saturday seven bores walked out at 500 yards. Having taken 500lb hogs before we know what a big one looks like.
These ranged from 300 to well over 500 pounds. I was starting to regret the 308 was sitting in the rest on the top of my two story shooting trailer rather than my 300 win mag.
The 308 will hold 2 1/2 to 3" from the top of the trailer so I decided to go with it.

I waited for them to settle down. Big boy had to make it clear that none of the others were going to feed on his side of the table.

He finally turned sideways and I sent the 175 gr MK.. He dropped on impact, but got up and made it to the swamp 50 yards away.

After a long wait we went to investigate. I saw a 8" scratch on the ground. It did not appear to be the work of a hog. I found the Mk 3/4" under the ground. We had to enter the swamp on our stomachs. Just a few yards in I found a piece of upper leg bone with a perfect hole in it. If the pictures come out you will see the base of the MK sitting in the hole.

Due to ten to twelve yard visibility on our stomachs in the swamp. We decided to return the next day with shotguns.
Sorry to say we did not find him in this wall of timber.

Hate this was so long, but what are the odds of finding you're bullet on a 512 yard shot, and then the leg bone?.

Hope I post the pictures correctly.

 

[davewilson]

i would say the odds of me crawling on my stomach, in a swamp, with low light, after a wounded 500 lb hog would be much lower then finding the bullet after the shot!

thanks for the story and pics.

 

[James Jones]

Wild hogs are worse than roaches and rats put together , once you got them its impossible to get rid of them. They do make a great test medium though !! I've shot several big boars over the 500lb mark and found them only fit coyote bait, so now if I shoot to eat its the 30-100lb porkers.
We still catch some of the realy big ones but we cut them and corn feed for several months before butchering.
We catch them with dogs so I know how you feel about going in after a wounded boar , hand to hand is not the way to do it !!!
Thats a great shot and very intersting to see how the "target" bullets do on critters. You would be amazed at the damage a hog can take and still survive and make a **** fine comback , we cought one that had a bad limp after butchering found that he had been shot several times , three of his vertibra were fused together with calcium with a bullet in their !! and his hip socket was mess with calcium and scar tissue but he lived for more than a year after we cought him and he was totaly healed when we cough him so thats a testiment to their survival ability , that big boy may have lived

 

[Buffalobob]

Maybe I won't go hog hunting after all if they are that tough. Maybe I'll just stay home where it is safe.

 

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The reason for the 50 yard feeder is we both carry our 45/70's with us in case they hit that feeder. We try and see how many we can get before they make it to the swamp.

It gives you a funny feeling when you make a perfect shot on a 200 pounder then he hits the ground, only to stand back up and start walking off. I wont to scream don't you know you have been shot with a Buffalo gun.

I know its not long range, but getting four for four with a lever gun is a hoot.

 

[41mag]

Aaawww come on BB you ain't gonna let a little thing like a tough piggy hold ya back are ya.

I got this one this evening just before dark. He soaked up 4 150gr Solid base from the 7mm STW before giving it up. First shot was just over 150 yds and hit him behind the left shoulder and stopped just under the hide on the right. Made a cool impression on the shoulder plate. The others sort of just hit where I could as he was working on getting outta there. He hit the ground all but the first time, and kept on keeping on. The last shot went in behind the right shoulder and headed into the neck region.

 

[long action]

Mike. Did you weigh him?. If not I would like to have a good old Texas "Recon" weight.

 

[41mag]

Nope didn't get this one to the scales. It was about all I could do to get the pic's he was pretty rank.

Based on some of the others we have weighed, I would put him somewhere between 180 and 200. He was a lot more than what he looks in the pic's. Real thick from top to bottom and pleanty of muscle.

He had several cuts and gashes on his shoulders and front legs, he was definately a tush hog for sure. Wouldn't have wanted to have to have taken him riled up in the thick stuff. Been there done that, don't care to repeate it.

 

[hoghound]

Mike, tellum about the time we sicked the hounds onum and they bayed up over at Grady's in the thorn thicket next to the river...that was funny as hell. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[ol mike]

[ QUOTE ]
i would say the odds of me crawling on my stomach, in a swamp, with low light, after a wounded 500 lb hog would be much lower then finding the bullet after the shot!

thanks for the story and pics.

[/ QUOTE ]

Now that's funny right there . /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Man if'n i lived where there was hogs like that i'd build a -well i'm going to do a little thinking on it.
500yds w/crazy knock down power?

Somebody needs to make some high bc .375's.

Thanks for the pictures. -Mike

 

[remingtonman_25_06]

Dang, I didn't know hogs got that big (500lbs) or were that tough, 4 shots from a 7 STW is amazing to me. Those hogs sounds like there a real pain in the ***.

 

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A sow has a liter every six months. They can breed at six months old. A single sow will produce 280 hogs in her lifetime. It is estimated that there are 4.5 million hogs in Texas.

Here is a picture of one it took us two months to get. He had dug a hole in a small airport runway and flipped a plain.

The airport called me. They had me set up my shooting trailer at the end of the runway. East Texas verson of homeland defence. Can you picture two guys sitting on top of a trailer with 300 Win mags at JFK?.

 

[williamhill]

i kill over 200 a year on my place up to 600 lbs.

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