Anybody hunting S. FL these days. The hogs aren't that big and teeth are not that long but lots of hogs around. I guided there for quite some time and always had a freezer full. In order to keep the leases I had to kill a lot of hogs with clients or on my time. Photos of my best and a standard meat hog.

Very nice!

Here is one of my best central Florida (Lake Okeechobee region) hogs. Wish I had better photos........

Killed a lot of Florida hogs!

Nice. I hunted out of Arcadia up to Wauchula and down to Okee and other various places. Clients normally did well but I had one ranch where I did bird hunts only. Therefore, I had to kill all the pigs. That big boar was an absolute fluke. He was a bachelor hiding in a small grove. His gristle plate was almost non-existent. I loved hunting them but am not unhappy about not having to skin them anymore.

Skinning them is a drag, that's for sure!

Damn, now I want a Steyr.

Nice photos and very practical Steyr ,what caliber and model please.

It's a .376 steyr. Unfortunately they didn't do that well, especially after Ruger came out with their new offerings.
I filled the stock with foam, added a couple spacers, and painted it. I reversed the scope bases and cut a dovetail in the rear. Stuck a ghost ring in it and mounted a 1x3 Weaver in QD mounts. You can see it in the pic. I also had a tactical light rig for follow ups at night when clients wouldn't listen.
The caliber might not have caught on but with the 270 grain H-day rounds, hogs would crumple. Although it looks and works well as an up close carbine, it will also reach out far enough for sensible shooting.
I still have it and contemplate selling now that I'm not guiding but we have a bit of "history" together and she doesn't take up much safe space.

JEff:
Those two I killed back in July '11. Were on a put n take place just N of Cedar Key. One was 147# the other an even 200#.
No pics as my camera and ALL my picture cards were stolen while I was in the hosp last yr.

Wish you well, nice hogs,
George

George, Thanks for the compliments. I didn't know there were any put and takes in that area. My bird ranch was but not hogs. Of course, I left Florida in 2005 after the hurricanes had pretty much wiped me out. Regardless a 200lb'r is a big pig for that area. I like the small ones for eating. I've been in Iraq and/or Africa since late 05 so it's nice to reflect back.
Cheers

photo4 by tarawa1943, on Flickr

My best Florida hog.

Nice hog, Tarawa!

Jeff:
This guy claimed he drove 2hrs south to pick up hogs from a trapper on a big ranch. Never said where that was, just that much. His place is just north of Cedar Key on the west hwy about 3-5 miles. He's a crook, so IF you go there don't trust the bastard with promises they don't mean a thing once you're away from there. He did do a right decent job of mounting these two. but, screwed me around on shipping damages and no skulls he'd promised to send. Later he claimed I'd shot 'em in the head.
So what, it went thru above the eyes and out the tissue in the throats on both. No bone damage at all other than the bullet hole in the forehead. I shot from about 40 feet with a 100gr .243. I was real careful to make the shot as I wanted the skulls.
We don't have wild pigs up here in Colo yet that I'm aware of. Hope we don't get 'em either.
Wish you well,
George

Can't post hog pics as I am unable to access photosharing sites from inside work, but does anyone know of hog hunting opportunities/nuisance removal in the Tampa/Brandon FL area? Prefer fair chase and with the amount down here would like to stay away from the commercial hunt locations. Used to hunt a friend's land, but he sadly took his own life earlier this year, so not an option. Gently used military vet willing to earn hunting opportunities via farm work etc. Could also trade spearfishing filets for shot opportunities on hogs.

Cheers,

JP

quote:

I shot from about 40 feet with a 100gr .243.

So much for porkers being hard to take down. We that have done it know better!

quote:

Originally posted by Doubless:

quote:

I shot from about 40 feet with a 100gr .243.

So much for porkers being hard to take down. We that have done it know better!

Often times yes, but sometimes no. Each and every animal is a law unto itself, but each and every animal that is brained or spined isn't going anywhere. Lunged? Heart shot? Sometimes, all bets are off -- and this applies to all species of animals. JMHO.

Sorry, but I have shot several truckloads of hogs, and it just isn't that hard to put them on the ground. I have several friends that shoot them with 6MMs and have no problems period. You just have to know where to put the bullet. Granted they were in a trap, but I once dispatched a pair of 170# boars (litter mates, I suspect...) with a single shot each to the brain with a .22 short out of a Ruger Single Six!

Shoot them in the head: it is the biggest part of a hog, and if you do it right, it is just like GW says: drop and paddle... But shoot them wrong, as in behind the shoulder (as opposed to through the shoulders...) or too low in the snout, and you may have a mess.

And if you don't have the head shot, wait until you do. After all, it is just a hog. It isn't like there is a shortage of them to hunt...

And I've shot several trainloads. I was an editor with Boar Hunter magazine and got more opportunities to wack and stack hogs than I care to admit.

Like every breed of animal, there are those that lay down and die and there are those that are unwilling to go quietly. I have encountered both. I am not a head shooter -- never have been, and can say with certainty that I never will be. Not a shot that always presents itself and if flubbed, not good at all. I prefer high-shoulder shots. But even if you screw that one up, you still get lungs and a dead animal is the result. We hunt them mainly at night and well, waiting around for the absolute best shot isn't a luxury that we have. No, one could argue that shooting them in the head doesn't make them go down quickly, and I would argue that shooting any and every animal in the head (assuming you've actually brained them) puts them down right now -- even elephant. That doesn't mean the animal is necessarily "easy" to put down. I think, by comparison, that whitetail are easier to kill and don't require as good a bullet construction. I've seen a couple of hogs over the years absorb a whole lot more lead than one would think possible. It's not common, but it does happen and in many cases, I have seen bullets fail particularly if the hog has a meaningful gristle plate.

And no, I don't think they are bulletproof by any stretch, but I have seen some eat lead in ridiculous quantities and have been in awe.

Not being argumentative........

Being around the farms most of my life and watching MANY pigs brained for butchering while eating a handful of corn on the shop floor. I know where to hit 'em and know my guns well too. These were standing facing me as I waited until they were. The smallest was eating, the biggest was staring me in the eye while I was trying to find his head in the 6x glass in the dark shade. Glass was too powerful for the range and very hard to locate where I wanted to shoot him. Finally saw the one full sized ear and got it figured out. They don't go anywhere brained. Only animals I shoot for the brains are beef and now pigs etc though I did a bull elk once when a kid with a .22lr under the ear. Long time ago and much has been learned and changed in my ways since.
I've been taught to take the best shot thats presented and have no regrets unless you flub it up. These two pigs I was very careful of my shot placement and had plenty of time and a good tree trunk to rest against too. I was and am very pleased with my shot placement on both. They went right where I wanted and exited out the throat without any bone damage to the skulls. Thats how I planned it and turned out exactly that way. I have no regrets either. I could have done as well with a .22lr on these two.
George

I guess we will just have to agree to disagree, but one final anecdote: my riflesmith chases hogs with an ATV and chase/catch dogs. His sidearm of choice is a Ruger single action in 32 Magnum, stoked with hard cast 115s I load for him.

I guess I should tell him to go buy a 475 Linebaugh!

Braining anything short of an elephant can be done with a .22. Lung 'em with one and tell me how well it does. Braining them speaks nothing of their toughness or how quickly they can be brought down -- this goes for every species of animal. Again, not trying to be argumentative. .475 Linebaugh works well in the boiler-room -- I've used one on many hogs.

quote:

Braining anything short of an elephant can be done with a .22. Lung 'em with one and tell me how well it does.

Bugger up that shoulder shot high with your 475 Linebaugh and you get nothing as well. Especially on a hog... As has been said before, there is nothing that will remedy a bad shot.

As I offered to do once already, let's just agree to disagree. You are a proponent of "bigger is better"; I just don't see it that way, choosing precise bullet placement or not taking the shot. After all: something is about to die; even if it is just a pig...

Bigger is better with regards to handguns IMO. I don't have to rely on expansion, nor do I have to push them fast to make them work well. There still is no replacement for placement and never have I suggested that precise shot placement isn't the most important item. I practice a lot to be able to shoot my hand cannons well enough.

High shoulder works wonderfully on hogs.