PC -- you and I are on the same page. Big bores for big boars. I will hopefully be trying my .458 Lott out on some pigs next weekend. Can't wait!

it depends on the terrain you'll be hunting them in.

Best close range Hog gun that I have is a 450 Marlin lever action.

For medium to close range and the ever present longer range opportunity I like a Model 7 in .308 with a short barrel. I just got one and it works great, a little whippy though.

For 300 yard or so shots under the corn feeders, I like my 7mm Rem Mag with 139 gr Hornady Interbonds at 3275. We are currently trying to reduce the pig population and the corn feeders have worked well.

We all know, though, that these are recommended for pigs that max out at 200lbs, since feral hoglets never grow up to be over 200lbs.

Good, thoughtful post, JJ. Civility is indeed rare and always welcome by me! Anyhow, everywhere I've hunted boar have offered fairly close range opportunities as the terrain has been fairly thickly wooded. So long range capability has not really been an issue for me, hence the handguns that I frequently use. I also use my big bore rifles more for practice than necessity as I am planning to hopefully hunt Africa in the near furture and as I've stated elsewhere, I feel there's no better practice than on a live target. Do I need to use my .458 Lott on hogs? Why of course not, but as long as I'm doing my job (placing the bullet properly), it sure does its job with impunity! Thanks for offering up your knowledge.

I generally use a 375 H&H with 300 gr. Hornady RN because I like to hunt large boars in very thick brush and it gives me a good exit wound and an excellent blood trail.

I've shot a few with a 308. I like 180 grain bullets in the 308 for hogs. Your setup sounds great. I'd stick with the heavier bullets. Large boars have a think shield over their ribcage which prevents good blood trails unless you have a large exit wound.

I agree the Nosler BT's are not that crash hot...I used the 165 gr nos bt on a couple of large pigs and they performed poorly. On the other hand the 300 gr Hornady RN from my cz .375 was a sound perfromer, I am aware we are comparing apples and oranges but the .375 H&H offers a lot of advantages for the serious pig hunter and it is to bad that many see it as a cannon when in fact it is a fine all round medium bore with tolerable recoil.

45-70
350 Gr. Hornady
59.6 Gr. IMR 3031
M.V. 2070 FPS (15' from muzzle)
Use this load only in a Ruger #1, #3, or equal.

My Go to pig gun is a 308 using 150gn Power Points @2750. I usually shoot only sub 200lb pigs. I have some 180PPs @2600 that I'd use if I saw a really big pig. capt david

Have used all the following on pigs.



243, 308, 357, 44, 376 steyr, 375HH, 12 ga with 00



All work well if you do your part. I agree terrain is a factor as is the size of the hogs. However the truth is all of these will do just fine if you do your part. The style of hunting and distance plays a factor as well. It really depends on what you want.

Call me cheap but I cant justify using the 458 on hogs due to ammo cost but it would be fun

.41 caliber handguns. A 41RemMag loaded with a 250g hardcast at about 1200fps for little piggies and a .41GNR#2 loaded with a 265g or sometimes a 290g hardcast also at about 1200fps for BIG PIGGIES those that reach 300+lbs.

Best hog gun? The one you've got in your hand when you see a hog.

I've killed them with everything from a .223 to a .338, and all of them died just about as dead. A two hundred pounder is in the 95th percentile of weights, and most are considerably smaller. Besides, if you happen to be shooting a smaller gun and come across a larger hog, it just makes it all the more sporting.

During my most recent hog run-in I was carrying a BAR in .270 . . . which allowed me to do in three of the mob of 15 before they made it over the nearest hill. I think your BAR .308 is just about perfect for the task. Have fun!

Last Sunday I shooted a 120Kg boar with my 9.3x62Mauser with one shot.
With the same caliber I bagged all my boars with a fall in the track effect. My friends who helped me in butchering operations were amazed because there were few ruined or lost meat. What can I say , for me 9.3x62Mauser is the best , of course.
bye

most any gun/caliber works fine my favorite is a 45/70 Marlin 1895 I also use this rifle for black bears. I can hardly think of any animal in NA ( or the Dark Continet either) that can withstand a 405 gr JSP to it's boiler room!

Mhabby
You have the best pig gun available in my opinion.
We are no longer allowed by our government to own semi autos here in Australia. Prior to that legislation I owned and shot a .308W BAR for about 20 yrs. I have shot several 1000 pigs with that combo using 150 Power Points with great success and many instant one shot kills.
Shot placement is always the key and the brilliant broadside killing shot on ANY sized boar is the high shoulder / spine shot. They will fall in their tracks and provide spectacular kills on the run with this shot.
I suggest either a red dot propoint sight for close work [under 100yds] or a low powered variable [1.5-4.5].
I always used a short barrel [18.5 or 20"] with magna porting to control muzzle lift and allow the fastest follow up shots. My old rifle was sucessfully converted to feed from a 20 shot mag also. We did not have any limitations on capacity until 7 years ago either.
I found the 308 very controllable and it did not lack killing power.
All the calibers suggested will kill pigs just some are more suitable than others especially if you wish to shoot a number of them quickly.
We are forced into using the next best solution here - .308W in a pump action. I use the Browning BPR because it handles similarly to my old BAR and the trigger is superior to the Remington.
APB

I've got to rethink this after seeing what the .458 Lott is capable of doing!

Our new $338 Billion budget, waiting to be signed by Mr Bush ,includes $50,000 to control wild hogs in Missouri. Aren't there any hunters in Mo ??

i seen hogs shot with a 30-30 and a .270 and a 30-06 not to mention the one my "claims" to have shot with a .22 LR

Wow, Gary -- you consistently post pictures of great hogs! I'm very impressed. I wish more of the hogs where I hunt looked like that!

Noticed you didn't get a reply to your question, Papa. Hog hunting around Cotulla, as with most all of South Texas is generally top notch, unless the landowner has done some recent and very serious hog control. February is a great time to be hunting hogs in S. Texas. Have fun.

Looking at that young lad reminds me that a 12 ga with big buckshot is about as effective as it gets for hogs, assuming meat destuction isn't an issue.

Whitworth.

We consistantly shoot or dog boars over 100kgs, I've posted this photo before, but its Matt's favourite and another one he took with the coachgun.



Here's my son with a good boar and a crap haircut.


I shot this one with the 45/70.
Gary.

I have been hog hunting now twice this fall and I cant get enough of it, I have used a 45-70 one time, but now I moved to a Semi Auto config, the 458 SOCOM round, its a thrill because if I come upon more then one hog, I have the chance at engaging both, I have mine topped off with a EO TECH red dot, so fast target engagement is easy and the load i use is a CORBON 600 gain barnes X bullet. very deadly. I wasnt sure how I would feel about using the semi auto but I trusted its reliablity after i worked with it enough to give it a run! Now the 375 HH sure does sound like aother dandy idea....must buy one now!

Probably be best to fit the gun/cal to the situation so-to-speak there are many fine gun/cal combos out there that will definetly get the job done on hogs. But at the same time theres variables to consider the BEST hog gun/cal combo in one situation MAY NOT be the BEST combo for another and so on. just my thoughts!

Safe and Happy Huntin'

The best gun for hogs is the one in your hands when they step out. I just got an e-mail of a 1100 lb hog a guy shot with a pistol he just happen to have in his truck. Two shots to the head and it was over.

On our East Tx lease, more hogs have been killed with the .22 remfire that any other caliber. All were head shots and most were inside traps. The primary differnce we have found between hogs and deer is that the hogs shoulders are like armor and that they tend to be real mean. I quit using a 7MM08 Mod 7 because all the hogs that I shot in the sholder ran off never to be found. I tried 140 and 160 gr loads and could not stop them untill I started using only head shots. The use of large bore heavy calibers will take the bullit placement problems out of the picture. My favorite gun for hogs now is a 300 WSM target rifle with a 26" heavy fluted barrel. I shot my last hog in its tear duct. If you are going to be on foot, consider a fast follow up shot. I once actually ran out of bullets after loading my 30-30 twice. They just wouldn't go away. I dropped five of them and wounded more. I saved my last bullet to sneak out with. Some times the hogs go nuts and will run strait at you slashing every thing they come near. I have had sows even slash thier own shoats.

Being up of the ground in a truck or a blind is a very good idea. And don't think a dead hog is safe. Some times the heard will come back for them. Accuracy always counts more than ftlbs.