The survival .17?

[jimbob86]

from john's link:

Got my first deer with my 17 HMR at about 125 yards i hit her in the head and she dropped on the spot. When we get about 5 feet away from it it jumps up and starts running in circles and i shoot her again and she trips and falls and then gets back up and starts chasing after my brother and then she falls again and i shoot her again and she gets back up again and i hit her in the lungs that time and she falls and tries to get back up but she couldn't get back up so we walked up to it and i shot her again to make sure she was dead. And that was the end of her. i hit her in the head 4 times in the lungs once and i know your going to laugh but i hit her in the butt on accident lol. Overall it was a great Hunt

What is so great about wounding a deer repeatedly with an inferior caliber?

I think a 17WSM would be a decent enough survival round, what with the potential 3000fps and about 400 foot pounds at the muzzle. The faster and stronger than 9mm!

The OP is talking about using a 7" barrelled HMR revolver .... I doubt he is going to get those numbers out it.

Even if he did use a .17WSM, penetration is the key, and a 17-20 grain bullet would likely go "poof" on contact at that speed (I know a 130 grain soft point will), leaving a nasty surface wound ..... and the guy trying to get some calorieswill end up expending a lot of them chasing a wounded animal.

Dumb idea .....both of them.

[Koda94]

wouldn't the best "survival caliber" be the one you are most likely to find on other persons?

I'm thinking 9mm would be a good choice?

if your survival depends on taking down wild game for food then its whatever tool you have to do it with. But I certainly would never hunt deer with a .17, 22lr, or 9mm. The idea of a survival gun is over-rated, I would pick something for better suited for self defense and learn to hunt other ways conserving ammo as much as possible.

[L_Killkenny]

You might not have to worry about taking a deer but you better have a way to make fire, even for an over-niter.

100% agree. But that comes from being prepared in the first place. A lighter backed up by matches = good idea. Romatic dreams about being Davy Crocket = not so much.

Your an idiot that didn't do more than skim this thread and comment. Your attitude is not needed nor wanted here....stop trolling and don't post garbage like that in here again.

Let me take that under consideration for a moment........... OK, moments up. You wanna get pissy when you post one of the worst ideas the net has seen in some time and someone calls you on it? Feel free. Just called a spade a spade. Might save some poor deer from some fool kids that read that and say "Ya, think I'll try it". It was a bad idea. Using enough gun is important to success in hunting, even more important IF you ever pull that one in a million ordeal and NEED to kill for food. Why in the hell people think that cartridges becomes better in times of need is besides me.

[BerdanSS]

I've seen your posts in several threads.....

Here ya go

[Niantician]

I'm a huge fan of the 17hmr. I think it outshines 22s in almost every catagory. But in this case, I would definitely take a 22mag over a 17hmr. !7s have poor penetration against bone. My one question for you would be.. Do you really think in a survival situation, you're going to be shooting deer? Id be consentrating on birds in which case the 17 is perfectly suited.

[Ricklin]

Bring enough gun. .17 is not enough gun.

It's also illegal to hunt deer in Oregon with the .17 I'm sure that is the case in other states as well.

Bad idea. If we are considering survival.......22 is far more common and available. Centerfire calibers can be reloaded.

With regard to compact, accurate small caliber firepower. I would prefer to have my Walther G22 over a .17 HMR revolver in a "survival scenario".

[BerdanSS]

I'm sure if your starving to death due to some disastrous situation, or in the case of civilization collapsing...your number one worry will be to make sure you are complying with state conservation caliber laws....

Just a thought running through the heads of three overworked board guys on lunch break. Put down the phones, no one is hunting deer with a .17hmr.

Hey...lets jump to a more realistic subject that everyone seems to be on board with happening over the other subject and wont shut up about....can a .17hmr take down a zombie?

Or how much more are my P-mags and glock 26 worth now?

Question asked....
good feed back both ways....
traditional but hurt....
Mods close please and good night

[Koda94]

My question is if you had the time to plan ahead for such a survival situation why would you pick a .17?

[dogtrainer]

It is better to compare it to the 22LR than the 22 Magnum. The 20 grain 17 HMR loading would be great for piercing deer sculls or even taking shots through the ribs (more risky but still doable).

Body shots on rabbits and squirrels with the 20 grain load just make a pencil size hole through the animal; the 17 grain ballistic tip destroys too much meat on small game body shots.

It easily is twice as accurate as the 22 LR thus making it easier to hit your target.

In short, in every way but cost it is a much more updated rimefire cartridge than the 22LR and would be nice in an over-under 17HMR/410 (for example the Savage Model 42).

The 22 Magnum would have the advantage over the 17 HRM because of the heavier and faster 40 grain bullet will give you more penetration.

If I was going to be in a survival situation for less than two months I would go with the 17 HMR. For more than two months I would choose the 22LR because of the lower cost of ammunition.

[Remington74]

Ads long as you are talking about the Single Six I would suggest getting the one with the 22LR and 22 Mag cylinders. If I was to take it with me in it's "Survival Option" mode I would go with the magnum cylinder.

As far as supply of ammo goes, run down to Wal-Mart today and buy a couple/half dozen boxes of ammo and you should be good to go.

Any one who waits for the day after the shtf day to look for ammo is probably going to be out of luck anyway.

Stock up now for whatever caliber you plan to depend on in the future.

[BerdanSS]

Oh I'm stocked...I make sure of that

Koda:

I understand what you mean. But I was taking about UN-planed if it was the only thing you had.



I also understand this could be a confusing thread, but I see WAY more silly threads posted, so I didn't see the harm in asking. Honestly, if disaster really struck....and I had to grab a bug out bag and go...I'd probably be reaching for my 30-30, or maybe one of the ARs. This was just something I posted to simply ask "would it do the job", silly I know.

I do think it odd that some people swear by particular guns or calibers to "carry in the woods" or "around the ranch" to handle anything from rats to badgers...but when asked about using that same thing in an emergency situation...It all changes to "oh no...not that at all...it's completely wrong for that...you need a .458 lott minimum for anything bigger than a muskrat .....oh well. I got my answer.

[three-fifty-seven]

Kenny:

Your an idiot that didn't do more than skim this thread and comment. Your attitude is not needed nor wanted here....stop trolling and don't post garbage like that in here again.

Everyone else...Good points made....all of them...from both sides. And made in a respectful, objective manner no less.

Really dude?

[mashaffer]

Just a couple of quick thoughts.

In a survival situation I think one would be better served thinking along the lines of small game rather than deer (unless of course it is a survival situation for the entire tribe) as you are not probably going to be in a situation where storing the carcass is very practical.

A .22LR makes a lot of sense to me but I would also include a wrist rocket and a couple of extra bands.

mike