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Old March 16, 2013, 07:29 PM   #1
Timb46
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Feral hog protection while backpacking

I currently use a 1911 45 cal five inch barrel, but this weighs about 3.5 lbs including holster & extra mag. Is there something lighter to carry and still have penetration to stop a 300 lb hog?
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Old March 16, 2013, 07:52 PM   #2
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In a word...NO...you might give one of the Glock 10 mm's a look see though. Rod
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Old March 16, 2013, 08:05 PM   #3
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What kind of carry rig are you using? I ask because I carry a 5" 1911 at times, using a Beltman gunbelt and a $100 leather holster and I barely notice the weight at all.

The thing about wild hogs is that they are not as tough as people tend to think they are. I wouldn't want to rely on a .22 LR, granted, but a .45 with proper ammo selection will do the job if you do yours. The problem with hogs is that, compared with white tail deer, they have a relatively small kill zone. So shot placement can be a challenge. If you are a good shot with that 1911, and if it will reliably feed something like 230 grain semiwadcutters, it will serve you well if you can find a way to deal with the weight. Honestly, I'd feel fine carrying a 4" .38 with a hot 158 grain or heavier hardcast semiwadcutter. Something with lots of penetration ability.

A lighter option could be something like the aforementioned Glock, or any of of the other polymer framed autos. Though with a full ammo load and a spare mag out most still going to be well more than 2 lbs. Something like a 3" Ruger SP101 or S&W Model 60 in .357 Magnum may be a possibility.
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Old March 16, 2013, 08:09 PM   #4
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I am curious, where are you going to shoot Feral pig with a .45? You can't do any damage in the head, and their vitals are protected by an armor plate through the shoulder. I have friend who emptied a .357 mag at point blank while hugging a tree trunk just above a pig. The pig finally died after 7 rounds.
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Old March 16, 2013, 08:17 PM   #5
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You can't do any damage in the head...
Here's a video of a hog being killed with a single shot to the head. The gun used was a .177 caliber GAMO air gun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugyO7dcF1n8
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Old March 16, 2013, 08:23 PM   #6
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ive seen hogs take a 338 Mag to the armor plate and keep running like nothing happened, i shot a sow with a 196 grn soft point from 25 yds out of a K98 8mm mauser, same thing she ran away without a hitch in her giddy-up. then again ive killed two hogs come down from 1911's with 2 shots to the shoulder and spine. i think if you put 8 rounds into a hog it will give you enough time to tap rack another mag and put 8 more if necessary...but thats doubtful. i trust my 45 against hogs.
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Old March 16, 2013, 08:53 PM   #7
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Watched the air gun video, based on the downward angle and the thickness of a pigs skull, l'd say that shot went into the spine at the neck or between the shoulder blades. I'd have to see the entry wound into the skull to believe it was a head shot.
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Old March 16, 2013, 09:12 PM   #8
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This discussion just screams for a magnum revolver. A .41 or .44 magnum with Buffalo Bore ammo will fix you right up.
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Old March 16, 2013, 09:35 PM   #9
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.44 mag. I agree. I'd much rather face pig with one of those than a .45. Not familiar with a .41 magnum.
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Old March 16, 2013, 09:37 PM   #10
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Just got back from a pig hunt earlier this year. Two of the pigs (both over 150lbs) in the group we shot were taken with a 44 mag in a Henry Big Boy at 75 yards with shots in the ear. Neither of them took a second step. You can't tell me a 230gr ACP cartrige at handgun range won't kill one just the same.

They aren't as tough as people make them out to be. A bullet on the heavy side moving at a decent velocity should be fine.

I choose not to comment on "shots in the vitals with decent caliber weapons" and the pigs still going when my "inadequite" 308 put two hogs down at 100+ yards just fine. However, another friend made a less than perfect shot on one with his 30-06 that we didn't recover until the next day. My guess is that's where the majority of the people that say these things are "bullet proof" get their stories from.

FWIW my next hogs will confidently be killed with 45 Colt hand loads.
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Old March 16, 2013, 10:18 PM   #11
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Watched the air gun video, based on the downward angle and the thickness of a pigs skull...
Here's another video of a hog killed with an air rifle. The shot is taken from the front of the animal rather than from a downward angle.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xbz...-extreme_sport
Quote:
I'd have to see the entry wound into the skull to believe it was a head shot.
At about 2:35 in this video the hunter shows the entry wound so there can be no doubt about it.

There's nothing magic about hog skulls, nor are they especially thick. Any service pistol class handgun bullet in the right spot will do the trick. It's only a matter of hitting the right spot.
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Old March 16, 2013, 10:34 PM   #12
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Shot placement

Thanks JohnKSa, that was pretty amazing.

Goes to show a well placed .22 with 23 ft lbs energy air gun is better than a less accurate shot from a much larger weapon.
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Old March 17, 2013, 06:45 AM   #13
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I know nothing bout pigs,other than I like ham and bacon.
That said, hiking and hunting are like apples and oranges.
Hiking into a situation with a dangerous animal,most likely
won't allow you to pick your shot.
There's a good possibility while hunting, one will get to pick their shot.
If I hiked, I would have a a front ww2 type tanker's holster
and a 4 inch smith 44 mag. slow,em down and then them off.
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Old March 17, 2013, 10:14 AM   #14
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Thank you "giaquir". I decided to it go to avoid an egoflexing match.

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Old March 17, 2013, 10:30 AM   #15
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Quote:
I currently use a 1911 45 cal five inch barrel, but this weighs about 3.5 lbs including holster & extra mag. Is there something lighter to carry and still have penetration to stop a 300 lb hog?
The biggest hog I ever killed field-dressed at over 350 lbs (the limit of the scale). I dropped him with a .22LR at a range of about 15 feet. He looked up at me and I popped him in the center of the forehead. He dropped like a switch had been thrown and it took four of us to drag him out of the thicket to where we could get him on a vehicle. We weighed him back at camp, sans his innards and that's when the topped-out the scales.

The guys I used to hunt with, though favored something a little heavier for hog hunting on horseback. Almost every one of them carried the .22WM. Headshots only, preferably when the hog is looking at you. Draw an imaginary X from eyes to ears and put a bullet in the center of the X. They drop right there.

The problem comes when you try to take a shoulder shot. If the hog's been running wild for a while, he'll have a big shield of matted hair, gristle, and pine sap over the shoulder area. However, the head shot offers the best chance of anchoring him on the spot.
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Old March 17, 2013, 11:13 AM   #16
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Based on some logic you should carry nothing short of a 500 Smith or 50 bmg.....
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Old March 17, 2013, 11:33 AM   #17
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I recently got my Springfield XDM .45 for our hogs; I figured if I was being charged, I'd rather have 12 bullets to lay into him than worry about shot placement with a low magnum. Hopefully I won't have to find out, but the way it is out here, I may find out eventually.

If it works, I'll let you know! (which I guess means, if I can still post...)
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Old March 17, 2013, 11:58 AM   #18
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Feral hog protection while backpacking

I have model 19 snubby and a 629 snubby I shoot the 629 waay better and would be my choice of a hiking sidearm. For the pics or it didn't happen crowd standby



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Old March 17, 2013, 12:13 PM   #19
Gmony.308
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Based on the you tube videos and the expert authorities available it would reason that no defense weapon is needed. Why everyone on this sight has probably seen the pig hunting series on the Discovery Channel. They use no firearms period.

Therefore I would recommend packing a couple dogs on all hiking trips, and of course a length of rope and possibly a chain link pen. It's perfectly humane, eliminates the risk of being caught with a firearm in a restricted area, and lets face it, no worries of being arrested for poaching!
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Old March 17, 2013, 02:07 PM   #20
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In a word...NO...you might give one of the Glock 10 mm's a look see though. Rod
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Old March 17, 2013, 02:26 PM   #21
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I carry a .44 magnum in the woods, prior to that I carried a .357 until I got up close and personal with a much larger than me black bear, no harm came to either party but I did up size my sidearm.

To me it doesn't matter if the woods may be inhabited by, Chipmunk, Bear, Feral Hog, or Abominable Snowmen, If I can't arm myself, I ain't going in those woods, Period.
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Old March 17, 2013, 02:38 PM   #22
Rmart30
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I usually carry a 45 when i dont have a long gun with me . But around here the hogs run away with a clap of the hands or a yell. With the exception of someone grabbing up a piglet and upsetting momma Ive never seen or heard of one bothering anyone in the wild.
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Old March 17, 2013, 02:46 PM   #23
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I currently use a 1911 45 cal five inch barrel, but this weighs about 3.5 lbs including holster & extra mag. Is there something lighter to carry and still have penetration to stop a 300 lb hog?
In that situation I wohld carry my Glock 20sf loaded with 15+1 rounds of 180, or 200 grain full power 10MM loads from one of the boutique ammo makers like Buffalo Bore, or Underwood.
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Old March 17, 2013, 02:49 PM   #24
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i live is az and i believe we have wld hogs in the n.w. portion of the state. we also have black bear and mt lions as well. i have used several handguns as camping/hikeing handgun. i originaly carried a 7 1/2" ruger redhawk in 44 mag. i them downsized to a 4" taurus model 44 in 44 maag. just as accurate and lighter and easier to carry.

other trail guns i have carried are.....357 mag, 6 shot, snub nosed rossi revolver. uberti thunderer, 3 1/2" western revolver in 45lc. 45 cal springfield 1911 micro or champion. lately a 45 cal, taurus pt-145. mostly the same lighter, easier to carry guns i carry for cc self defense.
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Old March 17, 2013, 02:50 PM   #25
peacefulgary
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How about a Ruger 5-shot SP-101 .357 magnum with a 4" barrel?
29.50 oz empty.

Before choosing a snub-nose consider that the .357 magnum performs much much better from a 4"+ barrel.
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