Salop Matt Posted July 14, 2011 Report Share Posted July 14, 2011 Folks, At 35 yards (my zero range) can anyone tell me the likely out come of head shooting a rabbit head on ? IE will it go through the skull and have the energy to penetrait into the body or neck ? Ive only ever head shot rabbits side on or from behind and deliberately left the head on shots. I ask as next week iv got some rabbit shooting coming up thats numbers orientated, the land owner wants as many as possible shooting and I also get to keep what I shoot but cant sell anything that am not sure of the damage and lead being restricted to the head only ! So if anyone has any experience of shooting rabbits head on with a sub 12 fpe .177 that would be much appreciated ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beretta28g Posted July 14, 2011 Report Share Posted July 14, 2011 May stay lodged in but it could and sometimes does go straight through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ste12b Posted July 14, 2011 Report Share Posted July 14, 2011 If their heads are anything like squirrels, don't bother as it does not kill them instantly. I very much doubt you would go into the body as a side on shot of a rabbit to the head at that distance (35 yds) does not go all the way through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFN Posted July 14, 2011 Report Share Posted July 14, 2011 Head-on shots can ricochet off the cranium so side-on is better - if you look at a rabbit skull you will see why, the pellet would have to penetrate the nasal cavity and the boney skull between the eyes. Having said that I have cleanly killed rabbits with head on shots when the top of the head is clearly visible, ie if they are eating and I'm in a slightly elevated position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKPoacher Posted July 14, 2011 Report Share Posted July 14, 2011 On rodents the bone of the forehead and between the eyes is very tough. Penetration depends on pellet type. A hard pellet may go through whereas a lead domed pellet might not. Even so the impact is often enough to kill it outright. Squirrels are tougher beasts and I've seen them knocked out with a forehead shot apparently dead, and get up again a few minutes later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubshot Posted July 14, 2011 Report Share Posted July 14, 2011 Aware of Several Shooters that Supply Zoo's They will only go for Head Shots They chop off Heads - to make Sure No pellet effects those it's being fed to BOB/R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.I.A Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 The pellet will more than likely just become lodged in its skull, at that range you may get the odd round go straight through. I shot one last night that was face on to me, at around 30 yards aimed for the top of the head and it went down instantly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dekers Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 It depends entirely on the pellet entry position, but it is generally unlikely the pellet will pass right through at that distance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaiyn Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) On rodents the bone of the forehead and between the eyes is very tough. Penetration depends on pellet type. A hard pellet may go through whereas a lead domed pellet might not. Even so the impact is often enough to kill it outright. Squirrels are tougher beasts and I've seen them knocked out with a forehead shot apparently dead, and get up again a few minutes later. Actually, I completely agree with the above. When you head shot a squirrel with close to 12fpe and a domed .177 pellet, the sound is massively louder than a simlar headshot on a coney. Regarding the OP question, if you can image and shoot directly to the centre of the cranium at the suggested range, an instant kill is pretty certain. It is akin to Wing-chun's centreline punching idea, so a quartering shot to the cranium should (and in my experience, does) switch off the rabbit as instantly as a classic 'twixt ear and eye' shot. I have yet to have a pellet bounce off, no matter what angle I shoot the brainbox at. Having spouted all that I have, only in recent years have I taken the above approach and still prefer the side on shot whenever possible. Best regards, Z. Ps. Back-of-head shots are a safe bet! Edited July 15, 2011 by Zaiyn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKPoacher Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 Actually, I completely agree with the above. When you head shot a squirrel with close to 12fpe and a domed .177 pellet, the sound is massively louder than a simlar headshot on a coney. Regarding the OP question, if you can image and shoot directly to the centre of the cranium at the suggested range, an instant kill is pretty certain. It is akin to Wing-chun's centreline punching idea, so a quartering shot to the cranium should (and in my experience, does) switch off the rabbit as instantly as a classic 'twixt ear and eye' shot. I have yet to have a pellet bounce off, no matter what angle I shoot the brainbox at. Having spouted all that I have, only in recent years have I taken the above approach and still prefer the side on shot whenever possible. Best regards, Z. Ps. Back-of-head shots are a safe bet! It's to do with the design of their heads. All rodents make use of their front teeth and therefore have a reinforced area of bone leading down the nasal chamber to these teeth. Animals such as squirrels that feed on nuts have a stronger bone than those that nibble grass. That's why a forehead shot on a squirrel sounds so loud and doesn't penetrate when using lead domed pellets whereas on a bunny they might smash the bone but not go much further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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