Gun Talk: Henry Mare's Leg .22

[SD51555]

Been thinking about keeping myself interested on the stand this fall because I'm going wall mounter or nothing this year. I'm considering getting a Henry Mare's Leg .22 for grouse. But I've got a few questions I wanted to throw up on the wall for discussion. My intent is to be able to carry an extra weapon that is smaller, quieter, and more accurate, to use for grouse while on stand vs a full sized .22 or a .22 pistol. So...

*Is it legal to carry a second gun for grouse while on stand for deer?
*Given this gun is shorter than a standard Henry lever .22, can you expect it to be as quiet?
*Has anyone been able to shoot one with any accuracy out to 30 yards?

Anyone that's had/has one, I'd appreciate any info u can share.

 

[Catscratch]

• No idea the legality of it where you are from
• My experience is that the shorter the barrel the louder the gun (same caliber).
  
• Never shot one but it looks like a cool little gun, but I wouldn't even consider shooting it while on stand. Have you thought about a blow dart gun or something? How about a suppressored .22? A .22 rifle with shorts?

 

[wiscwhip]

Where can you shoot grouse or any other gamebirds(besides maybe turkeys in some western areas) with a rifle? Definite no-no in WI!

 

[foggy]

I have some 22 ammo that is more quite / yet more powerful than an air rifle. It's called Aguilla (Mexican) 22 caliber.....and it is amazing stuff for pests. Just uses priming compound and hits speeds of 600 fps. Accurate to 30 yards or so....then falls quite fast. I've killed crows with the stuff. Nobody knows you've shot out of a rifle.

 

[SD51555]

I better dig into the MN rule book to see if we've got language about it.

Foggy, I've also seen those .22 rounds that have no powder, and only a primer. Definitely a neat round that serves a niche purpose.

 

[SD51555]

Where can you shoot grouse or any other gamebirds(besides maybe turkeys in some western areas) with a rifle? Definite no-no in WI!

I checked our book and I didn't see any language about grouse at all really. They get called out in a table for seasons and limits, but they didn't even merit their own paragraph in our book that I could see. But I think you're right, it at least merits more digging. I'll see if I can get an answer from someone on the phone at DNR.

The whole point of using a small caliber rifle like that is because I've bit into shot one too many times and have become gun shy to it.

 

[SD51555]

***Update: I contacted the DNR information line. In MN, it is legal to take a grouse with whatever kind of weapon you want. Now keep in mind that this was a conversation over the phone with a single person, but he also consulted the book and found there was nothing in there for weapons or elevated stand restrictions.

 

[wiscwhip]

I have some 22 ammo that is more quite / yet more powerful than an air rifle. It's called Aguilla (Mexican) 22 caliber.....and it is amazing stuff for pests. Just uses priming compound and hits speeds of 600 fps. Accurate to 30 yards or so....then falls quite fast. I've killed crows with the stuff. Nobody knows you've shot out of a rifle.

Not sure if it was accurate or not, but we used to refer to these types of ammo as .22 CB caps. Tiny little things. Sounds like a cap gun going off and they are plenty accurate to 25+yards and the report is similar to a child's cap gun. There are some interesting links if you Google ".22 CB cap".

 

[foggy]

Not sure if it was accurate or not, but we used to refer to these types of ammo as .22 CB caps. Tiny little things. Sounds like a cap gun going off and they are plenty accurate to 25+yards and the report is similar to a child's cap gun. There are some interesting links if you Google ".22 CB cap".

Quite similar.....but even a bit more quiet....according to those I compared. I think a CB Cap must have a grain or so of powder? My air rifle makes more noise than the Aguilla rounds. You cannot shoot em out of an autoloader....but lever guns work pretty slick. My grandson has shot up a few bricks of this stuff....and likes them because he does not scare off the quarry. Takes a good shot to make a clean kill tho.

 

[Jordan Selsor]

ruger american .22 compact is what I would go with. This may be a lil easier to shoot accurately. They are slick lil guns with a nice trigger. Not sure if supressors are a legal option where you live but it sure makes em quiet;)