VarmintAir's Airgun Hunting Blog

Late Summer Ground Squirrel Hunting - In Northern Arizona - A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

A field of wildflowers.  Looking northwest, with the San Francisco Peaks, 30 miles away on the horizon.

Got out yesterday for some exploring and ground squirrel hunting.  This is our rainy season, and the forest has exploded with its annual display of late summer wildflowers.   I think I'll keep the words to a minimum, and just let the pictures speak for themselves.

I headed into a new area, and almost immediately knew I was on the right track. How? Lots of furry hints, as seen below.

After twenty minutes of driving along, with my mouth hanging open, as much from the shear beauty of the forest, as the number of ground squirrels I was seeing, I decided I needed to get my gear out, and do a bit of hunting.  The gun of choice, once again, was my RWS Rapier in .22.

On my way in, I saw a Red Tail hawk working the area, looking for squirrel mcnuggets for breakfast. I was going to suggest he just follow me.  I've got an excellent way of collecting them, that mainly uses small amounts of lead and air.

Near the first area that I stopped to hunt.

Below are some pictures from the morning hunt.

Moving to another area nearby, I pulled into this spot for a quick lunch break.

In the afternoon, I continued to explore the general area by vehicle, but did make a quick hunt, around a good looking spot, and dropped this guy at 58 yards.

Now, for the weird happening of the day.  As I'm hunting the area, that I dropped the above squirrel in, I see something strange in my binos. About 70 yards away, I see a stump that has a blob of something on the top of it.  From a distance, and in the prevailing light, it kind of looks like a ground squirrel that has been turned inside out by something like a .220 Swift, shooting 55 grain ballistic tips.  I should know, I've been there done that.

The problem is, there is also what looks like, an arrow sticking out of the stump.  I don't bow hunt, but I know it's highly unlikely that an arrow did that.  Of course, I've got to go over and see this mess, up close and personal.

When I got over to it, it took me a bit to figure out what I was looking at. It turns out, that someone had gone to a lot of  trouble, to slather the top of the stump with a mixture of blue berries and raspberries.  I guess, in the hopes of baiting a squirrel into bow range.  He evidently got a shot, or maybe he just took his frustration out on the stump, because he didn't get a shot, who knows.  Funny thing to see out in the middle of the boonies though.

Record, Pope and Young Ponderosa Pine stump.  Non-typical. 

It was a fun day, and I didn't even scratch the surface of the area that I was playing in. Weather permitting, I'm going to head back to the same territory next week, and I'm feeling the urge to hunt the Whisper again.

To be continued. 

 

 

Celestron Ultima 100 Spotting Scope, Used To scout Potential Ground Squirrel Hunting Area - The Rest Of The Story

Celestron Ultima 100 spotting scope.

If you haven't read my last blog story, about the whys and wherefores that lead me to once again add a spotting scope to my hunting kit,  you might want to go to the sidebar and give that story a quick read.

As an initial test of the resolving power of this spotting scope, I put a target out at 300 yards that had .177, and .22 caliber pellet holes in it, and discovered that in decent conditions, the scope would indeed resolve .177, and .22 caliber pellet holes at that range.  Great, then I should have no difficulty at all seeing much larger items like stumps and ground squirrels at 400 to 500 yards. 

After I finished with that experiment, I headed a couple of miles away, to an area that I had seen on an earlier scouting trip.  It was an area that I wanted to check out from a distance, for ground squirrel habitat and squirrel sign.

This is the area that I was focused on.  The far tree line is 400+ yards away.

Once I had the scope set up, and started looking back into the trees, it wasn't long before I was seeing the all important old stumps.  There were also a lot of old blowdowns back in there.

I'm mostly interested in the area from the meadow's edge, back into the woods about 100 yards.  For some reason, that I haven't figured out yet, if ground squirrels are there, the greatest number will typically be found around the edge of the meadow, and back into the woods about a hundred yards or so.

I've got the spotting scope set at about 35 power, and I'm liking what I see.  As I'm slowly working the scope across the area, I spot a stump back in there, with a bright pile of debris sitting on the top of it.  I know from experience, that the debris is from the remains of seeds and pine cones that have been field stripped by a ground squirrel.

Stump spotted in scope, at about 400 yards, with pile of debris on it.

This is good stuff, and it's decision time.  This is our rainy season, and there are a bunch of thunderheads building in the distance.  I know that it won't be long before I will be getting rain, with thunder and lightening all around.  In looking at their size, speed, color, and direction of travel, I figure I've got an hour or so before I need to start getting to concerned.

Let's do it.  I've got my RWS, .22 cal Rapier along, with its new 4-12x40mm Hawke Panorama EV scope on it, and I'm anxious to drop some squirrels with the combo.  I get the Rapier out, along with my binos, range finder, pellets, pellet pouch, and bipod, get geared up and head out across the park, to the far tree line.

As I slip into the tree line, it definitely looks like ground squirrel paradise back in there.  I locate the stump with the debris on it, and go over to check it out and take a picture.  When I'm finished with that, I start looking the area over with my binos, and about 40 yards away, I spot another stump with debris on it also.

Second stump with squirrel debris.

Man, this is looking really good, but I have yet to see a squirrel.  About that time, out of the corner of my left eye, I see a flash of movement.  I put my binos on the area, and sure enough, a furball has jumped up onto the back of a stump, in the shadows, and is looking directly at me.  I zap it with my ranger finder, and get 46 yards.  I've got the rifle sighted in dead on at 40, so I just hold a little high on his head, and squeeze off the shot.

I'm shooting the 18 grain JSB's out of the Rapier, and the combo is just stupid accurate. This might just be the most accurate PCP I own.  For sure, it's a close tossup between this rifle and my FX 2000. Anyway, the pellet hit exactly where expected, and the squirrel was DRT.

First squirrel taken at 46 yards, with RWS Rapier, and new 4-12x40mm Hawke Panorama EV scope.

As I'm heading over to get a picture of the squirrel, with the rifle and new scope, I hear a loud clap of thunder, and see a bright flash of lightening off in the distance.  Hmm, go, stay, go, stay, I decide to stay for just a little while longer, and I decide to hunt in a way, that will take me back in the general direction of my vehicle.

It is absolutely beautiful back in there, and I'm really glad I decided to try the spotting scope method of scouting some of these kinds of areas. I'm very diligently using my binoculars as I hunt along.  Lot's of stumps and blowdowns to check out, and with their coloration, these guys can be hard to see with the naked eye, especially when they are sitting back in the shadows.

There's another loud clap of thunder, accompanied with a flash of lightening, and a few rain drops start to fall.  Nothing major, just a drop here and there, but an indication of what is on the way.

As I'm glassing the area ahead of me, I see a squirrel sitting on an old blowdown log. The R/F says 106 yards.  I want to close the range some, so using the pine trees, that are between myself and the squirrel, I start putting the sneak on him.

I finally reach the point where I've run out of trees to use for cover.  I very carefully stick my head around the side of the tree I'm behind, and shoot a range to the furball. It comes back as 61 yards.  This'll do.  Very slowly, I move my bipod into position, and while resting my rifle on it, I put my right shoulder against the tree and line up the shot.

At 61 yards, I know I'm going to need to show some daylight between the horizontal crosshair and the top of the squirrels head.  I decide to use the hash mark between the first and second mildots on the Hawke scope. Considering the thunder and lightening going on, there really isn't any wind.  One of those, "calm before the storm" scenarios.

I held on the spot between the eye and earhole, and launched the pellet. Because of the angle of lighting in the area, I was able to watch the pellet in flight, as it reached the apex of its flight path, and dropped, like a heat seeking missile, down onto the squirrels head.  Always amazing to see.

The furball dropped down onto the log for a few seconds, and then rolled off of it out of sight.  This is what I initially saw when I got up to the log.

Looking down, I found the squirrel on the ground, DRT.

By now, the thunder is getting louder, and the lightening flashes are getting closer, so I decided to get a quick picture of the squirrel and rifle, and get the heck out of there. 

I took a somewhat circuitous route getting back.  I Stayed tucked back in the trees, and followed the tree line back to the road I drove in on.  I then stayed inside the trees along the road, and hiked back to my vehicle.  No way did I want to walk 400 yards, in the open, across that meadow, with lightening strikes hitting all around the area.  On the way back, I saw several more squirrels, but not wanting to get caught in the deluge that I knew was coming, I gave them all a pass, but I will be back.  

The hunt was a lot of fun, even if it was cut short.  It's the first time I've used the spotting scope to locate ground squirrel habitat at relatively long distance, and it was the first hunt with the new Hawke scope on my Rapier.  Next time, I'm going to get out there a lot earlier in the day, before the thunder heads have a chance to build, and spend a few relaxing hours hunting more furballs.

Here's that last squirrel I dropped off of the log at 61 yards.

There are literally hundreds and hundreds of these park/meadow areas in the forest. Some large, and some small.  I've humped across many of them, only to find nothing, squirrel wise, in the forest on the other side. With others, I've hit the jackpot. I figured there had to be a more efficient way to check them out.  I think I have found it.  All in all, I'm very happy with the concept of using a spotting scope to optically recon some of these areas for squirrel habitat, and I'm sure she will earn her keep in no time at all. 

  

 

 

 

 

A Trio Of Hawkes - Ready To Pounce On Small Game - And Varmints

L-R, Benjamin Discovery .22, FX Rapier .22, FX Whisper .22.   All with Hawke Panorama AO IR EV series scopes mounted.

A couple of months ago, I picked up one of the Hawke Panorama AO IR EV 4-12x40mm scopes for my Disco.  At the time, I was looking for a scope to replace the Bushnell Legend that I had mounted on her.  

The Legend is a nice scope, but I always found myself wishing that the crosshairs were a bit thinner, and that it would take a sunshade.  After some research, I settled on the Hawke Panorama AO IR EV series to meet my needs.  The Panorama series do not include a sunshade, but they are available as an add on accessory.

I've had the scope mounted on my Disco for a couple of months now, have had the rifle out on a half dozen ground squirrel hunts, and I am really pleased with the performance of this scope.  So pleased that I ordered up a couple more.  Another 4-12x40mm for my RWS Rapier, and a 4-12x50mm for my FX Whisper.

Below is a shot of the end of the box.  It shows the floating reticle. Hawke offers a couple of different reticle options on this model, I went with the half mildot.  Since the reticle is etched into glass, and not attached to the edge of a tube, there are no mechanical strength issues, and they can make it very fine.

These scopes have the front adjustable AO.  The third knob on the left side of the scope, is the on/off brightness control, for the illuminated reticle.  Using this control, you can choose either red or blue illumination. 

About half of my scopes are side focus, and the others have the front AO. I switch between the two types of focus adjustment, pretty much seamlessly. 

Above is the 4-12x40mm Hawke Panorama AO IR EV mounted on my Disco. At a length of 39 inches, this rifle is essentially carbine in size, and weighs 7.2 pounds as you see her. It's just a great size and weight to carry for hours while hunting either ground squirrels or tree squirrels.  

Above is my RWS Rapier.  I replaced a Leupold 3-9x33mm EFR scope, that was on her, with a 4-12x40mm Panorama AO IR EV.   I've had a love, hate, relationship with the Leupold for years.  It's a nice scope, but I'm always just a bit dissatisfied with the duplex crosshair, and the fact that it doesn't take a sunshade.  

After hunting with the Hawke Panorama on my Disco, I decided that the same scope on the Rapier, would be everything I was looking for.  Fine crosshair, sunshade, and a weight of only 17.3 ounces.  

At only 40 inches in length, this rifle is also carbine in size.  It weighs 8.5 pounds, but because of the excellent balance, seems lighter.

I needed a set of medium scope mounts for the Rapier, so I ordered a set of the Hawke's to try.  They are very nicely made, and are lined, to help minimize ring rash on the scope tube.   

Last, but not least, is my FX Whisper.  I've had a BSA scope mounted on her, and once again, I was not happy with the thickness of the crosshairs. The BSA probably has the thickest crosshairs of any of my scopes.  A perfect candidate to be replaced with a Panorama AO IR EV.  

I went with the 4-12x50mm Panorama for this rifle, simply because a scope with a large objective looks better on this gun.  Because of the height of the magazine, the use of high rings is a must.  A scope with a 40mm objective looks goofy on this rifle. How's that for some scope vanity.  LOL.

This rifle runs 42.25 inches in length, but only weighs a few ounces more than my Disco. The synthetic stock really keeps the weight down.

Next up, is to get the Rapier and Whisper sighted in with their new glass, and get ready to do some ground squirrel hunting with them.

Here recently, It has been too darned warm and humid to do any actual in the field hunting. Nothing like 85 degrees, and 85 percent humidity to kill my desire to do much hiking around.  For about another month, It's the monsoon season up here, and remains fairly warm and humid, especially humid.

Rather than waste the time though, I've been scouting new areas for ground squirrels. Riding around in my air conditioned 4x4 isn't bad at all.  Last week, I found a couple of really good spots.  In both areas, using my binoculars, I could see lots of squirrels sitting on stumps and deadfall.

Now, I just need to wait for the humidity to drop back down into the 20/30 percent range, and we'll be on the hunt.  I love hunting these guys in the deep forest.  There is just nothing like it. 

While scouting, I started taking some pictures of some of the squirrels I came across. Here's a couple of examples, shot from inside my vehicle.

As soon as I have some time, I'm going to post a story or two about the scouting experience.  It has been a blast, and time really well spent.  Plus I've had a chance to see a lot of really beautiful country.

Six Hunting Rifles In My Collection - That Are At the Top Of the Accuracy Pyramid.

FWB 300S sporter .177

Over the fifty plus years that I have been hunting, and shooting, both powder burners and airguns, there have been some rifles that have stood well above their peers in the accuracy department.  This FWB 300S is one of them.  I call it my 300S sporter.  It doesn't have the barrel sleeve, so that helps to keep the weight down, and the stock is some kind of hardwood that has been stained a dark brown.  I bought the rifle new, from Beeman, back in the early seventies, but there are no Beeman markings on the gun anywhere.  Interesting.

Accuracy wise, the gun is exceptional.  I use it to take ground squirrels, with head shots, out to 45 yards. This rifle will shoot either the 7.9 grain JSB Exact Express, or the 8.4 grain JSB Exact pellets really well, with a slight edge going to the 8.4 grain Exact .  The rifle generates just under 7 fpe at the muzzle.

With the race for more and more power in todays airguns, some folks miss out on just how effective, and efficient a gun like the FWB 300S can be, as a tool for controlling certain types of small vermin, such as ground squirrels.  

I've killed literally thousands, and thousands, of California Ground Squirrels with it over the years.  It's a keeper for sure.

FWB 300S Tyrolean .177

Another exceptional shooter is my FWB 300S Tyrolean.  It's basically the same gun as my 300S sporter, just sitting in a Tyrolean style walnut stock.  This rifle has the barrel weight/sleeve on it, and that adds some weight.  Especially out front.  Again, this rifle is death on ground squirrels out to 45 yards.  

The pellet of choice here is the 8.4 grain JSB Exact.  For some reason, the JSB Exact Express do not do well in this rifle.  It's a bit on the heavy side, but I really enjoy getting her out for a ground squirrel, or chipmunk hunt a couple of times a year.

FX/RWS/Rapier .22

The folks at FX Airguns in Sweden, make some exceptional air rifles. Somewhere along the way, they private labeled their Timber Wolf model as the Rapier, for RWS to market under their brand name.  The one that I own is one of the most accurate airguns in my collection.  In good conditions, it will literally put 18 grain JSB's through the same hole at 50 yards.  The sporter type turkish walnut stock, just adds to the classiness of this very accurate rifle.    

Instead of a magazine, this rifle has a two shot shuttle.  It works great, and I use it to hunt both ground squirrels in California, as well as tree squirrels and prairie dogs here in Arizona.

FX/RWS/Rapier .22 

FX 2000 .22, in factory walnut stock.

My FX 2000 was the first FX built gun that I purchased.  I acquired it used, and the fellow I got it from told me it was exceptionally accurate, and he wasn't wrong.  Like the RWS Rapier, this rifle will also stack 18 grain JSB's at 50 yards.

I used this rifle while filming the first half of my DVD, "Airgun Hunting the California Ground Squirrel."  The performance with both 15.9 grain JSB's, and 14.5 grain DYNAMIC tin pellets, has been exceptional.  This is the rifle that truly got me hooked on PCP's, pretty much for ever.

No recoil, superb accuracy, that easily surpasses many of my high dollar .22 rimfires, with power to cleanly take ground squirrels, and prairie dogs out to 100+ yards.  How can you not get hooked on that kind of performance.

FX 2000 .22, in custom Blackwidow laminate stock.

I have a Benjamin Marauder in .22, that I have been very, very, happy with, so when I heard that Crosman was going to bring the Marauder out in .25, I knew that I would have to add one to the collection, and I haven't been disappointed.  

My .22 Marauder is very accurate.  It hangs right with my AA 410 ERBSL, FX Whisper, and Logun MK II in that department.

My .25 Marauder however, is in that group I mentioned in the title of this story.  She is definitely at the top of the accuracy pyramid.

While pellet testing, I was blown away by the accuracy of this particular rifle.  The first year I hunted with her, I had her shooting the Beeman 31 grain Kodiaks.  I remember, that on my final sight-in target, she stacked five Kodiaks into a group at 65 yards, that I could easily cover with a dime.  I then went on to kill prairie dogs with her, out past 100 yards. Incredible accuracy and power, from a PCP that didn't cost a grand or two. This rifle is a keeper, and will remain in my collection for many years to come.   

Marauder .25, in custom laminate stock.

Last, but not least, in my collection of super accurate rifles, is the latest addition, my .22 caliber AA 510 TC.  I just added this rifle this past Spring.  

The design of this gun kind of intrigued me.  Instead of the usual big honkin bottle screwed into the end of the receiver, to increase shot count, the folks at AA went with twin cylinders mounted side by side. Much like with a side by side shotgun.

Having hunted quail with side by side 20's, and 12's, for many decades, I was curious about how this rifle would feel in my hands.   I love it.  It is a little bit muzzle heavy, and I like that in a long range varmint rifle.  I shoot from a Stoney Point telescoping bipod, and this rig sits very nicely on the bipod's yoke, and really helps when going for those long range shots in the wind.  

If you've followed any of my prairie dog hunt stories with this rifle, and watched any of the videos, then you've seen me take a bunch of dogs all of the way out to just shy of 100 yards with it.

The accuracy is definitely at the top of the accuracy pyramid in my collection.  Her pellet of choice is the 18 grain JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy.   

AA 510 TC .22

A lot of various guns have passed through my hands over the past five plus decades, but with very few exceptions, the ones that were exceptional, accuracy wise, are still in my collection. The vast majority of guns are accurate, but once in awhile, one comes along that is exceptionally so, and those are the ones that I really cherish, and they find a permanent home in my collection.

At the present time, these six rifles are the cream of the crop among the guns in my airsenal, and none of them are going anywhere, well............... except varmint and small game hunting.  

RWS RAPIER - 30 Shot String - With .22 Caliber - 14.5 Grain DYNAMIC PCP-2 Tin Pellets

The last time around, I posted a bit of history about the RWS Rapier, and also posted a shot string with the 18 grain JSB Jumbo Heavy's.  This time, I thought I would show a string from my Rapier shooting the DYNAMIC PCP-2 tin pellets.

I do a lot of ground squirrel hunting in California, and the ranch I hunt has a ban on lead ammo.  The DYANMIC tin pellets are excellent, and perform really well in quite a few of my PCP's, including the Rapier.

RWS Rapier, 30 shot string with 14.5 grain .22 cal., DYNAMIC PCP-2's, with 5.54mm head diameter, 3000 psi fill.

1 - 929     10 - 939     19 - 942     28 - 934

2 - 937     11 - 938     20 - 942     29 - 930

3 - 941     12 - 939     21 - 940     30 - 929

4 - 942     13 - 941     22 - 938

5 - 942     14 - 946     23 - 940

6 - 941     15 - 943     24 - 937

7 - 939     16 - 941     25 - 936

8 - 942     17 - 940    26 - 937

9 - 945     18 - 944    27 - 935

AVG - 940 fps

ES - 17 fps

FPE - 28.4

A few ground squirrels taken with the Rapier and the DYNAMIC PCP-2 tin pellets. 

 

RWS RAPIER - 30 Shot String - With .22 Caliber - 18 Grain JSB Jumbo Heavy's

The RWS Rapier is a bit unusual, in that it isn't a single shot, nor is it magazine fed. Instead, it has a brass two shot shuttle system.  After firing the first shot, quickly racking the bolt to the rear, causes the shuttle to slide over into position with the second pellet, closing the bolt chambers it, and you are then ready to fire the second shot.  

The rifle is actually a variant of the FX 2000.  It was sold under the FX label as the FX Timber Wolf.  The FX Company also built the Timber Wolf for sale by RWS, and it is known there as the RWS Rapier. I believe the FX Timber Wolf's stock shape is different from the RWS Rapier.

FX also did a magazine fed version for RWS, that is essentially the FX 2000, with the same stock design as the Rapier, called the RWS Excalibre.

The Rapier stocks are made from a nice piece of grade three Turkish walnut, with checkering on both the forend and pistol grip.  They are a beautifully made air rifle, and extremely accurate.

Like my FX 2000, the accuracy of this gun is second to none.

Groups at 30 and 50 yards shooting the 18 grain JSB Jumbo Heavy pellets.

 

The group in the bullseye looks like a single pellet hole, it is actually five shots at 30 yards.  The group on the head was shot at 50 yards, and isn't very much bigger.

Like my FX 2000, The Rapier is very accurate at long range, and the way I currently have it set up, it gives me 30 shots on a fill.

RWS Rapier, 30 shot string with 18 grain, .22 cal. JSB Jumbo Heavy's, 3000 psi fill.

1 - 843     10 - 849     19 - 862     28 - 854

2 - 847     11 - 854     20 - 860     29 - 853

3 - 851     12 - 856      21 - 857     30 - 846 

4 - 847     13 - 854     22 - 860

5 - 849     14 - 858     23 - 863

6 - 849     15 - 861     24 - 864

7 - 848     16 - 863     25 - 866

8 - 854     17 - 861     26 - 860

9 - 850     18 - 863     27 - 856

AVG - 855 fps

ES - 21 fps

FPE - 29

The accuracy in this rifle comes from having a very accurate barrel, as well as the sequential shot to shot consistency is very, very, good.  

I've used this rifle primarily to hunt California Ground Squirrels, and Abert's tree squirrels.  The performance for both applications has been excellent.

Abert's tree squirrels taken with my RWS Rapier in Arizona.

There weren't very many of the RWS Rapiers imported into this country, but if you ever come across one for sale, and want a really nice looking, shooting, and accurate air rifle, buy it, you won't be sorry.

 

 

Airgun Hunting Arizona Prairie Dogs

I've been hunting prairie dogs for close to four decades, but never in Arizona, and never in Arizona with airguns. I've spent about 20 months exploring and searching for prairie dog towns and areas to hunt with my airguns. In the process, I've been on my fair share of wild goose chases.

The Sylvatic Plague is probably the single greatest threat that prairie dog towns face. Unlike hunting, it will wipe out an entire town in one year or less. It kills them above ground and below ground, 24/7 it doesn't care. 

Through persistence, and lots of scouting, I was able to locate some viable towns that were perfect for hunting with my airguns. The season opened on Tuesday so it was time to check out some of the towns I had pre-scouted.

When I got to the area I intended to hunt, I could tell the weather would eventually be a problem. I could see thunder storms forming in the distance, and the prevailing wind was blowing them directly toward me. With no time to waste, I dug out my RWS Rapier, got geared up and started my hunt.

The dog towns here in Arizona are populated by the Gunnison's variety of prairie dog. They are not as large as the Black tail variety of eastern Wyoming, and they aren't anywhere near as numerous. Actually, they're quite scattered throughout the dog town area. This reminded me more of hunting ground squirrels, than the prairie dogs I'm used to hunting in Wyoming. 

I had scouted several areas that would be good for hunting with powder burners, but were way to open for hunting with airguns. No chance of getting within a hundred yards of most of the dogs. I eventually located several good sized towns that were perfect for hunting with airguns. They have plenty of ground cover, and getting to within 50/60 plus yards is doable, at least sometimes. 

With thunder storms brewing, the wind was ever present. I could hear dogs barking out their warning calls here and there but I wasn't able to see them in the vegetation. As I hunted along, I was glassing the tops of the mounds that were visible. As I got out into the sage and vegetation, I could see other mounds that weren't visible until you were almost on top of them. The dogs could see me through the vegetation in front of the mound, but I couldn't always see them. This was going to be very, very, challenging. 

I would occasionally see a prairie dog sitting on a mound out at 100 plus yards, but in closer, I was obviously in their danger zone, and for the most part, they were only showing a head above the top edge of their mounds. 

The first one I dropped was a 51 yard head shot with the RWS. I stopped for the requisite photo op. I then continued to hunt while keeping an eye on the approaching storm. I could see lightning and hear thunder off in the distance. The wind was starting to pick up even more, so I knew this hunt was going to be cut short. 

I hunted in a big loop back to my vehicle. Along the way I dropped several more prairie dogs, and started to get the hang of spotting them in the thick vegetation. The other gun that I had wanted to hunt with was my Mac1 Discovery. Rain drops were starting to pelt me intermittently, but nothing serious yet. I decided to put the RWS away and hunt awhile with the Disco. 

I got the Disco out and started hunting in the direction the storm was coming from. I wanted to keep a close eye on it's progress. I was several hundred yards from my 4Runner, when I spotted a small prairie dog down on all fours, on the top of a mound facing me. The range finder said 46 yards. The wind was in my face, the gun is sighted in at 50 yards, so I put the crosshair on its nose and squeezed the trigger. I heard and saw the pellet impact, and the dog rolled off the mound. The pellet entered just under the chin and exited about mid back. That was it for the Disco portion of the hunt. 

I decided to get a picture and hightail it back to my vehicle. The lightening was occurring more frequently, and I could see it was raining very hard in the distance. 

I got back just in time to throw my gun in the back of the rig and hop inside before the skies really opened up. I immediately headed for the pavement, which was about five miles away.

The type of soil that prairie dog towns are typically found in, turns to the consistency of axle grease when wet. It also wraps around a tire like rolling up a carpet. It can be a real challenge keeping the front end of your vehicle going in the direction you want. Whatever you do, do not loose forward momentum. The rear tires were throwing some nice mud rooster tails, but I did make it back to the pavement. The track I left looked a lot like the one a snake leaves when crossing a dusty road. Fishtailing was the operative word. 

For the first attempt at hunting prairie dogs with airguns in Arizona, I was very pleased. I wasn't happy about the weather cutting the hunt short, but I learned a lot about one of the areas I had found, and will be back out next week to give it another go. 

Here are a few pics. I've included a shot of the country I hunted in to give some perspective.

 

RWS Rapier Shooting the DYNAMIC PCP-2 .22 Caliber Tin Pellets.

RWS Rapier, shooting DYNAMIC PCP-2 tin pellets, 5 shots at 30 yards.

I've decided to take my RWS .22 caliber Rapier with me on my next ground squirrel hunt to California. The Rapier is based on the FX 2000 type action, only instead of being an 8 shot repeater, like the FX 2000, it has a two shot shuttle system. The FX company built these rifles for RWS to market under the RWS brand name.

Since the last time I hunted with it, I was shooting lead, I needed to go through my process to switch it over for use with tin pellets.

I've been shooting tin pellets for several years now, and one thing that I have found is, for best results when shooting tin, you need to thoroughly clean the barrel to get rid of all lead pellet, and pellet lube residue.

Lead and tin do not seem to be at all compatible in the same barrel. However, If I thoroughly clean my barrels before switching to the tin pellets, I get incredible results from several of my rifles.

To clean the bore, I use a J. Dewey coated cleaning rod and Beeman's MP5 on cotton patches. I also make sure, when finished, that the bore is completely dry.

Next, I shoot a dozen or more tin pellets to condition the barrel to the new metal. After finishing this process I will go ahead and shoot some groups to test for accuracy. As you can see from the above target, this rifle shoots the DYNAMIC PCP-2 tin pellets extremely well.

As usual, on this hunt I will have my digital video camera mounted to the scope on the RWS, and will be recording the shots as they occur.

Below is a picture of the portable shooting stand that I use for testing my guns and ammunition from. It's built around an old military surplus tripod that has a pivoting shooting platform added to the top. 

 

Testing the New JSB 18 Grain Heavy Pellets In My RWS Rapier

WOW! These puppies really shoot. I had a chance today to shoot the new JSB's for the first time. I shot them through my RWS Rapier at 25 yards and 50 yards. I had heard that the POI is the same as the 16 grainers out to 100 yards. 

With this rifle, I'm normally one inch high at 25 yards and dead on at 50. That is exactly where these print. I didn't go out further because I wanted to get started on my squirrel hunt. I should have spent more time punching paper. Didn't see a single furball today. Not even a chipmunk. I guess that's why it's called "hunting", and not "rack 'em and stack 'em". 

The wind was dead calm for most of the day. I fired a couple of five shot groups on a prairie chuck target to test them out. My aim point on the 25 yard group at 12 o'clock on the bullseye, was the number 10 in the center. 

For the 50 yard group on the head, I fired a shot and then used that pellet hole as my aim point. I use a portable shooting stand that I bought about 15 years ago for $100. It has got to be the best hundred bucks I've ever spent on a piece of shooting gear. It only weighs 17 pounds and breaks down into two pieces. It's very stable, and I can adjust it for shooting from a standing or sitting position. It's built around a military surplus tripod. 

I've wanted a pellet that split the difference between the 16 grain JSB's and the 21 grain Beeman Kodiaks, and I think I've found it.

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RWS Rapier Takes A Mixed Bag With the New JSB 18 Grain Heavy Pellet

I had just put my AA 410ERBSL away, after shooting her with the new 18 grain JSB Heavy pellets, and was taking a leisurely lunch break, when something caught my eye. I dug out my binooculars and took a peek. Sitting on a piece of downed limb was, what looked to me like, a California ground squirrel. It's not, but it sure looks like one. He's sitting in the shade and doesn't seem concerned with me at all. I put the range finder on him and get 59 yards. 

I open the case and pull out the RWS Rapier and set up my Stoney Point bipod. I drop a couple of the 18 grain JSB's in the two shot shuttle. All the time I'm glancing quickly to see if the ground squirrel is still there. He hasn't moved. 

I step away from my vehicle and drop the rifle onto the bipod. Looking through the scope I tweak the parallax. The squirrel is still sitting there looking at me. I know I'm on at 50 yards and one and a quarter inches low at 60, I hold a little high, wait for a lull in the breeze, and squeeze the trigger. The pellet knocks him off the limb. 

When I get over to the squirrel it looks a lot like a California Ground Squirrel without the white shoulders. This is what in Arizona is called, a Rock Squirrel. 

As I'm looking this guy over, an Abert's tree squirrel runs across the ground and up a tree no more than 40 yards away. When I put my binoculars on the tree, I can see him sitting on a limb quartering away from me about 30 feet up. I put the crosshairs on his ribcage, hold just a little low and launch the pellet. The satisfying THWACK of a solid hit comes back to me as he is falling to the ground stone cold dead. The pellet entered low in the right side rib area and exited near the left shoulder.

That was an exciting 5 minutes of squirrel shooting action and I was still just getting my gear set-up for the days hunt.

AIRGUN VARMINT HUNTING VIDEO AVAILABLE NOW!  "Airgun Hunting the California Ground Squirrel" is 70+ minutes of nonstop fair chase airgun varmint hunting action and information. Over 260 video clips of California Ground Squirrels being taken with modern adult airguns  from 30 to 90 yards and beyond. $19.95 +S/H Order at: Link to VarmintAir.com