Cheap Predator Setup?

[moog5050]

39 minutes ago, Belo said:

seems like zoomable is cheaper. which seems odd as that would be a preference no?

https://www.amazon.com/VASTFIRE-Zoomable-Flashlight-Predator-Picatinny/dp/B07DPNPR4D/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=scope+mount+light'&qid=1578072813&sr=8-2

Definitely want zoom as it focuses and intensifies light which allows for scanning at greater distances.

[Moho81]

1 hour ago, Belo said:

and for the real question... would you gamble on this $300 call for $80 from china... https://www.fallstores.com/fo-pro-made-electronic-call-american-predator-hammerjack

Lord knows I love a good cheap deal but even I would stay away from that. Next thing you know they have your 401K and kidney while you sit in a bathtub filled with ice. 

[TreeGuy]

It's not hard for me to remember starting out..... Giant spotlight. White gun light. Mouth calls. Homemade attractors and unlikely weapons.

I've upgraded plenty of things over the years and I'm very happy with my setup.

My advice on what you NEED:

A gun your very confident in, with good glass

The best call you can afford or an assortment of hand calls

Shooting sticks / tripod

Headlamp/ spotlight for scanning

Kill light on the gun.

Patience.


My setup is an
AR in 223 / vortex hog hunter
Foxpro shockwave
Trigger stick tripod
Wicked lights headlamp
Custom made kill light

Cheap lights are hit or miss. I have a 20$ eBay special that's the backup/ loaner and it's fantastic at doing the job. It also came with a quick and easy mount for any scope. My wicked headlamp is great because its easily zoomed and turned up/down. Can't beat an AR for nighttime predators IMO. 223 is a perfect all around round. Had literally every model foxpro till I sucked it up after learning "why the expensive model is better" lesson too many times. Trigger stick is great cause it's light and easily adjustable.


I have upgraded so much over the years.... My setup isn't top notch, but dangit does it work !

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[Five Seasons]

On 1/4/2020 at 5:17 PM, TreeGuy said:

It's not hard for me to remember starting out..... Giant spotlight. White gun light. Mouth calls. Homemade attractors and unlikely weapons.

I've upgraded plenty of things over the years and I'm very happy with my setup.

My advice on what you NEED:

A gun your very confident in, with good glass

The best call you can afford or an assortment of hand calls

Shooting sticks / tripod

Headlamp/ spotlight for scanning

Kill light on the gun.

Patience.


My setup is an
AR in 223 / vortex hog hunter
Foxpro shockwave
Trigger stick tripod
Wicked lights headlamp
Custom made kill light

Cheap lights are hit or miss. I have a 20$ eBay special that's the backup/ loaner and it's fantastic at doing the job. It also came with a quick and easy mount for any scope. My wicked headlamp is great because its easily zoomed and turned up/down. Can't beat an AR for nighttime predators IMO. 223 is a perfect all around round. Had literally every model foxpro till I sucked it up after learning "why the expensive model is better" lesson too many times. Trigger stick is great cause it's light and easily adjustable.


I have upgraded so much over the years.... My setup isn't top notch, but dangit does it work !

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thanks. i think the upgrade route is what I'd have in mind. I have no idea if this is something i'll like, enjoy or want to spend that much money on. But the yotes were rough on our property this year and if I can get into it for around $300-$400 I'd like to give it a shot. 

[moog5050]

4 minutes ago, Belo said:

thanks. i think the upgrade route is what I'd have in mind. I have no idea if this is something i'll like, enjoy or want to spend that much money on. But the yotes were rough on our property this year and if I can get into it for around $300-$400 I'd like to give it a shot. 

Belo

I will say that the one limitation to yote hunting is access.  Its really best to have several parcels nearby (but not adjacent) to make a night of it.  Otherwise you are one and done in an hour or less for the most part and you won't want to hunt that spot too often or you educate the dogs.  3 or 4 spots will give you a pretty good night of it.  Probably easier to get access solely for hunting yotes than deer hunting however.

[grampy]

On 1/4/2020 at 5:17 PM, TreeGuy said:

It's not hard for me to remember starting out..... Giant spotlight. White gun light. Mouth calls. Homemade attractors and unlikely weapons.

I've upgraded plenty of things over the years and I'm very happy with my setup.

My advice on what you NEED:

A gun your very confident in, with good glass

The best call you can afford or an assortment of hand calls

Shooting sticks / tripod

Headlamp/ spotlight for scanning

Kill light on the gun.

Patience.


My setup is an
AR in 223 / vortex hog hunter
Foxpro shockwave
Trigger stick tripod
Wicked lights headlamp
Custom made kill light

Cheap lights are hit or miss. I have a 20$ eBay special that's the backup/ loaner and it's fantastic at doing the job. It also came with a quick and easy mount for any scope. My wicked headlamp is great because its easily zoomed and turned up/down. Can't beat an AR for nighttime predators IMO. 223 is a perfect all around round. Had literally every model foxpro till I sucked it up after learning "why the expensive model is better" lesson too many times. Trigger stick is great cause it's light and easily adjustable.


I have upgraded so much over the years.... My setup isn't top notch, but dangit does it work !

Sent from my LM-V405 using Tapatalk
 

Curious what you guys use for a rangefinder at night? 

Is a bull barrel on an AR platform a must?? I know the bull barrel is more accurate. But I'm thinking less weight to carry may be a better option, for me anyways. With long walks to set up spots. 

How accurate are the standard ARs, for ranges of about 100 yards or so? (kinda looking to get one) We usually don't have many shots much beyond that.

[TreeGuy]

Curious what you guys use for a rangefinder at night? 
Is a bull barrel on an AR platform a must?? I know the bull barrel is more accurate. But I'm thinking less weight to carry may be a better option, for me anyways. With long walks to set up spots. 
How accurate are the standard ARs, for ranges of about 100 yards or so? (kinda looking to get one) We usually don't have many shots much beyond that.

Well. I rely on the "ish" program to determine range. Moog isn't a fan of it, but it works for me. One of the nice things about having a .223 is ballistically there isn't much rise/ drop from 0-300. So, no actual range finder is used.

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[moog5050]

3 minutes ago, grampy said:

Curious what you guys use for a rangefinder at night? 

Is a bull barrel on an AR platform a must?? I know the bull barrel is more accurate. But I'm thinking less weight to carry may be a better option, for me anyways. With long walks to set up spots. 

How accurate are the standard ARs, for ranges of about 100 yards or so? (kinda looking to get one) We usually don't have many shots much beyond that.

No rangefinder (ISH standard) and the bull barrel is not critical.  I think most quality ARs will be close to MOA.

[moog5050]

1 minute ago, TreeGuy said:

Well. I rely on the "ish" program to determine range. Moog isn't a fan of it, but it works for me. One of the nice things about having a .223 is ballistically there isn't much rise/ drop from 0-300. So, no actual range finder is used.

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0-200ish  300 is still a decent drop!

[TreeGuy]

0-200ish  300 is still a decent drop!

Just send it

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[TreeGuy]

Curious what you guys use for a rangefinder at night? 
Is a bull barrel on an AR platform a must?? I know the bull barrel is more accurate. But I'm thinking less weight to carry may be a better option, for me anyways. With long walks to set up spots. 
How accurate are the standard ARs, for ranges of about 100 yards or so? (kinda looking to get one) We usually don't have many shots much beyond that.

Bull barrel keeps muzzle jump to a minimum. Accuracy isn't the major benefit. If you do follow up shots, it keeps the gun flat and ready to send another quickly.

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[Gencountyzeek]

Build a ar in 204, with a mid weight 22" barrel. Your looking at 1" high at 100 yards, like 6-7" low at 300 depending on the velocity of your ammo. So if you think a yote is close to 300 put the cross hairs on its back. Anything else hold center chest.

[WNYBuckHunter]

My advice would be dont cheap out on lights. Ive gone this route, and it wasnt worth it. I ended up going with Wicked Lights, they are well worth the $. The call part is easy, buy the Alpha Dogg I have for sale, Ill even give you a bit of a discount to help you get into it. Its a great call, Id still be using it if I wasnt given a FoxPro as a gift.

[grampy]

9 hours ago, Gencountyzeek said:

Build a ar in 204, with a mid weight 22" barrel. Your looking at 1" high at 100 yards, like 6-7" low at 300 depending on the velocity of your ammo. So if you think a yote is close to 300 put the cross hairs on its back. Anything else hold center chest.

Most everything I've read on the 204 has been very good for predators. A gun shop owner told me he could build me a NY compliant AR in 204 for $800 - $900. Will still need some glass, and a light set up. But getting the stuff to reload the 204, may be more of a pain than the 223, which can be found everywhere.

[Gencountyzeek]

32 minutes ago, grampy said:

Most everything I've read on the 204 has been very good for predators. A gun shop owner told me he could build me a NY compliant AR in 204 for $800 - $900. Will still need some glass, and a light set up. But getting the stuff to reload the 204, may be more of a pain than the 223, which can be found everywhere.

I agree, i bought my dies at cabelas and some 39gr Sierra bk. Brass has to be ordered. The 8208xbr powder i have for my grendel from what i read is a good powder for the 204 also.

[WNYBuckHunter]

11 hours ago, TreeGuy said:

Bull barrel keeps muzzle jump to a minimum. Accuracy isn't the major benefit. If you do follow up shots, it keeps the gun flat and ready to send another quickly.

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But on a small caliber like 223, muzzle jump isnt an issue really. I run a carbine barrel and a brake and its like shooting a pellet gun.

[moog5050]

16 minutes ago, Gencountyzeek said:

I agree, i bought my dies at cabelas and some 39gr Sierra bk. Brass has to be ordered. The 8208xbr powder i have for my grendel from what i read is a good powder for the 204 also.

Zeek, the Hornady 223 vmax in 55g are (according to Hornady) 1.5" high at 100, dead on at 200 and 7" low at 300.  What is the benefit of the less common 204?  Is it more fur friendly?

[airedale]

Remington 597 22 Mag, 2X7 Nikon, Extreme Dimension Mini Phantom, Black Creek Combo Squirrel Varmint mouth call.

Learn how to set up and use your call

Hunt early mornings and a couple of hours before dark, no light needed

I have killed a bunch with the setup up below and other similar rifles, the whole works was not a lot of money.

Al

 

 

Edited January 7, 2020 by airedale

[Gencountyzeek]

3 hours ago, moog5050 said:

Zeek, the Hornady 223 vmax in 55g are (according to Hornady) 1.5" high at 100, dead on at 200 and 7" low at 300.  What is the benefit of the less common 204?  Is it more fur friendly?

Yes it is. And my numbers may be off. I didnt look at hornady superformance. The main reason i wanted it, is for prior to deer season ending a bunch of the propertys i hunt, you cant use a centerfire riffle .22 cal or larger. So the 204 will be great for season long hunting.

[Five Seasons]

i'm just going to run either my 12 gauge with shot or my .30-06. I'm not interested in pelts, and probably wont shoot a fox. If i really get hooked, i'll pony up for a .223.

i've actually heard the heavier big game loads on the .30 will punch/needle through vs the varmit rounds which just destroy the animal.

Edited January 7, 2020 by Belo

[moog5050]

15 minutes ago, Gencountyzeek said:

Yes it is. And my numbers may be off. I didnt look at hornady superformance. The main reason i wanted it, is for prior to deer season ending a bunch of the propertys i hunt, you cant use a centerfire riffle .22 cal or larger. So the 204 will be great for season long hunting.

That makes sense.  Never thought about that.  That would apply to one property I hunt.

[Gencountyzeek]

1 hour ago, Belo said:

i'm just going to run either my 12 gauge with shot or my .30-06. I'm not interested in pelts, and probably wont shoot a fox. If i really get hooked, i'll pony up for a .223.

i've actually heard the heavier big game loads on the .30 will punch/needle through vs the varmit rounds which just destroy the animal.

I shot one last year with my 308 using 150gr hornady interlok i believe. One tiny entrance and one tiny exit. It never hit bone, if it did im sure the exit would have been quite large.

[Gencountyzeek]

1 hour ago, moog5050 said:

That makes sense.  Never thought about that.  That would apply to one property I hunt.

I have right now probably 10 spots to hunt in erie county, thats why i chose it. Plus who doesnt need another gun.

[WNYBuckHunter]

21 minutes ago, Gencountyzeek said:

I shot one last year with my 308 using 150gr hornady interlok i believe. One tiny entrance and one tiny exit. It never hit bone, if it did im sure the exit would have been quite large.

I shot one a couple of years ago with a 140gr Federal Fusion out of my 308, it pretty much split the dog in half when it hit bone.

[TACC]

What are the normal distances you are shooting?

What about 22 nosler?

62 grain VARMAGEDDON are fur friendly and no chasing involved, 9 times out of ten DRT.

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