Thank you, vtbluegrass, I could not agree more as I carry an older Savage 24F12T, .223 over 12 and use the rifle barrel more than the shotgun. Bullet placement is just as important as patterning the shotgun, and is a lot more difficult on a turkey than on a deer, for example. As to rifles in Va, I heard some years back that the commonwealth was considering banning them as there were concerns about slobs road hunting and sniping turkeys out of open fields beside the road. While you couldn't give me an inline muzzle loader or a cross bow, if you're using it legally and ethically, while I may not agree, I/we still need to support our fellow hunters. This petty bickering among the ranks is just what the antis live for. Good hunting!

If all you want is a dead bird, use a rifle. If you want the challenge, excitement and satisfaction of calling one into shotgun range and taking him, then you are REALLY turkey hunting. I've had gobblers frustrate me to the point that I'd consider using a rifle, or a hand grenade, but the feeling passes and I keep trying to use all my skills---woodsmanship, calling, patience, use of terrain, etc., to make a kill that I am really proud of. That's just my personal feeling, and I have shot a turkey with a rifle and just didn't get the thrill I do from the old traditional method. I'm with 007---if rifle shooting a turkey is your thing, go for it.

I think thats stupid to hunt turkey with a rifle. Thats no fun at all. I like to see the turkey up close and listen to him drumm and gobble and make all the noises a tom does up close and personal. Tahst way to easy with a rifle i mean you dont even reall y have to know how to call or anything you can just sit and wait like in deer hunting.. Im so glad Wisconsin doesnt allow you to use rifles

I love to call turkeys and yes I hunt with a 22 Hornet. The last turkey I shot I sniped at the great distance of 35 yards. I don't see any problem unless you are trying to shoot a turkey a couple hundred yards or pick one off the roost at a long distance. People think just because you use a rifle you don't call for turkeys.

I use Winchester 45 grain factory , either solid points or hollow points. I have never had any problem crippling one. A friend of mine hunts with a 22 mag and talked me into getting one and I had it one week and crippled a big gobbler in the fall and traded the gun the next day for a Hornet. I have no use for a 22 mag. The best shot I have found is broadside through both wingbuts, probably the same place you shoot with the 223. I called in a big female coyote that had been sucking pups Tue morning, and she met the dreaded fate of the .22 Hornet. I would rather kill a coyote than a turkey. I called her up to within 25 yards. I don't know where everyone gets the idea that anyone who hunts with a rifle is no turkey hunter or has no turkey hunting skills. Most of the turkeys I have killed with my rifle I could have killed with my shotgun, I just like to hunt with my .22 Hornet. One of the guys at the camp got a nice bird the first morning, but I haven't done any good yet. Have you done any good yet ?

VT: If your buddy has been shooting turkeys in NY with a rifle he has been doing so illegally. The NYS DEC regulations state that: you may not take a turkey with a rifle, or with a handgun firing a bullet. Personally, if it was legal I would try it every once in a while with a rifle. I have nothing against it.

I shot that bird at 200 yards!
With what?
.338, what else?

Sarge, sorry for the late response. I succeeded in further educating an old long beard, probably the same one I missed last spring on the very same ridge. The contrary old so-and-so, rather than come thru the open woods like one would think, came sneaking in thru the thickest piece of bull pines and broom sage on that ridge, hard left. I saw a fist-sized white head go bouncing back down the ridge after he of course saw me. He's a good one and almost has his PHD. This is getting personal! Regards.

007, you have a very good point. I bet that rifle offer cleaner kills but what I mean is that shotgun hunting is more traditional and fun. There is nothing like calling a gobbler within shotgun range so that you are so close to it that one little movement would scare it. I bet that you don't snipe the birds but there are probably a handful of others who do. Also since you are hitting the body with the bullet, I would suppose that ruins some of the meat and there is not a lot of meat on a turkey. I also don't use a scoped shotgun, I don't have a specialty barrel, I use 2 3/4" shells, and I use a 12 gauge. I appreciate your post by the way.

Addendum - meant to add, I carry a .223 over 12 so the shotgun does come into play when appropriate. I too like to see them come in close, as long as I can control my pulse. haha. Per my earlier post, if they all sneak in like this spring, I won't need either. That bird needs to be taken out of the gene pool. Regards................

It's an elderly Savage 24F12T, I've had it for years, I think Savage has discontinued them, not sure. A lot of them wouldn't shoot both barrels to the same general point of impact but I have no complaints about mine.

As a Virginia turkey hunter I personally dont have any issue with hunting with a rifle, but in my experience most people dont at least in my area. I know a good many of the deer hunters I know will snipe a turkey if they have a tag from their deer stand which accounts for a large proportion of the fall turkey harvest in the state according to DGIF. In my area though I think most people use shotguns not because of the challenge but because of the terrain, i would much rather hunt with a shotgun in dense brush then a rifle.

I just checked the California hunting regs and we can use .20 caliber or larger air rifles to hunt turkeys, but not a firearm rifle. Apparently the only small game we can hunt with a real rifle are squirrels and rabbits. That seems crazy to me.

"(f) Air rifles firing pellets and powered by compressed air or gas (0.20 caliber minimum for taking wild turkey); and firearm rifles and pistols for taking rabbits and squirrels, except in Los Angeles County, in addition to the methods listed in (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) above;"

I hunt for the meat not the sport. So I say if I can improve my odds of putting meat on the table for my wife and kids by using a rifle to hunt turkey then why not. You just gotta remember that its about shot placement. Now I'm not going to use a 338 for turkey but a 223 or maybe 243 should be fine.
just my two cents.

i live in nc. but have some property in va and am planning on using my singlee six with 33 gr accutips. it is a hell of a lot lighter than the nova

Thats you're decision and its not legal in Georgia but if it were i don't know if i would use a rifle. I love gettin that bird in close and the challenge of it not saying you're wrong or anything though!

the county i live in indiana will not even let us harvest a fall bird of any type so you are very lucky

Hunting turkeys with a rifle takes 100 percent of the fun out. Turkey hunting is meant to be a challenge by calling the birds close to shoot not at long ranges. If I would use a rifle, I would of have shot 6+ more turkeys in the last two years. That is not the point of hunting though. Hunting is not about how many or how far away you can shoot an animal. It is about getting close to the animals and using your woodsman skills to take down the animal. I think that many think that rifles on turkeys are ok to use because of the way they were brought up. If I was brought up use fully auto guns on deer, I would consider it to be ok. If you use rifles that's fine. Just remember the true meaning of the outdoors. Its not a competition to see how far you can shoot, it is about using your hard earned skills to take that animal. If I would use rifles on turkey's I would have freezers full of turkey's but that's not the point. By using a shotgun, I have developed skills necessary to bring that gobbler in close. If I would of have used rifles, I would be 10x less the hunter that I am today. Anyone can snipe a turkey, only the best can bring them in close for a shotgun kill. If you need the meat because your starving or something, use a rifle.

The true art of turkey hunting is becoming lost because of laws such as using rifles for turkeys. Cripes, I could take my Grandma in the woods and she could set up on a turkey 100 yards out and nail it. The art of turkey hunting is the process of deceiving a wild turkey. Sure I but you use calls while using a rifle but it is not the same. If a turkey hangs up at 60 yards you could either shoot it with a rifle or use true skills to bring it in the extra 30. I'm not saying this disrespectfully to anyone, I am just stating the true meaning of a hunt that is being lost due to so many invitations and laws. Another aspect that I would like to bring up is that a rifle is not as safe as a shotgun or bow. If that turkey is 30 yards out or 300, you never know where that bullet is headed. A hunter may be directly across the field from you in camo and not know that you are there. While deer hunting rifles, you are in a stand so the bullet is likely to hit the ground from the angle but while sitting against a tree in turkey hunting, only the good Lord knows where the bullet will end. I am not trying to be disrespectful in any way, I am just trying to state that the art of hunting is being lost by helpful innovations such as rifles. I respect your decision to use a rifle but I hope that future generations will choose to take the challenge of using a shotgun or bow.

Here in Texas you can take a bird with a rifle. And we only take head shots a 80yd shot on a half dollar sized target ain't easy. But if you don't try it then you can't say it's not sporting because it is.

Calling in Turkeys within a short distance is the way to hunt turkeys ,but shooting them with shotgun with 100s of bullets is not very sporty. More turkeys are wounded with a shotgun than with a rifle. Shooting a turkey at 200yds is harder than using a shotgun at 15 to 30 yds. One bullet will kill one turkey. Sometimes shotguns kill more than one with one shot. Most turkey hunters use a shotgun because they don't have to be a good shot and can shoot thru brush. I would feel safer with a hunter, using a scoped gun, aiming a me, than a shotgunner aiming at me thinking I was a turkey.

Of the handful of birds I've taken with the .223 barrel of my o/u, 40-50 yards was probably the max. I'm more of a rifleman than a shotgunner and feel much more competent with a rifle and that to me is the ethical way to do it, using what I feel will give a quick and humane kill. I also stink at estimating range so the .223 helps there too. Hey Sarge, before I quit hunting public land in spring, I was wearing blaze orange until I started working a bird, had the bejeebers scared out of me in Va. one morning. I ought to touch on that in the next class, come to think of it.

Don't knock it until you try it. I get real enjoyment in hunting turkeys with my .22 Hornet, a classic round from the past.

RFH, so does that mean that you use a long bow or recurve for archery, a flinter for muzzle loading, and open sights on your centerfire rifles? Also, please clearly define sport for me as applied to the outdoors in general. Do you use a range finder, any sort of cover scent, camo clothing, decoys, etc? I'm sure you see where I'm going here, it's not in the item used, but HOW you use it.

Just a joke sarge. I tell people all the time if a deer walks out with my name on him to let him walk. Seems like turkey hunting with a rifle really opens the door to poaching/road hunting as well. And 007, I'm not saying you don't call them in close, but what's to keep other people in your state from making 100 yard shots? Also, If y'all call em in close, then why not just use a shotgun anyway?

Damn this websites system I didn't think first one posted

Oh Brother,,,,

It is legal here in SD but I do not do it often for several reasons. One I love to bow hunt so I take my birds with a bow unless it gets down to the last day. The reason I do not hunt turkeys with a rifle often is meriam's here are hard to call and I rather stalk than sit in a blind. Second it takes a lot of skill to kill a bird with a rifle. A shotgun you have several pellets to hit a turkey in the head but a rifle only one. People may see rifle hunting is easy rather it is the most difficult shot to make. You have to hit a dime sized target hence why most people shoot them just as close as you would with a shotgun. Rifle hunting turkeys is by far one of the hardest shots for a hunter to make. I took one with my 22-250 at 30 yads and it took for focus and control of my gun than any other animal, because there is no room for error where a deer or elk I get 3 to 6 inch play.

To Sarge and 007 I give you both credit for hunting with a rifle and since I have experienced it I know what it takes. You guys are true sportsman as I see myself (although we may have different styles of hunting). Others will never understand what it takes unless they actually do it. You two have my respect from one hunter to another as it is by far one of the hardest things to do. My advice to everyone else is try it before you make judgements because it really is harder than one would be lead to think.

Maybe where you are but on the prarie no. Eastern's I have great success with but on the prairie merriams do not call, decoy, or work good at all. Having said that the story changes in the black hills. In the hills merriams call much easier but easterns still seem to work better. The main problem in SD is how they set up the season. By the time we get to hunt on the prairie breeding season is done or at least winded down hence why they do not respond well to calls. In the hills we have different dates and I can hit them in the peak of breeding.

What is eveyone think about the .17hmr for a turkey rifle or even using a .40 cal carbine s&w? Im sure the 40 cal will do a sweet job without doing too much dammage to the meat, but what your thought on the .17hmr? Is it got what it takes to take a turkey down brodside?

I've got a couple of .22 magnums and must agree with Sarge on that one, great for fall birds but not for a big gobbler. Too, I have to wonder if that little .17 bullet would have what it takes to do the job. I prefer a .223.

I have shot 2 gobblers with my .223 and if you don't hit them right you can lose some meat. Itry to get them exactly broadside and shoot them through the wingbutts. Of course you don't want hollow points. I used soft points, but some of the guys I know use ball ammo of reduced loads in their .223. I use Winchester 45 grain Hollow Points in my .22 Hornet in the spring on big gobblers but it dosen't have the speed that the .223 has. I also use the 45 grain soft points in the fall. 007 might help you out on a .223 load.

Lenny, I use 24 grains of WW 748 behind a 55 grain WW PSP in Federal brass with a Remington 7 1/2 primer. Gives around 3k fps in my gun. I never shoot at 100 yards so I can't address that. Remember, work up to my load in 1/2 grain increments if you choose to try it. Good hunting.