The quietest calibre for roe (Scotland)

[doric_prince]

Stumbled across a post on SD the other day suggesting a .222 is v quiet deer round. What’s the quietest calibre one could use for roe in Scotland (suppressed) that meets the Scottish legal requirements? I have a .243 win which I intend to use on our home ground but noise effecting my neighbours a consideration, which got me thinking about alternatives which would still be suitable for roe. I have a larger calibre suitable for bigger species so my query only relates to roe. Is it really worth changing down to a smaller calibre, is the noise difference significantly noticeable? Thanks.

 

[slider]

.22 sub sonic

 

[HonestJohn]

.222 indeed. Slays roe like a 30-06 even with 50g’ers

 

[doric_prince]

.22 sub sonic

Yeh sure that would work but FAO probably won’t give a variation on that basis.

taken From the basc website Deer Stalking Code of Practice - BASC

Species

Min bullet weight

Calibre

Min muzzle energy

roe

Scotland

50 grains

n/a

1,000 foot pounds (min muzzle velocity 2,450 feet per second)

I think it’s the addition of the min muzzle velocity that prevents us north of the wall from using a slow, heavy, subsonic round that I think you can use in England for deer.

 

[.25-06]

Get a .220 swift the neighbours can move

 

[TH4]

Get a .220 swift the neighbours can move

A man with real taste.

 

[Mungo]

Stumbled across a post on SD the other day suggesting a .222 is v quiet deer round. What’s the quietest calibre one could use for roe in Scotland (suppressed) that meets the Scottish legal requirements? I have a .243 win which I intend to use on our home ground but noise effecting my neighbours a consideration, which got me thinking about alternatives which would still be suitable for roe. I have a larger calibre suitable for bigger species so my query only relates to roe. Is it really worth changing down to a smaller calibre, is the noise difference significantly noticeable? Thanks.

Yes.

.222 and .223 with a well fitting mod are substantially quieter than a .243. If the neighbors are indoors and have double glazing, they usually won’t notice.

 

[doric_prince]

Yes.

.222 and .223 with a well fitting mod are substantially quieter than a .243. If the neighbors are indoors and have double glazing, they usually won’t notice.

Thanks.

 

[Mungo]

Thanks.

I did vermin control on a couple urban golf courses (houses all round) for a few years. Shot plenty of foxes with .222. Never had any comments from the neighbors.

 

[artschool]

Who is going to notice a single moderated shot? I think you are overthinking this.

 

[Freeforester]

Shot hundreds if not into the thousands with the .222 before the ‘big’ rifle came about (.243!), many’s a time when you’d shoot one in a neep park, wait 15-20 mins and another would show up. Once shot 8 in a large neep park over the course of one morning session, 1st about 0800, last around 1030 in the forenoon. Lovely round, quieter than the .223, minimal noise disturbance and damage with decent 50grn Norma soft point, which had thicker gilding metal than most others, so minimised carcass damage, and very accurate in careful hands.
All before the moderator came on the go (I was first to get authority for one in our region!). Happy days!

 

[doric_prince]

Who is going to notice a single moderated shot? I think you are overthinking this.

I could well be, and not withstanding the scenario / context I chose to disclosed that initially drew me to this query, the question still stands on its own merit.

 

[HandB]

A longish barreled .222 like my BSA Hunter (24 inch barrel) is already pretty quiet and has minimal muzzle blast, even without a moderator so I reckon a moderated .222 with a 24 inch barrel would be super low key and discreet if the overall length fits in your car etc.

 

[kenbro]

221 Fireball.
Ken.

 

[User00040]

Long dog

 

[shakey jake]

any .22 centrefire will be quieter than the larger calibres. mod and rifle combo could differ. short barrel might have unburnt powder. long barreled smaller chambered .22

 

[cjm1066]

221 Fireball.
Ken.

Less powder, greater expansion ratio, less noise.

 

[Foxyboy43]

Hmmm.
A triple deuce loaded with a 55gns Sierra Gameking trundling along at not less than 2950 fps will exceed the 1,000 ft lbs minimum and drop roe dead in their tracks - if you reload 19 gns of Viht N120 will be fine. I have found it to be a wonderful combination well capable of killing much larger deer - ask our friends in Oz or NZ - it is IMHO the perfect quiet answer to your needs. A single shot disturbs no-one, it is the quick second or more that can cause problems - so don’t miss!

 

[wildfowler.250]

The .22 centerfires drop roe absolutely fine. I’ve switched to a .222 in the past couple of years. Only shot a handful of roe with the .222 in particular but they’ve all dropped on the spot. Nice and quiet and not overkill for a crow either. Really really like it. Accurate calibre.

 

[macfarlane]

I thought most moderators were pretty similar suppressing the noise kind of thing.was shooting a 243 with a Dpd mod on it and 222 with a T4 on it the 243 was actually quieter than the 222 ,that’s going by my mrs and daughters ears ,may be worth trying a different moderator on your 243 .