Currently, I have a Burris 1.5-4x pistol scope on my Bullberry 12" 22lr match barrel for squirrels.

With that being said, I spent most of my life shooting bigger pistols off the bench and at deer.

So, when it comes to hunting squirrels I find it very difficult find the critter in the scope.

What can I do to make this situation better? They never seem to stand still long enough for me to get off a shot and I have yet to take a squirrel with a handgun.

I'm beginning to wonder if this just isn't my cup of tea.

Leverman, I also have tried this. It isn't easy. I have yet to get one yet. The only help I can give is that you need a good steady rest for your pistol. Good luck.

Leverman, I also have tried this. It isn't easy. I have yet to get one yet. The only help I can give is that you need a good steady rest for your pistol. Good luck.

Leverman, I also have tried this. It isn't easy. I have yet to get one yet. The only help I can give is that you need a good steady rest for your pistol. Good luck.

Hello leverman....I use a t/c with a 10" .22lr match barrel, I had trouble getting on small game targets with the pistol scopes...so I now use a rimfire rifle scope on my t/c....I basically hold it close to my head like a rifle with no butstock, I am right handed so I plant my left elbow close to my side for a shooting support, and my right arm comes across my chest and my right hand is supported on my left hand palm...Maybe there is a name for this hold and stance, I don't know, but it works for me...the rimfire has no recoil so I don't worry about planting the pistol in my face every shot!....

leverman,

Besides the practicing with scope, the best advice I can give, is to make sure you keep both eyes open while shoot'n.

I second that KRal!

Well, that is a lot of gun for squirrel. Have you tried a 'regular' .22 pistol with iron sites? You might just be overthinking it here. Get one of those reactive targets that are small, and practice. I've never figured out how to get game in front of my table, so I've learned to shoot out of hand, and just limit my range to what I can hit.
If you do use the scope, try leaving the scope on the lowest power, and keep your eyes open. Like shooting skeet, look at the target, bring up the gun to your line of site (as opposed to moving your head to see into the scope) and when the little critter has a cross hair on him, pull the trigger.

Happy hunting,
db

I used to have that problem till the guys on here told me about shooting with both eyes open. So I second what KRal states above. I'll be the first to admit that it takes some getting used to, but once ya got it, you'll be glad ya made the switch!

I could never get use to a scope on a pistol
I'll take open sights or a red dot and limit my range
But thats me

Festus,

I am considering the following dot scope: Ultra Dot, Match Dot II, 30mm scope.

It has 2, 4, 6, 8 MOA dots along with a 2 MOA dot within a circle or 2 MOA within a crosshair.

I have two Ultra Dot 30mm scopes with a 4 MOA dot. One on my son's 50 caliber muzzle loader and one on my 12" T/C, 357 Maximum barrel I hunt deer with. Outstanding quality.

I just wish squirrels were a little bigger than an overgrown cucumber.

I hunt squirrels with a Ruger mkIII and use a red dot scope. They are a lot harder to shoot than large game but shooting opportunities are abundant. I usually still hunt when hunting with a rifle but now with handguns I spend more time sitting in likely places waiting on squirrel to show up so I get a calm animal to shoot at and ample time to make the shot.

I use a cheap red dot mounted to my Ruger MKII. Keep both eyes open and be patient. I miss a lot more squirrels than I hit.

+1. I'll add, try your best to keep the reticle on the "sweet spot" after the trigger breaks (follow-through). Shooting small game in the off-season is not only rewarding in it own right with challenging shots made and food on the table; it build skill and confidence for your big-game hunts. Don't give up on it!



These days, I hunt squirrel like I prefer to hunt deer. Put on your camo, find the current food source, get in early, set up for your anticipated shots (pistol out of the holster, sticks set up, sitting so you're in a position to make the least movement getting into "final position" for a shot, etc.), sit still, and wait. Don't shoot the first one you see--oftentimes, if you don't disturb the woods, you'll end up with a bunch of squirrels within range, and you can shoot one after another with relatively minor repositioning between shots. Good bino's help here--after the first shot, especially late in the season, they tend to run up a tree and freeze, and with good glass, you can pick them out (and pick them off). Sometimes they start chattering within the first shot or 3. Use that sound to guide where you look with the glass, and more often than not, you'll see what your naked eyes can't. I usually shoot at the easiest ones first. YMMV.

And if it's any consolation, I miss about half of my shots on the first round.

They're easier to hit when they're hiding in the tree. I tried it years ago with both irons and 2x scope. It was rough trying to get a calmly feeding sq. Nowadays I have a sq dog. Dot the eye and down comes the sq. I'm using a Patridge front, btw.

I agree. At each setup, I can usually get the first one or two in a calm position on or near the ground. This is where I prefer to shoot them, as an errant bullet into the treetops around my local suburbia is liable to land in someone's window.

I don't have a dog and mostly hunt alone, so I pick up a sack full of acorns or gravel before I go very far into the woods. Since they tend to hold on the opposite side of the tree from your position once they know you're there, I hold my position and toss some nuts to the side of the tree opposite my position (this is a challenge in and of itself to keep your position quiet and simultaneously make noise on the opposite side of the tree). Most times it works on the young ones, and sometimes on the smart old ones; they hear the sound of the nuts hitting leaves and they do a 180* right to your position.