Carpenter Bee season is here again with a vengance. I've killed over 30 this week with my md.34 snub and ratshot. Wingshooting is excellent.....If you limit your range to 6 feet or less. Ran out of ratshot. Have resorted to my old .32 3" HE. Loaded some ammo for them last night. 1 grain of bullseye/paper wad/3 cc #9 shot topped with a paper wad & fingernail polish to seal. Back on the hunt today.
Bee Season
- Thread starter Mike SC Hunter
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hotrod150
Member
How much does a bee stamp cost, and what's the daily bag limit??
Seriously, aside from those who are allergic, bees are generally thought of as a good thing due to their plant-pollinating activities. There's been some some sort of "sick hive syndrome" thing going on the last few years, leading to concerns about a less than optimal amount of pollinating activities.
Is there any particular reason you're gunning for them-- damage to wooden buildings perhaps?
Seriously, aside from those who are allergic, bees are generally thought of as a good thing due to their plant-pollinating activities. There's been some some sort of "sick hive syndrome" thing going on the last few years, leading to concerns about a less than optimal amount of pollinating activities.
Is there any particular reason you're gunning for them-- damage to wooden buildings perhaps?
DonD
Member
It's called "colony collapse syndrome". I share your concern regarding pollenation, bees are vital to so many things but while I may well be wrong, I'm thinking carpenter bees aren't the real pollenators. Maybe someone can step in with more knowledge?
Aside from that issue, the reactive target issue sounds like a blast. I remember seeing an article in a shooting magazine years ago where the writer was assassinating dragon flies with .22LR shotshells. Don
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I like to go hand to hand with carpenter bees. In lieu of .44 mag "plinking" rounds which tend to upset neighbors and golfers passing by, my weapon of choice is a racket-ball "racket". Very effective and deadley, 35 confirmed kills last year and haven't seen a single bee this year yet. The wife loves this technique and has become a killer of these pesky flying insects, and sure beats the hell out of trying to hit them in air with wasp/hornet spray! Try it if you haven't, very satisfying and fun, almost wish a few bees would show up, we're armed and read for em'.
Comrad
Member
Carpenter bees aren't pollenators and can sure do some damage to wood around the house. WD40 knocks em down when you can't shoot.
You're going to love this years crop of Cicadas, better stock up on ammo.
You're going to love this years crop of Cicadas, better stock up on ammo.
Mrs Engineer is 5 for 5 with the flyswatter, I'm 0 for 6. I ain't no Tiger in the Woods.
MH8675309
Member
Badminton racket - it just dices em! Specially those miserable yellow jackets.
FloridaFlier
Member
Beeman and Air Arms Air rifles- the good ones, not the department store ****. My Beeman .177 has a C-T-C rating at 10 meters of 0.10". One stroke pump, very different that what we grew up with. With a good 8-12X scope, I shoot wasps, hornets and even flies at 15-20 yards. Virtually no noise, no cleanup afterwards. Loads of fun!
DonD
Member
Lots of interesting comments and glad to learn the the carpenter bees are more destructive than beneficial. Don
OP
Those aggrivating rascals bore .50 cal. holes in my barn and porch roof.
sac-gunslinger
Member
Do you have your "trophy bee" mounted on your wall?
No need to use lead shot; there is a cheaper alternative.
In a 44 Magnum or 45 Colt, use 1 grain of Bullseye. Make a punch out of a discarded case by sharpening the case mouth, and then use this to make wads out of scrap cardboard, such as from a pizza box, etc. Next put one of these wads over the powder, and seat with a 3/8" wooden dowel. Now fill the case with dry rice or grits, and then put another cardboard wad over this. If you have a good tight fit, and if you aren't going to carry them around, they can be used just as-is. However, if you are going to be carrying them for any length of time, you should glue the top wad to the case with a ring of super glue, or some other glue or sealant.
The best part of not using any lead shot is that the load will not do any damage to windows or paint on nearby buildings if the distance is more than only a few feet away.
Have fun.
In a 44 Magnum or 45 Colt, use 1 grain of Bullseye. Make a punch out of a discarded case by sharpening the case mouth, and then use this to make wads out of scrap cardboard, such as from a pizza box, etc. Next put one of these wads over the powder, and seat with a 3/8" wooden dowel. Now fill the case with dry rice or grits, and then put another cardboard wad over this. If you have a good tight fit, and if you aren't going to carry them around, they can be used just as-is. However, if you are going to be carrying them for any length of time, you should glue the top wad to the case with a ring of super glue, or some other glue or sealant.
The best part of not using any lead shot is that the load will not do any damage to windows or paint on nearby buildings if the distance is more than only a few feet away.
Have fun.
papajohn428
Member
I have two Carpenter Bee traps that I use, made of untreated pine wood, a rectangular shaped box with a 1/2" diameter hole drilled into each side, with a clear empty Gatorade bottle attached at the bottom. I hang the traps, one at each end of my house.The Carpenter bee finds the hole, crawls inside, sees daylight at the bottom and flies into bottle. Bottle fills up with dead carpenter bees, replace bottle with new one.
But I must say, papajohn's Bug-a-salt looks like more fun.
But I must say, papajohn's Bug-a-salt looks like more fun.
That was neat as all get out, watching that quickie movie when he shot a fly. I'm going to have to get one of those to entertain myself. I wonder how well it might work on mice????
WuzzFuzz
Sebago Son
Member
We have White Faced Wasps. They are murderous.
OP
Built one like yours and hung it on my porch all summer.......Caught 1 bee....Apparently doesn't work everywhere. Glad it works for you.
Roadtrash
US Veteran
When I was living in South Carolina I would sit on the back deck on a hot afternoon with a cold beverage and a pellet rifle and have a ball with'em. Never was a shortage of the things but I didn't mind they were fun to shoot.
papajohn428
Member
When I was living in the boonies (away from home for the first time) I bought a few pellet rifles and started looking for targets of opportunity. There were a lot of yellow jackets around, and I knew they loved Orange Crush because if I opened a bottle of it outside they would be all around me in no time. So I poured a little on a railroad tie 35 feet outside my living room window, sat on the couch and sniped the little buggers while watching the baseball game. I probably killed a couple hundred that summer, but never seemed to make a dent. It was good practice!
BearBio
Member
I've never had a problem with carpenter bees but I do have a lot of pollinators around (I have a pollinator garden). I plant a lot of mints-such as pappermint, oregano, catmint, etc. I also have a few bee houses hanging around for the Mason's Bees, If you're worried about any effect on pollinators, plant a few mints for them and hang a couple of bee houses for them to hibernate in.
Fresh and freshly dried oregano and peppermint are an added treat.
Fresh and freshly dried oregano and peppermint are an added treat.
LVSteve
Member
How asinine is that?
The other name for a dragonfly is mosquito hawk. Dragonflies and damselflies are highly beneficial insects both in and out of the water as they eat the larvae and adult stages of many things we don't like such as mosquitoes, gnats and midges.
gunlovingirl
Member
How asinine is that?
Once in awhile last year I would notice small clouds of tiny gnats in the back yard, and there were usually a couple large dragonflies putting on an aerial display as they fed on the gnats. And then I have all the huge red wasps. I've heard they have a really nasty sting, so as long as they leave me alone, I'll leave them alone.
I read an article recently about how dragon flies are one of the world's greatest predators. Very high kill rate when going after bug chow.
I used to snipe water bugs on our stream with my BB gun as a kid. Not bad bugs... just fun to snipe.
In Robert Ruark's Old Man and the Boy books he has the old man say, "All boys are bloodthirsty young savages." True enough!
I used to snipe water bugs on our stream with my BB gun as a kid. Not bad bugs... just fun to snipe.
In Robert Ruark's Old Man and the Boy books he has the old man say, "All boys are bloodthirsty young savages." True enough!
Sebago Son
Member
How asinine is that?
There's a special place in hell for people that intentionally kill dragonflies and I for one WON'T be there ...
Rintimtin
Member
I go old school on the wasps at work. Once I got stung cutting some brush I took that wasp out with extreme prejudice. Cut off his head and put it on a tiny little stick I let the other wasps know I was not to be messed with. I only sting when stung.
LittleCooner
Member
Shooting with "rat shot" is a lot of fun, but today I sprayed a very large log home with the real stuff to watch them die. They do to much damage to houses and out building. Premethrin from the local outdoor garden and seed store will keep them away until next year. Also after a spraying, they will not light at their old den hole, only hover a few feet away to look at it and wow, boom, another bites the dust, reload and keep looking. The ones here that question their death do not understand what a pest their are, like warf rats and mice or wood ticks, the only good carpenter bee is a dead one.
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