Match10
Member
You guys know the ones with white faces are the territorial males and they don't have stingers? You can catch them with your hand and fling to the ground for stunning and stomping.
Carpenter bee control S&W style
- Thread starter RalphK22
- Start date
Cream of Wheat against the carpenter bees - now that sounds like fun!
stiab
US Veteran
The shot shells do work, I have been doing it for 2 to 3 years since I first learned the technique here on the S&W forum. BEWARE OF ROCOCHETS!! The little shot will come straight back to you when they hit anything remotely hard, even wood. I prefer the .22 for carpenter bees and .38 Special for snakes and rats, but will also use .38 on bees if that is what I have handy, which I did yesterday.
And I have a newfound respect for the bee's carpenter abilities. I watched one a couple days ago go into a hole on a loose (unattached) board I have stored outside under a shed. It was a piece of old house siding 7" wide and 3/4" thick and several feet long. I thought to myself that bee was pretty stupid to bore into wood only 3/4" thick, but when I stuck a piece of wire into the hole he had made a tunnel 8 inches long inside down the length of the board, without coming out on either side. That took some skill!
And I have a newfound respect for the bee's carpenter abilities. I watched one a couple days ago go into a hole on a loose (unattached) board I have stored outside under a shed. It was a piece of old house siding 7" wide and 3/4" thick and several feet long. I thought to myself that bee was pretty stupid to bore into wood only 3/4" thick, but when I stuck a piece of wire into the hole he had made a tunnel 8 inches long inside down the length of the board, without coming out on either side. That took some skill!
Baseball bats work well too. When I had an open deck, I could knock them 20ft.
Gazz
Member
If you like song birds in your yard, realize that the bug spray will get some of them too. The bees will fly off and get eaten by the birds which will kill them.
I like the cream of wheat approach. Typically, I use my .20 Sheridan on the numerous wasps outside my shop but those suckers are hard to hit with a single pellet. And they do figure out that you are gunning for them and that hurts! I've thought about using gel caps with some #12 shot in a bored out Chinese air gun but haven't got around to that experiment yet.
I like the cream of wheat approach. Typically, I use my .20 Sheridan on the numerous wasps outside my shop but those suckers are hard to hit with a single pellet. And they do figure out that you are gunning for them and that hurts! I've thought about using gel caps with some #12 shot in a bored out Chinese air gun but haven't got around to that experiment yet.
enfield
US Veteran
I just loaded up some of the Southern recipe bee loads - .38 Special, 2 grains Bullseye, Quaker Instant Grits. Look out carpenter bees!
nearlynormalmike
US Veteran
I don't mean to get too far off topic but since we are dealing with household pests (other than in-laws), how about the dang armadillos.
At 3:00 AM when I wandering around the yard in a sleepy haze wearing nothing but my drawers, I ain't in too much of a "sporting mood" and blast away at those boogers with a 12 gauge, (preferably a S&W), with #2 shot. Now those little devils are hard to discourage!
I have friends who can walk right up to them and dispatch the vermin with a .22 handgun (preferably a S&W). I reckon they smell me coming and I can't get close.
I live out in the sticks where a shotgun blast in the middle of the night isn't out of the ordinary at all.
Anybody have any other solutions?? Neither grits nor cream of wheat is gonna do it!
At 3:00 AM when I wandering around the yard in a sleepy haze wearing nothing but my drawers, I ain't in too much of a "sporting mood" and blast away at those boogers with a 12 gauge, (preferably a S&W), with #2 shot. Now those little devils are hard to discourage!
I have friends who can walk right up to them and dispatch the vermin with a .22 handgun (preferably a S&W). I reckon they smell me coming and I can't get close.
I live out in the sticks where a shotgun blast in the middle of the night isn't out of the ordinary at all.
Anybody have any other solutions?? Neither grits nor cream of wheat is gonna do it!
roscoesheater
US Veteran
I will never look @ a bowel of grits again and not think about this thread. I was watching the little buggers today @ work feasting on the wood trim of the shop, wonder if the boss would be OK w/me taking care of them w/my 64-5
RH
RH
OP
RalphK22
Member
okay not quite ready to let this thread die yet, He He He! As those of you who have been following this thread thus far know, I have shot carpenter bees with 22 shot shells from my model 34, a colt 1860 Army replica loaded with 20 grains of three FG black powder and Quaker grits, and I've even managed to knock a few off with a red Ryder BB gun. I've loaded up some 38 cases with two grains of bull's-eye, a cardboard spacer, fill the remaining space with Quaker Oats grits, topped off with another cardboard spacer and put on a slight crimp the hold everything in place. This load easily knocks bees out of the air at 6 foot.
I'm having a problem however with primers backing out of the case. Anybody here have any thoughts as to what I should do? Am I packing things to tightly? The post I had seen, that I stole this idea off of,uses two grains of clays. From a little research, I have found that clays is a slightly faster power than bull's-eye. I don't know if using clays would make a difference.
Anyway, if anyone here has experience with loading shot shells for handguns, could you clue me in and what I might be going wrong?
I'm having a problem however with primers backing out of the case. Anybody here have any thoughts as to what I should do? Am I packing things to tightly? The post I had seen, that I stole this idea off of,uses two grains of clays. From a little research, I have found that clays is a slightly faster power than bull's-eye. I don't know if using clays would make a difference.
Anyway, if anyone here has experience with loading shot shells for handguns, could you clue me in and what I might be going wrong?
