Saturday, June 12, 2010
ANSWER to Take The Challenge
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Take This Challenge
You are in a duck blind and a Teal with a tailwind is moving directly across in front of you at 60 mph. The range to the duck is 33 1/3 yds. The shot leaves the gun barrel at 1300 fps and immediately begins to slow down. The shot averages 1000 fps between you and the target. How far do you lead the duck?
You'll find the answer in a post on June 12th!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Got Old Phone Books Piled Up? - Shoot 'em!
Got old phone books piled up?
We get new phone books all the time. They get stacked up under the phone until they become a nuisance and then you get more. Use them to compare penetration of different loads and shot sizes. Shoot one with a load of #9 shot and another with #8 and another with 7 1/2 .......Count the pages the different sizes and loads penetrate for a comparison. You may want to document the results, depending on how many you are comparing.
It's best to set the books up in a way that keeps them from moving when hit. Like attached to a piece of 1/2 inch plywood. Movement can produce inaccurate results.
And as always, BE SAFE!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Dan's 20 Ga. Shotgun - Locking Lug a Pain
I have a thing for SKB shotguns and this is a model 685 in 20 ga. It has 26 inch barrels and comes with the standard selection of choke tubes. I run it with a skeet tube on the bottom barrel and improved cylinder on top. I love the barrel selector position. It is located near the trigger and fires the bottom barrel when pushed to the right and the top barrel when pushed to the left. It is totally separate from the tang safety. I have owned several o/u guns with the selector incorporated in the safety and occasionally pushed the safety forward while the selector was in the middle. OOPS! No shot.
This gun weighs in a 6lbs. 10 oz. and is nicely balanced. The off the shelf stock dimensions fit me well and I've run a few clean rounds of skeet with it. No excuses for missing a grouse now.
There is one feature I do not care for. I carry my S x S and O/U in the open position most of the time. Either in my hand or resting on my left forearm. When this gun is open, the locking lug protrudes out the left side of the gun. {see pic above}. The lug pokes into my palm when carried in my left hand and rubs against my leg when carried in my right hand. When I carry the gun cradled in the bend of my left arm, the lug hits me in the ribs. If I carried the gun closed, it would be no problem.
I have the 20 in the rig all season long, but it mostly serves as a loan out gun for folks that show up with guns more suited to a duck blind than the grouse woods. My favorite Grouse buster is an SKB SxS and that's another blog.....
DWT
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Second Amendment Rights Inspired By Swiss
The Second Amedment in our Constitution, actually was inspired by policies set by the peaceful people of Switzerland. And every household is armed to defend it!
FACT: All young males at the age of 20, are given automatic assault rifles and taught to use them, usually at an even earlier age. Each male is expected to defend their country should the need arise.
FACT: There is less than 1 murder per 100,000 people.
FACT: During World War I the Nazis didn't invade Switzerland because they knew that every household was armed and ready to defend.
For more interesting facts on Switzerland and their gun policies click the title!
Source: Courierpress.com
Friday, October 30, 2009
Getting "Looks" From Your Bird Dog For Shooting Poorly?
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Shooting at Grouse - You Gotta Pull the Trigger
Photo By : Dan ThomasonWhen Karen and I married, I bought her a 20 ga. youth model pump gun that fit her pretty well. She learned shooting safety and how the gun functioned and began shooting winter trap league with me. She did well and was soon hitting in the low 20's. Grouse season arrived and we headed for the woods. Peat would point and Karen would get set for a shot, a Grouse would flush and then.... nothing....No shot.This happened over and over. She was waiting for that wide open shot that seldom happens. I convinced her that you cannot hit a bird if you don't pull the trigger. She got the idea and the results are in the picture. This is not like prairie hunting with the covey of Huns silhouetted against a blue sky. In these woods we get an occasional glimpse of a Grouse twisting through the Douglas Fir and and Thorn Apple thickets. When you get that glimpse of a bird, you better hit the trigger, 'cause it ain't gonna get any better....DWT
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Shooting Techniques - In the Grouse Woods
Trap shooters know where the target is coming from and skeet shooters even know the direction of flight. Grouse hunters never know when a bird will flush, from where it will emerge or which direction it will fly. Birds in my woods walk or run away from points and I am often surprised by where the bird flushes. The swing through method is the best if you can use it. Butt Belly Beak Bang! Often the grouse flushes at odd angles and odd directions and gun mount is ahead of the bird. You should not move the gun behind the bird and then try to catch up. You don't have time. Allow the target to catch up to the muzzle and incorporate a sustained lead or pull ahead technique, Spot Shooting is not very productive and I believe it leads to crippled birds. Better to let one slip away and try for him next week. Maybe you'll get a better shot, ... probably not. DWT
Shooting Technique - Spot Shot
This technique is the least efficient method of shooting. The muzzle of the gun is never on the bird. It is simply pointed at a "Spot" in front of the moving target and you send the shot down the barrel with a little prayer. These are desperation shots and are not often productive. DWT
Shooting Technique - Swing Through
In the "Swing Through" method, The gun muzzle starts behind the bird, swings through the bird, and then the trigger is pulled. This is the method used by trap and skeet shooters and is the most efficient style. You'll bring home more birds by using this technique when you have the opportunity. DWT
Shooting Technique - Sustained Lead
You are in a blind and a duck is flying directly across in front of you. You place the muzzle of the gun on the moving ducks head, pull ahead and "sustain" the proper lead, then pull the trigger. Hence the name "Sustained Lead". DWT
Shooting Techniques - Pull Ahead
Picture yourself in a duck blind and a drake mallard is flying directly across in front of you. Using the Pull Ahead shooting method, you place the end of the muzzle on the birds head and swing the gun at a speed that matches the birds. You then "Pull Ahead" of the bird and pull the trigger. DWT
Good Shooting Starts With Foot Position
Rifle shooters stand with feet far apart and toes pointed in directions that do not suit a shotgunner. A shotgunner must rotate his body in the direction of a moving target and that starts with proper foot placement. A shotgunners feet should be in a position much like shooting a free throw in basketball. Feet about shoulder width apart, toe of the right foot at the instep of the left foot {for a right handed shooter}. Toes pointing towards the emerging target. This will allow the body to rotate in BOTH directions easily. If a right handed shooter has his feet far apart and left foot far ahead of the right, he will shoot behind a hard left target nearly every time. DWT
DWT to Contribute
It has become clear that I need my husband to assist me when it comes to guns and "guy stuff". Since my husband loves to talk about such things, I've ask him to post some blogs to cover these subjects. So, from now on when you see "DWT" at the end of a post, that is my husbands initials and it means he made that particular post. Thanks for your help, honey!
Bird Hunters - Do the Math- The Answer
The Teal is flying 60 mph which is 88 fps. the range is 33 1/3 yds. or 100 ft. Average shot speed is 1000 fps. It will take 1/10 of a second for the shot to leave the barrel and arrive at the duck. In 1/10 of a second the duck will travel 8.8ft. That's right!! You need a 9 ft. lead to hit the duck. That's why you hear stories of hunters shooting at a line of passing ducks and the 3rd in line falls instead of the first.
Why You Missed the Grouse
Bird Hunters - Do the Math - Hit More Birds
You are in a duck blind and a Teal with a tailwind is moving directly across in front of you at 60 mph. The range to the duck is 33 1/3 yds. The shot leaves the gun barrel at 1300 fps and immediately begins to slow down. The shot averages 1000 fps between you and the target. How far do you lead the duck? You'll find the answer in tomorrows blog!
Approaching a Grouse Point - Gun Position Important
Peat slammed on a bird and my hunting partner walked in with his gun in the Port Arms position like a soldier. The Grouse flushed and he went through several gyrations to get the gun to his shoulder. By the time the gun was mounted the grouse was long gone. I have seen many hunters approach a point with the muzzle nearly vertical and the gun butt at waist level. They Snap the gun to the shoulder which causes the barrel to move downward [ wrong direction] and by the time the gun butt hits the shoulder the grouse is gone again. Try placing the gun butt barely under the arm pit with the muzzle just below eye level, thumb on the safety and finger on the trigger. When the grouse flushes you start the swing and slide the gunstock to your cheek. When the stock hits your cheek, pull the trigger. A proper swing and follow through will put the shot pattern right where it needs to be.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Reloading Suggestions - Which is Best for You?
Fast burning powders such as Red Dot and 700X tend to throw open patterns. Slower burning powders like Green Dot and 800X tend to throw tighter patterns. The amount of powder will also effect the shot pattern from your barrel/choke combination. Windjammer wads have 8 light petals and throw a wide pattern. Winchester AA wads are stiffer and the old Activ wads had 4 petals that were very stiff and consequently throw a very tight pattern. Some good combinations for trap shooting are Red Dot/Windjammer for 16 yd. line. Red Dot/ Winchester for handicap and Green Dot/Activ for 27yd. line. Load different combos and shoot lots of paper to find the best recipe for your shooting situation.
Shooting Skeet is Good Practice for Bird Hunting
The shotgun game "Skeet" was invented by grouse hunters, for grouse hunters. The target presentations are grouse like in every way. The high house is very much like a tree flush and that last low house shot is like the grouse that nearly knocks your hat off. Take your favorite grouse gun down to the skeet range and shoot a few rounds before season. It'll help you put a few more birds in the game bag.