Mother's 'at

[wymberley]

Haven't used this for a while since the free range laying hens were taken out of production. I used it as I shoot fixed positions from the top of the vehicle as I can't walk too far and therefore need fox to come to me. The plastic box had got brittle and cracked so while replacing it I took the opportunity to tidy up the wiring and decided to give it a go last night. Shooting up the hill with some trees and scrub on the right, same on the left but being backed by a wood, I figured anything would come from the latter side so set up accordingly. Wrong! Had only been ready for less than five minutes when I saw something on the right which hadn't been there five minutes earlier. Before my brain got the message that my eyes were sending it, the 'something' came out of the gorse at a speed which would have given the 50 gr SPSX a run for its money, transformed from 'something' into a dog fox and covered the 100 yards to the 'at in a few seconds and stopped just short when the 'at stopped. It then fell down. The 50gr SPSX does seem to have that effect. I bumped into the farmer on the way home and was told a couple more had been spotted in a hay field so we'll give the 'at another go this evening.

 

Mother's 'at? Is pieces of My late Mother's fur hat together with some feathers secured to a 'wobbly' worn Anschutz bolt spring which is then fixed to a Pecking Percy motor. When running, this resembles a small furry Dervish on a bad LSD trip. Connected in parallel is a Mini Colibri caller, both powered by a 1.2 Ah battery via a pigeon flapper timer set at random. It's effect is clinical.

[Penelope]

Ingenuity and nomenclature at it's best.

[Traztaz]

Some film needed me thinks

[robbiep]

So got to see pics or film of this, it sounds great !

[wymberley]

I'll see if Jasper 3 can do his thing with his video cam'.

[wymberley]

Well, talk about the best laid plans!

 

This just has to be true - which it is - simply because you couldn't make it up. Got set up on the hay field. I knew that it had been turned earlier in the day and spotted some fox poo laying on the top so I knew that they were about. After some twenty minutes what looked like a mature cub came out of the trees at the top of the field, some 350 yards away. It's on a mission, heading straight for the 'at some 200 yards away at a steady trot. I started to count my eggs. It kept coming but passed the 'at by a couple of yards. I'm ready to take the shot and can only assume the 'at kicked in as the fox suddenly turned and pounced. It has the 'at in its mouth when all hell let loose and it's throwing itself about like a demented ferret. Now, whatever animal the 'at came from must have been dead for at least 30 years so there's no way it can be fighting back. There was a pause, enough for a quick aimed shot, but too quick and I missed. This seemed to bring the fox back to reality and with one final kick it was off like a rocket back the way it had come.

 

Went to have a look and could see what had happened. As it pounced the fox had got tangled up in the cable to the Pecking Percy, finally pulling one end from the terminals before it made its escape.

 

Sooner or later, I'm going to have that little ***.

[wymberley]

Either the fox or I made the same mistake twice but I'm still alive.

 

Had 3 yearling roe bucks come out to play. One strolled over and daintily touched the 'at with his nose and had a good sniff but decided it wasn't food after all. Magic!

 

I think there's one, possibly 2, foxes still to clear up in that immediate area.

[wymberley]

The 'at strikes again!

 

The first thing I noticed was that the bottom of the hedge had changed colour and was now russet. "Hello, here we go." He stood for a minute and then ran in, stopped after 20 yards or so, paused and then came right on in. Literally inches away he wasn't too sure and backed off a yard or two. You could see him thinking, "what the........" but before the swear blocker became necessary to blank the third word whatever that might have been, the SPSX had arrived.

 

That just leaves one more to tidy up before the harvest so I can then concentrate on the pigeon.

[wymberley]

Yer 'tis

 

No it's not - having trouble.

 

Ah! Had to follow pork chop's advice - thanks.

Edited July 10, 2014 by wymberley

[wymberley]

[Stratts]

Brilliant!!

[wymberley]

Will just say that in the main this is a daylight jobby. It usually happens so fast that barring some virtually permanent illumination unless you're lucky you'll probably miss the action when lamping.

 

PS For example, yesterday evening's field was some 160 yards wide. I put the 'at approx' in the middle and some 140 yards out from the bottom hedge. I got tucked in some 15 yards from the left hand corner of that hedge in order to reduce the cross wind effect. Consequently, looking right was a bit of a search, but left was a quick glance into the field and a quick look along the bottom of the left hand hedgerow. After some 15 minutes, scannig right revealed nothing so quickly looked left, nothing, so back right, and there she was just stood gawping at the 'at from 10 yards. A head on chest shot and down she went.

 

Edit: PS

Edited July 22, 2014 by wymberley

[CharlieT]

Absolutely marvelous, but pray tell me, is a "Pecking Percy" some strange implement from an Ann Summers catalogue or can a shy old country boy like me buy one from Mole Valley Farmers.

[wymberley]

Absolutely marvelous, but pray tell me, is a "Pecking Percy" some strange implement from an Ann Summers catalogue or can a shy old country boy like me buy one from Mole Valley Farmers.

Can't understand it - I can't seem to find them advertised anywhere. I've had mine so long that I can't recall from whence it came. There must have been loads of them sold. Try a post in the pigeon shooting equipment sub forum.

 

If you hit a brick wall but would like one, I do have two.....................

[CharlieT]

Can't understand it - I can't seem to find them advertised anywhere. I've had mine so long that I can't recall from whence it came. There must have been loads of them sold. Try a post in the pigeon shooting equipment sub forum.

 

If you hit a brick wall but would like one, I do have two.....................

 

That's really kind of you.

 

However, just for fun, I've nicked a couple of bits from the little peoples broken toys and spent a few enjoyable hours in the shade knocking up my very own Mother's 'at.

 

Yet to try it, but it kooks the part even though it moves a bit like a drunken hamster.

 

Once again, thanks for the offer.

 

C

[Paul taylor]

I do love you mothers at. Always makes me chuckle

[tedster]

Awesome thread!

[wymberley]

 

That's really kind of you.

 

However, just for fun, I've nicked a couple of bits from the little peoples broken toys and spent a few enjoyable hours in the shade knocking up my very own Mother's 'at.

 

Yet to try it, but it kooks the part even though it moves a bit like a drunken hamster.

 

Once again, thanks for the offer.

 

C

A drunken hamster sounds pretty good to me, Charlie.

 

I don't know what you have in mind for the caller, but it definitely works well if you have them both going on/off together.

[John_R]

I hsve used a weasel ball and butchered it so it mounts on a spike and that has brought a few in close emough for the shotgun.

[wymberley]

It is said that two don't, but sometimes three wrongs can make a right.

 

Isn't it a ****** when you sit down after tea to watch the news and wake up an hour and a half later which can mean that you're short of time to do what you intended? Saw the farmer yesterday afternoon on his way to finish cutting some oats. He said that he'd seen a fox with a distinctive white tip to its tail while hedge trimming in a given field. I said that that sounded like the one that had all of the chickens belonging to the folks who rent one of the farmhouses and that I'd give it a go in the evening as the wind was good for that particular field.

 

Arrived in the field in a bit of a rush only to find that the wind hadn't seen the weather forecast and wasn't playing ball. Don't normally have to worry about the backstop but with the south westerly blowing a houly, I had to change my position and although I couldn't back off as far as I'd have liked as it would have meant shooting from the middle of the road, I did have a telegraph pole that indicated my maximum distance backstop-wise.

 

Every fox that I've shot in this field has come through the hedge so that's where I'm looking. But no, this one has come through the gate at the top left and I didn't see it running in until it got to the telegraph pole some 20 yards from the 'at. Found it in the scope as it got there but it turned away a pace or two, but then turned back again and laid down with its nose no more than 15 inches from the 'at.

 

I even got back home in time to watch the last episode of The Honourable Woman.

 

Handsome little dog fox - with a distinctive whit tip to its tail - sorted.

[wymberley]

Yer 'tis.

[drut]

Yer 'tis.

?

[wymberley]

?

See the 'Fox Decoys' thread on this sub forum.

[wymberley]

Went to check that there was no further rabbit damage after Saturday's outing and poked my nose into an adjoining field. Fox. But something didn't look right although I wasn't sure because of the long grass. Thinking it might have been injured, I dusted it off and took the 'at back in the evening. No sooner got through the gate and started driving down the hill, there was what looked like the same one sun bathing. He saw me, got up and trotted off as fit as a fiddle. Just in case it wasn't the same one, as I was there, I set up the 'at anyway. Switched on, walked the 95 yards back to the truck, poked my head through the sun-roof and looked back only to see 2 magpies and about half a dozen rooks circling overhead. After a good three or more circuits they pushed off only to be replaced by more every couple of minutes. I was just to one side of a virtually permanent rook flight-line. Some very nearly landed. Now, I'm head and shoulders out of the X Trail roof but when they left to rejoin the flight-line they were so low a 9mm garden gun would have been too much gun. I'm absolutely certain that if one had landed and I'd have popped it, the barrel of the Hornet would have been red hot within a few minutes. Yep, I know, and besides I was after a possible fox anyway.

 

I have just bought a magnet for the rooks and pigeon but I think the 'at close to the hide with a manual caller is going to prove far more effective. Can hardly wait for the silage to be cut now.

[wymberley]

Haven't seen a fox for months and have not used the 'at for a year or so. However on Monday evening I went out to trim a few rabbits from one particular field. This one is a bit awkward and it's necessary to wait until the rabbits, once out, move across the field to where a slope offers a back stop. This means getting there early and waiting. Truck parked up and head and shoulders out of the sun roof and all is going well until just as things were looking promising, they scarpered and there's Freddy on a mission trotting along the hedgerow. Not a safe shot and too far for the HMR anyway. He disappears and I wait again - and then it started to rain. End ex.

 

Right, you little ***. Back out last night with the 'at set up where any shot would be safe but not too far away from where I saw him. Same time, no fox, so wait some more, but it's looking a tad iffy. Then, a piece of hedge seemed to have changed colour and before I could move the No1, it's moving. !st, 2nd and into top flat out towards the 'at and it ain't going to stop - around the 'at, not too happy and straight back to the hedge and disappeared - a sharp shout having had no effect. Well, that looks as though we've had it but we'll hang on a bit - and the hedge changes colour again. No time to move the rifle as he's off again straight towards the 'at but this time he stops 50 yards short for a shufti. The SX ensured the stop was permanent.