Cosd

I am currently extending our house to the side which borders the ends of two gardens. My neighbours have been difficult from the start and one is refusing to allow me access to put scaffolding up at the end of her garden. Does anyone know if I have any right within the Party Wall act to allow for this? The act is a bit grey when it comes to scaffolding. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I couldn't make this weekend just gone, but my partner went down to our shoot to find the farmer over half way through cutting the wheat on 300 acres. He had a very quiete day, it was very hot and no wind at all over in Cambridge. Will next weekend be too late to go and have a shoot on the stubble? What should we take, deeks, floaters and magnet/s?

Using different internet sites for examples of magnet placement, I have tried locating the magnet as shown in diagrams, so tried ahead of a v formation, behind and to the side of the v formation, but one thing these diagrams don't show is how far ahead or behind....I have also used the L shape formation, again placing the magnet ahead and behind to the side. No luck using any of the above though I don't actually think I have had a single bird decoy at all whilst the magnet has been out. Reading some of the comments, should I be placing the magnet further away from the decoy formation?

Catamong I apologise if I didn't explain clearly. When I asked "what am I doing wrong" I wasn't refering to the number of birds shot, I was chuffed with that; I was actually refering to the Magnet, and me not having any luck with it so far. As far as setting up where the birds are feeding, our shoot is about 300 acres and only has wheat on it at the moment. Looking at other wheat fields I usually only see small proportions of the field being laid, but our shoot is about 50% laid. The pigeons are not concentrated in any one area. This is where I thought the magnet would draw them over. The other issues I think is that there is plenty of laid barley in surrounding land so again, the woodies have loads of choice. For the first time this weekend we found a flightline, it isn't the busiest but nevertheless it gave us some decent sport. This is like a crossroad/sitting area the woodies seem to like and they decoyed well. My point with the magnet is I just haven't seen it actually do anything for me yet. On several occasions, I put out the decoys, change my patterns around and am now quite confident that I can set a pretty decent lure as they decoy in well; But when I get a couple and stick them on the magnet I don't get a sniff and either take it down or take one arm off and use the other side as a bouncer. I will definitely try the placing of the pigeon at an angle so the pigeons don't look like they are flying straight. I have the magnet set up at the highest speed setting so I think I am ok there. I will also try placing the magnet closer to the hide, even though my problem isn't them landing anywhere near it. I won't give up, I was just begining to lose some faith in the magnet. Thanks again as allways guys, I will keep you posted.

Went out Sunday with my friend, as some might already know we have been shooting for less than a year. Had our best day to date, shot 27 woodies and went home grinning like the cats that got the cream. Our previous best was a measley 10 :yp: Set up at just gone 7am and put up my new net (2 ply stealth camo) and 12 plastic decoys in a U shape formation on some laid barley. First shot, I missed an absolute sitter and was really disapointed in myself. Second shot, one decoyed perfectly and bang he was down. Quickly ran out and put him on a home made bouncer and sat in my hide again. Shot a couple more, missed a few and almost had my first left and right. Two came in together and was about to land, I held off as they were off the ground about 4 foot and almost looked like I could get both in one shot. I waited a split second but they didn't cross and decided not to land and took off splitting apart; I took the left one quickly and in truth should have got the second as well but missed. If I'm totally honest a bit of panic and excitement took over at the thought of a left and right which was probably my downfall to missing the second. Anyway shot and missed some more and so did my friend sitting a few hundred yards away in the next field, and we total'd 27. At one point my friend set up his rotary, and yet again we felt it did more harm than good. We have both got Rotary's and have tried all sorts of formations with the decoys but we have never had any luck. I have tried everything I can think of, the foam wing decoys it came with, real birds, in front of the deeks, behind, closer, further. I have covered the arms in camo tape so I know there is no glare. What is it we are doing wrong? I understand that these things will not allways work, but in our case they have never worked! Anyone have any suggestions and similar expeiences? Or should we just sell them?

We called the farmer to say we're going down to the shoot this weekend and he told us that there is quite a lot of laid barley especially around the edges of the fields ( land is aprox 300 acres). We haven't been able to go there for four weeks and the land is not shot by any other people. Looking at the threads on the forum this seems to be where the pigeons are at. Since this is our first year shooting we haven't shot laid Barley before and have only seen pigeons in very small numbers up until now; When we started the wheat was about 3 or 4 inches tall. There are three of us, how should we set up? Should we sit on seperate fields or closer together? Also what equipment should we take, we have decoys, two bouncers and two magnets... Really excited to hopefully see some real action, our biggest bag so far has been about a dozen pigeons as they haven't been feeding on our fields and there have been no flight lines there either. I can't wait!!!!!!

If I'm not mistaken, if you call the council they will come and get rid of them for you free of charge, not the same if they were wasps!

I got a call from a friend the other day. They got a pup and have realised they ain't as easy to look after as they thought. Before everyone starts with the dogs are for life stuff, I have been a dog owner, these are genuine nice people who made an honest mistake. Anyway, I was asked if I wanted the dog (still tiny, not sure exactly how many weeks) because they knew I had dogs before. The truth is, I want to get another dog, promised the kids and all that, but I ain't ready at the moment. I only just thought that maybe someone here might be interested. If I ain't mistaken they make decent gun dogs If anyone is interested, let me know and I can ask and maybe put you in touch.

Thanks for that Hewey, I actually called our sponsors yesterday and am ordering the 2 ply Stealth net. It works exactly the same as what you have described, and the big advantage for me is the fact that it folds up to a shoe box size. I can't wait to get it as my current net which does work well fills a black bin liner, and because I can't take a car close to my shooting spot, it's a bit of a drag. I will be putting up my existing net for sale as soon as I get the new one here on the forum if anyone is interested. I'll have a measure but its about 6' x 20', mainly green with splashes of brown one side and mainly brown with splashes of green on the other side, so it,s pretty versatile to the background without having to take two nets.

The best decoys are the ones that work on the day. I don't know how they did this test, but in my eyes you cannot do an exact comparison unless the test is identical. It's impossible to do an identical test in pigeon shooting because there are so many variables. I use plastic decoys which are supposed to be bad in bright sunshine because they can glisten. Not so long ago I sat there most the day when it was overcast and couldn't pull anything in, the sun came out, I could see my deeks were glistening as they moved about on the wobbly sticks, and though they weren't about in big numbers, for about half an hour everything that flew past decoyed perfectly. If it were an exact science we'd get borred. My view (and I'm not too experienced) is that what works one day may not work the next. All that said, I do want to get some silosocks, because it's another toy

I had no idea what the tech spec on binoculars actually means ( 7x50 ) If like me you are the same, have a look at this: http://www.monkoptics.co.uk/binoculars-explained.html

I think this is true of main dealers, they do rip you off, but as you proved there are alternatives out there at a fraction of the cost. The internet is giving us the customers more choice as well as opening peoples eyes. I was on the well known American site for shooting clothing earlier today, and was thinking what a rip off it is in this country. Not only do we have a much smaller choice but we get charged the earth fo it as well.

Just to let you guys know..... In the end I bought a pair of Cobra MT800 Walkie Talkies for a reasonable price of £45 delivered. They came with an ear piece but I ordered a throat mic from that auction site. The throat mic (under £10 delivered) is from Hong Kong but works very well. When there is a strong wind, using either the WT on it's own or with a normal mic, the other person hears the wind firstly and your voice in the background; Using the throat mic though your voice is more prominent than the wind. The other advantage is that you can wear the mic even under a balaclava and it is not affected. Coming off the mic there is a short curly cord with an ear piece. Lastly there is a remote button you can velcro anywhere to activate the mic, so you never need to touch the walkie talkie. There is the VOX option but this reduces the battery life so I don't use this. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Throat-Vibration-Mic...1QQcmdZViewItem If anyone decides to try one of these, just remember to check the plug fit for your particular walkie talkie. Mine was the single plug and Cobra was not on the compatibility list, I bought it anyway as the plug looked the same (scientific evaluation I know :blink: ) and it worked fine.

Yes I did use paypal but they didn't offer much help. I bought a remote airplane, if you know anything about these they are mostly made of foam. When the item arrived it had gauges and dents all over it, but the sellers excuse was that the manufacturers had stopped making it and that any crash by me flying the thing would damage it anyway; My argument was that I paid almost £200 for a new item and it should have arrived as new.

Too right, I bought something from ebay that came damaged. When I asked the seller to replace it he came out with all sorts of excuses and in the end gave me £5 as compensation on a £190 item. When I gave him negative feedback he returned the compliment with something like 'I was being ungrateful'. Reported it to Ebay and they didn't want to know.

I'd like to say a good word about Andy Moss. A friend and I bought two rotary's from Andy a few months ago. We haven't had the chance to use them often yet but after three attempts my friend found his was wearing the battery out very quickly. We had bought two batteries each, so after trying his batteries then mine, it was obvious it was his machine and not the batteries. I also tried his batteries on my machine and mine would last in the excess of 4 hours. I called Andy and explained the problem, and without a flinch he has offered to send us a new motor. As far as Rotary's go these aren't expensive, but having read some articles on here regarding back up service and lack of it from the larger retailers, this man is second to none. An absolute gent and wouldn't think twice about recomending him. Thanks Andy

Since I only started pigeon shooting this year, now need some more clothing for the warmer weather, looking at one of these to wear over a long sleeve t-shirt. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...A:IT&ih=021 What do you guys think? I mainly shoot from a hide, but like to go for walks as well to other areas on our shoot, so I want the pockets for bits and bobs.

henryd, if it's still under warranty, why don't you excercise the warranty? An obvious question, have you changed anything lately on the PC? Have you added any software, deleted any software or files? Start up files may be missing or have become corrupt, this can cause problems you describe.

Pop up hide for sale, only used 3 times, no damage, rips or snags. Take out of carry bag (has shoulder strap) pull poles apart and job done. Takes seconds to erect and fold down, and great when you move positions frequently. Please note this is not the type with a roof and shooting holes, this has 4 poles that pull apart forming a square, It is tall enough to sit on a shooting chair, I have the bucket type, and stand to shoot over the top. It has a good camo pattern. I don't use this any more as I have got myself a net and poles. Bought for £70 will accept £40. Prefer collection but can be discussed if not convenient. Can view before you buy.

Have a look at a sale from YODI in gun sales, he has a Beretta 3 shot semi auto, excellent gun and he'll do a deal.

I wasn't aware you could mention names, but yes, Paul Hart is the man to call for the Jack Pyke jacket

Lord Geordie, Can you tell me the stock length please? Length from end of the stock to the trigger please. Thanks

Sounds like you had a nice day Mr D, well done

I agree with the replies you have already had on this. The other problem with these jackets is that the cheap plastic material sounds like a crisp packet when you move. The Deerhunter jackets recomended are an obvious good choice though a bit pricey. If you are on a budget as I was, then have a look at the Jack Pyke hunting jacket. It has all the features, warm and very quiete: English Oak Hunters Jacket NEW STEALTH MATERIAL breathable - waterproof - noiseless Outshell:100% Polyester brushed tricot with laminated membrane. Lining: 100% Polyester brushed mesh & taffeta. Full length double opening zip, concealed hood in pocket, 2 lower front bellows pockets with cartridge holders, 2 hand warmer pockets, 1 internal chest pocket, fold-down waterproof seat flap, elasticated weather shrouds on wrists Sizes:S, M, L, XL, XXL, XXXL http://jackpyke.co.uk/hunterjkteo.html I bought one of these and am very happy with it. It retails at around £60, but I managed to get mine for £50 at an army surplus store. The store I went into also had the Deerhunter clothing, so you can see the two to compare and decide yourself which to go for for the price.

Excellent shooting guys