Catamong

I tried to Login for the meeting, as I had pre-registered. I was very keen to ask the new Chief Constable if he was aware that members of his staff were running a stand at the British Shooting show the previous weekend, and if so, for what purpose? Surely their time that weekend would have been much better served by staying in the office and reducing the massive pile of renewals and grants currently in their in-trays? The meeting was scheduled to run from 10.30 to 12 noon, as I had pre-registered, but as I had another appointment I couldn't log in until 11.15, but it appeared that the meeting had already finished? I would hope that a viewing of the meeting can be obtained online? Cat😎

It simply beggars belief that whoever is supposed to be in charge of the Beds/ Herts / Cambs Firearms licencing department thinks it's OK for some of their staff to go off on a 3 day "jolly" up at the NEC..?? What are they going for - to promote the efficiency of their department - I think not, as they are demonstrably failing by any criteria on that score..?? OK, so maybe they are there to give advice to those newcomers to the sport seeking to obtain a SGC - no joy there - all they can tell them is that it's likely to be 18 - 24 months before they can be granted a certificate, if they're lucky..?? Their time would be much better spent back in the office dealing with the vast backlog of renewals, it's simply outrageous that this situation is allowed to continue. Cat😎

Another great video Simon, very well done.! Cat😎

Great video, thanks for posting.! Cat😎

Hi Yicky, hope you're keeping well, I post only rarely nowadays as most subjects on the Forum have already been debated ad nauseam over the years, and as I don't discuss my political views on an open forum, there's not much I can add to most topics. I don't shoot many pigeons nowadays, it's very hard work over the vast acreages of Winter Rape in our area, Spring drillings are also now a thing of the past, and I've never been too keen on Summer pigeon shooting, as you lose so many birds in standing crops. Also, even Steel shot birds are becoming increasingly difficult to offload, and I will not shoot birds that I cannot properly dispose of. As regards the shoot in Holland, it was a fabulous event, really well run, I was also fortunate enough to be shooting with one of the "original" PW members, (Mr Potter), who used to captain the Northern team at our North V South Charity shoots. I used Fiocchi FSteel 28 gram 7's, and I'd have to say that they were every bit as good as a standard 28g lead load, with excellent kills out to 40 metres, even with relatively open chokes, (I shot most layouts with Skeet / Quarter in my Invictus Ascent). All the best, Cat.😎

I saw our first Swallow at the farm in South Hertfordshire on 8 April, a tad earlier than normal. I also saw the first Swift of the season zipping over the NT Ashridge Estate near Berkhamsted, Herts on Saturday morning. Cat.😎

Hi Derek, You're welcome to join our syndicate, a space is currently available, let me know if it now works for you? Cheers, Cat.😎

My total for 2023 is 91, mostly shot with 12 bore and thermal spotter later in the year, however I do now have access to a large area of mature woodland and have built a permanent hide, (completely weatherproof!!), with a peanut feeder hung on a nearby tree. I didn't get it going until June this year, but will start earlier in 2024 with the BSA Ultra SE .22 PCP, once the Game season has ended. Happy New Year to all.! TOTAL 2995 Cat😎

Very sorry to hear this news, Brian "Hebby" Hebditch was a fine shot, a decent Guy with a wry sense of humour. Rest in peace Brian. Cat.

Thanks Guys, kind words much appreciated. I always enjoy shooting the Home International events, a great atmosphere all round, and I always consider it to be a light hearted event, not to be taken too seriously.! Perhaps that's why I was lucky enough to post a decent score.? I've also made changes to my gun over the last couple of years which have helped me, by switching to a release trigger, (a difficult transition would be an understatement), and also switched to 30" barrels on my CG Invictus Ascent from 32", which has helped me on those close, whippy targets. Looking forward to doing more events in France, Holland and Belgium next year, I've had to curtail travelling this year due to health issues within the family. Cat😎

Thanks, yes, I'd already reported it on there before I posted the sighting on PW, they did reply to say that there hadn't been any other sightings in the area. Perhaps he was just passing through? Cat😎

I saw a White Stork recently, in the valley of the River Ver, near Redbourn, Herts. Only one on it's own, I recognised it soon enough as I've seen a few pairs on stubble fields alongside the motorway between Boulogne and Calais. Apparently they're rare in the UK? Cat. 😎

Dave, If you were a bit further north you'd hopefully be pleasantly surprised, I've just got back from doing the NC500 road trip from Inverness via John O'Groats and a whole host of simply lovely places along the very North and West coast of Scotland, once we turned South from Cape Wrath, and stopped in 5 or 6 different campsites, there were Cuckoos literally everywhere, I was so pleased, and very surprised, as they are now pretty scarce down South. My question is...why the hell would they fly all the way from central Africa, only to bypass the Southern part of England, it makes no sense to fly another 600 plus miles into dreadfully cold and wet weather, and I won't mention the ******* midges.!!!? Cat.😎

I decided not to do the Essex this year, which was a tough decision for me as I've not missed one since the very first event way back when. As far as I'm concerned, the "sparkle" has gone out of the event once they lost the use of the old railway track. It's obviously still very popular with U/C shooters, and I hope they all enjoyed it. Very best of luck to those PW members still to shoot. Cat.😎

I'm surprised to see the words "snobbery" and "etiquette" in replies to this post, as if this was a post about shooting game with a pump..? I'm also very surprised that some posters can't see what's wrong with loading 3 shells on a clay stand where only 2 birds are thrown, they obviously don't have much experience in clay shooting.? The fact is that pumps are not used by clay shooters in the UK, as you need a very high degree of skill to use one properly. There are, I believe, a few shooters in the US who are regular pump users, but they are experts, and mainly sponsored trick shooters. I'm not aware of anybody in the UK who uses a pump in Registered Sporting events, I've never seen it, and doubt I ever will. Most shooters that turn up at straw bale shoots with pumps have very little experience in shooting and safe gun handling and are consequently considered a danger to themselves and others, that's why most grounds have sensibly banned their use. I well remember back in the mid '80's at a 50 bird open re-entry competition at a ground local to me, a group of young lads in front of us on one stand were sharing a pump, the gun was passed from one guy to the next, who loaded it, called "pull" on a simmo going away pair, he only fired one shot and was clearly struggling to cycle the next round, to my horror he swung round with the gun at waist height, pointing it straight towards me, with his finger on the trigger and at the same time trying to crank it, whilst calling to his mates, "I can't get this to work.?" Fortunately, one of his mates pushed the muzzle up into the air before I had time to grab the gun, but it could have been a very nasty incident for all concerned. Cat.😎

My total for 2022 is 30, all shot with airgun or shotgun, and nearly every one of them would still be around today if it hadn't have been for the Thermal spotter, a great piece of essential kit for serious squirrel hunters.! The total is a bit down on last year, as I haven't done any trapping, also we gave them a real hammering last year, there are definitely fewer around this year. 3522 Cat😎

Shocked to hear this sad news, I first met Beardo many years ago through this forum, a really nice guy, I remember taking him pigeon shooting on my patch on a cold Winters day on some rape, got him set up under a small oak tree before first light with the deeks spread out nicely, I said, just wait until it gets properly light, you'll have a bit of sport.! Anyway, I got set up on another block of rape nearby, and as it got light, sure enough, the birds piled in, and we were bouncing them back and forth for the first hour, barrels getting hot, and birds coming in right, left, and centre. I then noticed the birds still pouring into Beardo's set up, but no shots forthcoming.? I checked through the binos and saw him standing up, waving at the birds dropping in as if to scare them away.? I got him on the phone and asked if there was a problem, he said, "I've run out of cartridges, I only brought 3 boxes, I thought that would be plenty" He was so apologetic, and spent the next hour or so trying to push the birds my way. Rest in peace Nick, I know the pigeons around St Albans won't miss you, but a good few pub going music lovers in St Albans will. Cat.😎

Mustard is grown in our area as a soil improver, usually direct drilled into Barley stubble around mid August. It's great for holding Pheasants and can easily grow 5 - 6 feet tall. It's usually cut in mid December, that's when the Pigeons go for it, but it's often ploughed in more or less straightaway, so you'll need to be quick off the mark.! Cat.😎

AGL is a well laid out shooting ground in a lovely wooded setting, but target quality is generally pretty poor, with plenty of slow, "floppy" targets on the end of the barrel, combined with a good few "eyesight testing" edge on targets. As for footwear, normal stout shoes would be fine, but I would worry more about what is covering your head, as you are likely to be showered by chunks of broken clay from yours and other shooting stands.! A good hat and safety glasses are a must. Cat.😎

Brand new unfired prize gun from a long standing Pigeonwatch member! Varnish finished pistol grip stock fitted with a slim rubber factory heel pad, the stock is accompanied by a matching schnabel shaped forend with a blue finished release catch. Black finished boxlock action simply engraved with the Rizzini name on each side of the action and the BR 110 model number on the underside of the action, a pair of 30" multichoke barrels sit alongside the action with 7x7mm ventilated top rib and solid side ribs. Blued top lever and rounded tigger guard with a blued fixed trigger blade, automatic safety catch incorporating the barrel selector. Supplied in the original box with a selection of flush fitting chokes with choke key. Full details: Manufacturer: Rizzini Model:BR110 Licence:Shotgun Orient.:Right Handed Barrel:30" Stock:14.5” Pistol grip, grade 2 Walnut Chokes:Multi & Multi Weight:7lb.7oz. Chamber:3” Trigger:1 Ejection:YES Steel shot proofed: YES Condition:New & un-fired, no marks or scratches, complete with original box. This model currently retails at around £1800.00, I need the cabinet space and therefore this gun is priced to sell quickly at £1250.00 Face to face sale to SGC holders only preferred, but RFD transfer can be arranged. Location : Hemel Hempstead, Herts.

Thank you Gordon, I surprised myself by my performance, and was very pleased to be right up there amongst the top French Pro shooters that took part. I haven't been to France as often as I would like recently, it's obviously best to avoid July and August, as Eurotunnel have jacked their prices up considerably, and there are massive queues, so I'm going to have to be a bit more choosy about which shoots I do attend. All the best, Cat😎

I also replaced the tyres on my VW Tiguan with Michelin Cross Climate 2's, I had CC's on my last Tiguan and they were very good. It's worth checking prices on these, Black Circles are normally pretty expensive, the best price I got was on the Asda tyres website. Cat.😎

On our 300 odd acre shoot we rely pretty heavily on wild birds, I kept the feeders going up until June as there were quite a few birds around, but I reckon it was a poor year for breeding, and that combined with bad luck in the form of heavy rain on every one of our shoot dates thus far has made it a pretty poor season all round. We hammered the magpies via Larsen traps from May to July, and I thought we were really getting on top of them, but there are still vast numbers around. I also concur with the points made by Old Farrier, all of these factors have made things difficult. Cat 😎

My totals for 2021 are, 12 in Fenn traps, plus 61 to either shotgun or air rifle. Hell will freeze over before we see a Red in my part of the World, but the Greys nick so much wheat from my pheasant feeders and do a lot of damage bark stripping, so I'll keep at it. Total 3809 Cat😎

I hope to be able to add a few for 2021 on New Years Eve☺️ Cat😎