motty

It certainly isn't quiet everywhere at this time of year. In the last two weeks i have had bags of 116 and 94. A mate of mine and another bloke who shoots on the same farm have also had a ton each in the last week or two. The barley drillings produced good sport, the rape also. Very shortly, i will be expecting to start shooting some decent bags on peas.

I generally wouldn't go any bigger than a five, and not really any smaller than an eight.

If i were you, i'd get practising on the skeet range.

Just use your normal 28gm 7 1/2 clay load. They'll do the job just fine.

I had a nice bag of 106 on rape about 3 weeks ago. The pigeons had deserted this field to feed on the recent drillings. They are now back. Most of the crop is now 2-3 feet tall and coming in to flower, apart from one end where it has been eaten down.I paid the field another visit yesterday afternoon. It was sunny and there was a nice breeze. I wasn't even set up until around 2.30pm and the birds were then starting to flight- no need to set up too early. I made a hide in the ditch and set out around 25 flocked deeks. The magnet was 25 yards to my right, on the edge of the ditch.I wasn't expecting too much, and when birds started dropping into the tall stuff in the middle of the field, i thought i might have problems. Soon enough though, they started heading my way from the well known flightlines. I hardly missed at all to start off with. After knocking about 20 down, i started to wish i had brought the semi - they were coming right into the heart of the decoys in 4s and 5s regularly. I was getting left and rights, but i could have had several triples. After a while I was starting to wonder whether i could keep up my cartridge to kill ratio- i'd killed the first 50 for 54 shots.I'm normally a bit annoyed if i can't keep my ratio to less than 1.5 shots per bird killed, so this more than made me happy. I knew it couldn't continue, and as footwork was a bit tricky on the slope of the ditch, i started missing more. I was mostly using 28gm 7 1/2 shells, and if anyone says they're not man enough for pigeons, they either can't shoot straight or haven't used them enough. I was knocking them down perhaps better than when i used a few 30gm 6's. Anyway, toward 5pm, they started dropping in the middle again! I was heading for 100 but i thought i'd fall short. They kept coming,though, and although my ratio had dropped, i was well happy with 116 pigeons for 142 shots. In the end i packed up at just the right time ( about 5.45pm). The flight had dried up and i could see a few flocks on a couple of the rape fields in the distance. I then had a knackering pack up and walk back to the truck, ready to take the pigeons to the game dealer.

I don't think 509 is the total, I've shot more than that on my own!

I would say you would be fine using any 7 or 7 1/2 28gm shell for pigeons.

Got to agree with Cranfield there. My mate shot on a field yesterday that had just been spread with muck, prior to ploughing. He didn't arrive at the field until 1pm, and shot 112. No need to be up early, unless it's the only time you can get out. I'm looking to shoot on some rape tomorrow at about 2pm.

I take it no-one is bothering with the total anymore.

I don't know of any around the Norwich area. I take my pigeons etc to a place at wereham.I would be interested to find out any others in my area.

You'll probably find you have plenty of opportunity to get a decent bag or two on this field. You have all the time the plants are growing, plus the stubble. Don't be in too much of a hurry, especially if you're the only one with permission to shoot there.

I own a 3 1/2" chambered beretta xtrema and that cycles clay loads without problems. It is a very versatile gun and i'm glad i bought it. I've used it for pigeon shooting, shooting duck and geese and for shooting close range foxes when out lamping ( with 63 gm loads). I often get off 3 shots when shooting pigeon, duck or geese, so it is worth having a semi. If i could keep only one gun, it would probably be the xtrema due to it's versatility.

I've found that saga 28gm 6.5's do the job. They're only about £130 a thousand, too.

25 more from me. Total - 7525?

That's a bit extreme. I've shot from the same hide four weeks running and killed over a hundred each time. Cleverer pigeons? I don't think so. I think that a lot more people go pigeon shooting these days and therefore pigeons get shot at more, and therefore more wary. The good bags i've shot this year ( 194 and 106) were both shot on fields that i know haven't had too much disturbance. There's a farm i shoot on, that is virtually impossible to get a good bag on rape. The pest controller rides around most of the day keeping birds off. I have trouble making a bag over 10, whereas on other farms with little disturbance i've been killing a few. The same goes for people going out 2 or 3 times a week on rape and only shooting for a couple of hours and getting very little. Better to leave the field for a couple of weeks and have a proper go at them.

My 20 ah battery lasts well over 12 hours with the magnet at full speed. You must have bought poor quality batteries before.

A nice bag of 106 on rape yesterday. Total - 6141

I must be lucky, then. I had a nice day yesterday on some rape near wisbech, finishing with 106. Had only got just over 20 in 3 hours when a move to the other side of the field seemed the only way to start scoring. Got another 80-odd in the next 2 hours. Seems like 1pm onwards they are really hitting the fields at the moment.

Only 6 in an afternoon outing on rape. Total - 5610

Cranfield is spot on.

16 on monday. Total -5604 ( inc lib's mistake)

Shot 30 in a 2 hour outing over sugar beet tops. Total - 5429

Use them all - if you want to shoot crows as well.

I would say any net of around 15 x 5 foot that can conceal you well, will do for most situations. The colour is not that important. Best net? That is a matter of opinion, but something like a stealth net is as good as any.

Couldn't you just set the hide up out in the open, on the edge of the field? You could then get the wind on your back or from either side.