30-6

A lot of info and advice, i appreciate your replies.

Asking because at the end of a decoying session i usually stuff everything in the bags and sort it out the next day, due to tiredness, hunger or whatever.

What's the going rate for a kid these days ? I could do with a new chair.

Can hypa flaps be rough handled ( as in stuffed in your bag ), or do they need to be handled with kid gloves ? I am thinking of getting a pair to start the day off when i decide to go on the spur of the moment, to put on the rotary or bouncers - do they work well on bouncers ? Are they really that good ? Edited to add - I got a pair of the foam winged ones, tried them on the rotary and the bouncers and in a nutshell find them rubbish.

The last lot of hmr ammo i had, when checking the last box of 50 i found 7 unfired with the splits in the cases, that was remmington. That equals 14 % of "rejects". Just checked 100 of remmington and 100 of hornady, and found zero unfired splits. Annoying that they need to be checked when companies run quality control. Is the ammo getting better ?

I know some of you shoot at long distances with good results and are comfortable and capable in doing so. I like many others was brought up on sub 12 ft/lbs air, then moved onto shotguns, then moved onto firearms. Progressing from fac air to .22 lr to .17 hmr ( i always remember the feo asking do i want a centre fire, and when i replied no he looked at me over the top of his glasses and said - not yet. I know what he means now ). I have been increasing my ranges and with the lr have shot rabbits out to 68 paces, my maximum range i have decided with this calibre is 75 yds. I now have a range finder and with the hmr have been zeroing at 100 yds, and shooting out to 120 yds on paper. I was out recently with the hmr and had had 3 rabbits out to 52 yds, walking back to the car i came across 2 rabbits out about 20 yds into the field, i lazered them both at 88 yds and 90 yds. I set the parallax on the scope to 100 yds ( my zero ), and watched the 90 yarder through the scope thinking should i take the shot. After a couple of minutes i decided this is what i had got the hmr for and went for the longest shot i had tried on live quarry ( i had previously had a magpie at 86 paces and a rabbit at a lazered 76 yds ). I have found that resting the gun on the tripod a little way back from the front of the forend gives better grouping, so thinking gun position right, parralax right and magnification on 12x settled for the shot after what seemed ages. Put the reticule just behind his front leg on his ribcage - and - sonic crack, thump and he fell over without a twitch like a silhouette target. I know some will be thinking 90 yds is nothing for an hmr, but it's a first for me. The bullet had seemed to just pass straight through ( where i had aimed ), with none of the usual damage a hmr does. A day or two later an upon reflection, my confidence has grown and the shot was 100 percent good and i really enjoyed the shot. But i think i get more satisfaction from seeing a decoyed bird crumple in the air at 40 yds.

Good news for private couriers, can't see them refusing work. The bad experiences i've had personally with the royal mail it wouldn't worry me if they disbanded tomorrow, i'd only feel sorry for the staff without a job. But some of those are so thick / lazy they don't deserve a job.

I was like that last week, when a lot come in together i was playing dot to dot with the barrels, changing from bird to bird. At one point i had put the gun down, pouring a cup of tea in a kneeling position and around 50 or 60 jackdaws came over the hedge about 4 foot over the hide, frightened the ****s out of me, grabbed the gun but still only managed one bird.

Does anybody clean or disenfect their floaters, magnets, flappers etc., where the birds are spiked on or do you just leave the bacteria and germs multiply ? A couple of times a year i give mine a spray with dettox surface cleaner or disenfectant, after thinking that i eat the birds used on them. Still probably not enough though.

Since writing the above i have realised the "bit that stops the hammers from falling" are actually the sears. I originally thought the term sears was given to the notches in the hammers.

I took the stock off my little "fun gun" an investarm 20g as it has never been off since i had it, and i got caught in heavy rain with it. The internals were dry as a bone, so give them a little bit of oil and grease sparingly, but did not know whether to lube the sears or leave them dry. Should the sears be lubed ? Another thing i noticed was the spring which fits between the top of the action and the bit that stops the hammers from falling (don't know the correct terminology) by engaging the sears, and is lifted when the trigger is pulled, allowing the hammers to fall, was correct on one side but had somehow gone back on itself on the other side so was basically just loose in the action doing nothing. I can't fathom out how this was as there is not enough room for it to have turned 180 degrees on itself. Could it never have been assembled correctly in the first place ?

I found crows shy away from magnets, so generally don't use them for this type of shooting. I have found though that by putting them hundreds of yards away they will draw to the area then spot your decoys and come over. On bouncers and flappers i only use jackdaws, being smaller they seem less threatening than a big old crow with wings outspread. EDIT TO ADD - this theory that crows, rooks and jackdaws don't mix together is rubbish. Last time out i had all 3 and pigeons.

As per title, not lucky long shots, but good shots when someone was present, and under pressure type of thing. I know a lot do it routinely, so this is directed at us mere mortals. Most of us have been in a hide with a friend watching and been complemented on a good shot or even impressed ourselves, but one shot that stands out for me was on a feral pigeon. A farmer was fed up of all the **** the ferals were leaving on his machinery, so i was going up now and again to clear them off the rafters which was short range shooting. With only a few left they were nervous to enter the buildings and became harder to shoot. I positioned myself in a building overlooking the yard and one landed on the roof to my right within range but a long shot to what i usually would take. I lined it up and the farmer came round the corner in his landrover, seen what i was doing and stopped for me to shoot, he was watching the bird for the outcome. I took the shot with an AA s200 in .22 and down tumbled the feral without a twitch, he looked at me an smiled ( which you never see him do as he's a grumpy ****** ) which i translated as a good sign. That was for me a "memorable" shot.

I've had a wing mirror knicked, my friend had his front screen taken.

Went out on Friday to a local farm that has a lot of jackdaws. Took a 12 and a 20 ( yes, i know the cartridge dangers ), as i am still "trialling" light load 20 bore cartridges. In the 12 i was using 28g 7 1/2's in both barrels, 1/4 and 1/2 chokes, in the 20 i was using 21g and 25g 7 1/2's in 1/2 and 3/4 chokes. I set up a hide next to some wrapped silage bales in the back of the farmyard which conviniently has a sitty tree at 30 ish yards away. The field drops away from the yard, so i was nearly level with the top of the tree. Put some lofters in the tree and a couple of decoys on the floor, with two bouncers and one flapper. There was very little wind, and they were coming in like rockets, shot out to just past the tree around 40 yds with the 12 and kept to within me and the tree around 30 yds with the 20. All of the different cartridge loads had them dead in the air, with only three walkers for 42 jackdaws and 1 magpie. EDIT to add - for 43 birds shot there was 51 cartridges shot.

My farmer friend is getting squirrels in the chicken coop and his barns. He asked me to keep an eye for them and thin them out. To be honest for a year or two i haven't shot a lot of them over there, and they've probably built up a bit. Went for a little walk around the area and reckon this is the worst year i've seen for them knibbling the bark off the branches. Seen two, shot one. Expected to see a lot more to be honest. So my questions are, (1) - is there a best time of day to see them and (2) - is there a preference of trees they like throught the year, e.g. i know they hit the hazel in September. Usually used to walk around whenever, as never deemed a best time for them, but want to really thin them out to help my friend and the poor trees, which like i said are really taking a hammering.

Made me feel better now, spent a day zeroing with the .22 lr, and put targets out 15 - 75 yds, and could get within an inch on all of them. This was off a filled bag resting on bonnet of jeep, but usually shoot off tripod, while standing. Next day missed a 40 yard sitter, then went on to harder but sucessful shots. I ( after re-zeroing to 50 yds and working out all the milldots for different ranges ), seem to miss 40 and 60 yarders more often than other ranges. Personally i think rushing, complacency and poor gun handling ( like lifting head off stock too quickly ) are my problems. Another thing i kick myself for is forgetting to get a rabbit to sit up and make the shot easier with a bigger kill area, rather than a head shot while in a feeding pose. Edit to ask - is it good to miss to keep you on your toes ? if you hit everything, would it get boring ?

I have an Investarm cheap and cheerful "fun gun" in 20g. I have recently been using it more due to forearm / shoulder problems with 7 1/2 shot 21 gram and 25 gram cartridges on jackdaw, pigeon and squirrel, normally i use 25 gram 6 shot, which will take all the usual quarry. The secret i have found is to keep about 30 yds, but i find as a fixed choke, probably 1/2 and 3/4, it can be a bit tight. If cartridge prices were better i would think about getting a "proper" multichoke version. I also use a 25 gram load in a 12g, but the weight of the gun sometimes hinder. All in all though i do find a 12g an "all rounder", but like you say a lovely calibre to carry around.

Last week, went to see my farming friend, who commented on the magpies and squirrels around the farm. So goes over yesterday, armed with a 20g shotgun, and a decoy owl with a rabbit skin tied around its feet. Put the owl on a section of my lofting poles and placed him about 20 yds out from where i was hiding in a hedge. Straight away a magpie landed in a tree out of range, and started voicing at the owl. This went on for 25 minutes, and he wouldn't come in any closer, so getting fed up i started creeping towards the tree he was in. He was so pre-occupied with the owl, i managed to get under the tree. Ok, i shot him when he was perched an not flying, but i had him.

Could you not sit in a 30 - 40 yds position with a shotgun ?

Just got up off the computer to make a sandwich, sat back down, picked up my glasses which i need to use computer, (which i had taken off to go out the kitchen), put them back on and i seemed all funny, couldn't see correctly. Walked around for a minute with the glasses still on and felt all queer. Then i realised one of the lenses had come out when i put them down. Makes you feel all strange.

I was diagonised as not deaf, but loss of hearing certain frequencies, and to mask tinnitus about 3 years ago. Started off wearing it but found it very uncomfortable, the ear gets hot and sweaty. When went back for a check up they can tell how long you actually wear it, it clocks up the running hours so to say and they gave me a sort of row. They gave me another hearing assesment last week, the results were about the same as last time. When asked why i don't wear it, i said about the ear getting hot and sweaty and probably a bit of vanity, so they said there is a new model out with the bit behind the ear being smaller and less noticable than before, so i am going to give it a another try, because they are trying for me. I go back next wek. I can cope ok, but everyone tells me to stop shouting when i talk because i can't hear the volume of my own speech.

Bickykillgaz Had a search for them, the only 20 bore in 23g three crowns i can find ( on hull's webpage and just cartridges )is in size 6, they don't seem to do a size 7.

Well i ended up getting both to try. Gamebore 21g was £47 for 250 and the Fiocchi 24g was £53. I tried 21g in bottom barrel and 24g in top. The gun being used was an Investarm o/u which i use as a "fun gun", i would guess it's choked 1/2 and 3/4. Recoil was negligible, the only problem i found was that i couldn't swing on the birds tidy due to where i was shooting in the farmyard. I will try them from a proper hide when i get the chance. Both cartridges killed well as long as i kept the distance sensible, i did not take some shots that i would have with a 12 bore. The lightness of the gun was good to use with my arm / shoulder problem. As i posted the OP query in two sections i will post this also in the same for anyone interested in the findings.

Well i ended up getting both to try. Gamebore 21g was £47 for 250 and the Fiocchi 24g was £53. I tried 21g in bottom barrel and 24g in top. The gun being used was an Investarm o/u which i use as a "fun gun", i would guess it's choked 1/2 and 3/4. Recoil was negligible, the only problem i found was that i couldn't swing on the birds tidy due to where i was shooting in the farmyard. I will try them from a proper hide when i get the chance. Both cartridges killed well as long as i kept the distance sensible, i did not take some shots that i would have with a 12 bore. The lightness of the gun was good to use with my arm / shoulder problem. As i posted the OP query in two sections i will post this also in the same for anyone interested in the findings.