Blackpowder

Picking up spent shells is a Club and syndicate rule, always tied in with number of shots fired on pheasant days. Aside from cartridges and discarded farm plastic the countryside today is a disgrace, especially alongside the A1 adjacent to my home. Eveeryone seems content to throw plastic bottles, alu cans and all sorts of debris from their cars. I think that bottles and cans should carry a surcharge of at least 50p tied to a barcode which could be redeemed when these items were recyled properly. Is that impossible?? Meantime two council employees clear the threequarter mile route from the high school to the town following school lunchtime every day. Plenty CCTV as well so why are these young adults not punished for depositing litter? Instead they are getting the message that someone will clear up behind them. Grrrrr Blackpowder

The League Against Cruel Sports is appealing for funds in todays national press, speciffically to canvass all political parties against the raising of the ban. Here is the address where some members might like to send LARGE , empty and unstamped envelopes. League Against Cruel Sports, PO Box 285 Worksop S80 9BF

Aye me also As is well known in this neck of the woods, The Wall, was constructed to prevent those on the south side escaping north to civilisation. Blackpowder

Well you sure had better luck than me I e mailed them on Friday regarding the spec for the fuse on their pigeon flapper, as yet no response. Blackpowder

Other than the flock seen last weekend on potatoe stubble pigeons are very scarce in north Northumbria and Berwickshire. Blackpowder

Seen one locally called ,"Seldom Inn". Blackpowder

Keyhole surgey may be just days, it took me a mointh with a normal op at the bright young age of 67. Blackpowder

Why not buy a hammer gun and dont cock it when it is in storage. Blackpowder

These are exactly how I remember them Floating Chamber, gosh not seen them for a long time. Once the local ironmonger got in a load of , "Yellow Wizard" for the pigeon season, now these left a deposit in the barrel but despite being cheap and nasty they did the job over decoys. Another memorable cartridge was the paper case Biakel, it kicked like a mule, spurted flame in the gloom af a roosting wood, created intensive barrel fouling, along with the gout of flame there seemed to be a sprinkling of confetti, once you fired 50 of these you sure knew about it but again they seemed to kill well. Blackpowder

Well despite the above field being the only one favoured by pigeons in this vicinity our Club Charity Shoot on the next door estate was a dead loss with only 22 pigeons for the 9 guns out. This despite one of the best roosting woods on the place being within a quarter mile of the ex potatoe field, and despite the fact that one of our most consistant Shots drew this wood the calm conditions lead to a very poor result. The Hitman and myself drew what appeared to be a very good , dense warm roosting wood and we did see a few pigeon - dropping in from a great height into the thickest part. Two for me and one for the hitman my second one falling in the middle of a duck pond where it still remains. Makes you wonder how far these pigeons were travelling to the potatoe field as the numbers seen there earlier did not appear to be roosting in the vicinity. Mark one of my friends had a go at ta nearby roost mid week and he picked up 17 all stuffed with potatoe mush. Blackpowder

Al been there, done that got the tee shirt it can be a frustrating business. Blackpowder

After another cold 4 hours yesterday in the "cushat wood "with nothing doing after the right and left at a flock leaving the wood as I entered, on the journey home there was a sight for sore eyes. Pigeons feeding on winter wheat! Well no they appear to be on the surface remains of last seasons potatoe crop and the field literally blue with them. Just came back from spying on them again today and a steady stream of birds dropping in, unfortunately the owner of the land was not at home or I would be sitting out there right now having a go. Our Club shoots next door this afternoon so it will be interesting to see what the crop contents of any birds shot are, loads of oilseed rape around and very little interest in it by the pigeons. Blackpowder

Aye right enough alexr not the media coverage like we have today. Blackpowder

A friend was out on Wed for 5 fit rabbits but reported several in the first stages of myxy, als seeing very few and few runs and worked burrows when out and about. Blackpowder

Aye makes you wonder how we survived. Of course law and order prevailed then, plenty of risks of broken limbs and near death water crisises but child abduction and worse seemed less heard of then. Certainly I never had any warnings about talking to strangers, seldom met them in the backwoods come to think of it. Blackpowder

Never had nor had done any of the above, Body waxing? Is that something similair to being well oiled a stste I will confess to? Blackpowder

Hi pigeonmad, no snow here at the moment and since starting this thread I have dressed out a couple of today's quarry for a session in the slow cooker. A few specs of osr in the crops of both and I mean specks, birds plump and actually had fat in the body cavity. Blackpowder

Went out today for a couple of hours starting at 12 noon to a wood on one of my permissions called the cushat wood. Before starting I had spied around with field glasses and seen very little pigeon activity from my 360 deg vantage point. Still ensconsed in shelter , perched on a shooting stick with a flat topped feeder making a fine table for my flask it appeared to be going to be a waiting game. Well no, a steady trickle of birds began to fly the wood from west to east, wind was easterly by the way, and a total of 5 picked and 3 lost flew into the pattern for around 20 shots, abysmal! But the reason for this post is to say that none of the birds picked had a vestige of food in their crops, 5 were in good winter condition and one a little on the thin side. The snow has been gone for two weeks now, ample rape fields around but why had these birds not fed with half the daylight hours gone. I suspect some were heading for the above mentioned pheasant feeder? Perhaps! Anyone else finding birds have not fed by mid day? Blackpowder

John Norris fishing shirt, enormous pockets enough room for a plumbers wallet, mobile phone, glasses, pipe an baccy digi camera and some etcetras. Blackpowder

About everyone used Grand Prix in the 50's , 12 gauge orange, 16 gauge blue, 20 gauge yellow. If I remember correctly the Grand Prix had a patent, ( pneumatic) wad comprising a dark blue or purple corrugated cylinder. Oh and when you opened a box of Grand Prix there was a glorious smell of fresh varnish or shellac, almost as good as a fired BP case. Here is a question:- load for load do members think that paper cases and fibre wads gave a reduced recoil compared to their modern plastic equivalent. Blackpowder

Well yesterday was our Shooting Clubs first Charity Pigeon Shoot in north Northumberland, and it proved a very poor affair with only 46 birds for the 30 or so members who took part. In fact pigeon were conspicous by their absence on the 20 mile drive to the venue past an abundance of rape fields with scarce a bird to be seen. Many of us had anticipated a bumper start to the pigeon season with the coastal area clearing of snow a week before inland , but this was not the case. One group of Guns reported seeing large flocks of pigeon on rape as they entered their woods, but these departed and chose to roost outside our shooting area. Some members had been out in the morning on rape fields on the Scottish side of the Border and there also saw very few pigeon. My own result was nil saw 4 shot at three and picked nil. It can only get better? Blackpowder

I understand that the Royal Navy do not detain or arrest these pirates in case they claim asylum in Britain. Perhaps the couple were foolish to venture into these waters when they know of the risk, but if as reported a Royal Navy vessel was within sight when they were taken and due to political interference were unable to step in and stop the kidnapping. As regards Q ships or disguised merchant vessels, you cant do that as it would be in breach of the pirates human rights. Blackpowder

Thanks guys for all the replies that last Golden Shellback coating thing sounds like an answer to a lot of water induced problems. Blackpowder