EMT

I emailed them 4 weeks ago looking for a stockists of one of their less popular cartridges and I am still waiting on a reply.

I asked GMK the same question about my beretta 682 gold e and this is the response I got. If your barrels have a fleur de lys proof mark then they are superior proofed and suitable for all steel shot. If your barrels are NOT fleur de lys marked then it is NOT superior proofed and is only suitable for standard steel shot (not high performance or magnum loads). Obviously, chamber size is paramount and you should never use a choke tighter than ½ when using steel shot. In all circumstances it is your responsibility to check the pressure associated to each cartridge which will be printed on the box they are supplied in. I hope this helps but please do not hesitate to contact me if you require any further information.

It's a 125 bird day with no overages and I think it was just shy of £500. I can't remember if it's standing 8 or 9.

I have just booked a little let day there but I have never been before. It will be interesting to hear people's experiences.

Thanks for all the suggestions folks. It was a genuine question and Norfolk is definitely an option we hadn't considered before, so thank you to all that suggested it. We are going to spend some time exploring the area at half term and see what we think. I think that Yorkshire will be next on the list. Although I grew up in Derbyshire, I never spent much time there apart from shopping in Sheffield. I thought there would have been more recommendations for the West Country and Wales which was surprising.

I used to be but 8 years was enough for me. :-)

I hadn't considered Norfolk and I don't know why, it definitely has plenty of shooting.

Scotland is definitely a possibility though I have to admit that what I see the SNP doing with airgun licencing, the land reform bill etc does give me some concern. Not sure where it will end.

I am in deepest darkest Essex but I grew up in very rural Derbyshire and can't wait to get back to something similar.

My personal circumstances are due to change shortly and I have the chance to move anywhere in the UK. As a family, shooting and working our dogs is a massive part of our lives. If you could live anywhere in the UK with the priority being on shooting /beating /picking up etc where would you go? When you are thinking of moving and you could go anywhere the UK suddenly becomes a very big place and anything to narrow down the choice would be a big help. Thanks

Do these shoots not offer "birds only" so you can still enjoy the shoot without the worry of wasting your money on a competition you are never going to win?

I would be surprised if there is sufficient buildup of wax to cause significant hearing loss. I see dogs all the time that have ears full of wax and yeast infections but it doesn't really effect their hearing. If you do want to clean the ears just use your finger and a baby wipe.

I am no expert but I use a memory blind. By that I mean I always start with the corner of a field and throw some close in marked retrieves into the corner of the field. Once the dog is confident you can throw the mark, turn around and walk back 10 yards and send the dog. As long as you consistently use the same corner, the dog will soon go back quite happily whether or not it's a marked or blind retrieve. You can extend the distance as needed. Hopefully that makes sense. I am sure there are a lot better methods than mine that people use though.

If you haven't already removed the bead. Use some fishing braid or strong thread and with the braid pulled tight and a sawing action you can take the bead off and most of the glue with it. Just need some solvent to remove the little bit that remains.

Some great advice from loriusgarrulus and if she has not been shot over I would want to make absolutely certain she isn't gun shy. You can just about train her out of any other problem but a dog that is gun shy is more trouble than its worth. I'm not saying it can't be done, because it can but as someone who has done it, I wouldn't bother again.

Don't know if it's relevant to your situation or not but there are a couple of reasons I have seen for frequent cracked claws. The first is actually an infection in the paw that can go unnoticed but causes the claws to crack. The other is environmental and usually due to constantly wet paws (poorly draining kennels) etc. If you find it early enough a drop of superglue can stop the crack spreading.

OMG. I was born and bred in Tidza. Left there when I was 16 for pastures new. Would love to know what you think of it when you get back as I've not been there for a long long time.

As someone who has had a few litters of "hydrids" as they are now known (mongrels when I was a lad), I can try and point you in the right direction. Apologies if I am teaching you to suck eggs. If you breed your labradoodle with a labrador you will have F1B puppies. These are not as popular as F1's by a long way. Apart from the fashion aspects a lot of people by hybrids because the coat sheds less than say a lab. If you have an F1B with 75% lab, the coat will shed like a lab. As for health test, most people today will want hips, elbows, PRa and CNM for anything with lab in it. I also own a grooming parlour so I see lots and lots of new puppies and labradoodles have definitely had their day. Even Cockapoos are on the decline. One last thing to think of is the risk to the bitch if anything goes wrong during whelping not to mention the cost if you need an emergency C-section on a Sunday night.

When you and the dog are ready, get hold of a bag of cheap party poppers. If you take out the streamers they are just the right level of noise to start with outside. If you are in control of the noise you can make sure it has a positive association such as a retrieve. You ideally need two people to start with. Get your friend to walk 40 yards away with the party popper and on your signal he can set it off and you can throw a retrieve. At that range it's hardly audible, especially on a windy day. Don't throw the retrieve in the direction of the bang at this early stage. Provided you don't get any negative reaction, you can VERY slowly shorten the distance. Each time making sure the bang is associated with something positive. Once you are happy you can eventually move onto the blank firing pistol but don't forget to start a long long way away as they are a lot louder. This routine gets the dogs used to looking for the mark on hearing the bang. Very useful later on.

Do you have any more details on the Essex shoot please Waterside? I would be very interested.

The replacement is at prototype stage already. Dealers have seen it last week (working!) at a special preview for dealers at battersy power station. Will prob be at Frankfurt motor show. Will be in dealers 2015.

The guy that you are talking about is Jim Spalding and is one of the best. I'm taking a little 410 to him to be shortened for my daughter. I have seen some of his other work and it's fantastic.

Well I would say go for it. I did the same thing myself and went from being a director earning 6 figures plus bonus etc to running my own small business which just about kept my head above water. It was the best thing I ever did !!!! I remeber only too well that gut churning feeling every day knowing I had to go to work. It made me feel sick. I now also work for the ambulance service 2 days a week which is a bit like a hobby for me. I get to race around on blue lights in my response car but it's made me realise I made the right decision. I go to lots of enexpected deaths, everything from car crashes to cardiac arrests and it makes you realise just how short life is. You spend a VERY large part of your life at work so you may as well enjoy it the best you can. As for the money you just have to cut your cloth to fit. I now live in a small flat above my business which is probably smaller than the pond I used to have in my garden when I worked in the city.

It would mean her indoors has less money for war paint and perfume. Lol.

Great Vid. Where was the shoot ? Some of those birds were climbing like homesick angels. Was it a syndicate or a let day ? Well done.