NeverReady

I'm seeing the shoot captain this weekend and was going to run that suggestion past him... It seems much harder these days unless you know or have the right contacts. I got very lucky getting the spot on the syndicate and just happened to be browsing guns on pegs and the advert had gone live minutes before I'd phone the chap up.

Thanks Kent - The problem I have is I've got access to 450+ acres with the pheasant syndicate (explained to the FEO) I'm in but none of the other members hold an FAC. I'm willing to travel around Worcestershire / Shropshire area (and further) to help gain the experience and learn from others hence asking the good people of PW for some help. Cheers, Iain

Apologies Kent - Thought I'd made it clear that I was trying to get my ticket opened up. I have done one guided stalk which was all recorded and want to pursue the 'sport' further but it's a catch 22... Can't get more experience to be able to pursue it. Matt at BASC had already said it shouldn't be an issue requesting what I am even from a ticket that was originally restricted to a range.

I'm confused by it Davyo - They're basically saying I don't have enough experience as a whole but if I can evidence that I've been out with more experienced shots they'll happily do it. In the last 8 years I've probably put some 20k+ rounds through 22's and and around 3k through the 308...

Ello folks, Hopefully someone in the Worcestershire area might be able to help me out... I've been shooting for nearly 8 years and recently requested for my ticket to be opened up on my .22lr and my .308 rifles but was advised by West Mercia that I'd "not been shooting long enough" for them to be able to justify opening my ticket but if I could get some more experience with some other shooters they would consider it. I'd be looking to tag a long and if possible take a few shots if possible so the question is would any of you be willing to help me out so that I can document it and evidence that I'm gaining yet more experience? Cheers, Iain

A1 also do a bundle which I've come across on eBay before now... Pigeon Shooting Starter Pack Kit Bag Net Hide Poles Decoy Decoying Set Camo A1 http://r.ebay.com/JWqz3z Might be worth taking a look at as it seems to have everything you need to get going apart from a seat.

Haven't used any of their rifle stuff but have run through plenty of their 44mag and it's all been good and the brass reloads fine They get a thumbs up from me.

They just break in and steal the keys or hijack you when you're getting in / out - I know two people in separate parts of the country that it's happened to. One was hijacked on his drive as he go out and the other had his houses broken into and keys stolen along with another 4 cars in the area that night. BMW had a huge problem they refused to admit that was an alarm black spot and a programming problem but I'll not go into much more detail on an open forum

Worstan - If you need any advice feel free to drop me a PM. I remember what it was like when I started reloading... Do you have things like a case length gauge / trimmer, primer pocket cleaner etc...? Happy to put a list together if you want?

Check your die adjustment is right - Take a look at the videos on the Lee website here and ignore (to a point) the instructions that come with the dies. Also make sure you're using some case lube on the brass... Might be telling you what you already know but hopefully it helps if not.

If you don't really want a car there's no point spending lots on one... Cheap and cheerful all the way until you've got a few years NCB under your belt and if you decide you want something nicer save up for it a go to a dealer (especially the more independent ones) with cash in your pocket ready as it's a great bargaining tool That's because a nicer area / gated access actually means nicer cars in the area and actually a more targeted are for car theft. If someone wants a particular car they're going to get it one way or another.

Top offer there... I'm not too far away but unfortunately can't offer any shooting from my side as I've not managed to find anywhere locally yet. If you ever just want someone to come along give me a shout.

Heheh I'm in two minds about the syndicate idea as I'd been looking on Guns on Pegs for a while but keep on 'just missing out'!

Shameless self bumb... Anyone?

Awesome offer and if only I had a rotary and I would book the day off work to come along... Looking to get some more experience! If you change your mind about the rotary let me know and I'll book the day off!

Ello, Been doing some clays for around 8 months and had my FAC for 7 years and just wondering if anyone in the Worcestershire (or surrounding area) fancy taking a new shooter out? Or has any recommendations of possibly syndicates? Cheers, Iain

I've got a set of Deben ones and can't fault them at all... http://www.deben.com/hearing-protection/deben-electronic-ear-defenders-black.html Picked them up from ebay for around £70 about 6 years ago

I've use them at work daily and put a lot of miles on them. The first one I had was around 4 years ago (and group wide we had around 350 of them)... The first one we put ~145k on the clock from new in 18-24 months with no problems at all other than the usual wear and tear of tyres and brakes. The only reason it was replaced was it had a 125k lease/buy back on them. Currently been running two of them with different engines (in SWB and LWB versions) for 18 months with around 75k on each of them at the moment. The only recurring problem we've had with one of them is the drivers side headlight keeps going pop. Averaging around 40mpg in both of them but they (my field techs) will do on average 3-400+ miles a day in them. They've all been properly maintained (and I'm not saying others haven't properly maintained theirs) and serviced every 20k and they're an alright drive but having said that we're moving over to the Mercedes Vito in the summer when we hit the mileage on these and personally the new Vito is a much nicer drive with a very similar load space. Iain

Yeah, it's a fair old drive from here up to Scotland and I'm not willing to sell a kidney just yet to go Looking forward to doing some more shooting though in the not to distant future!

I use www.photobucket.com to upload pictures then if you've got your picture open on their webpage you can just copy IMG address on the right hand side to post it on the form... As for files you could use something like www.dropbox.com Hope that helps Iain

So at 5.30am on Friday my alarm went off that the day had finally arrived that I was heading over to meet up with Andrew (Elk Hunter on here) for a beginners day in deer stalking. Everything going well until I hit some crappy morning traffic on the M6 but that out the way and managing to make up a little time I was only a couple of minutes late and all was looking good and the rain that I'd seen forecast was no where to be seen with pretty much clear blue skies ... On the way over Andrew gave me an overview of what the day had in store for me and once we arrived kitted up and made our way over to the range giving me the opportunity to check my zeroing out at 100, 150 and 200 yards. Once Andrew was happy we headed over to where the deer were and once they'd started to settle he directed me into the one that I was going to take when the opportunity came. After getting comfy and ready to take the shot (I've no idea how long it was until I took the shot) Andrew gave me the all clear to pull the trigger... Safety off, deep breath, part exhale, point of aim and bang! The deer stumbled a little and Andrew whispered 'reload' - this had completely slipped my mind with all the adrenalin pumping through my body. What a flipping feeling! We waited around 5 minutes and started our approach to the deer. We got there and yep... Definitely dead. After a quick sandwich and a warm drink Andrew talked me through a quick inspection of the deer and what to look for before guiding me through performing the gralloch myself and provided me with no end of useful hints and tips and again talking me through exactly what to look for while doing this. We loaded up the truck and headed down to skin and butcher the carcass - Again Andrew provided me with no end of useful tips and tricks from his huge knowledge on the subject. Once skinned and opened up a little we looked to see where and what had been hit and it was a clean heart shot. He had plenty of patience with me throughout the skinning and butchering All in all a ruddy awesome day and I would definitely recommend Andrew to anyone who is new to shooting deer and even those who are well experienced... We can all learn something new Thanks again to Andrew for getting me hooked on something I'm now going to have to do again and already exploring the options available Iain

Love the show myself... If you've not come across it there's a website called CarbonTV (www.carbontv.com) that is free to use site with the Buck Commander series (you'll see the buck tattoo on his arm) along with some other shooting/hunting/fishing series. Some are pretty good others not so but hey... It's free Hope someone enjoys it anyway

I'd offer to do it for you but I'm not in your neck of the woods any time soon - the missus family live in the Maldon area but we've just got back from there and not planning a visit for a month or so.

Good to see a few local people - thanks for the warm welcome

It's one I'd not come across and I'm primarily a target shooter so that's gone in the favourites for a read later on Thanks