Mark56

Hi there, I've been clay shooting for a good year or so now, but I'm really looking into getting into rough shooting / vermin shooting in the east Derbyshire area - just east of Derby, Erewash etc. Any pointers where to even start? Clearly it's not the best time of year for game! But I'm thinking more for next season, or pigeon shooting now. Would love to learn the ropes/fieldcraft. Cheers.

Yes, it's not great - if the glasses are a little out of place, then so is the tape. They did have a much larger clip-on patch that I could try out, though I've not tried it yet.

I've been shooting properly since the summer, when I got my license, and I tend to shoot skeet with a mix of one or two eyes, depending on the clay. I started off with my left eye closed - as I shot more accurately with it. But now I've been trying to learn both eyes open, with a small translucent sticker on my glasses covering part of the left eye, which was my instructor's tip. I've found it's incredibly useful on peg 2 and 3, where I struggled to see the clay in time with my left-eye closed. Yet it's still a little difficult on 1 and 7 with both eyes open at the moment (with left-eye closed, no problem - get them most of the time). Some of the folk at the club shoot with one eye closed, others with one eye open. I'm guessing you'll discover what works for you with a bit of time!

I think I have been waiting to get it on the peg or just after, and end up missing by a country mile. That's a good tip, thanks. I haven't quite yet built up a good sight picture of this one. On the pair I'm fairly hopeless, because of chasing after the first one. I can sometimes get back in time to get the low bird. This is one that I'm going to have to spend a while trying to get right. I can get it, but I'm not really aware of how or why in quite the same way as for high 1. If it happens it's more luck than judgement.

During my first couple of proper lessons we figured out that, although I didn't have a dominance issue, I shot better with my left eye closed, so that's how I started really. And then it became habit - and now I shall, at some point, have to unlearn it! Yes, I found myself getting quite frustrated with myself when I got that 12 - it's certainly becoming an exercise in patience... I know I can hit most of the singles on a good day when I'm not thinking too much, and the pairs when things are going well, but it's just getting everything together at the same time...

Well I thought I'd update after my first few practice sessions of skeet! 18/19 (promising, thought I'd go up...) 12/18 (horrendous wet day, could barely see at first!) 15/16 (meh) 20 (my aim was to get a 20 for the week!) 14 (very strong winds, but missed a couple of sitters) So, a bit of a mixed bag. As low as 12 and as high as 20. My teacher caught me at the end of the last lot and I explained some of the issues I was having. The high birds on traps 2 and 3 have been the most consistently difficult, since I still have my left eye closed and I see the clay quite late (then stab at it). He said he'd start developing me to shoot with that eye open over the next few lessons. Until then, I'll keep burning through the cartridges until it comes together on the rest...

Thanks for the tips, hillmouse! I hadn't thought of doing that.

So I've had about 8 lessons spaced over a few months (took a while for the license to finally come through, and then to get the shotgun). I guess it's a case of - get a lot of practise in, but keep up the lessons with the instructor to iron out any flaws along the way?

Thanks for sharing, motty. I wish I started at that age! I can see being able to achieve that sort of score eventually, but it might be a while off yet.

I've had a few lessons, got the gun and am now a free range shooter at the local club. I've had about three practise rounds of skeet and am getting scores of around 18/19 each time (one being in terrible weather). I just wondered what everyone else was getting when they first tried - no exaggerating! What is a good beginner's score? What kind of problems did you face without a good instructor correcting you?

Not saying I'd vote for him personally, I should say. I'm merely pointing out the power of someone who's formerly been on the inside, from my discussions with a former MP. External influence is one thing, but the power of insider connections in politics is immense - even if it would, in this case, be sleeping with the enemy!

Just adding my two-penneth, for what it's worth: having spoken to an MP about lobbying etc in the distant past, the value of a former MP fighting your cause in parliament is not to be sniffed at... They know the best ways of making things happen very quickly in parliament; they basically know how to work the system in your favour. If they're representing BASC's issues (I've just become a member myself), then perhaps, irrespective of their past slippery ways (and let's face it, what MP doesn't have a slippery past?), they could be immensely useful for the future...

I must say, I do prefer the grip on the game version - very classy - but since this'll be mainly busting (or missing) clays, I went for the sporter. Cheers! That was the luck of the draw, Matt - I knew I was going for this version of the gun, but not what the wood was going to be like. I imagine it's possible to specify? Or at least look at a range? If you're interested, it might be worth calling the shop (Braithwaites are the biggest UK dealer of the CGs, I think) since their service is excellent, and they seem frequently in touch with their suppliers.

Thanks for the kind words, all. Very happy with it. Well, you'd be surprised! This cost £2195 - one of the reasons I got a CG was that everyone goes on about their value for money, and that you feel like you're getting a gun worth at least a grand more...

Thanks! I'm guessing it's the luck of the draw with these things. This one was recently imported (tested on the 16th April, in fact), so maybe they're improving quality all the time?