Do you shoot sitting down or standing up?

[Whitebridges]

Hi all, I've just watched Jim Albone - Red Letter Days, for the first time. I really enjoyed it, but the thing that struck me was everyone stood up to shoot. I've been shooting pigeons from a hide for donkeys years and was taught by an old boy who drummed it in me never to stand up. I've taught several lads to shoot this way too. I remember finding it quite hard to start with but i do think it's the best way as it stops birds jinking away at the last minute. RLD shooters seemed to compensate with lots of choke and they seemed to shoot birds a lot further out to counteract this.

Cheers.

[RAMMER BURT]

sitting down always have done since i read a book and saw archie coakes shooting, the first thing he said was never stand up to shoot, the pigeons will always flare away making for bloody diffacult shooting,works for me,i was watching a friend of mine shooting a few years back,every time he took a shot he stood up and every time the pigeons flared and yes he missed :thumbs:

[Whitebridges]

Cheers Rammer, we are like minded I think. How come Jim as a professional does it differently? I can't but help thinking how many they would kill if they sat down.

3/4 of the birds I shoot don't know what's hit 'em because they don't know I exist. I thought a hell of a lot of the birds in the film knew what was coming next - 1 and an 1/8 of Winchester Western!!

[NorfolkBoy]

I've always perched on my shooting stick , rising at the last moment to take the shot. Whenever I've tried to shoot sitting down it does dreadful things to my swing...Not that I'm that much better standing up... :thumbs:

[RAMMER BURT]

:thumbs: you also have to build a hide in a way that lets you swing freely if you know what i mean, bit like under pants too tight and it stays in one place nice and loose it swings in all directions nice and freely

[NorfolkBoy]

Never thought of it quite like that......Perhaps going 'commando' is in order then? :thumbs:

[Whitebridges]

I've always perched on my shooting stick , rising at the last moment to take the shot. Whenever I've tried to shoot sitting down it does dreadful things to my swing...Not that I'm that much better standing up... :thumbs:

NorfolkBoy, all well here in God's County. Tried a shooting stick and find 'em bloody uncomfortable to sit on for long periods of time. My curent seat is an old plastic fertiliser can. Shooting sitting down is an art. A shorter gun is a definate advantage. Keep Practising!

[Whitebridges]

:thumbs: you also have to build a hide in a way that lets you swing freely if you know what i mean, bit like under pants to tight and it stays in one place nice and loose it swings in all directions nice and freely

:o

Spot on Rammer.

[NorfolkBoy]

If only I could Whitebridges, if only I could.......

 

Only managed 2 days this year....... Not much opportunity to get back these days, being stuck out here in NOT-Gods Country......

 

Hoping to get some Pheasant action when back at Christmas tho'...... :thumbs:

[Whitebridges]

If only I could Whitebridges, if only I could.......

 

Only managed 2 days this year....... Not much opportunity to get back these days, being stuck out here in NOT-Gods Country......

 

Hoping to get some Pheasant action when back at Christmas tho'...... :thumbs:

Ah Norfolkman in exile. I'll have a rum for you on Trafalgar day.

The pheasies are well behind, but should grow a few feathers by boxing day.

[RAMMER BURT]

:thumbs: the wild pheasents are gun shy already, went out last saturday 1st oct and birds as far away as 1/4 of a mile were geting up of the beet, it was had work all round but we did bag a dozen or so, hopeing things will get better later on this year

[ROB REYNOLDS UK]

In the days of old when the old chaps went out with the flat cap and a white shirt on as i saw in one video he did stand up for some of the birds to veer away, i thought to my self what a ***** no wonder they were veering away no camo.. i can stand up for my shots at birds no more than 15 mtrs away and they still dont see me iv even shouted at them ,i have shot sitting down but you wont shoot nowhere near as good ..you have got to stand up to get your swing right ,you try hitting a hard right hander with out falling of your seat ..sitting down i thought some of you guys knew what you was on with but i see you dont ..foot work is one of the most important things there is in shooting no foot work and you will never be any real good yeh you will hit some but you will miss more than you hit ..now you know where your going wrong. :thumbs:

Edited October 6, 2005 by ernyha

[RAMMER BURT]

:thumbs: two years ago i was watch a bloke shot pigeons in a red road workers vest he lives up the road from me and drinks up the pub me and my mate went for a drink and got talking to this bloke he shot 147 pigeons in a red road workers vest pigeons only see in black/white like all /most animals so camo is not all it seems i have shot 105 pigeon days wearing a white tee shirt with no hat or face mask so you wont find me wearing £200 quids worth of real tree camo i were army surplus and thats abought it as for sitting down /standing up /foot work thats fine on a clay trap so you can swing but if you go and watch the likes of mat hance shot a 100 sporting straight and then say to him i like your foot work he will turn around and say fu8k all to do with it i have 20/20 vision rammer

[Highlander]

sitting down always have done since i read a book and saw archie coakes shooting, the first thing he said was never stand up to shoot, the pigeons will always flare away making for bloody diffacult shooting,works for me,i was watching a friend of mine shooting a few years back,every time he took a shot he stood up and every time the pigeons flared and yes he missed :thumbs:

Only reason ‘the major’ shot sitting down was because his legs were cattle trucked from an old war wound. He had a special seat made to allow him to swing naturally. Personally I never can shoot sitting down and have never seen a good shot doing so either. It’s all to do with your swing and that comes from the hips and upper body, which you can’t achieve properly if you’re on your ****! I sit on a barrel that allows me to stand up to shoot without too much movement but I grant you that most birds will veer off only IMO that’s because you move too soon. There’s a theory that pigeons are blind to everything but their landing area once they’re past a certain level of approach and it’s a theory I think holds good. Try it, wait till the bird is well committed to landing and then move, a nice smooth shouldering of the gun and fire. It’ll be in the bag if you can shoot straight.

[Whitebridges]

In the days of old when the old chaps went out with the flat cap and a white shirt on  as i saw in one video he did stand up for some of the birds to veer away, i thought to my self what a ***** no wonder they were veering away  no camo.. i can stand up for my shots at birds no more than 15 mtrs away and they still dont see me iv even shouted at them ,i have shot sitting down but you wont shoot nowhere  near as good ..you have got to stand up to get your swing right ,you try hitting a hard right hander with out falling of your seat  ..sitting down i thought some of you guys knew what you was on with but i see you dont ..foot work is one of the most important things there is in shooting no foot work and you will never be any real good yeh you will hit some but you will miss more than you hit ..now  you know where your going wrong.  :thumbs:

:o Do you shoot geese standing up Bob? I'm usually on my back for them no fancy footwork there either.

Edited October 6, 2005 by Whitebridges

[invector]

I find it easy to do both!! I use a metric equivalent of the old five gallon can to sit on, and sometimes stand up, but will often shoot from a sitting position.

 

I find it all depends on how high I have my netting. With some hedges where you have problems getting a good background the netting is much lower and I shoot sitting all the time. Most of my standing shots are at birds crossing the deeks and bound for a sitty tree, or where they flare because another bird is taking them away from your pattern. You don`t have to show yourself for birds to flare away. Sometimes the lead bird will commit to landing, see his mates going elsewhere, and veer away. That`s my cue to stand up and take the shot.

 

Being able to shoot sitting down has advantages but being able to do both is ideal.

[magman]

pardon the expression

but on me knee,s always when decoying

u then get the same swing as standing :thumbs:

[lurcherboy]

I sit down for 90% of my shots and thats probably why I have a bad bird to cart ratio :thumbs:

 

 

 

LB

[It's Rainin White Feathers]

sudden movements cause birds to flare, ive watched bloked literally jump up when a bird is coming into land and the bird is away before he got the gun to the sholder!! smooth controlled movements are key, this year i have taken birds standing up when another was approaching, i didnt move and it came straight in and thats with me standing up in the hide. i find sitting difficult but it is possible with practice and is extremely good for those birds landing straight into you head on just aim at feet and puff of feathers! :thumbs:

[hawkeye]

pardon the expression

but on me knee,s always when decoying

u then get the same swing as standing

pardon the expression

but on me knee,s always when decoying.

 

is that so you can say a prayer to help you hit them. :thumbs: :o

[Stealth Stalker]

I do a bit of both depending on the path of the birds.

 

I use an old office type chair with the back removed, that i salvaged from the dump.

 

That allows me to swivel round,into position. And also adjust the height.

[RAMMER BURT]

so to top it off some do some don't, as for the office chair my mate has one with no back and he gets on well with it as for me i use a 25lrt drum como of cause :thumbs:

[ROB REYNOLDS UK]

iv read it all now right then you try this why you are sitting down with a gun do a left to right high bird now the birds right over to your right but high ... :thumbs: were are you now on the floor sitting down is lazy and for fat peolpe there is no way you can shoot propley sitting down iv done it and still do if one catchs me out or i aint seen it in time above my head shots though..as for the cammo you stick to wearing your white tops and no face vale what do farmer stick on sticks in the middle of the crop fields ...white bags that flap in the wind to scare the birds of loads of cammo works every time for me you try sitting in a field with no cammo net mind you i could use an old white sheet as my cammo net do you think it will work ..no nor me :o

[M ROBSON]

I do a lot of wildfowling for geese and ducks so shoot from just about every position. Most of the time it's from a laid flat position, sitting up at the last minute.

 

Mark.

[mossy835]

i do both standing and sitting find sitting not to bad.