where is the best place to put a hide?

[young airgunner]

hi there, im new to pigeon shooting and am just learning the ropes at the moment. i was just wandering where the best place is too put a hide?

 

like when you are in a field, where do you put it and how high should it be etc etc?

 

i hope someone can help, cheers james

[badgerman]

where you set up your hide will depend obviously on conditions and the field itself. if you want the wind coming from behind you then accordingly you will select a hegde, tree or wood that allows you to do that.

 

as for how big the hide should be, you will not want to stand out too much as would a larger hide, but you will need to ensure you have enough room to shoot safely, for example when a pigeon comes in and you just get up to shoot but have to be stepping around lunchboxes etc, it just wouldn't work, similarly you don't want to have to be so close to the front of the net that you catch the end of your barrels in the hide as you raise the gun to shoot.

 

height of the hide is usually just a matter of preference, guaged usually according to how you will be positioned for most of them time in the hide. i prefer to stand or sit on a shooting stick so i have my hide as high as my poles will allow, others might be sitting lower so will also have the hide lower, but again this will depend on conditions of where you are, where pigeons come in from the sides aswell as front for example, you might need the sides or the whole hide higher.

 

It is largely common sense and the rest will come with experience of being out there, try out and see what works best for you.

 

Bm

[invector]

Are you shooting pigeons with an air rifle, or a shotgun? The previous answer would apply if you are using a shotgun, but not necessarily when using an air rifle, which is essentially a static discipline, without the need to get up to shoot, like shotgun shooting. In both cases your hide should be where the pigeons are. Finding a place with the wind behind you, when using a shotgun, is OK, as long as the sun isn't in your face!!

[badgerman]

Are you shooting pigeons with an air rifle, or a shotgun? The previous answer would apply if you are using a shotgun, but not necessarily when using an air rifle, which is essentially a static discipline, without the need to get up to shoot, like shotgun shooting. In both cases your hide should be where the pigeons are. Finding a place with the wind behind you, when using a shotgun, is OK, as long as the sun isn't in your face!!

 

apologies, being a young airgunner, its probably with reference to airguns. however, if you ever get a shotgun - now you know what to do!

[young airgunner]

thanks alot for your help guys, i have just brought the sir gunner magazine for this month which contains an article of building a hide so ure information and the pics will be great help. cheers james

[the hitman]

This is an excellent question and deserves more replies.

In the ideal world the wind and sun would always be at your back,but seldom is.

You have got to do your reconnaissance, find where they are coming from, and

which area of the field they want to be feeding.

Some days when i set up the wind might be in my face,or from left to right, it makes no

difference,as long as you are in the right place to shot them.

You then have to position your decoys to suit the situation.

Hope this helps.

The Hitman.

[young airgunner]

cheers mate, willt ry this out tomoro

[Holland&Holland]

This is how i do it.

 

First scout the area, where are the pigeons?

If you have found a decent field where they are; where is cover close to the place where they feed, preferably with a big tree in the neighbourhood because the pigeons can use this as a sitting tree, or you can loft some decoys in it. Also it very usefull if your near a flight line, if you know the area you can figure this out. If there are hedgerows close by where they feed i set up a hide with the hedge as backdrop. For shotgun i like to have the wind coming in sideways, so i try to set up that way with the deeks in front of me. Also i check if there is enough room to set up the decoys. I use some branches or cut materials/crops for the hide to blend in. Other things you should think about is, is there easy acces, or do i have to walk a lot, do i damage to crops if a put up a hide there, and pick up shot pigeons? (of course if they are stubbles no worries) Are there any houses in the area or public footpaths, for safety reasons? And maybe for a rifle is there backdrop?

 

pfiiooooeei loads of work, but then you settled i think.

 

 

p.s. sometimes i just put up a hide in the middle of a field. If it's a good enough hide and you are camouflaged a bit it also works. Doesn't have to be against a hedge.