ditchman Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 Pigeons come and go here so i dont get any really good sessions in much, until the autumn falls, ....the times i have been out , i have missed more than ive shot....you know the stuff, the type of shot you should never miss..! On thursday afternoon a couple of my shooting mates dropped by to take me up to Billy Bells for a couple of hours, so ive got a slab of cartridges i need to get thro' before i change to what Motty advises, so off we went.................Now ....usually im a fairly tasty shot...but the first round was a total and utter disaster !.....16 out of 25....i can usually get 23-25...Billy was watching and asked me what the hell was i doing....i hung my head in shame and took a lot of stick from my 2 so called mates....so Billy says he will stand behind me....tells me to go onto the stands i did bad on !...........so i shoot again ............rubbish.......Billy says .." you are poking at them. not moving....and you are not putting your head down...you have just gone lazy".....so i go back to stand one...quite angry with myself and taking into account what he said ...start again .....this time i put my barrel glove on..(its an old leather golf glove) i dont use it cause the barrels get hot ...i use it so i dont grip the barrels................ anyway the next round was totally different...23 out of 25.....so Thursday was a good job done....and i have promised myself to get up there once a fortnight to keep in shape until the birds start coming in on my patch.............. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 Yep, practice of good technique is what it's all about. A mate of mine has two game guns which stay in the cabinet from the end of season to the start of next, and wonders why he is such an inconsistent shot. Somebody said to one of those golfer chappies; Montgomery I think it was 'You're dead lucky being able to play golf as well as you do' or something along those lines, and he is supposed to have replied. 'Yeah, the more I practice the luckier I get.' He may never have said it for all I know, but it is nevertheless true. Even dry mounting your gun in front of a mirror for five minutes a few times a week pays dividends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitchrat Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 Pigeons come and go here so i dont get any really good sessions in much, until the autumn falls, ....the times i have been out , i have missed more than ive shot....you know the stuff, the type of shot you should never miss..! On thursday afternoon a couple of my shooting mates dropped by to take me up to Billy Bells for a couple of hours, so ive got a slab of cartridges i need to get thro' before i change to what Motty advises, so off we went.................Now ....usually im a fairly tasty shot...but the first round was a total and utter disaster !.....16 out of 25....i can usually get 23-25...Billy was watching and asked me what the hell was i doing....i hung my head in shame and took a lot of stick from my 2 so called mates....so Billy says he will stand behind me....tells me to go onto the stands i did bad on !...........so i shoot again ............rubbish.......Billy says .." you are poking at them. not moving....and you are not putting your head down...you have just gone lazy".....so i go back to stand one...quite angry with myself and taking into account what he said ...start again .....this time i put my barrel glove on..(its an old leather golf glove) i dont use it cause the barrels get hot ...i use it so i dont grip the barrels................ anyway the next round was totally different...23 out of 25.....so Thursday was a good job done....and i have promised myself to get up there once a fortnight to keep in shape until the birds start coming in on my patch.............. Of course practise is good but it's not the "Motherlode" to results shooting real pigeons. The unpredictability of birds is the beauty of our sport. When I'm here in Canada for the summer I shoot 100 very sporting clays each Saturday but when I get back to the real stuff I always struggle for the 1st few outings. Clays follow a predictable path (on demand!) and slow down during their flight . The real bird MIGHT be slowing down as it comes in to land, OR it might be accelerating when it's seen you raise the gun, throwing in a few kinks as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 skeet shooting is nothing like bird shooting ...but it does sharpen you up and stops you getting into bad habits if you dont shoot enuff in the first place........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 Practice teaches you footwork, balance, mount and technique, all through repetition. You would still need all these even if live quarry were as predictable as clays. The point of clays is to practice good technique at a leisurely rate with no pressure, and thereby developing muscle memory, and this is why dry mounting in front of a mirror regularly, pays dividends. Muscle memory takes over when presented with a target and therefore it's a natural response and one thing less to think about while you concentrate on the target. Every little helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 9, 2015 Practice teaches you footwork, balance, mount and technique, all through repetition. You would still need all these even if live quarry were as predictable as clays. The point of clays is to practice good technique at a leisurely rate with no pressure, and thereby developing muscle memory, and this is why dry mounting in front of a mirror regularly, pays dividends. Muscle memory takes over when presented with a target and therefore it's a natural response and one thing less to think about while you concentrate on the target. Every little helps. couldnt have said it better myself.................i should be more aurualdite.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dad Posted August 10, 2015 Report Share Posted August 10, 2015 hate to have to admit it i would settle for 16x25 most days.how many times do you fire at a pigeon thats just out manourverd the red arrows and think why did i pull the trigger.... twice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2015 hate to have to admit it i would settle for 16x25 most days.how many times do you fire at a pigeon thats just out manourverd the red arrows and think why did i pull the trigger.... twice on the skeet range.....if you practice regular there is no reason whatsoever to stop you getting 20 and more out of 25....and i dont mean 500 cartridges a week.....2 rounds a week will do it......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dad Posted August 10, 2015 Report Share Posted August 10, 2015 on the skeet range.....if you practice regular there is no reason whatsoever to stop you getting 20 and more out of 25....and i dont mean 500 cartridges a week.....2 rounds a week will do it......... sorry got confused a bit thought you meant pigeons. skeet sounds a good way to practice. crosser have always been my nemisis different ranges different speeds different directions my computer doesnt calculate so well these days the battery is going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2015 sorry got confused a bit thought you meant pigeons. skeet sounds a good way to practice. crosser have always been my nemisis different ranges different speeds different directions my computer doesnt calculate so well these days the battery is going. work on the crossing skeet for a while....and after a while you will connect................and as scully says...your "on-board computor" will stow it away....under muscle memory.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diddy Posted August 11, 2015 Report Share Posted August 11, 2015 Any restriction on cartridges at billys? Ive only ever been to high lodge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2015 Any restriction on cartridges at billys? Ive only ever been to high lodge. none at all.................have you ever been to billy bells...............?...its a real eyeopener......if you ever want to learn clays without people leaning over your shoulder..then thats the place to go......its turn up and £5.00 a round......i believe it was the first sheet range in UK...it was built by the american oil workers in the 1960's so they could go and have fun............the deal was Billy can we build a sheet range at no cost to you and in return we want sole use of it 2 days a week ..............billy says yes...and the rest is history....Billy taught John Bidwell to shoot............it is so laid back and you get a lot of pigeon and game boys turn up on the weekends......................ive been going there for 35years and it aint changed one bit...cept he cuts the grass with a mower instead of a cythe..........!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diddy Posted August 11, 2015 Report Share Posted August 11, 2015 never been just high lodge. Its behind the scrap yard isn't it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2015 never been just high lodge. Its behind the scrap yard isn't it? yeah thats right...thats all billy's land...he used to make sheds until recently there...but rents it out to steel fabricators......you drive past Dowcra's scrap yard........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diddy Posted August 12, 2015 Report Share Posted August 12, 2015 thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westley Posted August 12, 2015 Report Share Posted August 12, 2015 (edited) couldnt have said it better myself.................i should be more aurualdite.... Thats a bloody glue.......................isn' it ? Edited August 12, 2015 by Westley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2015 Thats a bloody glue.......................isn' it ? sorry erudite.........................is that better ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.