The 20 bore gets an outing.

[JDog]

My day was mapped out. I had no paid employment but I had a list. Put down a new wooden bathroom floor to replace the sodden carpets was first and that took me four hours. Painting the damaged walls was next but I decided to leave it to dry in this good weather a bit longer. Third was speaking to the three insurance companies involved in our recent flooding.

 

If anyone has had decent dealings with insurance companies please tell me how you did it. There is always an excess and usually every excuse not to pay out. The conversations left me exasperated and those on the receiving end in no doubt what i thought of them.

 

All done and dusted by 1:30 I thought I would venture out to look for pigeons. I haven't shot since I damaged my neck and today I thought I would give the 20 bore a try. I must admit to a degree of anxiety because if I am unable to shoot with this light gun and light cartridges my shooting days look numbered. I have never shot this gun before over decoys. My previous forays into the gauge ended in disappointment so I was quite nervous.

 

My new binoculars arrived yesterday and with the current light clarity once I had tuned them into my eyes I felt as if I could see pigeons in Nottinghamshire. Certainly I could see a wheeling mass of birds which just had to be crows didn't they? No they were pigeons on an area of 500 acres of drillings which have been in for more than two weeks. When will these Lincolnshire birds get onto the fields earlier as they did in Gloucestershire? A text to the farmer and an immediate reply and I was on. This is a farmer who said if I went to shoot a rape field being bothered by pigeons next to a village he would spill some beans when he drilled them. I shot the field and he never spilled a bean.

 

The rotary was placed 40m to my right with the wind blowing right to left. A handful of dead birds were placed opposite the hide. I told myself to restrict my shots to within 30m of the hide and leave the ones either overhead or crossing at 50-60m which I would normally have a go at. What surprised me was just how hard hitting this gun is with 23 gram cartridges. Sometimes I felt as if every gram of shot in the cartridge had hit the pigeons within the 30m limit. Having shot a fair few within my limits I ventured further so to speak with good effect, my best shot being as dead as a Dodo at 45m.

 

I really enjoyed my afternoon especially as it was unplanned and I was using a strange gun. The total picked was 55 pigeons.

 

 

Edited April 21, 2016 by JDog

[ElvisThePelvis]

Good going, how did the neck hold out?

[oldypigeonpopper]

hello, well done JD the 20g is a nice shotgun, back many years i had a winchester 101 which did well on high tower clays and sporting and pigeon. how was the medical conditioned you mentioned after shooting? looks like the 20g O/U is a good option to keep on shooting on game (pheasant) days and a 12/20g semi auto for pigeon

[fenboy]

Well done JDog

I am sure you will get on fine with the 20 gauge you just need to persevere for a while .

I used one for several years and mainly shot 23 / 24 gram loads and did just fine with it .

 

PC is going to be most disappointed with you presentation .

[Dbw1shrops]

Well done Jdog looks like the neck is fine judging by the bag of rather untidy pigeons PC will be disappointed prepare for the onslaught lol 👍😉

 

Atvb Dave

[aga man]

Well done, a good result with the strange gun. I wish i was a fly on the wall when you was giving the insurance what for!

[sitsinhedges]

Good shooting Is that a Baikal

[kenholland]

I think you will be using that 20 bore a bit more in the future j d good little tool's iv'e had good result's many years ago.

[fenboy]

Good shooting Is that a Baikal

 

It's a Winchester 101

[sitsinhedges]

 

It's a Winchester 101

 

I realise that now.

[pigeon controller]

Well done JDog for getting out with the lighter gun, I bet each pigeon was an insurance worker. I can excuse the presentation due to your current situation. I'm glad that you are finding birds to shoot.

[Konnie]

Good end to a testing day, hope the neck held out.

[marsh man]

Not insulting anybody who work in that field of employment but the two biggest rouges in this country who I have dealt with are bankers and insurance companies .

 

The only time I have claimed anything on my house insurance was in the 87 gales when my chimney pot fell off the stack on my house . I could have done the job myself but I thought let the insurance pay for it , anyhow to cut a long story short they wanted two quotes which I provided and then they recon I was 25% under insured so they took 25% off of the lowest quote , good job that it was my father in laws quote and he paid me the full amount on it for doing it off a ladder instead of the scaffolding we quoted for.

 

Now where were we , oh yea it was your day out with a 20 bore , and very well you done Mr JDog , hope your neck problem didn't give you any stick, and your presentation was pretty good compared to the way we do things , like one of your post headings Normal for Norfolk.

[oowee]

Excellent rather random maybe eclectic post modernist presentation.

[winnie&bezza]

Those pigeons look mashed! Certainly hitting hard as you say.

[maxwell]

Nice to see you back out, I hope your neck isn't too sore.

[ditchman]

bloody well done...20 bores shoot like a rifle did you close one eye..

[Tedly47]

Well done jdog what a great result... I too have recently developed a neck injury, purely my own fault..! I've got the chiropractor tomorrow morning which I'm not looking forward too as it's my first time!

 

Anyway great shooting.

 

Tedly

[Dr D]

Looks like you found a solution. Well done

[bobby dazzler]

Good shooting well done

[HunterFarmer]

Nice shooting! And nice gun

[ShootingEgg]

Good shooting. I always find shooting with 24g I hit more and better than with 28-32g with a 20....

 

Hope the neck held out and that you enjoyed taking out the pigeon shaped insurers...

[figgy]

If your neck gives you anymore jip try a gas operated semi auto with a recoil reducer,like shooting an air rifle.

[Rimfireboy]

Well done jdog, I used to like three crowns 23grm loads in 20 gauge, found them sweet shooting and effective. Now that my only 20 gauge is a semi auto, I sold my last slab of them as their ability to cycle the auto was marginal. Good shooting fella.

[lee1972]

Good shooting & well done ! That's all I shoot with now is a 20 bore berretta silver pigeon & its the best gun I have ever shot with also have no problem with distance shots but I use heavier loads of ely hi flyer 28g 6 shot !

I use these for pheasants, pigeons, well mostly everything we shoot I would also have no problem using this gun on a standing shoot which I have done in the past with great effect & would not change it for anything !

If you read my last post I said I shot a pigeon which I paced out at 55 meters but it was probably 60 to 65 if I'm honest & stopped it dead before it hit the ground !

I used to do some work for a keeper on a well known commercial shoot & all he ever used was a 28 bore & we was shooting one day when he shot an hen bird at about 50 meters & it dropped like a stone so distance with lighter guns is not an issue just need to be a bit more accurate & looking by the way you shot you have no problems with the 20 bore & also you might have found the tool that works for you so keep up the good work