What Would Be The Maximum Range

[wymberley]

Putting to one side the piece of string and assuming a truly aimed shot, at what distance should you be able to consistently - as opposed to occasionally lucky -  break a going away edge on full sized clay with 28g of No 8 having a good even pattern through a 1/2 choke barrel?

Edited December 21, 2017 by wymberley

[figgy]

With full choke I’d say 50 yards as the pattern will be opening up.

[Hamster]

5 hours ago, wymberley said:

Putting to one side the piece of string and assuming a truly aimed shot, at what distance should you be able to consistently - as opposed to occasionally lucky -  break a going away edge on full sized clay with 28g of No 8 having a good even pattern through a 1/2 choke barrel?

You can't put an exact number on this but I would say under 35 yards you will never miss it due to sparseness of pattern nor the inability of 2.2mm shot to affect a break, beyond 45 yards I would say you will miss (fail to break) the odd one due to both factors, 40 yards is about where you're starting to push your luck. 

[Walker570]

IF your name is George of coursethe sky is the limit, but I tend to agree with previous estimates ..35 to 50yrds. "Do you feel luck p........." apologies to Dirty Harry

[wymberley]

Thanks, Guys.

I ask not out of sour grapes, more total bemusement. I've started shooting clays a bit after many, many years of not having done so. Plus I'm old. Previous shooting has been purely recreational and related to what I'd call a game layout with appropriate distances. I wasn't too bad and on the decoys can still manage 2 for 3 on a good day. Have been to Hadfields a couple of times - which some say is easy - starting at one end to get the eye in and then working along to the not so easy. Don't do too bad for an old 'un.

Have to say that the above figures give me encouragement - they're about what I figured might be the case.

As posted elsewhere, son and I went to Ashcombe earlier in the week. Unfortunately we got off to a bad start. The first stand which looked do-able and the  second - very clever bolting rabbit set up utilising the old skeet layout - was also a no no as you would have been shooting straight into the low sun. Consequently, we were straight in to some going away birds and having talked about it since think that we were trying to engage these at 50 yards minimum - probably even more. Although our guns fit well, we were having to mount far too quickly for comfort coupled to the somewhat punchy cartridges and the bruising reflects that we both took some shots - probably the second barrel - on the arm. It wasn't until we finally got back to the rabbit after a bit of a breather once the sun had cleared that we finally did some good.

I won't be taking the game gun there again but will go back and try again when the new Zoli finally turns up.

[Hamster]

1 hour ago, wymberley said:

Thanks, Guys.

I ask not out of sour grapes, more total bemusement. I've started shooting clays a bit after many, many years of not having done so. Plus I'm old. Previous shooting has been purely recreational and related to what I'd call a game layout with appropriate distances. I wasn't too bad and on the decoys can still manage 2 for 3 on a good day. Have been to Hadfields a couple of times - which some say is easy - starting at one end to get the eye in and then working along to the not so easy. Don't do too bad for an old 'un.

Have to say that the above figures give me encouragement - they're about what I figured might be the case.

As posted elsewhere, son and I went to Ashcombe earlier in the week. Unfortunately we got off to a bad start. The first stand which looked do-able and the  second - very clever bolting rabbit set up utilising the old skeet layout - was also a no no as you would have been shooting straight into the low sun. Consequently, we were straight in to some going away birds and having talked about it since think that we were trying to engage these at 50 yards minimum - probably even more. Although our guns fit well, we were having to mount far too quickly for comfort coupled to the somewhat punchy cartridges and the bruising reflects that we both took some shots - probably the second barrel - on the arm. It wasn't until we finally got back to the rabbit after a bit of a breather once the sun had cleared that we finally did some good.

I won't be taking the game gun there again but will go back and try again when the new Zoli finally turns up.

I should add that my figures earlier are my best guestimate for a true edge on going away, pretty much anything else such as crossing, quartering and angled looping you can just about double those numbers particularly when showing some face. 

[buze]

The furtherest clay I shoot at the moment is ~65 yards, as measured with google map, it's perhaps 1/2 to 3/4 face. It's pretty shootable, and I only miss it when I'm not 'on' it, I've never felt my cartridge/choke combination let me down on that one... I shoot 28g CompX fiber, which isn't known for speed nor density of pattern. 1/2 or 3/4 choke. Still breaks them.

Some people shoot that one even further out on it's path (it goes from bottom left of square to bottom right) -- but I'm not sure what their setups are.

 

 

[Sian]

1 hour ago, buze said:

The furtherest clay I shoot at the moment is ~65 yards, as measured with google map, it's perhaps 1/2 to 3/4 face. It's pretty shootable, and I only miss it when I'm not 'on' it, I've never felt my cartridge/choke combination let me down on that one... I shoot 28g CompX fiber, which isn't known for speed nor density of pattern. 1/2 or 3/4 choke. Still breaks them.

Some people shoot that one even further out on it's path (it goes from bottom left of square to bottom right) -- but I'm not sure what their setups are.

 

 

1/4 and a 1/2 usually first barrel  it either joke does - 28 Fiocchi TT1 plastic 

[wymberley]

"as measured with google map,"

It's a pity that one can't do that for Ashcombe.

[Lord v]

I know ashcombe quite well - I reckon the going away birds on stand 3 will be at 35 - 40 yards at break point. 

The steep hill behind plays tricks and they aren't going as far as you think. You can tell by the short walk to stand 4 (the one with the fast crosser in the gully then the high looper) that stand is barely 70 m up the hill from 3. 

Edited December 31, 2017 by Lord v

[Lord v]

We are talking about the stand circled? 

Google reckons about 30m to where I reckon my break point is.

The hill it's self is only 70m top to bottom. 

[wymberley]

2 hours ago, Lord v said:

I know ashcombe quite well - I reckon the going away birds on stand 3 will be at 35 - 40 yards at break point. 

The steep hill behind plays tricks and they aren't going as far as you think. You can tell by the short walk to stand 4 (the one with the fast crosser in the gully then the high looper) that stand is barely 70 m up the hill from 3. 

Many thanks for taking the time and making the effort to post.

Yep, you've got it. The stance to the right of the skeet and the skeet (bolting rabbit) itself were no no because of the sun. Probably because of this, the one circled was in full use so we gave it a miss. Our intention was to have a go at the whole sporting layout so a limited number of shots at each. We did hit a few at the crosser/looper and moved on. It was at this point that it all went pear shaped in particular - because of the trees, Google doesn't help. As said, will have another go. Quick question though, do you shoot gun up or down?

Edited December 31, 2017 by wymberley

[Lord v]

Generally gun down.

My nemesis at that ground is the two that come from the towers behind you, stand 8 I think. And the one that goes basicly straight up on stand 6.

Good ground and the trees and clearings really mess with your perception of distance/speed.