motty Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 Jules joined me on Wednesday to shoot a rape field. It hadn't been cut too long and I had only had a couple of looks at it to see what the score was regarding numbers. I was confident of a good bag, though. I arrived at the field before Jules to pinpoint exactly where we should site the hide. When he joined me a few minutes later, we set about getting the decoys out and the hide up. It was still before noon and it was very hot. It was probably one of the hottest days I have shot pigeons. I am glad I took plenty of frozen drinks. We put the hide on the edge of the rape. The wind was from our left and we set the decoys accordingly. This fairly light wind changed 180 degrees throughout the day, though we didn't change the pattern much at all. It was a pretty slow start, but I have seen it before enough times. I was just happy to see the usual flight lines being used. We were happy picking up a few early birds. On the whole, the pigeons decoyed well, and it was nice to build some early confidence on some of these easier birds. We both shot some nice 50 yarders, though, and it seemed we were both on form. After the first 90 minutes we had over 50. I was sure the best was still to come. I was right. Over the next 3 hours or so we had some fast and furious sport at times. It was hard to forget about the heat, but I feel we coped fairly well. I had the dog with me, but he was used sparingly. We kept him cool with a few splashes of cold water on his head and a drink after every retrieve. With regular pick-ups, we also managed to get most of the dead birds into the shade. This worked well, but unfortunately it didn't stop one or two birds being spoiled. As with any day in the field, the fun had to stop some time. When the birds slowed, we called it a day. We could have shot a few more, but we were happy with how the day had gone. The bag was 178 pigeons and a couple of ferals. We followed that day up with a decent bag of 75 of another rape field on Thursday. Today I took out Jules' brother, again on rape. We shot 70. A trip to the game dealer is on in the morning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 Nicely done. It seems some very good bags are being shot at the minute and posted elsewhere on the internet, perhaps numbers are up this year? Plenty round our patch at the minute too. Keeping the birds fresh and free from flies is the real challenge right now. Well shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yickdaz Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 Great stuff bud some nice bags there, and I agree it's been hard going in this heat of late although we had a lot cooler and windy day today on rape stubble but only managed 16 the birds just wasn't around on 3 rape stubbles we looked at Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 A very good weeks shooting in normal conditions , in the conditions you have had this past week , the bags you two have had were exceptional , both of you deserve a long cold drink . When I got a decent bag last Saturday my garage floor was to warm to lay them out so I had the bright idea of putting them straight in my old fridge freezer , its a wonder I didn't break it with all the heat from the pigeons , as it turned out they kept cool and I sold 40 on the Tuesday that were still in fresh condition . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7daysinaweek Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 Enjoyed that read Motty, that is a capital bag, never ceases to amaze me how quick flies can move onto dead birds. You done a fantastic job with your bag just to have only two spoiled and your approach to keeping them in tip top condition seem to have paid off. atb 7diaw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oowee Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 A great write up and day out in the sun ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigeon controller Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 Well done Motty, great report, you did well to only loose two in that heat. The desert camo worked well against the standing rape. I glad that you are still able to move your birds on. Again well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muncher Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 Must say it was blinking hot I had 8 pints of frozen water with me, and there wasn't much left when we packed up, a great day, I enjoyed it very much. Poor old Boomer liked ice cold water on his head as did I poured in my hat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clodhopper Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 That is some.effort in that heat and 3 times in 4 days. I like the idea of frozen bottles of water. Great read, done to the both of you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted July 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 2 hours ago, pigeon controller said: Well done Motty, great report, you did well to only loose two in that heat. The desert camo worked well against the standing rape. I glad that you are still able to move your birds on. Again well done. Cheers, Pc. Just got back from the game dealer. They are now only paying 15p for fresh and 10p for frozen pigeons! Hardly worth the trip over! Maybe I will have to start shooting with steel again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 2 minutes ago, Clodhopper said: I like the idea of frozen bottles of water. I buy a bottle of Robinsons fruit juice , put half in a four liter milk carton , fill it nearly to the top , stick it in the freezer and take it out on a hot day and let the heat thaw it out while I am shooting , Even in the really hot conditions it still stays frozen for most of the afternoon . 4 minutes ago, motty said: Cheers, Pc. Just got back from the game dealer. They are now only paying 15p for fresh and 10p for frozen pigeons! Hardly worth the trip over! Maybe I will have to start shooting with steel again. Was that where we normally take them in Watton ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stevo Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 Well done on your bag motty, as always it’s a thumbs up from the Lincolnshire massive. What game dealers are you going to , are they paying more for steel ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
la bala Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 Maybe go back to the old days Motty, NFU used to give 1 cartridge for 1 pair of feet, that way 15 pence from the game dealer wouldnt sound quite so bad. Probably before your time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted July 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 1 hour ago, marsh man said: I buy a bottle of Robinsons fruit juice , put half in a four liter milk carton , fill it nearly to the top , stick it in the freezer and take it out on a hot day and let the heat thaw it out while I am shooting , Even in the really hot conditions it still stays frozen for most of the afternoon . Was that where we normally take them in Watton ? Yep, Bambridges. Hopefully it is only down to the amount they're getting in there at the moment. They did have a few pallets of pigeons sitting there, and another bloke brought 300 frozen while I was there. 1 hour ago, stevo said: Well done on your bag motty, as always it’s a thumbs up from the Lincolnshire massive. What game dealers are you going to , are they paying more for steel ? Bambridges at Watton. If I could get 50p or more per bird I would be more than happy. Steel shot could be the way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stevo Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 1 hour ago, motty said: Yep, Bambridges. Hopefully it is only down to the amount they're getting in there at the moment. They did have a few pallets of pigeons sitting there, and another bloke brought 300 frozen while I was there. Bambridges at Watton. If I could get 50p or more per bird I would be more than happy. Steel shot could be the way to go. I've been toying with going over full time to eley VIP steel size 5 . I can get it for 215 a thou . hmmmm food for thought . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 31 minutes ago, stevo said: I've been toying with going over full time to eley VIP steel size 5 . I can get it for 215 a thou . hmmmm food for thought . hello, good price £229/£239 in just carts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muncher Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 (edited) 48 minutes ago, stevo said: I've been toying with going over full time to eley VIP steel size 5 . I can get it for 215 a thou . hmmmm food for thought . I really struggled with them,not just me two others with me did also, the 4 s we're very good and the gambore 5s also. I don't know why they should of not been good I had 500 of them ,I very pleased when they were gone . Seemed to miss no end change to the 4s and back to normal.one of the other blokes shooting pigeons with me is a very good shot (shoots for gb)said what's up with these they are carp . Think we shot 250 plus pigeons that day I would rather have any thing than them again. Edited July 29, 2018 by muncher Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stevo Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 (edited) 16 hours ago, muncher said: I really struggled with them,not just me two others with me did also, the 4 s we're very good and the gambore 5s also. I don't know why they should of not been good I had 500 of them ,I very pleased when they were gone . Seemed to miss no end change to the 4s and back to normal.one of the other blokes shooting pigeons with me is a very good shot (shoots for gb)said what's up with these they are carp . Think we shot 250 plus pigeons that day I would rather have any thing than them again. thats the problem Jules , he's a GB shooter , most of them are pants on the real stuff mate ?? ,I have always got on ok with them . a 3/8th choke and I've had some great results when I have used them , maybe I was just having a good day . think its something I will have to look into though as im back on the live stuff. . Edited July 30, 2018 by stevo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kraai Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 For pigeons here in belgium i had 0.75 € for a pigeon. I now shoot with gamebore black gold steel 28 gr nr 4 and love them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FOXHUNTER1 Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 Brilliant bag , takes some sitting out in that hot sun but I'm sure I could manage getting results like that.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yickdaz Posted July 29, 2018 Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 I have been using the eley vip 32g and 28 g 5s they are ok but noticed a lot more birds flying on with a plume of feathers out of them the gamebore super steel 4s perform better seem to get cleaner kills with them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted July 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2018 6 hours ago, yickdaz said: I have been using the eley vip 32g and 28 g 5s they are ok but noticed a lot more birds flying on with a plume of feathers out of them the gamebore super steel 4s perform better seem to get cleaner kills with them I used to use plenty of the gamebore 32gm 4s. I can get them from most shops around here. They certainly do the job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stevo Posted July 30, 2018 Report Share Posted July 30, 2018 Right then every day is a school day , I will grab a slab of the GB 4s and give them a go next weekend . ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muncher Posted July 30, 2018 Report Share Posted July 30, 2018 2 hours ago, stevo said: Right then every day is a school day , I will grab a slab of the GB 4s and give them a go next weekend . ? They are mustard on Woodies ,you will love em Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted July 30, 2018 Report Share Posted July 30, 2018 21 hours ago, motty said: Yep, Bambridges. Hopefully it is only down to the amount they're getting in there at the moment. They did have a few pallets of pigeons sitting there, and another bloke brought 300 frozen while I was there. Bambridges at Watton. If I could get 50p or more per bird I would be more than happy. Steel shot could be the way to go. I wonder if the day will come where the dealers will buy steel shot pigeons at a higher rate than lead shot pigeons for the likes of falconry fraternity , they will need a device to show they had been shot with steel and if they did , how long would that market last for ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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