Help with how to set up hides

[High_gun]

Hi,

 

I'm new to pigeon shooting (only been 3 times) but have been clay shooting for some time.

 

I'd like any information on how to set up a good hide. I am thinking of buying ex army netting.

 

Is it best to have a cover over the top as well?

 

Most of the places will be backed onto either a wood or hedge.

 

 

 

Many thanks for any help.

[pete k]

high gun why dont you spend a couple of hours making a natural hide if you have good cover from behind , makes things easier

[philapper]

I agree with Pete, Spend some time building a natural one, and suppliment it with some netting especially in winter. Iv'e got some advantage timber and its the bee's knees.

 

Buy your self a folding saw, mine was only £6.99, if you want one let me know and I'll let you have the details.

 

Good Luck!!

[Gaza]

a little trick of the trade,

 

if you are going to use cammo netting or other hide sheets then dont spend 60/70 quid on expensive hide poles. instead i went to my local farm supply shop and bought a pack of electric fencing stakes. any livestock farm will have some so just ask the landowner where you can get some from. a pack of 10 costs around £9/10 and come in green colour. most of the stakes are blue but if you ask the shop they will be able to get some that are green. the posts work well because they have hooks all the way up and are lightweight and relatively easy to carry.

[Cranfield]

Natural cover hides are very good, but be careful that you have permission to chop the Farmers hedges, branches etc down.

Some take a very dim view of it, especially if you shoot along the same hedge a few times.

Most natural hides (greenery) have to be replenished on almost every trip, as the leaves die.

 

An ex-Army cammo net works just as well.

 

Its important to have background to your hide, above your head height, to avoid being sillhouetted.

I shoot sitting down, most of the time, so my hides are low at the front.

Some times I have a partial "roof" at the back of the hide, but very rarely.

[philapper]

This year I asked the farmer to put out some straw bails in the middle of a bare patch of rape. He did without any problems. the moral of this story is your doing him a big favour and he will support you IF YOU ASK!!

 

ps This worked very well as it also turned out to be on a flight line (MORE LUCK THAN JUDGEMENT!!!)

[High_gun]

Hi,

 

Many thanks for the replies.

Maybe I'll leave off buying netting for the moment then. As for the landowner, well that's not a problem as it's my grandfather.

 

Cranfield, you say you shoot sitting down but how do u work it that you can see out and shoot without scaring off the pigeons (before you shoot anyway!).

 

Is there any diagrams or something on the internet that would help me to set up a reasonable hide?

 

Thanks again.

[Cranfield]

High gun, I worked out many years ago, that I could not stand for very long periods in a hide.

The alternative is to sit down.

Then to avoid unnecessary movement, I decided to shoot sitting down (on a shooting stick).

My hide is not as high as a standing shooters, thats the only difference.

 

It isn,t difficult to set up a hide.

It may be more difficult with natural cover, because the availablility and location of the cover, is an influencing factor.

 

If you use a net.

Just choose your location, hopefully with a natural background (hedge, trees etc.).

Put two poles/sticks against the hedge, about 4-5ft apart.

Put two poles/sticks into the field, about 4ft from the other poles/sticks and the same distance apart.

Then drape a net around the poles.

 

The distances I have mentioned, should be adjusted to suit your requirements.

I don,t build big hides, as I shoot alone and I don,t want to "stick out" too much.

I also put a 5th pole slightly in front of and between, the two poles/sticks in the field.

This gives me a bit of extra room, when lifting my gun up to take a shot.

 

Experiment, its the only way to do it.

[Mark E]

I've been pigeon shooting for a while now, and have on the whole made hides out of what I could find in the hedgerow, and an old piece of army camo netting.

 

This year (having just got a LOT of pigeon shooting, for a few months only) decided that I'd make the most of the opportunity and buy hide poles, new nets, seat, magnet etc... Basically, all the stuff I've thought about buying for a while, and never got around to. Well... wow!!! What a mistake waiting was!

 

HIDE POLES ROCK MY BOAT!

 

I can have a GOOD hide made up in less than 4 minutes, and be ready to shoot. Which is bloody handy when you realsie you set up about a mile away from the flight line! (go on, admit you've done it too)

 

The new camo you can get is soooo much lighter than Army stuff (and you try it when it's wet!!).

 

My advice (for what it's worth, and I know the traditionalists amongst us won't agree, but hey) if you have access to regular pigeon shooting, don't muck about, GET THE GEAR NOW!

 

Also, get a magnet!

 

I got mine from a company called Etheringtons I think. They have a small advert in the Countrymans Weekly. It cost £60 (battery not included) +£10 P&P and is bloody good, and well made.

 

I got a lot of my stuff from www.##############

 

Well, that's me finished. Good luck!

 

Mark

[pete k]

if you dont want to build a hide why not get a guillie suit and just sit there and wait

[Fisherman Mike]

Cranfield, you say you shoot sitting down but how do u work it that you can see out and shoot without scaring off the pigeons (before you shoot anyway!).

Hi Gun

 

I always shoot sitting down unless the pigeons are coming thick and fast..

 

I use a lightweight folding stool..

 

many people do not take sufficient time building their hide which is a big mistake in my opinion.

 

I use 5ft high Hardwood Advantage Hide screen 12 ft long which is perforated to have the effect of leaves.. I thread these with my hide poles which are basically 51/2foot hazel staves sharpened at one end which I cut and season myself...

 

I dont often have the need for Hide poles with foot plates as the ground will generally take a sharpened stake..

 

I place two poles at the front and one each at the side to form a u shaped hide. I dont normally bother about a back because I am normally wearing full camo and the hide is normally built against a hedge or dry stone wall.

 

I secure the hide screen in place with some garden twine which I cut to length before each trip and leave in my bag. As a finishing touch i drape a length of Camo netting over the front and sides to break up the sharp line of the hide.

 

If the weather is bad I secure the poles with a guy ropes and timber pegs. I use white cord which I have died a browny colour and the pegs are cut from 1" Hazel. Though this is not very often.

 

Sometimes I have to level off the ground for the leg of the folding stool but this doesnt take 5 minutes..

 

With my head covered ( and sometimes masked ) my eye level seated is just above the top of the hide which is not too high to enable me to see the deeks on the ground in front and skan the skyline all around...

 

One word of advice which other readers may or may not agree with... Dont wear a peaked cap as you will miss loads of shooting oportunities from birds which approach above the line of the peak and consequentially out of vision. Also try and avoid dark glasses as the flash of the lenses is easily picked out by the birds.

 

If I see birds approaching the deeks I wait to see what they are going to do before firing off a barrel or two. And then when ready to fire I just stand up from my seat. It is a method I have used for about 12 years and I found before that I was missing shots and moving around too much in the standing position simply because i was not comfortable.

 

FM.