Challenge enforced.

[muncher]

A few weeks ago I went decoying on some rape, as the birds came in I kept  losing them in the background. I noticed my right eye had gone blurry in the centre vision. I shot 45 but I was very unhappy with how I shot. So Monday morning I went to the optician to find out what’s up. There diagnosis wasn’t great, it can be operated on but they won’t as your other eye is fine!! The problem is to do with scaring from a PVS I suffered a while back. So I’ve decided I needed to change shoulders and shoot left handed. Friday evening I changed my Beretta A400 to a lefty cast and the safety catch done, I asked my brother if he wanted to join me today originally to shoot on a rape, field but before we went to that farm we checked out some fresh barley drilling’s. We found several down feeding and plenty in the area, so we decided to give it a go for a couple of hours and see. We set up with the wind at our backs behind a conifer hedge,  15 dead birds and two on a rotary. The pigeons took a While to come back but they came to the decoys, fist go left handed I missed , next one in I shot. I was away, we took it I turns and I was struggling quite badly and getting very frustrated. I had brought my beretta SP3 with me and decided to try that. Straight away I improved with a pair,my confidence growing now, I didn’t shoot to badly I did miss some sitters, but had some nice ones as well. Probably helped by my brother who was shooting poorly as well, I managed 4 pairs on pigeons and 2 pairs on crows. More practice is needed and I will need to get my gun fitted to me. We picked 103 pigeons and 23 crows. For me I now know I can change shoulders and have the summer to get ready for next wildfowling season. 
 

Edited March 26, 2022 by muncher

[Farma Geddon]

29 minutes ago, muncher said:

A few weeks ago I went decoying on some rape, as the birds came in I kept  losing them in the background. I noticed my right eye had gone blurry in the centre vision. I shot 45 but I was very unhappy with how I shot. So Monday morning I went to the optician to find out what’s up. There diagnosis wasn’t great, it can be operated on but they won’t as your other eye is fine!! The problem is to do with scaring from a PVS I suffered a while back. So I’ve decided I needed to change shoulders and shoot left handed. Friday evening I changed my Beretta A400 to a lefty cast and the safety catch done, I asked my brother if he wanted to join me today originally to shoot on a rape, field but before we went to that farm we checked out some fresh barley drilling’s. We found several down feeding and plenty in the area, so we decided to give it a go for a couple of hours and see. We set up with the wind at our backs behind a conifer hedge,  15 dead birds and two on a rotary. The pigeons took a While to come back but they came to the decoys, fist go left handed I missed , next one in I shot. I was away, we took it I turns and I was struggling quite badly and getting very frustrated. I had brought my beretta SP3 with me and decided to try that. Straight away I improved with a pair,my confidence growing now, I didn’t shoot to badly I did miss some sitters, but had some nice ones as well. Probably helped by my brother who was shooting poorly as well, I managed 4 pairs on pigeons and 2 pairs on crows. More practice is needed and I will need to get my gun fitted to me. We picked 103 pigeons and 23 crows. For me I now know I can change shoulders and have the summer to get ready for next wildfowling season. 
 

You mean that I can get better?

 

[muncher]

5 minutes ago, Farma Geddon said:

You mean that I can get better?

 

Yep

[marsh man]

You done very well to be able to adapt shooting from your left shoulder after many years of shooting from your right , I would find it very difficult as I close my left eye when I shoot from the right shoulder and all my guns are right handed .

As you say you have got all Summer before the new season start and a few rounds at clays wont come amiss , plus you might find it easier with a left handed stock .

Nice bag by the way and P C need to take note about the very neat presentation which is also known locally as the Norfolk heap  .

[ditchman]

2 minutes ago, marsh man said:

You done very well to be able to adapt shooting from your left shoulder after many years of shooting from your right , I would find it very difficult as I close my left eye when I shoot from the right shoulder and all my guns are right handed .

As you say you have got all Summer before the new season start and a few rounds at clays wont come amiss , plus you might find it easier with a left handed stock .

Nice bag by the way and P C need to take note about the very neat presentation which is also known locally as the Norfolk heap  .

that would class as a hill in norfolk..........climbing ontop of them i would get a nosebleed on the way up

[marsh man]

2 minutes ago, ditchman said:

that would class as a hill in norfolk..........climbing ontop of them i would get a nosebleed on the way up

I must admit that some of them are above sea level , but if you have got a head for heights then try walking up the 173 spiral stairs at Cromer church , I went up there and the view is well worth the effort , also the hill near Sheringham at Beeston which is 207 feet high , another bit of useless information 

[ditchman]

1 minute ago, marsh man said:

I must admit that some of them are above sea level , but if you have got a head for heights then try walking up the 173 spiral stairs at Cromer church , I went up there and the view is well worth the effort , also the hill near Sheringham at Beeston which is 207 feet high , another bit of useless information 

climbed up a molehill on acle marshes once..........never again ...got vertigo

[dead eye alan]

On 26/03/2022 at 18:56, ditchman said:

climbed up a molehill on acle marshes once..........never again ...got vertigo

Arrrr not the MOLE again!

[pigeon controller]

Well done for a good bag under difficult conditions, I to have been diagnosed with a cataract in my none dominant eye so it does not bother me as I dim this eye prior to shooting. I would find it difficult to shoot left handed so well done again.

with regard to the presentation , that’s fine it confirms that you do not suffer from OCD like me.

Again well done and thanks for posting, there are lots of pigeon sites now in which people post but give very little information and rumours abound that some combine two shooting days into one picture etc. Hopefully Pigeon Watch still imparts an educational aspect especially Ditchman and mole extermination!!!!!!

[marsh man]

33 minutes ago, pigeon controller said:

Well done for a good bag under difficult conditions, I to have been diagnosed with a cataract in my none dominant eye so it does not bother me as I dim this eye prior to shooting. I would find it difficult to shoot left handed so well done again.

with regard to the presentation , that’s fine it confirms that you do not suffer from OCD like me.

Again well done and thanks for posting, there are lots of pigeon sites now in which people post but give very little information and rumours abound that some combine two shooting days into one picture etc. Hopefully Pigeon Watch still imparts an educational aspect especially Ditchman and mole extermination!!!!!!

Going back to shooting from the left shoulder after a lifetime of shooting from the right must be very difficult and a bit strange to say the least , I can't say I have known anyone who have done it and the longer you have done it the ( normal ) way the harder it must be to change the way of doing things , hopefully Muncher will keep us informed about the highs and lows .

We did have a chap come several times on our game shoot who shot well with one arm , he could close the gun and re open it after he had fired it but needed a loader to put the shells in the empty breech , maybe not as hard as the problem Muncher is facing .

[muncher]

I will keep posting how I’m doing, I feel I can do this, just having to change guns etc is doing my head in, trying to get the right fit. 

55 minutes ago, pigeon controller said:

Well done for a good bag under difficult conditions, I to have been diagnosed with a cataract in my none dominant eye so it does not bother me as I dim this eye prior to shooting. I would find it difficult to shoot left handed so well done again.

with regard to the presentation , that’s fine it confirms that you do not suffer from OCD like me.

Again well done and thanks for posting, there are lots of pigeon sites now in which people post but give very little information and rumours abound that some combine two shooting days into one picture etc. Hopefully Pigeon Watch still imparts an educational aspect especially Ditchman and mole extermination!!!!!!

I had put them out in the field to take a picture, but then forgot. I will try and count my kill ratios over the coming months to see if I’m getting better. 

[ditchman]

7 minutes ago, marsh man said:

Going back to shooting from the left shoulder after a lifetime of shooting from the right must be very difficult and a bit strange to say the least , I can't say I have known anyone who have done it and the longer you have done it the ( normal ) way the harder it must be to change the way of doing things , hopefully Muncher will keep us informed about the highs and lows .

We did have a chap come several times on our game shoot who shot well with one arm , he could close the gun and re open it after he had fired it but needed a loader to put the shells in the empty breech , maybe not as hard as the problem Muncher is facing .

i know that man...cant remember his name....his loader was a big man and as the bloke had trouble with his legs the loader used to manhandle him out of an old style range rover...plonk him on the bonnet...and leave him to shoot ...he had a 16bore SxS and used to flickit shut....then a qick left and right ...flick it open...lay it in his lap ...load it...flick it shut...another left and right...very good shot...used to be driven to every peg.........used to shoot at Gillingham alot and sometimes with Lord traffords travelling band

[marsh man]

1 minute ago, ditchman said:

i know that man...cant remember his name....his loader was a big man and as the bloke had trouble with his legs the loader used to manhandle him out of an old style range rover...plonk him on the bonnet...and leave him to shoot ...he had a 16bore SxS and used to flickit shut....then a qick left and right ...flick it open...lay it in his lap ...load it...flick it shut...another left and right...very good shot...used to be driven to every peg.........used to shoot at Gillingham alot and sometimes with Lord traffords travelling band

The chap who I am talking about is Sir Rupert Mann , not sure if he is still shooting but when he was he was a decent shot and did shoot with a smaller gauge gun than a twelve .

[oowee]

No idea what scarring from a pvs is but well done on shooting left handed.