troyster Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Hi I guess I'm an uber-newbie - I have no gun, I've never shot a live animal, and I know pretty much nothing about shooting or pigeons. Hurrah! Still, I'm hoping that some of you may once have been in my situation and could gimme some beginner's advice. My desire is to shoot pigeons and rabbits for food. I know several farmers who'd be happy for me to shoot on their land, but I'm not sure where to start. Should I join a club and shoot clays for a bit? Should I get a shotgun, and what sort of thing should I start with (that's not crazy money!)? I guess I'll need a licence. Any help you can give me would be MASSIVELY appreciated in helping me get off with a bang :unsure: Cheers Troyster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webber Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Welcome-----uber newbie; you will get a better response if you complete your profile. Member will at least know where you are located. webber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soreshoulder Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 first you need a shotgun lisence or - to find a club that will enable you to shoot without a liscense, with a clubs gun. you will then need insurance www.basc.com . then you need a gun but you will not be too this stage like 1,2,3 because the liscence will take about 3 weeks too 3 months. :unsure: After that you need to get perrmision slips and get yourself down to a clay range to brush up on your accuracy, or ya could buy and air rifle?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewis Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 first you need a shotgun lisence or - to find a club that will enable you to shoot without a liscense, with a clubs gun. you will then need insurance www.basc.com . then you need a gun but you will not be too this stage like 1,2,3 because the liscence will take about 3 weeks too 3 months. :unsure: After that you need to get perrmision slips and get yourself down to a clay range to brush up on your accuracy, or ya could buy and air rifle?? buy a airrifle, it makes u get used to the feel of a gun or you could get a shotgun and join a club and they will advise you how to use a shotgun properly, shotguns arnt easy to use when your a beginner so you will need to watch yourself. LM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troyster Posted October 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Thanks webber and soreshoulder. I shall sort my profile forthwith (whatever that means!). Your comment about an air rifle is interesting. . . is it actually possible to shoot rabbits and pigeons with an air rifle?? I'm in Alton, Hampshire by the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Janaway Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Thanks webber and soreshoulder. I shall sort my profile forthwith (whatever that means!). Your comment about an air rifle is interesting. . . is it actually possible to shoot rabbits and pigeons with an air rifle?? I'm in Alton, Hampshire by the way. Yes it is posible to shoot them with an air rifle, many people do. To fill out your profile click on my controls at the top right of the page. And i live near alton hampshire too Oh and :unsure: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markio Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 If you're interested in a shotgun then find a local club and book yourself in for a lesson, tell them your shooting history (i.e. none) and they will provide everything you need for the lesson. If you enjoy yourself and want to get into the sport then you need to investigate getting a licence (got to your local police website). As for your profile: Go to the 'My controls' link at the top of the page, the on the left hand menu go to 'Edit Profile Information'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunnybasher07 Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 yes a airgun can kill more or less anything if shot in the right place ie rabbits,phesants pigeons rats (obvs not foxes and deer) make sure you do plenty of target practise before you shoot any game because you dont want to wound or hurt game good luck GM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troyster Posted October 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Sweet! Profile sorted - which is a start. I've got a friend who turns out to be a firearms target shooting person at a club nearby, so I'm gonna get along to his club where he can introduce me to shotgun people. I have a quick question on airguns - I'm assuming you need to be extremely proficient to shoot and kill pigeons / rabbits with these, yes? I don't want to try it and find I injure loads of creatures! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Janaway Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Sweet! Profile sorted - which is a start. I've got a friend who turns out to be a firearms target shooting person at a club nearby, so I'm gonna get along to his club where he can introduce me to shotgun people. I have a quick question on airguns - I'm assuming you need to be extremely proficient to shoot and kill pigeons / rabbits with these, yes? I don't want to try it and find I injure loads of creatures! Well im not really an expert on airgun shooting, but with a powerful enough air rifle at a close enough range should provide a clean kill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustyfox Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 A club is a good place to start for shotguns they will teach you everything from safety to technique. If you go airgunning go with sum1 who knows and learn from them. How old are you? dustyfox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegasus bridge Posted October 18, 2007 Report Share Posted October 18, 2007 A club is a good place to start for shotguns they will teach you everything from safety to technique. If you go airgunning go with sum1 who knows and learn from them. How old are you? dustyfox i would definitley agree that getting an airgun first is a good move, a decent air rifle is as good a weapon as any in the right circumstances, the range is generally limited by your shooting ability, -ie- if you can put 10 pellets in a half inch circle at 40 yards, then you will be able to kill rabbits / pigeons / squirrels / rats at this distance. also- the air rifle is much quieter than a shotgun, you can often take multiple targets in close proximity, airguns are also cheap on the ammo! (£5-6 max for 500 decent pellets). Airguns are also less of an issue when shooting in close proximity to others, i regularly use mine to shoot squirrels , pigeons and magpies in the garden ( i have fields beyond the garden) without any issues with my neighbours, if i tried this with my shotgun (newly aquired!!) i would not be very popular! but each has its place, i couldnt use the airguns to shoot anything on the wing / moving. But in general, i would definitley reccomend starting with the airgun, you can (at the moment at least) buy they off the shelf, and they will give you some expereince of killing quarry, ... good luck with what ever you do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suffolk shooter Posted October 19, 2007 Report Share Posted October 19, 2007 Welcome to PW A standard legal Air rifle (By that I mean one that is sub 12ft/lb's) is more than adequate to take out Rabbits, Pigeons, Rats, Squirrels (Basically all small vermin. I seem to recall that you cannot shoot game i.e. Pheasant, partridge with a single projectile). You do not need a license for a standard air rifle and it helps if you can get along to a club or have access to a field with paper targets and zero in and practise until you know what distances you can comfortably shoot at (by that 9/10 hitting where you are aiming) and then try and go with somebody who can show you how to stalk your quarry. If you're lucky they'll even show you how to prepare it to eat. All bar rat can be eaten and squirrell (Greys only) are fantastic to eat, especially when they have been feeding like mad for the winter. Nice part of the world you come from, and I'm sure there are plenty of people down they only to willing to help out and have vermin they want culling. All the best SS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troyster Posted October 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2007 What a fantastic bunch you are! you've made the way ahead nice and clear. I'm going to go with the air rifle plan (though with the understanding it won't be any use shooting pigeons in flight), getting in plenty of target practice first. At the same time, I'm going to go down to the local clay shooting club and at least try my hand and maybe go with one of them on a live shoot (ie. pigeons etc.) I've even found a friendly butcher who'll show me how to prepare the pigeons and rabbits (maybe even squirrels, though I'm not 100% sure about the idea of eating those cute little rascals) for free! Thanks so much. Oh, i'm 31 by the way, for the person who asked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinnie Posted October 19, 2007 Report Share Posted October 19, 2007 to the world of shooting. i have been shooting air rifles for a good few years now, last year i got invited to try shooting a shotgun. to me they are a completely different ball game. the only advice i would give you is take one step at a time. decide what you want out of shooting. think about how much time and money you are prepared to spend. but most of all enjoy what you do. :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gonna Shoot a Wabbit Posted October 20, 2007 Report Share Posted October 20, 2007 I agree an air rifle is an excellent way to begin your first steps in the shooting world. A 12 ft/lb air rifle will do everything you want of it as long as you put the range time in. You seem to be on the right track regarding shotgun shooting, try it out on clay ground, lessons,insurance (BASC) whatever type of shooting you finally decide on. As has already been mentioned be strict with yourself about how much you want to spend, shooting as a hobby is immensely rewarding but can be expensive too. My BSA lightning air rifle cost a couple of hundred quid new a few years ago if memory serves, and has served me faithfully and put many bunnies and pigeons in the bag. however i drooled over a rifle costing £1200 before common sense prevailed and the plastic was safely put away. enjoy the site and any other questions and someone will have the answer on here. rgds GSAW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayward Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 If your going for a shotgun get to the local clay ground and have a few lessons see http://www.cpsa.co.uk/clubs/clubfinder.cfm for top notch coaching and also the cpsa offers cheap insurance inc in the membership fee a good thing to have if your going to shoot on private land , Your FEQ( firearms enquiry officer) They will approve of both the cpsa lessons and the insurance , ring you local police station and ask for the shotgun license forms as you could prob enter them now and get your self a few lessons in Dreaded waiting period make a few friends at your local clay club as there is always a friendly gun around who wants to help , can i be the first to say double your lead hahahah all the best have fun and be safe the BASC - British Association for Shooting and Conservation web page is a good place to get reliable information a useful resource Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeshaw08 Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 As said, you will be best off starting with an air rifle-it will help with your accuracy and if you can get yourself some land, it will home in your field skills immensley. e.g as you'll only be shooting at up to 35yards, you'll have to take into account wind/noise etc. As a beginner myself, i've found this site incredibly helpful and have met, and gone shooting with some awesome guys who know what there talking about. So stick with it mate and it will serve you well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter-peter Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Welcome-----uber newbie; you will get a better response if you complete your profile. Member will at least know where you are located. webber apply for your certificate first. you will need a gun safe second. insurance is the last thing. if you join a local clay club they may insist you use their insurer. basc is expensive. s,a,f,c,s is a lot cheaper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Semi-Auto Stu Posted October 26, 2007 Report Share Posted October 26, 2007 Hi Troyster......... I live in Alresford, not 5mins from you! If you want to hook up sometime, I can help you out. Stu......................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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