marsh man Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 1 hour ago, old'un said: the shape of the hide was tongue in cheek. .. I did gather that , I was just saying that over the years we have seen some master pieces in hide construction ,weather it made any difference on the day , who knows ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old'un Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 3 hours ago, marsh man said: I did gather that , I was just saying that over the years we have seen some master pieces in hide construction ,weather it made any difference on the day , who knows ? Don't think it makes much difference at this time of year, I have put my hide up next to my car a few times and they did not flinch coming into the decoys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted August 3 Report Share Posted August 3 It might make a difference to the persons confidence knowing he have got a hide that match the surroundings perfectly and any flinching by the incoming Pigeons is more down to his decoys rather than his hide , the worse net I found was that ghost one that you could see through , alright saying you need to stay still , it didn't alter the fact that you could easily see the person inside , I use two of the three ply ones , one is a light Brown and the other is different shades of Green , ideal in most situations and very light to carry . at one time I used to stand back and see if I can see anything that shine like the dogs water bowl , now I am getting lazy and what I concentrate on now is making sure my seat is comfortable and my flask is in easy reach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minky Posted August 5 Report Share Posted August 5 It's all there to try you. At least you managed to connect with an amount. when I was younger I reckoned on a good day I shot about 1.8 cartridges per bird, so if you said 2:1 and you shot 45 that would be 90 odd shots and if you had 2..3 birds over you for everyone shot that might make it somewhere between 150 ...to 200 birds over you during the time that you were out there. I've had loads of days where yesterday there were loads of birds on a field and I've set up and the sky was blank or they've powered on right over the pattern at high speed and high altitude and got somewhere better to be. I've packed up and gone home to mow the lawn, I've packed up and gone on reconnaissance with the binoculars to try and find where they are flying to. I've been to a field where they are pouring down on the other side of the field, only to move the hide to where they are and then to find that they are coming in on the bit that I had just moved from. I've set up on a new sewn field of beans where the sky had been full of birds yet when I set up there wasn't a single bird to be seen. at least you got a bit in. next time you might not get a shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minky Posted August 5 Report Share Posted August 5 (edited) On 02/08/2024 at 09:30, kitchrat said: birds were resting up in the hedge, So I set up in the hedge to keep out of the burning sun. I'm set well back inside the hedge so I can shoot sitting down and not even the gun will be exposed for them to see. Brought the pattern closer, to give me a better chance, no change. Moved decoys about, no change. Added some crow decoys on the outside edge of the pattern to reassure them. Looking at this picture, I notice that there is a lot of open space right through the hedge. I used to have a chunk of brown hessian that I sprayed black and green patches on to use as a back stop camp setting. If the birds are there AND they are landing in the hedge why aren't they coming straight in to land. ? it's something silly that's causing this. Edit, That is a small hedge. What about putting a couple of decoys on sticks on top of the hedge right over the hide area and putting a few decoys really close in to the hedge, as if they have just flopped off of the hedge a few yards out. I've had pigeons land only a few yards out front and I could have shot them with an air pistol they were so close. the only thing with this if it does happen is that they just seem to arrive without any warning at all. they land have a quick look and see the hide / you and emergency alarm take off. sometimes I've managed to connect but others I've been left thinking .. where did that come from and how did I mis that one. Edited August 5 by Minky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitchrat Posted August 5 Author Report Share Posted August 5 6 minutes ago, Minky said: Looking at this picture, I notice that there is a lot of open space right through the hedge. I used to have a chunk of brown hessian that I sprayed black and green patches on to use as a back stop camp setting. If the birds are there AND they are landing in the hedge why aren't they coming straight in to land. ? it's something silly that's causing this. Yes, it looks a bit like that but the hedge was maybe 8ft thick, no way they could see the hide or me if coming from that way. I choose the gap so I could get some airflow through! (and to see what was going on behind, with a bit of crawling) The field behind was another rape stubble, hopefully my magnet pulled them over to my field. I think they had been resting up in the hedge during the midday heat. After reading Bunny B's post of starting with no decoys and getting nearly 500, today, I'm going to try just the magnet with real birds, no plastic shells, build up a pattern as I (hopefully) shoot real birds. Maybe my Essex birds can spot a plastic shell from 50 yards...?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minky Posted August 5 Report Share Posted August 5 (edited) 10 minutes ago, kitchrat said: Yes, it looks a bit like that but the hedge was maybe 8ft thick, no way they could see the hide or me if coming from that way. I choose the gap so I could get some airflow through! (and to see what was going on behind, with a bit of crawling) The field behind was another rape stubble, hopefully my magnet pulled them over to my field. I think they had been resting up in the hedge during the midday heat. After reading Bunny B's post of starting with no decoys and getting nearly 500, today, I'm going to try just the magnet with real birds, no plastic shells, build up a pattern as I (hopefully) shoot real birds. Maybe my Essex birds can spot a plastic shell from 50 yards...?? I've tried all sorts of things. I really don't think that plastics matter I have had problems when I've mixed real and plastics. also I've seen some right tatty decoys with lots of paint missing draw birds better than real birds. Like Archie Coates said in his pigeon shooting video .." you have to be in a place where the birds want to feed". and that's where recce comes in. Half an hour watching. if they ain't coming in to feed at that spot why would they if you set up a hide there. Your ideal spot might be twenty paces away and you setting up throws them off. 45 the other day was good. don't get dispondant. I used to think that a good day came along 1 day in three. Edited August 5 by Minky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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