How far do you like the pigeon to be for the shot when decoying

[Si-Bore]

I really like the fast close range shots (10-20m), finding they are often better for me as I rely on instinct with little chance of aiming (missing) and always get good swing through. I sometimes find the slow, long range shots make me tend to aim and miss behind them.

Anyone else find this?

Cheers

Si

[mossy835]

i do like reading your posts on pigeon shooting,i think you are tring two hard two hit pigeons,a coach said two me dont think about it just shoot it,keep on trying and you will come good in the end.

[anser2]

I hate snap shots and usualy miss. Give me a high fast long crosser anyday and I can drop the majority of them as long as I have the time for a careful planned shot. I have to confess I was staggered at the range an oz of no 6s will kill pigeons clean in the air once I found how much lead they needed.

 

I always used to think pigeons were hard to kill , but plan to hit them in the head and even the long ones tumble fine. I always recon if you are knocking clouds of feathers out of high pigeons your hitting them in the body ( too far back ). Give them the right lead to hit them in the head and you hardly knock any feathers out at all.

Edited April 26, 2008 by anser2

[Suffolk shooter]

I have to confess I was staggered at the range an oz of no 6s will kill pigeons clean in the air once I found how much lead they needed.

 

I always used to think pigeons were hard to kill , but plan to hit them in the head and even the long ones tumble fine. I always recon if you are knocking clouds of feathers out of high pigeons your hitting them in the body ( too far back ). Give them the right lead to hit them in the head and you hardly knock any feathers out at all.

 

That is spot on anser2. I found that initially I was hitting them in the body , big puff of feathers and nothing to show. Once the correct lead is worked out for head shot, birds consistently to 40-50 yards. I have to confess though I do use 30 or 32gram in 6's. Just a hang up from Game shooting.

 

But , as Si-bore posted, those ones that come in and you don't have time to think are usually the better shots, those that are slow and you have seen from away off come in, its too much like rifleling, and usually end up with me thinking, take it now, no let it come in a bit more, take it now, let it come in abit more until you find yourself thinking too much and missing.

 

SS

[Si-Bore]

But , as Si-bore posted, those ones that come in and you don't have time to think are usually the better shots, those that are slow and you have seen from away off come in, its too much like rifleling, and usually end up with me thinking, take it now, no let it come in a bit more, take it now, let it come in abit more until you find yourself thinking too much and missing.

 

SS

 

Yeah - that was the situation I was faced with today..................in came an easy bird...............on him, in front, is that the right lead (cos I have loads of time)? adjust............lead.............MISS!! :blink: Ha!

Then a pigeon flicked across the decoys..................into the tree......................then retreated back across the decoys at high speed and I swung past him shooting very instinctively........perfect pattern delivery..........

 

Si

[deer stalker]

i normal shoot them at about 25-30yards but a have shot the odd 40-50yard pigeon but they were lucky

[anser2]

Suffolk Shooter , for years goose shooting was my main sport and when you are after pink feet on the coastal marshes its not that often you get shots less than 45 yards. In the old lead days I used to use winchester 1 7\8oz of BBs buffered copper plated shot and found I could cleanly kill ( say 4 out of 5 and most of the others may be alive when the dog retrieved them , but they were not going anywhere) the majority of geese I shot at in the 50-65 yard bracket , by taking a slow deliberate shot , estimating lead and trying to blow a hole in the sky 10-15 feet infront of the goose. I use the same method for long pigeons and recon if i am having a on day most will fall to the gun.

 

If i try and snap shoot I am lucky if i get one in ten. I just never seem to be able to get the gun infront of the bird, there just is not the time to do so.

Edited April 27, 2008 by anser2

[Cranfield]

With regard to the birds that are further out, the old expression "you rarely miss in front" applies.

Try giving them a lot more lead, you may be surprised how much you need.

[cloudwalker]

I tend to give about 6 foot lead when shooting 40 - 50 yard birds. I dropped a Magpie stone dead the other day. A going away shot. I paced it out at 51 Yards.

 

The one I usually miss are the close ones under 20 yards.

[the hitman]

A shooting partner of mine had the same problem, any bird he had time to think about , he would track them with his barrels and miss. He corrected this shooting practice clays , by letting the clays come towards him and not lifting his gun until the last moment , just as it zipped over him.

[njc110381]

I like them to be about 25-30 yards out ideally. Any closer and I'll either miss or mess them up beyond being edible!

[THEINVISIBLESCARECROW]

With close shots the pattern hasn't much time to open out.

[The Sipe-ist]

I tend to put the further most decoy at about 30 - 35m depending on wind strength and direction, but the important thing is to shoot the birds at the optimum range. To acheive this when more than one bird comes in I don't shoot the closest bird but pick one at about 35m then shoot the closer birds as they try to flee.

[starlight32]

Its all about pattern with your gun,

I shot open choke through the auto at the weekend and I really was surprised what you could still bring down on a loose pattern.

 

Your optimum pattern as far as I am aware is 30 yards. CLose up stuff I tend to let leak out of the decoys as in front of the hide at 10 yards you are only shooting a laser beam of shot and result in a messed up bird.