Hardest shot for me. You?

The straight-aways. Easy to miss, and easy to cripple. Someone on here once wrote that they don't take the shot if they can't see the white ring. I don't have that much discipline. If it's a safe shot at a rooster in range, I'm taking it. But if I did I'd probably experience a lot fewer cripples that got away.
 
matto said:
The straight-aways. Easy to miss, and easy to cripple. Someone on here once wrote that they don't take the shot if they can't see the white ring. I don't have that much discipline. If it's a safe shot at a rooster in range, I'm taking it. But if I did I'd probably experience a lot fewer cripples that got away.
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Yep, straight away are cripple shots.I just lost 3 on my last trip. I had to shoot loads I don't normally shoot, so that was a factor.
 
matto said:
The straight-aways. Easy to miss, and easy to cripple. Someone on here once wrote that they don't take the shot if they can't see the white ring. I don't have that much discipline. If it's a safe shot at a rooster in range, I'm taking it. But if I did I'd probably experience a lot fewer cripples that got away.
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Yep, I typically pull the trigger on any safe shot in range, regardless of how much ring I see, how old the bird appears to be, whether he cackles or not, how big a pecker he has (beak, I mean). Roosters get shot at. That said, "in range" can vary somewhat, depending sometimes on what type of cover/water they might be flying over, or if it's a straight-away. Over heavy cover that my dog might not be able to get through quickly, or might not even see the bird, my max range on straight-aways might only be 35 yds. It's just hard to anchor them further out than that. For me anyway.
 
For me the going away shot is easy as I grew up hunting with pouters and it was instinctual to adjust for rise so as not to end up under it as it is a common shot in that setting. My hardest for sure is long crossing, I am usually surprised when I get one. Quartering back to my left I always fail to get around in front far enough, quartering back to my right I never miss. All in all some days I look like a champion some days a chump. Pretty much my life story. I don’t worry about it too much.
 
The ground huggers are always a tough shot, they don't seem to get more than 10 feet off the ground. Otherwise flushes away from my 4:00 are tough because of the quick adjustment needed to get on it in time. Straight at me is usually at least two shots guaranteed and lucky if I hit with the second one. More field time and more practice, I guess.
 
The one where you almost step on the bird, crap your pants when it flies 5 feet in front of your face then you try and regain your composure. Saw some tracks in the snow late last year and started following them, dog was working ahead about 20 yards on another bird. I followed the tracks from the field to the CRP, lost them, back tracked, lost them again and sat there for about 30 seconds looking for more tracks before the bird flew up right in my face...I could of kicked it if I knew where it was.

Needless to say I missed the shot.
 
The straight away shot is mtly easiest, probably because thats the easiest shot for me to practice on with operating my clay thrower by myself. My most challenging is the left to right or vice versa at a distance, probably due to that being one shot I cant practice with by myself...
 
tomt said:
The straight away shot is mtly easiest, probably because thats the easiest shot for me to practice on with operating my clay thrower by myself. My most challenging is the left to right or vice versa at a distance, probably due to that being one shot I cant practice with by myself...
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Crossing shots can give people fits especially a long crosser. The going away shot is the hardest shot to make a clean kill when there is distance involved.

If you can find a skeet field anywhere near you that is the ideal place to learn how to hit crossing type shots. I instruct and coach youth shooters at my local sporting clays range and crossing shots are the hardest thing to teach to beginners. In fact to get my students to understand how to hit a crossing shot I tell them "I want you to miss in front of the bird" and they look at me with that hairy eyeball look, but when they do it and the clay breaks they are surprised at the lead required to hit it. You have shot string working for you on crossing targets so even if the front part of the shot string misses the bird it still might catch the latter half.

In my experience the easiest method to teach beginners how to hit crossers is the pull away method. I have my students insert the gun to the leading edge of the target matching its speed for a short distance then "stretch" or "pull away" slowly from the target to the front while triggering the shot. Matching the speed is the key as some targets are fast and some are slow. As an example a very fast crossing target at 20 yards will require more lead than a very slow 40 yard crossing target.

With live birds try and get your gun/barrel to the birds head on crossers, matching its speed and pull away to the front while triggering the shot. give it a try next time.
 
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I made a shot yesterday that I was proud of.My dog was working a bird in a shallow coulee, and he doubled back, and flushed behind me.I wheeled around 180*, and dropped him stone cold.It was a great shot.Bird had a 26 inch feather.I felt bad about killing him.
 
I've never given this much thought, but after some reflection on this this season, definitely the straight away. I am well under 50% success on straight away shots this year. I believe a right to left is slightly more successful for me than a left to right.
 
Interesting. I've been giving myself fits this year because I keep crippling birds that are going straight away. Every time I shoot at those birds its seems like one leg drops, second shot other leg drops, but they don't come down. I thought I was shooting low but maybe I'm just not getting enough penetration. These aren't far shots either.

Earlier this year I hit a bird going straight away at 20 yards first shot and dropped one leg, second shot was at 35 yards dropped the other leg, then third shot was at 50 yards and blew more feathers off it and it flew off into the distance.

I'm shooting 3 inch 2 shot steel so there's definitely knock down power there. Anyway, quartering away shots are the hardest for me. I find crossing shots to be easy and I grew up pass shooting ducks and geese so when a bird comes at me it feels natural.
 
ArmchairBiologist said:
Interesting. I've been giving myself fits this year because I keep crippling birds that are going straight away. Every time I shoot at those birds its seems like one leg drops, second shot other leg drops, but they don't come down. I thought I was shooting low but maybe I'm just not getting enough penetration. These aren't far shots either.

Earlier this year I hit a bird going straight away at 20 yards first shot and dropped one leg, second shot was at 35 yards dropped the other leg, then third shot was at 50 yards and blew more feathers off it and it flew off into the distance.

I'm shooting 3 inch 2 shot steel so there's definitely knock down power there. Anyway, quartering away shots are the hardest for me. I find crossing shots to be easy and I grew up pass shooting ducks and geese so when a bird comes at me it feels natural.
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That's frustrating. Modern 3" #2 steel 12 gauge loads should definitely have the snot to wallop a rooster pretty hard at those ranges. Have you ever patterned the loads you're shooting? Maybe they don't pattern worth a crap. I think I'd be curious enough to pattern them. If not, try 1 or 2 notches looser choke & see if there's a difference. Sometimes easing up on the choke will make fast steel, particularly large shot, perform better.
 
benelli-banger said:
Steel patterns tighter, I use IC for all my pheasant loads, so the steel
Probably performs like mod I would guess….
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As a rule of thumb, yes. But every gun/choke/load performs different, particularly with fast, large steel pellets. Sometimes too much choke will cause an erratic/spotty pattern, while loosening up a little will bring the pattern back together.
 
I haven’t shot pure steel loads in a long while…been shooting hevi shot in my 16 gauge double guns, and hevi metal #3 shot (3”) out of my 12 gauge auto…the latter has been lethal…the hevi shot out of my 16’s has worked well, mostly choked skt1/skt2….
 
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