Learning Distances/Ranges

[swellcat]

What are some of the best ways to learn to accurately judge target distances? Seems that skill must be important in trying to take only reasonable, ethical shots.

On a recent outing, a hunter had the wrenching experience of an unrecovered fly off on a going away shot . . . even as feathers were cut and the pheasant rooster's landing gear dropped. (The rounds were 12 gauge 2 3/4" Winchester Xpert HV [1550 fps] #2 steel fired through an improved cylinder barrel.) The shooter tried to pace off the distances after the fact, but lacking immediate reference points for where the bird was in the air, it wasn't clear if the range had been 40, 45 yards, or worse.

Patterning is often recommended for learning what a given load/gun/choke does at say, 40 yards, but how does one grasp what 40 yards looks like . . . especially in the heat of battle over a sea of thigh high grass and lacking huge yardage markers painted on the field? Is trap shooting going to help? Sporting clays?

 

[Dewey]

Well, it's not too often that I take a longer shot. I prefer to shoot the birds that my dog finds. On occasion, I'll take a shot at a passing bird. The method I use is based on how much of the bird is covered by gun barrel. This determines how far out front I move the barrell before I pull the trigger. I almost always shart behind the bird and pull through it. When I see the lead I want I pull the trigger. If the barrel covers the whole bird, I don't shoot.

This method is based on what I learned from waterfowl hunting. Take a pheasant silhouette and hang it up on something. Pace off different yardage and see what the bird looks like at the end of the barrell. Better yet, before cleaning a bird, set it up at different angles.

I actually got a little too scientific and set up an Excel file to determine actual leads needed based on pellet speed, pheasant speed and distance. The only thing it doesn't do is compute the human factor of reaction time and whether you stop your swing when you shoot. Not sure how to present an excel file on this forum, but I'd be happy to email it to anybody that's interested in playing with it. Send me a PM with your email and I'll send it to you.

 

[Prairie Drifter]

Take a dead pheasant, place it at what you would call your maximum distance, and point your shotgun at it. Lear the relative size relationship between the end of your barrel and the pheasant at that range. Then only shoot at pheasants when they are that big or bigger in comparison to your muzzle.

 

[20thunderjet]

I go by my dog's range. I do my own training, compete in local field trials and have campaigned Labs, springers, English pointers and GSP. Behind a good pointer you shouldn't have too many shots over 40 yds. Most of mine are probably within 20 yds. But behind my labs and springers I start them out from the very beginning (puppy) with a check cord that will reach out to 45 yds. I train the dog to cast left and right of me, out to the end of the check cord. After a summer in the training fields you pretty much know what 45 yds. looks like. I'm also an instinctive shooter, both eyes open (better depth perception) start my swing on the bird, pick up the lead I want and when the gun touches my shoulder the bird dies. :coolpics: Well most of the time. Lots of pheasant (bird) hunting helps, some of it is just plain ol' experience, Good Luck!

 

[swellcat]

Thanks for the replies. I have access to a flying pheasant mount, and, using some suggestions here, I believe I'll take that out and study how it looks down the barrel at various ranges.

I'm sure dog enhanced hunting is superior in most every way. The dogless folks still may want to hunt some, though, and need to know those distances. Far fewer flushes can create a sense of urgency, thus the range determination and ethical shooting dilemma.