Shooting Pheasants

[benelli-banger]

Confidence is half the equation…

 

[A5 Sweet 16]

I don't use steel shot anymore. I shoot lead & bismuth. #5's & #4's. I recommend #3's or #2's for steel.

Regarding straight-aways. Maybe some of this has been said. But yes, they're tough. Head & neck hits are almost impossible. Pellets need more zip to penetrate through the bird to its boiler room. I shoot a gun/load/choke combination I know is effective on crossers or quartering birds out to about 50 yards....IF I make a good shot. On straight-aways, that's reduced to maybe 35. There are different versions of straight-aways. A true straight-away (bird flying perfectly horizontally), is somewhat uncommon, but the bird is usually somewhat higher than the gun, which means you actually have to lead slightly BELOW the bird. Many straight-aways are somewhat gaining altitude, which obviously means you have to lead slightly ABOVE the bird. Both require gun movement & follow-through, which is tough for a brain to comprehend because they appear to be flying dead away from us. Both are easy to lift your head slightly in order to either see the bird (not blot it out) or to witness the impending carnage. That leads to shooting HIGH, & the rooster flies away, possibly dragging a leg. I also don't necessarily think "dropping a leg" means you shot low. I've recovered enough of these birds & the legs aren't necessarily broken. I think a pellet or 2 through another part of the bird can cause it to drop a leg for some reason. And whether a leg/legs is/are broken or not, never assume a wild rooster can't run. He can & probably will. On 2 badly broken legs. They never surrender.

 

[5 stand]

True straight-aways require minimal lead and minimal gun movement. Which is hard to do when hunting. We're all excited we're pumped up the barrel out runs the bird we pull the trigger, and then bird continues to fly. Sometimes what seems to happen in our mind isn't what's happening. I think most people blow over the top of straight away birds. Most people intersect straightaway bird from behind. The gun is moving faster than the bird to catch it(that compensates for lead). It takes two tenths of a second, between your mind telling your finger to pull the trigger and you doing it. So I shoot AT so-called straight away birds, and it works for me.

If you are struggling with straight away birds. My advice would be to shoot trap (not sporting clays). Get on the trap field and figure out how to break 22 to 24 from the 16-yard line. This will give you a better understanding of minimal gun movement and minimal lead. I believe you will also start shooting AT straightaway birds.

 

[kick them up]

He is a good read on shooting past 40 yards.

4 Reasons Why You're Struggling to Shoot Your Shotgun Accurately Over 40 Yards

There's a difference between shooting flushing roosters and decoying ducks, and trying to break clay birds at distances beyond 40 yards.

www.outdoorlife.com

I work with a two time Guinness book record holder in shotgun sports so get a lot of instruction from him and this article hits a lot of key points. Foot placement in the field is also highly overlooked too.

BTW... I shoot 1 1/4 oz #5's out of an IC choked gun and kill at forty yards often. Get your gun fit and patterned then half the batter is over.

 

[hyresmack]

Some of you are way over thinking it, it's just shooting a dang bird, pull the gun up and shoot. Phez aren't that hard.

 

[benelli-banger]

Some of you are way over thinking it, it's just shooting a dang bird, pull the gun up and shoot. Phez aren't that hard.

 

[Miforester]

Yes…and a straight away requires a higher shot than what seems logical, IMO…

I think going away shots are the toughest as we dont like to cover up the bird.

 

[Bob Peters]

Exactly. And to those who say their gun shoots high so they don't have to cover them up, well that is relative to lead and flight of the bird. A bird that is gaining elevation rapidly you will have to cover up regardless. And also setting up a high POI is not beneficial to shoot birds that are flying low.

 

[Chestle]

Going away birds? Shoot a round or two of wobble trap each week for 4 weeks before you open the season. You'll get higher highs and lower lows than regular trap. Helps me anyway.

 

[Chestle]

Exactly. And to those who say their gun shoots high so they don't have to cover them up, well that is relative to lead and flight of the bird. A bird that is gaining elevation rapidly you will have to cover up regardless. And also setting up a high POI is not beneficial to shoot birds that are flying low.

In my case and my case only, shooting an O/U with a small drop/straight stock, and shooting with my vision/timing/sight picture/etc, I would modify those statements.

I probably don't have to cover the entire bird on a rapidly climbing bird or perhaps cover less than other shooters that have different setups vision/timing/etc. Again, in my particular case.

On a low bird, I pull farther UNDER the bird and actually see MORE of the bird than some others. This was tough for me until I started shooting the wobble trap.

Point being most of us are not exactly the same in the way we process a shot.

Oh and there are benefits to a straight stock; it's less critical on where you make your cheek weld to the stock and there's less perceived recoil.

 

[BritChaser]

First off, you don't need 3" shells for pheasants. And as someone else posted, 3" many times will not pattern as well as a 1 1/4 oz. load in a 2 3/4" shell. Your choke configuration is good. Try some 2 3/4" shells with #5 or #6 shot. However, I don't think the big problem is your gun or shells, it's you. You are not squaring up the bird in the pattern and are hitting the birds with the fringe of the pattern.

also need to reverse your chokes and shoot the bottom barrel first

 

[BritChaser]

I think going away shots are the toughest as we dont like to cover up the bird.

If your gun patterns like a Browning Citori - 60% above and 40% below actual (not subjective) aim point - the bird will be in the middle of the pattern if it is entirely visible above the bead going away or going by. If the bird is rising like wood cock, the bird will necessarily disappear as ypou lead its rise.

 

[BritChaser]

That's where the shims and gun fit come into play.

Yes, in order to acquire the true aim point.

 

[Birdman2]

I have a problem with birds going straight away from me also. I'll knock a bunch of feathers out and at times the birds get away. Bird will hit the ground hard and find a way to get away from us.

 

[benelli-banger]

I have a problem with birds going straight away from me also. I'll knock a bunch of feathers out and at times the birds get away. Bird will hit the ground hard and find a way to get away from us.

May be shooting low????

 

[Birdman2]

Not sure but I am doing something wrong. Typically I really like going away shots, but the head is typically not exposed to the shot.

 

[benelli-banger]

Not sure but I am doing something wrong. Typically I really like going away shots, but the head is typically not exposed to the shot.

I’ve shot quite a few straight aways that are not too far above my dogs heads…I wait for them to rise more, and then, being cautious, I shoot higher than what seems called for…dead birds most of the time…I think you want to bust wings or penetrate the backbone high enough to hit the vitals…too low you’re perhaps in the guts or lower…not exact science, but I’d rather miss by shooting too high vs gut shooting and losing a bird…we know they’re rising most of the time when they flush…

 

[Birdman2]

Good Advice. I will aim higher than the bird and see what happens. I lost way too many birds this year, because of shot placement.

 

[nastymcnarf]

It's been stated, but...pattern...pattern...pattern. It is the one thing any hunter can do to improve his odds and so few do it. Do keep an open mind, especially if you reload. A friend of mine was loading up a 'Ballistic Products' lead load, 1 1/4 oz. It wasn't really holding together even with copper shot. I gave him some of my nickel plated shot and nirvana was achieved. THAT...gives you confidence.

Back to topic at hand...I've passed on more than a few straight away shots at 40+ yards regardless of how I know to place the shot depending on bird elevation. 40 yard crossing...take em all day. That being said...last Saturday I was making a half-hearted attempt at a hunt. With 20 minutes left a bird got up so straight away that unless he cackled I wouldn't know. He was certainly in that 40 yard range...aaaaaaand I hadn't pulled a trigger. I had 4's in my SKB. Landed cold in the stubble. Sometimes the gods favor you.

 

[Bob Peters]

If your gun patterns like a Browning Citori - 60% above and 40% below actual (not subjective) aim point - the bird will be in the middle of the pattern if it is entirely visible above the bead going away or otherwise.

I get where you're going with this, but the statement is incorrect. Typical shots, and the majority of pheasant hunting shots you can float the rooster. Shots where the bird is rising very fast you cannot see the bird as you described and hit it. Imagine the classic springing teal shot in sporting clays. You must place your shot where the target is going, not where it is. I've seen pheasants shoot straight up when flushed in woody thickets. I do have a citori. Keep in mind if you really wanted to float the target you could go with a trap gun, they often are set up 70/30. Trap is a game where the height the target flies is completely predictable.