Worst Miss

[carptom1]

As has been said, after bird hunting for 35+ years, I could write a book on how to miss a shot. So I will only amaze you with a couple.

A buddy and I were hunting a fence row in Iowa back a few years ago. The wind was blowing strong 30+ mph. Rooster gets up along fence and goes into wind on my side. I miss on first as he is climbing. Boom i miss again. After that he banks away to the right and starts back towards my buddy. We both missed him 3 times. Unfreakin believable. I don't think we pulled a feather.

A few years back I had come across some old shells of my dads as I was cleaning out his closet after he died. I thought i would take his old 40's model 37, with polychoke, out for a hunt. Bird gets up and i shoot the old shell and poof the shot goes out about 15 feet past the end of the barrel and hits the ground. I shuck that one out and do it again as the bird cackles away.

 

[Toad]

As has been said, after bird hunting for 35+ years, I could write a book on how to miss a shot. So I will only amaze you with a couple.

A buddy and I were hunting a fence row in Iowa back a few years ago. The wind was blowing strong 30+ mph. Rooster gets up along fence and goes into wind on my side. I miss on first as he is climbing. Boom i miss again. After that he banks away to the right and starts back towards my buddy. We both missed him 3 times. Unfreakin believable. I don't think we pulled a feather.

A few years back I had come across some old shells of my dads as I was cleaning out his closet after he died. I thought i would take his old 40's model 37, with polychoke, out for a hunt. Bird gets up and i shoot the old shell and poof the shot goes out about 15 feet past the end of the barrel and hits the ground. I shuck that one out and do it again as the bird cackles away.

I was wondering how long is the shelf life on ammo. My father in law was cleaning out his basement and gave me a box of 12ga shells that look to be from the '70s or '80s. I thought I might shoot them at doves and then I would have an excuse if I miss...

He also dug around and found three 12ga rounds that had a waxed paper hull. Probably won't shoot those cause they look kinda cool sitting on the shelf...

 

[Road Runner]

My most memorable miss happened after a long walk in Utah. We had covered all of the ground we had permission to hunt and had not flushed a single bird, nothing new about that with the low bird populations here. We came to the last fence, I climbed over and my buddy handed me my gun and his. Just as he set his foot on the ground after crossing the fence, the only rooster of the day flushes right by our feet. I try to give him his gun, dropping it in the exchange, I then step on it as I empty my gun. I did not even disturb a feather on that rooster. To this day my buddy won't let me forget standing on his gun while I missed, and missed and missed. Sounds unsafe I know but the chambers were open as we crossed the fence.

 

[bknight]

You know What? I've had some buddies that would slip around and unload my gun too!...That's my story and I'm sticking to it! LOL!

 

[RuttCrazed]

Mine isn't technically a miss, but it is just as bad! My first year of hunting pheasants in Kansas (I had hunted in Utah for almost 20 years) I was following my dog through some tall grass and she went on point near a large bush. I walked up to the bush and kicked it and a rooster got up, just as I was about to pull the trigger a couple more roosters got up, I swung on them and just as I was about to pull the trigger more roosters got up, I swung on them.......this continued until about 25 roosters flew from the bush as the last rooster flew away, I put down my gun (still hadn't fired a shot) and laughed. My brother was on the other side of the field and ran across the field and asked "Why didn't you shoot?!?" I looked at him and smiled and said that I didn't need to, we both laughed and he told me I looked like a Rainbird sprinkler swinging back and forth on all those birds. We still laugh about it to this day.

Rut

 

[Shadow]

my brother was a better shotgunner than me- by that I mean- he could outshoot me

he'd never hunted quail, never hunted over pointing dogs- he came down to see what all this talk of pointing dogs was

so- we get up, load up, drive 50 miles, dark- we wait till you can see a bit- I open the tail gait- 3 bird dogs fly out and away- he's in a hurry

hold on- they will hold birds- he doesn't believe
no dogs arround as I smile- we walk- 20 min there is a dog standing- he goes
"what's that"

pretty soon we see a dog locked up and 2 others backing

this is yours-

he walks up with his big 12 guage- asks me "what do I do" walk in facing that dog in front, it has a covey

he walks in- birds get up right under him- he never fires a shot- we laugh
he says- you didn't tell me

there is nothing quite like watching a newbee walk in on their very first point

 

[tankerchief]

Mine had to be last season; I went out with my pup, and a few guys on the forum who also had pups outta the same litter as mine. We were huntin some WIHA when 2 of the pups start acting real birdy off to my right, I get ready, a rooster flushes no more than five feet from me. I let him get out a ways, put the ole 870 on him squeezed the trigger; BOOM! Swing an a miss. I try to eject the shell since he's still in range, but wouldn't ya know it, the damned gun was jammed! I swear that rooster hovered for a good 30 seconds cackling at me. Needless to say, I heard about it lol

That was a good one:thumbsup: Mine was a couple years ago, NRHpilot and myself had walked this huge field and were just getting back to the truck. about 30 feet away from the truck I unzip my vest to cool off when his lab Jet went on point. We looked at each other and said is he on point? Sure enough 6 or 7 roosters come busting up! I pull my gun up but catch on my vest and try to squeeze off a shot of the O/U and becuse it was not anywhere near my shoulder and I did a double tap when it fired and did not notice. On last rooster gets up and I have a good bead on him and click! Was still a great day!