How much do you practice with your shotgun? I confess, I literally only shoot when I'm hunting. The past couple seasons, I've had a 90%+ hit rate on birds, mostly upland. I got my first dusky grouse double last September. Three years ago I purchased an over/under after only ever using a Remington 870. My shooting improved significantly immediately. They say less is more. Does this apply to shotguns? Or am I just lucky? Or is it really THAT important for your shotgun to "fit" you, and I just happened to find the perfect fit? Anyway... three months to go.
Is less more?
- Thread starter jtm307
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rke
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For the most part, me too. I am a firm beliver that practice doesn't make perfect, but that perfect practice makes perfect. Meaning, if I keep doing the same things incorrectly, I'm not going to get any better no matter how much I do them. Now, if I could afford some lessons, where someone can show me what to do to improve, that would be different.
Sask hunter
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I found the years when I shoot a lot my shotgun shooting improves too. Spending a few days days with 22 and shooting about a 1k rounds in a summer is great practice
OntarioHunter
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Fit is very important for wingshooting. Or shooting low gun skeet or clays. I require a long LOP (length of pull = distance from trigger to end of stock) so my shotguns typically wear an additional slip-on recoil pad. How did I figure out that's what I needed? Went to the patterning board with a large target and at sixteen yards I mounted and fired quickly like I would if shooting at a flushed pheasant. The pattern was way high. Adding a recoil pad brought it down to 50/50 (half the pattern above and half below the bull). I can shoot trap with just about any shotgun because it's shot high gun. The shooter makes himself fit the gun. But I shoot birds, skeet, and sporting clays low gun (from safe carry the gun is quickly raised to the shoulder, target acquired, and fire). If I show up at the range without the recoil pad I'll lose two to three targets on my skeet score. So should I just shoot high gun? Then I'll lose at least five on my skeet score. Shooting low gun provides a clearer view of the target and the shorter window to shoot = less opportunity to "overthink" and/or aim the gun (looking at the barrel). In fact, I now have to stop myself from looking at the house when I pull the target. I need to shorten the window even more. Occasionally I will shoot station seven with my gun under my arm when target is pulled.
So your O/U fits you better than the 870 (which is surprising as 870 is one of the best pointing shotguns ever made). A few years ago I picked up a real good deal on a nice Citori O/U. Cleaned it up and made a beautiful case from cherry wood. I can't shoot it worth crap at skeet or clays range. With an additional slipon the stock is slightly longer than my old Browning A5. I think more importantly, the comb of the Citori is thicker. I will shoot trap with it but gave up trying to make it work in other venues. I do not like hunting with break open shotguns.
This fall I shot my only ever triple on pheasants. Not easy, especially these days with bird numbers way down. Hard to find three roosters together AND have an empty bag (daily limit is three). Also pretty hard to do with an O/U ... though not impossible. I know one guy who did it and I was actually reloading my A5 when the last rooster jumped up late.
So your O/U fits you better than the 870 (which is surprising as 870 is one of the best pointing shotguns ever made). A few years ago I picked up a real good deal on a nice Citori O/U. Cleaned it up and made a beautiful case from cherry wood. I can't shoot it worth crap at skeet or clays range. With an additional slipon the stock is slightly longer than my old Browning A5. I think more importantly, the comb of the Citori is thicker. I will shoot trap with it but gave up trying to make it work in other venues. I do not like hunting with break open shotguns.
This fall I shot my only ever triple on pheasants. Not easy, especially these days with bird numbers way down. Hard to find three roosters together AND have an empty bag (daily limit is three). Also pretty hard to do with an O/U ... though not impossible. I know one guy who did it and I was actually reloading my A5 when the last rooster jumped up late.
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OntarioHunter
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Two weeks ago I was shooting skeet with a newbie. He had a Beretta auto and was doing terrible. I don't think he broke double figures. Then he got to station eight between the two houses where targets are thrown at him. He dusted them both! Ah ha! His gun fits! He was ready to quit but I encouraged him to shoot another round. This time shoot low gun. He was hesitant. "Sure it looks harder but it's not. You know what the trajectory will be. But you also know too much. You're aiming the shotgun. Force yourself to shoot instinctively so you don't have time to aim. Anyway, what have you got to lose?" He broke twenty for the first time ever. And again the next round.
90% on how many shots?
I shoot a lot during hunting season (more than a case of shells) between upland and duck hunting. My shooting was poor enough last year on doves (good otherwise) that I’m shooting skeet once a week this summer.
Practice never hurts.
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I shoot at least 2x monthly April-November (usually 5x per 8 weeks). At least 1 of those 2 will have a ~3 hour session on my range's practical course with a partner. he goes in, arranges things as best as he can to shit in my sandbox, and then I run it. December-March I average 1 shooting day every 3 weeks, maybe 1 in 3 of those are pistol heavy.
Nick87
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This. Can't stress fit enough it should be an extension of you on the swing.
MinnesotaHunter
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For some upland hunting I think you can get away with shooting less....Pheasants in particular. IMO, if you are a waterfowler you need to be a better wing shooter based on the variety of shot scenarios you could see at any moment.
DouglasR
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So it’s not weird that I get my benelli out and admire it and shoulder it ever couple days?
It’s always made me feel like a child playing with his toy cars.
mdcrossbow
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After the Army I only practiced when sighting in or shooting competitions with Mussel loaders Flint Locks If you can compete with a Smoke pole everything else is 2nd nature.
razorrt5
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Funny enough I can drop a bluebill at Mach Jesus going from left to right at 30 yards but I can’t hit a pheasant for the life of me lol
OntarioHunter
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I had that same problem. Bluebill zippers require you to shoot so fast you don't have time think. You are overthinking the much easier pheasant setups. Keep your gun down and wait. Force yourself to take shots with tight windows. Same with geese setting up to land in deeks. Don't bring your gun up till last second and shoot quickly all in one motion.
razorrt5
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I’ll have to remember that, I do that with honkers and I’m pretty consistently 2 for 3 when presented the opportunity, never thought of doing it with pheasants…. Then there’s grouse, I don’t have a prayer with those things lol
One of our core SD pheasant trip group is a flat out Trap superstar (basement walls covered in 100/200 straight medals, etc).
I don’t think he killed a pheasant until the 2nd or 3rd trip.
he would ask us dummies all kinds of technical trap questions at night (“floating the bird” is the one I recall), and we would mostly stare blankly. “find his beak and shoot it off“ was the one that finally got him there. Much more instinctive and muscle memory, plus the noise and commotion even on pointed birds.
I go to the clays course a few times a year. I skip most of the gimmicky and tower targets and just use the ones that mimic pheasants and grouse. That helps, but time in the field helps more. My favorite ‘practice’ is when the trap course is empty and they let me just walk around the various lanes with the remote on a belt loop and I just push the button randomly. Also, if I’m there with someone else, don’t call ‘pull’, just say ‘ready’ and let your partner push the button or pull the string when they want in the next 1-10 seconds.
Note: ducks and doves are different ballgames.
OntarioHunter
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Shooting trap can be SOME help for pheasant hunting IF the shooter uses a hunting gun. Your medal champ was clearly used to shooting a trap gun designed for the purpose. They shoot high and indeed do float the target above the gun. But he won't be taking that gun in the field! Those are not designed to be mounted quickly and anyone who walks around high gun behind hunting dogs is liable to be shot by the handler.
This is my trap gun. My average is 22. A little better for skeet.
Once on a nasty day when no one showed up at the club but me and the president, I walked back and forth ten yards behind the trap house while he discreetly pulled targets. Great practice and great fun. The safety officer (a trap champ pansey) found out about it and had a shitfit. A few years back they set up an old trap machine behind some trees on the clays course to provide crossers. That was also genuine field practice. Shooter never knew what angle the target would come into view. If it had been a wobble trap machine it would have been perfect. Didn't last through one season. Too many complaints because targets were "unorthodox" ... i.e. too hard. Babies!
You're correct. The only way to truly imitate pheasant hunting on the trap range would be to jolt the shooter with 110 volts every time a target is pulled.
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Wally Dog
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Holler someday and I'll take you to shoot at our private skeet club.
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