Pondera
Active member
After a long cold winter spring is finally here in Montana! Spent our first warm weekend of the year out in the country practicing with our firearms Any time the kids and I go out to target practice we have a long session on firearm safety. Time spent now means that during hunting season a gentle reminder is all that is needed to keep things safe. We cover the basics of course, but more and more I am realizing the benefits of just being familiar with a variety of firearms. Knowing how to safely open the action to make sure it is unloaded, how to properly unload or insert and remove the magazine, how the safety is operated...
With gopher hunting season right around the corner I wanted to make sure sure the plinking rifles were sighted in. My grandfather’s trusty Marlin 60 .22 was dead on as usual. The Crickett .22 got a new scope mount and took a handful of shells to get it dialed in. The Savage .17hmr has the Sweet 17 scope with the ballistic turret on top - I am now thoroughly convinced that this gets turned while inserting or removing it from the case as it is sometimes wildly out of adjustment. So after a careful inspection and tightening of scope mounts a few shots got it back to zero.
The following photo is the final result of the .17hmr sight in - Once I was happy with the zero my son wanted to try his hand at it. I was coaching him on breath control while slowly applying pressure to the trigger and not flinching or anticipating the shot. The first and second shot I could plainly see and assured him that he was right on the money. He felt as if he pulled the first shot. His third and fourth shot I couldn't see where the impact was. I'll admit I was a bit disappointed - It didn't look like he flinched at all but was it the scope again or where was he aiming??? So I take it for the 5th shot and pick a spot on the right hand quarter of the target - dead on for me!...as we walk to the target I start my lecture on breath control and a relaxed yet firm grip....then I see this ->
(his first shot in the yellow, second third fourth in the pink and my shot in the orange) He put two in the same hole and a third very close!! Was hard to walk back with my foot in my mouth. Proud dad moment.
Up next was some practice with the shotguns. My 9 year old daughter has my H&R single barrel .410. A few 3” #6 shells is about all she can handle at a time. Between bruising her shoulder and the price of .410 shells I was looking for a good way to teach her wing shooting. Also shooting down at an old coffee can on the ground is boring, or so I am told. Here is what I came up with: A 10’-12’ steel rod stuck in the ground. I think a washer welded on the top may be in order but with a bit of duct tape I was able to position a clay pigeon on top. I started with a full circle presentation and when she got the hang of it we shot a few on their side just like they come out of the thrower. Not a moving target but we practiced mounting the gun and pointing. More safety instruction on loading and unloading. After she had a good feel of the sight picture she shot a few shells. Next time we will warm up with a few of these and move on to the thrower!
->
My 12 year old son has his mother’s 870 20ga. Her uncle was a gunsmith and shortened it long ago. It fits him great! He can break clays off of the thrower no problem. So once again we practice safe loading and field carry. We like to trip the thrower at random times to simulate field conditions!
->
I feel that we are a better shot and safer in the field from this type of practice. What kind of target shooting or targets do the rest of you use to stay sharp in the off season? What are some safety practices you follow?
With gopher hunting season right around the corner I wanted to make sure sure the plinking rifles were sighted in. My grandfather’s trusty Marlin 60 .22 was dead on as usual. The Crickett .22 got a new scope mount and took a handful of shells to get it dialed in. The Savage .17hmr has the Sweet 17 scope with the ballistic turret on top - I am now thoroughly convinced that this gets turned while inserting or removing it from the case as it is sometimes wildly out of adjustment. So after a careful inspection and tightening of scope mounts a few shots got it back to zero.
The following photo is the final result of the .17hmr sight in - Once I was happy with the zero my son wanted to try his hand at it. I was coaching him on breath control while slowly applying pressure to the trigger and not flinching or anticipating the shot. The first and second shot I could plainly see and assured him that he was right on the money. He felt as if he pulled the first shot. His third and fourth shot I couldn't see where the impact was. I'll admit I was a bit disappointed - It didn't look like he flinched at all but was it the scope again or where was he aiming??? So I take it for the 5th shot and pick a spot on the right hand quarter of the target - dead on for me!...as we walk to the target I start my lecture on breath control and a relaxed yet firm grip....then I see this ->
(his first shot in the yellow, second third fourth in the pink and my shot in the orange) He put two in the same hole and a third very close!! Was hard to walk back with my foot in my mouth. Proud dad moment.
Up next was some practice with the shotguns. My 9 year old daughter has my H&R single barrel .410. A few 3” #6 shells is about all she can handle at a time. Between bruising her shoulder and the price of .410 shells I was looking for a good way to teach her wing shooting. Also shooting down at an old coffee can on the ground is boring, or so I am told. Here is what I came up with: A 10’-12’ steel rod stuck in the ground. I think a washer welded on the top may be in order but with a bit of duct tape I was able to position a clay pigeon on top. I started with a full circle presentation and when she got the hang of it we shot a few on their side just like they come out of the thrower. Not a moving target but we practiced mounting the gun and pointing. More safety instruction on loading and unloading. After she had a good feel of the sight picture she shot a few shells. Next time we will warm up with a few of these and move on to the thrower!
->
My 12 year old son has his mother’s 870 20ga. Her uncle was a gunsmith and shortened it long ago. It fits him great! He can break clays off of the thrower no problem. So once again we practice safe loading and field carry. We like to trip the thrower at random times to simulate field conditions!
->
I feel that we are a better shot and safer in the field from this type of practice. What kind of target shooting or targets do the rest of you use to stay sharp in the off season? What are some safety practices you follow?
