Where Do I Go From Here...?

[PaulJC 14]

Where to start...

I've had my rifle for a few months now, shot plenty of targets on indoor ranges and keep working on unsupported standing at home (have 10 yards marked out i can shoot in), have got my unsupported standing in to about 2" groups at 20m, not great but getting better and have been to LVAGC a couple of times now and shot on their plinking range, rested i can happily take out the HFT targets at the back of the range repeatedly (about 55 yards i think) once I've worked out how far away they are...

Now i'm not gonna say i'm getting bored with just hitting targets or plinking but i definitely need a bit of variety, my biggest problem here seems to be the fact i work shifts (Days/nights/weekends) and have a littlen that visits every sunday and for the whole weekend on the last weekend of the month, all clubs seem to have set days/weeks for each event or discipline which means i might only get to do it once in a bluemoon or not at all if it is on a sunday...

I was lucky enough to get an invite to the local gun club for an guest day this weekend, had an awesome time and got to shoot .22 rimfire bench rest (bit boring), gallery rifle with a .22 semi auto, .44ACP under lever and something (i cant remember what) that shot 9mm ammo and cycled the next shot with a thumb lever (they were a new out thing) that was great fun But unfortunately they only shoot that discipline on a Friday evening, which i rarely get off, i also had a go at 'Practical Shotgun' which was great fun and saw me have my first ever go of a shotgun (well 2 actually) a semi auto and a pump action, I really enjoyed it and would love to have another go but unfortunately they only run that once a month, you guessed it, on a Sunday...

So all these timing hurdles have made me start to think about hunting, it offers a lot of flexibility as to days and times etc, now i've never hunted anything in my life so have no idea if i'd enjoy it or not tbh but it seems from the forums that people get great satisfaction out of it and it offers a good variety, but as a complete and utter noob how does a person get in to hunting? Where would i even start!? I wouldn't want to go to the effort of gaining permission to shoot somewhere and then hating it or not being able to do it justice for the land owner and also potentially taking the opportunity away from another shooter who may be able to do both. I know there is Petes Farm (And i have joined BASC with this in mind) but most people say it has been over shot and given i have absolutely no idea what i'm doing i think it'd lead to great disappointment as i'd never know if it was just me being crap or 'just the way it is' there...

So as per the title really, where do i go from here? How does one get in to hunting as a noob, is there anywhere i can go and pay for a day and get shown the basics? Are there any other gun clubs not a million miles from east hertfordshire that have more 'active' disciplines of shooting?

Thanks in advance for any replies...

Paul

[charlie caller 3,654]

My advice would be find someone locally,(at the club I would have thought) who is willing to let you tag along and maybe have a go, a days pigeon shooting for instance, as you are aware there are many different kinds of hunting with sporting firearms, from vermin control to deerstalking and a host of stuff along the way,so it may benefit you to try one or two and see if a particular branch of the sport appeals to you strongly, it may be pigeon shooting, it may be wildfowling, it may be foxing with a rifle, or deerstalking, it may be all the above,get a taste for it and see if its for you first, then come back to us for advice you dont mention if it is an air rifle or a firearm you have? If the former, mybe get out with someone with that if they dont mind you taking it along.

Edited April 29, 2014 by charlie caller

[PaulJC 14]

Thanks for the reply, it is an air rifle that i have at the moment.

[Cedric 132]

You might try rat shooting, that's really satisfying and back to basics and not as easy as it looks! Find someone to take you along, it's great fun.

[RemyBolt 420]

If you're looking for a real kick, ratting! If you're out going for rabbits or something like that, you'll get to around 5 or 6 and that'll be your day over. With ratting, you'd expect to get to double figures! Much more satisfying, busier, and active. However, it's not too easy if you don't have some kind of night gear.

 

One of the best ways I was taught to hunt and stalk...get a camera. A photographer friend taught me about stalking and the alike. It's a great way to practice taking good 'shots' without worrying about carrying a gun in a public area. A camera is fine to carry around.

 

As Charlie said, check the guys around your area, make friends at the club, and get to know as many farmers as possible. Also, keep those farmers happy and they'll help you out. The farm manager said he's not had rat levels as low as they are now, since he's been at the farm, nearly 5 years. So he's down there at the pub talking to his friends and they're asking if I can pop down there places. I'm more than happy to do some ratting, providing they'll let me pop bunnies and help out with any bird problems they may have.

 

What area are you shooting in?

[PaulJC 14]

Thanks for all the input

 

Ratting does sound like a good way to get plenty of shots off on live quarry, i don't have NV...Yet I've got some T20's on their way though and have also ordered a couple of oslon IR starts to go in one and might use the other to build a 'spotter' at a later date, when the next paycheck arrives i'll get myself a camera and screen and will then have a homebrew NV setup, i do love a bit of gadgetry

One of the locations i work has a bit of an unused field out the back which i spotted some rabbits in last night, i'd never get permission there but i did attempt to stalk up on them a little which i found very enjoyable, i also met a chicken farmer last night with a bit of a fox problem (apparently having 16000 chickens brings them in from far and wide lol) but to even attempt something like that would be a bit ambitious at this stage! but i'll keep it in the back of my mind for the future

I live in East Herts, but as the saying goes, "Have car, will travel", getting visits to the club round work shifts are a bit of a nightmare but i'm sure in time i will meet some people there who may be prepared to allow me to tag along, i'll be the first to admit i'm clueless in this whole game so would be happy to even just observe and learn from a distance, i have seen far too many posts going up of people "wanting permission" or expecting a free tag along to shoot someone elses sport, do these people not realise life doesn't work like that :/

I think the plan for this week will just to be to spend some more time shooting, i've probably put 1000 pellets through my gun this year already plinking and shooting at targets but thats not really structured practice so i must work on my shooting positions to see what kind of groups i'm capable of and also get my reticle point distances in my head so i don't have to think about them (this will help with any HTF i do as well) so plenty to be getting on with in the time being, the older you get the harder it seems to get in to new things like this, oh to be twenty (or even 30) again lol

Thanks again for all the tips and advice

[charlie caller 3,654]

Why dont you apply for a .22 rimmy to use at the club for now? Cheap to buy and run, then when you get some land, you can apply for vermin with it, you will have gained some experience, and have a foot on the ladder in the fac world

[PaulJC 14]

Why dont you apply for a .22 rimmy to use at the club for now? Cheap to buy and run, then when you get some land, you can apply for vermin with it, you will have gained some experience, and have a foot on the ladder in the fac world

 

Thats the current plan

 

Application is with the club, just waiting to be invited in for a chat and all going well then start on my 6 month probation, they also shoot .357 underlever there so should have experience of some larger calibres too by the time probation is over which may help if i apply for a larger caliber rifle for vermin at a later date

[charlie caller 3,654]

Good plan, if you aim to do some vermin/game shooting in the future, you really must get out into the field with an experienced shot, as that kind of hands on experience will count far more towards you being allowed vermin, and expanding ammunition on your license than a hundred years of target shooting, a letter stating you are competent, in the eyes of the man taking you out, will go a very long way when the time comes believe me and what about keeping in with your chicken farmer mate, perhaps gain permission from him, take your air gun and blat some rats, and maybe take a friend along to shoot some foxes? Then when the time comes, you already have good reason for, say a .222 or similar for fox control, its all about stepping stones mate.

Edited May 7, 2014 by charlie caller

[maktayla 50]

I have to agree with Charlie there mate. Keep in with your farmer mate and see if you can get that permission. Especially if he has a fox problem. Don't hang around or you will find someone else has got in there to take care of it for him..

The days go by and so do the years.. Go for it.

[PaulJC 14]

Thanks again guys, i'm very much working on the stepping stones approach, i'd love to get out with an experienced shooter but at this point don't know any, as someone said above though this will come in time from being a member at the airgun club, i have considered a guided shooting holiday somewhere but these seem few and far between where air rifles are concerned, i'm going to go and shoot some clays next week just to give that a go and have more time behind a shotgun.

 

I'm popping to the docs next week just to make sure their will be no reason there for me to get turned down for SGC of FAC (I had meningitis a few years ago which left me with really bad insomnia and the docs prescribed sleeping tablets and anti-anxiety medication), i don't take any of these anymore but just want to pop down for a chat to make sure it's not going to be an issue.

As for the chicken farm permission, 'apparently' the grandson is going to apply for FAC to take care of the foxes, this is also something they have 'apparently' been waiting for for sometime so who knows what's going on there, next time i'm passing i'll pop my head in and try to find out more about how the situation stands on that one.

 

Do you think there would be any advantage to applying for a SGC earlier on to get more shooting experience in firearms? Club acceptance and probation could potentially see an FAC being 6-7 months away before application and i don't feel confident enough at this stage to go looking for permissions, i have no problem admitting i have ZERO hunting experience short of catching some fish about 20 years ago...