Stalking Readiness Prep/Another Boards Shooting Competition?

It wasn't me!

I've been meaning to get my deer licence stuff in for ages but it's been lost in the pile of work and training to be done over the summer. However, I'm going to get it in now this week and get down to the range to confirm zero and make sure I remember how to shoot this damn deer rifle, so I was planning exercises to make sure I'm ready for the season, and to me that means shooting from a variety of positions.

So, I was thinking that I have a bunch of those 8" shoot'n'c targets, which are as useful as anything for this type of thing, and I can put it on the back of a larger target to give me plenty of shame room for any misses to be easily visible. I thought that a useful practice drill would be the following. A ten shot group consisting of:

2 shots kneeling at 100
2 shots standing at 100
2 shots sitting at 200
2 shots prone at 300
2 shots sitting at 300

If someone can keep all their shots inside about 6", from all positions, they're in a pretty good position to go stalking, so any takers to try that out, take photos of groups and post them up? It might be next week before I get to the range now myself, so it'll be dry-fire only until then, but hopefully I'll have something good to show then. There are some very good practical shots on here, so could be a fun competition. Smallest ten-shot group gets the bragging rights. Any takers? Would obviously have made a lot more sense to do this during the summer, but oh well.

clivej

Like to try this BUT I'd say I'm in the same position as many others in that I can't get to shoot out to 200m & 300m
I did something like this in Bisley this year but standing using sticks @100y & 200y, prone @300y. I got just 2 shots off the British record, into second place.

One shot on kill

2 shots off well done.

I'd love to give it ago but same as Clive I can't shoot at 300.
Do many people shoot from the sitting position. Are they all unaided shots or what did you have in mind.

It wasn't me!

For me I like to shoot prone with the sling and a bag or roll of some kind shoved under the front forearm. I like to shoot sitting with a sling, or sticks depending on the situation. I think for the most competitive way to do it it would all be without sticks, only whatever's on the rifle, so slings or bipods, but on the other hand, I think most people wouldn't shoot any standing without sticks either, so that wouldn't be terribly representative. Might make an interesting open competition to run in MNSCI sometime though. Sitting is a great shooting position. It's high enough to clear a lot of vegetation, but if you construct it right it can be extremely stable.

clivej

Only ever shot 1 Stag standing, and hit where I aimed for. Don't really care for it too many uncertainties can come into play.
My Sako 75 always has the bi-pod attached and I carry a set of sticks, garden type, set for a kneeling position. If I can't take the shot with these then I'd leave the deer off.

It wasn't me!

Might find with practice though it gets easier and you get more confident. I was thinking of starting to do this drill every few weeks throughout the year and keep the targets as a record, would be interesting to see whether the groups get progressively smaller. Or, rather, how much shooting it takes to get those field position groups to shrink. Would get people off the bench rests, which is about all you ever see anyone do on the range.

cookimonster

Use bipods, sticks, walls, boulders, fences, shoulders etc any thing to give me a steady base.

The closest I've taken a dear is 35 yards the furthest was just under 150 yards. That's just the type of shooting we have, even on the hill side we try to close the distance.

May I suggest that you change the competition to 5 inch square and restrict it to 'hold over' points of aim instead of 'dialing in' the point of aim. Maybe I am out of touch, but I think it would be a more realistic situation. State your caliber and maybe your fall of shot over the distance or your zero at a particular range.

If you can put your rounds into the box from 100 - 300m you will drop a fox / deer.

German pointer

I would disagree with limiting it to hold over points. I was using hold over points on my old low priced scope and like other lads here I spent a fair chunk of money on my new scope to get away from hold over points and to dial in. I dial in in the field as do other lads so I think we should be allowed to use whatever system we use in the field

cookimonster

German Pointer- Fair enough, then maybe split it, one for the hold over, one for the dialed in............

It wasn't me!

cookimonster wrote: »

German Pointer- Fair enough, then maybe split it, one for the hold over, one for the dialed in............

I dunno. The ethos of it is about making hits and in a tight group in the way that you would when shooting in the field. If some people dial in, and others hold over, they're just preferences. Considering we're only talking about 300m, there's not a huge amount of drop anyway. I figure, given that parameter, it's probably best to have people use the same gear they would in the field, so sticks, bipods, slings, whatever are all in. Same for dialling in/holding over. It's just a bit of fun anyway, to see how tight people can keep everything from various positions and distances and how well they know their rifles' trajectories and such out to 300m.

cookimonster

It wasn't me! wrote: »

It's just a bit of fun anyway,

To true, to true..........