What I need to start hunting small game eg.pheasants

W.M.Bryan

If any could give me a list of items I need, the process of getting a gun license, and other licenses needed and any other tips. I have no experience with guns and hunting but would be good with handling a dog.
Thanks W.M.Bryan

extremetaz

Sounds like the first thing you need to do is join your local GC and get out walking with the lads there when they're out so you can see what it's really all about; then get yourself to a clay grounds and start getting some experience with the tools - wouldn't bother buying anything just yet.

Cass

To apply for a firearm you need to fill in an FCA1 firearm application form.

Here is what you need to do.

You want to be as detailed as possible, but without writing a novel.

Fill in sections:

For the following sections, just fill them in, but for the most part extra information is not necessary:

• Section 1 - Tick Firearm Certificate and in the box below tick "I have not held a certificate for this firearm in the previous three years".
• Section 2.1 - Fill in all the personal information stuff. Everything.
• Section 2.2 - Give name, address and phone number for your GP, and any other doctor you might be visiting.
• Section 2.3 - You need two people to vouch for you. Supply their name, address and details in this section.
• Section 2.4 - Tick the boxes as appropriate.
• Section 2.5 - Supply details of your competence, or if you've done the course just write "Copy of cert attached". Then attach a copy.
• Section 3.1 - Fill in the details of the gun you've bought here. All the info will be on the docket the dealer gives you.
• Section 3.3 - Write in the dealer PULSE ID. It'll be a 4 digit number that the dealer uses. Then his name.
• Section 3.5 - Tick "YES", and then "NO". Make sure you have at least a trigger lock bought for the gun. This is the minimu security needed.
• Section 4.1 - Tick English, and below that write in the amount of rounds you want. I'd apply for betwee 250 - 500 rounds.
• Section 4.2 - Tick Hunting. No need for target shooting and you might be required to show membership if you do. You can tick it if you want, it's your chice.
• Section
• Section 5.1 - Tick yes (no need for licenses as your firearms license covers you and you're not shooting deer, only pheasant)
• Sign it, and date it.

Ignore sections:

• 3.4
• 4.3
• 4.4
• 5.2

You need to provide more information for some sections on a separate piece of paper, labelled "Additional Information". See which sections apply to you, and fill in the following for those sections:

1. Section 2.1 - Previous Address: If you have lived elsewhere provide thos addresses.
2. Section 2.5 - Proof of Competence: Supply copy of your competence certificate.
3. Section 3.5 - Secure Storage: List your security measures as you have done. For a shotgun its a trigger lock and stored in three pieces around the house. You may be asked for a safe, but the Super will let you know.
4. Section 4.1 - Amount of Ammo: I am requesting 250-500 (example) rounds of ammunition for the following reasons:
   • Empty (fired) casings are treated the same as live rounds as per the Firearms Act, 1925 where it states that "ammunition for a firearm is any ingredient or component part of any such ammunition", with component part being the bullet, the casing, the propellant or the primer. So my license must allow me to have a high enough limit to have both live and fired rounds in my possession.
   • I regularly take part in clay shoots and actively attend clay ranges for practice. As a result of this I can go through a large quantity of rounds in a short period of time.
   • Buying bulk rounds of ammunition to reduce trips to dealer and for cost implications.
   • Distance to dealer being excessive & inconvenient.
5. Section 4.2 - Reason for Gun:
   • Control of vermin on my lands
   • Control of vermin on lands nominated in my permissions
   • Clay pigeon shooting
   • Hunting of game during the open seasons.

For your first licenses you need to be as complete as possible, but for any additional licenses over the years you'll find some of the above does not need to be filled in.

After all this is done you wait. Once the application is granted you'll be sent a grant letter. This confirms the application was successful. The letter must then be taken to the post office where you pay your €80 license fee. Within 3-5 days you'll receive your actual license and then you may go and collect your gun.


A few tips:

• If you apply for the gun for shooting on a range you must be a member of that range beforehand.
• Any security measures must be in place before you apply as you must declare you have satisfied the minimum requirements on your FCA1.
• NEVER pay more than a deposit (10% or so) on a gun. Also make sure that this deposit is refundable should you be refused the license as some dealrs will simply keep your money. Its for this reason you never pay for the gun upfront. Also a dealer will not return any money for change of mind.
• Always take someone with you even if you think you know all you need. A second set of eyes can provide helpful information and temper any "new buyers" excitement as sometimes we see things through rose tinted glasses when we want it.
• lastly don't be afraid to ask questions. Here, on a range, at the dealers, etc. Ask, ask and ask some more. Be 100% sure what you want and that you know what you need before committing to anything.

Cass

Welcome to the forum.

You have two options. Rifle or Shotgun. I would imagine shotgun would be perfect for the type of shooting you seem to be interested in but i've covered both rifle and shotgun to be sure.

For rifle I would recommend a .22lr for your first rifle.

There are numerous reasons for this:

• It's a great rifle to learn the basics of shooting
• It's cheap to buy and cheap to run
• There are numerous competitions in most ranges (not just the one you are a member of) in .22lr
• They resell quickly as it's a desirable caliber
• HH has only a 50 metre range so a fullbore rifle is not going to show it's full potential
• There are no comps for fullbore rifles at under 100 yards/metres (not including Gallery)
• Applications for lower calibers are usually favoured for first time owners
• Not a huge investment if you find you don't like it
• It's good enough for vermin if you decide to do some hunting with your family

The limitations with a .22lr are range, and effectiveness on larger game. However if you have no experience with a rifle then i would not suggest jumping into a centrefire rifle. The differnce betwen a rimfire, and centrefire is based on the make up of the round used. See the picture below;



The round to the left being the rimfire meaning once the bottom/rim of the cartridge is struck by the firing pin the round is discharged. On a centrefire the primer (no 4 on right picture) must be struck which ignites the powder and fires the bullet.

Most rimfires have a range of between 0 - 125 yards, effective range. Centrefire rifles, depending on shooter ability have mush greater effective ranges, and hence need A LOT more experience to handle. Apart from the firearm you need to be aware of your environment, backstop (where the bullet will finish) shot placement, etc. Its not quite as easy as point and pull the trigger.

The best selling and most popular starter rifle is the CZ .22lr.



Th setup above would cost, depending on scope choice, about €800 new or between €300 - €550 second hand. There are a fantastic gun, and if you asked i would say about 70% of rifle shooter either had one or have one.

To find out which rifle you want or more importantly which suits your intended purpose then i would suggest visiting a few rifle ranges, and seeing what others are using, and what they have, use it for, how it works, how effective it is, cost, etc. Most ranges would welcome you, and freely show you around. Simply ring before traveling as some ranges need prior notification before you can turn up.

For a shotgun i'd look at an over/under. One of these:



I'd say to look at an Over/Under (O/U).

They are cheap to buy, easy to license, and can easily accommodate most any type of shooting you could want in Ireland. Second hand you can buy from €300 up, and new from €550 up. The prices can go as high as a good second hand car, but we'll keep it sensible for the purpose of the thread.

Look at Baikal, Lanber, Yildiz for those in the €300 - €550 mark (second hand) or €550 - €750 new. Then if you want to go for something a little nicer look at Bettinsoli, Browning, Winchester for guns in the €450 - €850 mark (second hand) or €750 - €1,400 mark(new).

Of course the prices depend on your budget and you can look at Beretta,Higher end Browning, Mirouku, etc, for about €750 - €1,200 second hand and from €1,500 upward for new models.

The most important part of picking a gun is fit. A shotgun must come up well with a good shoulder and be natural for your point of aim. Always bring someone with you that knows about the various guns. They'll keep you grounded and help you decide on something suitable rather than one that looks good, but doesn't really fit you. Nothing worse than buying a gun and it won't shoot right for you because it doesn't fit you right.


Once you have decided on the type of shooting you like, and a gun you want, you need to go out and find one. Go to as many registered firearm dealers (RFD) as you can. Do not rush the decision. It can be a long enough process to get the license so you cannot pick, choose, change your mind, pick, choose, change your mind once the license process has begun.
Go out and try as many makes/models of the gun/caliber you would most like, but keep an open mind to others as sometimes you end up buying a gun you did not intend to buy.

Cass

Very few things need an actual hunting license as your firearms license covers you for most type of shooting.

The thing that need a license include Deer hunting (with a rifle only), foreshore licenses (location more so than game), and then out of season license for shooting game outside the normal seasons.

These seasons remain the same pretty much from year to year and some species can be shot out of season without a license under derogation. That means if they are causing harm or damage. Crows, magpies, pigeons, etc are included in this but it usually doesn't cover common game species such as duck, pheasant, etc.

I've listed the season below but its always good to check each year to make sure there have been no changes.

Deer

• 1st September to 31st December. - Stags, Antlered Deer.
• 1st November to 28th February. - Females, Antlerless deer.

Hares

• 26th September to 28th February

Wildbird

• Red Grouse - 1st September to 30th September
• Mallard - 1st September to 31st January
• Teal - 1st September to 31st January
• Tufted Duck - 1st September to 31st January
• Snipe - 1st September to 31st January
• Jack Snipe - 1st September to 31st January
• Golden Plover - 1st September to 31st January
• Gadwall - 1st September to 31st January
• Wigeon - 1st September to 31st January
• Pintail - 1st September to 31st January
• Shovellor - 1st September to 31st January
• Scaup - 1st September to 31st January
• Pochard - 1st September to 31st January
• Goldeneye - 1st September to 31st January
• Ruddy Duck - 1st September to 31st January
• Red Legged Partridge - 1st November to 31st January
• Cock Pheasant - 1st November to 31st January
• Woodcock - 1st November to 31st January
• Canadian Geese (Countrywide) - 1st September to 15th October
• Canadian Geese (Cavan and Leitrim Only) Excluding Eonish Island, Rinn, Deramfield, and the River Shannon - 16th October to 31st January.
• Greylag Geese - 1st Spetember to 15th October
• Greylag Geese. (Lady's Island, Co. Wexford and Gearagh East & Gearagh West in Cork only) - 16th October to 31st January
• Wood Pigeon - 1st November to 31st January

Vermin (all year round)

• Fox
• Rabbit
• Muntjac
• Grey squirrel
• Mink
• Feral Goats

Under Derogation (Otherwise Season runs 1st November to 31st January)

• Grey Crows
• Magpies
• Pigeon
• Feral Pigeon
• Rooks
• Jackdaws

W.M.Bryan

Do gun clubs allow you to join when you don’t own a gun? And do they welcome members of 17 years old?

W.M.Bryan

Cass in section 2.5 of the FCA1 what does it mean by proof of competence?
And thanks for all your helpful information.

Cass

Competence is the ability to safely own and use a firearm. It can be shown in one of four ways:

1. Competence Certificate - Do a competence course with a range, association or other reputable group and they will present you with a certificate of completion which you can attach to your FCA1.
2. Previous experience - If you are currently or ever held a firearms license in the past this can show competence. Also time spent in a job (such as defense forces) where firearm were used should suffice.
3. Letter of support - If you have friends that can write letters of support to say you have accompanied them to the range, on shoots, etc and showed a clear aptitude for firearm safety. Obviously not shot the guns because without a license that would be illegal.
4. Training certificate - If you held a firearms training certificate then this will show you have been under the supervision of someone for "X" amount of years and are competent to have a firearm of your own.

ronn

W.M.Bryan wrote: »

If any could give me a list of items I need, the process of getting a gun license, and other licenses needed and any other tips. I have no experience with guns and hunting but would be good with handling a dog.
Thanks W.M.Bryan

What part of the country are you in ?

W.M.Bryan

I’m from Laois, near Durrow.

ronn

W.M.Bryan wrote: »

I’m from Laois, near Durrow.

Contact the nargc and ask them for a list of clubs in you’re area, call into you’re nearest gun shop,

longshot100

First off get someone local who's into hunting, trapping, foxing etc to you to bring you out or approach your local gunclub. There is plenty of activity going on this time of year with gunclubs trapping vermin, getting pins ready, planting gamecrop, releasing birds and so on. They should be more than willing to accept a hand from someone keen to join the gunclub. Best of luck and enjoy the sport.

Dai John

Seen a couple of mentions recently but with poor information about ammo.storage (for shooters). Dopes anyone have any knowledge about this recent legislation ?

Cass

Have a read of this.

Dai John

Thanks for that. Strange that it seems the ammo must be locked but a slip will suffice for the gun.I have modified a couple of old army ammo boxes to take a padlock, but I thought I saw an advert.for lockable plastic ammo. boxes.

bemak

Filling in the FCA1 myself at the moment. Was going to start a new thread but then thought it might be better to ask a few questions as it might help someone else reading the excellent post by Cass above.

I'm getting an air rifle for vermin control on a farm I inherited in Kerry - however I live in Kildare at present so I'm going to have the safe installed in my mothers house which is on the farm in Kerry. I have an old farmhouse on the farm myself but as this is unoccupied at present, I thought it best to have the gun stored in my mothers home. She has no issue with this and will be a referee on the application. The ultimate intention is to move back to Kerry in the next few years at which point I will relocate the safe to the farmhouse. I've outlined all this in a 'supplementary information' page that I am including with the FCA1 form. However I just want to check if there are any issues with this approach?

One of the main reasons for getting the air rifle is for vermin control, particularly magpies which are rife in the woodland on the farm to the detriment of smaller bird species - is that a good enough justification for needing one?

I've put down a deposit on a used air rifle in the past few days - do I need a letter from the RFD stating same for the application or is it sufficient to state where I'm purchasing the gun and the details relating to same?

otmmyboy2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121864316#Comment_121864316

I don't see any issues, just make sure that you ticked the box in the secure accommodation section to specify that the firearm will not be stored at your residence(Kildare).

I suspect the only issue that may arise is Kildare(your licencing district) will need to contact the crime prevention officer in Kerry(your firearm location district) to go out to do a check on the safe, which shouldn't be a problem but may add to your processing time.

Yes, vermin control is perfectly sufficient for the firearm in question.

You generally just need to fill in the firearm dealer's information in the "source" box on the application, and if the FO wants to see a note from the dealer they will tell you.

Some will, some will not.

Apart from that I think you are good to go.

bemak

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121866136#Comment_121866136

cool thanks!

I rang the local station in Kerry about whether I should apply to Kildare or Kerry and they said that it would be better to apply to Kerry - or would you think that I should apply in my local station in Kildare? I think I might try the station in Kerry as they would know me so that would help. If I'm told then that it needs to be Kildare so be it.

TheEngineer1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121866564#Comment_121866564

I would say apply in Kerry because the local guards in Kerry can inspect your security arrangements a bit easier.

I was never inspected until last year. The guards were very sound, just had a look at the safe, the alarm, and the locks on the house. Since you are only applying for one air rifle then all you'll need is a safe and you don't have to worry about an alarm etc.

bemak

Great, thanks a mil

otmmyboy2

Given that it requires you to put down your address, as in home address, on the first page I would say you don't have a choice as to what address to put down for that, it is wherever you reside.

If you have 2 residences and one is the primary then it should be that one.

If the guards say differently then you are golden, but otherwise it is as the above.

Cass

On the FCA1 in section 2.1 it asks for your personal details including your address. Put in your Kildare address here.

In section 3.5, storage section, it asks if the firearm will be stored in a location other than your address. You put in your Kerry home address here.

In my opinion as the firearm will be stored in Kerry, used in Kerry, etc then you apply in Kerry. If you apply in Kildare they will most likely tell you it needs to be Kerry for inspection, storage, usage, etc. reasons.

Simples 😁