Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2021 i Clay Shooting

The clay season is nearly here, and what a season it promises to be! As I write this we are in national lockdown, awaiting the official announcement of how and when restrictions might be eased – but by the time this issue goes on sale things should be much more clear. Fingers crossed clay shooting and other outdoor sports will be among the first activities to be permitted again. Some of the events planned for early this year have fallen victim to the uncertainty over covid restrictions. The Essex Gun Masters, for instance, has been postponed until August, the first round of the British Shooting Shotgun Series has been pushed back, and sadly the British Shooting Show and Northern Shooting Show now won’t happen until 2022. More on that in…

Do I need a bigger cabinet? Q I’ve heard that plans are afoot to introduce tighter controls on the storage of airguns. I keep several shotguns for clay shooting at home as well as a number of air rifles. Do the new proposals mean that from now on, I will have to keep my air rifles in the gun cabinet alongside my shotguns? If so, it will mean having to buy a bigger cabinet in order to accommodate all the guns in one place. A You’re right that there is a consultation under way which may lead to a change in the law. The government’s aim is to prevent anyone under the age of 18 having unsupervised use of air weapons on private premises. It seeks to clarify the obligation…

We are living through unfortunate times. A rise in Coronavirus cases and the appearance of regional variants of Covid-19 have led to a third national lockdown, this one being as restrictive as the first, at least so far as shooting goes. Much to my disappointment I have not been able to train anywhere so this is not going to be one of the most exciting columns I have ever written, but I thought I would give you an insight into what I am doing with this time away from the range. School is still a large part of my life. I started my A-level studies back in September last year so I am putting in the effort while learning from home – I genuinely wish to do well at my…

Nicknamed the ‘Florida Nightmare’ by fellow Team USA shooters, Joe Fanizzi is one of US shooting’s young rising stars. Born and raised in Okeechobee, Florida, Joe is the son of Fred and Maria, co-managers at the famous Quail Creek Plantation Shooting Ground, where he can often be found practising for his next competition. His list of achievements are remarkable for his age, including two World FITASC Junior Championships and a World English Colt Championship. I found Joe to be a real gentleman as well as a fierce competitor. A devout Christian, he believes that he can only shoot his best when he gets the balance right between God, study and shooting. “I have lived here at Quail Creek my whole life,” says Joe. “Growing up in the shotgun sports industry…

Cartridge price rise Cartridges are going up in price by 7-12% from the end of February, according to online cartridge retailer Just Cartridges. The company says the increase will affect all the major UK brands, and are the result of the current economic climate and Brexit. Game Fair ticket sales soar The Game Fair is shaping up to be a huge success, with ticket sales more than double the usual amount for this time of year. “Is it the VAT holiday, our new covid insurance, pent-up demand or the promise of summer?” ask the organisers. “Perhaps it’s all of them!” The event is being held from 23 to 25 July, at Ragley Hall in Warwickshire. Details at thegamefair.org. Shooters give up after 12 weeks Shooting is ninth on the list…

At the time of writing, just weeks into the third lockdown, more than 91 million cases of Covid-19 have been recorded worldwide, resulting in almost 2 million deaths. Thousands of businesses have gone under and millions have lost their livelihoods. What justification is there for claiming that any good has come of this? Never has the phrase ‘every cloud has a silver lining’ felt so inadequate and in such poor taste. Yet, some people have discovered opportunities during the enforced breaks to tackle tasks, both big and small, that they wouldn’t ordinarily have had time to consider. Work that will help to cement our enjoyment of clay shooting well into the future. What’s more, many of us began re-evaluating what was really important to us. Read on to discover just…

Richard Atkins Clay Shooting’s resident technical expert, Richard has decades of experience reviewing guns, cartridges and accessories. He’s well equipped to solve problems on everything from shot sizes to stock dimensions. Ed Lyons Director of Flint & Partners, Ed’s optometry work has helped top-level athletes reach their goals on domestic and international level. Countless shooters rely on him to keep their vision in top shape. Stuart Farr A lawyer specialising in the shooting sports, Stuart has extensive experience in all things legal – from solving civil disputes relating to firearms ownership, to helping a governing body draft its code of ethics. Becky McKenzie One of our top lady Sporting shots, Becky has won numerous titles in the Sporting disciplines, and is a professional clay shooting coach. She writes about guns,…

Black powder, commonly called ‘gunpowder’, served the armies and navies of the world and later also the sportsman as hand-held firearms developed. Black powder had one problem – smoke! Battlefield commanders were unable to see the enemy once the first heavy bombardments had been fired. Black powder is messy, fouling gun barrel bores, and the residues are prone to cause rusting. It wasn’t until the mid-1800s that French chemist Henri Braconnot took the first steps towards ‘smokeless’ powders. Braconnot treated fibrous cellulose with nitric acid to produce an explosive polymer. The early products were difficult to handle safely, but by the 1880 the first safe nitrocellulose-based propellants were being used. Smokeless powder Early smokeless powders from the 1880s onward met with varying responses from shooters. The lack of thick smoke…

Of course England’s governing body, the CPSA, has always encouraged newcomers, including youngsters, into clay shooting. For example we have seen the creation of a Colts category at major championships, and opportunities for young shots to demonstrate their skills at events like the Colts Challenge at the Game Fair. This can only encourage the rise in talent of junior and sub-junior shooters around the country. The latest programme to support and encourage young talent came about thanks to a generous donation bequeathed by CPSA member John Dalby. It’s the CPSA Colts Development Initiative, or CDI for short. The CPSA’s national director, Nicola Heron, explains that the association thought long and hard about the best way to use John Dalby’s money. Having agreed on a colts initiative, they decided to begin…

It’s difficult to find anything new to write about now that we’re in yet another national lockdown, with no shooting allowed. I can, however, explain what I am doing at home to help with my shooting for when I can go back out. The big favourite for many is dry mounting practice. Personally I am not a fan of this, although I do find it quite useful as it helps check that my gun is still fitting me correctly and that my head is in the correct place on the stock. I try to do around 10-15 minutes of dry mounting each day as it helps maintain muscle memory. It is a bit of a chore to keep bringing the gun out of the cabinet for 15 minutes a night,…

We’ve all seen them. Competitors who seem to be able to reach a state of almost other-worldly serenity before taking a shot. They’re calm yet completely focused on the task at hand. Undistracted by the chit-chat of their fellow shots, unperturbed by the sound of other guns going off around them and seemly unconcerned by the pressure of competition. Just totally in the moment, completed absorbed by the now. The method these shots use to obtain this harmonious state is called a pre-shot routine. They’ll quite literally be taking themselves through a consistent, predetermined set of actions – a routine – before every shot. It you look carefully you may be able to observe some of the steps but others are so subtle they are impossible to detect. So, what…

Rio cartridges are celebrating their 125th anniversary since they were founded in 1896 in the north of Spain. From its inception the company was closely linked to the explosives and powders industry through the Spanish Powder and Dynamite Society, founded in 1872 by Alfred Nobel. “Today with its state-of-the-art manufacturing process and cutting-edge technology, it has managed to earn the trust of the most demanding shooters and hunters in more than 100 countries,” they say. The current Rio cartridge range caters for every level of shooter, from novice to top competitors in international events up to and including the Olympic Games. Richard Atkins was impressed with their 24g target loads when he tested them in last month’s issue, and also gave Rio 21 and 28g shells top marks last year.…

“I must have put 130,000 cartridges through it, but I never once had a firing pin fail.” I started my shooting career with a Winchester 6500, and shot the poor thing until it just about fell to pieces. I then moved on to my first Krieghoff K80 Super Sporter 30in. This was a reconditioned gun, rumoured to have been in a house fire. Supposedly all that survived was the action, so it had new barrels and wood fitted. It was probably around 20 years old, but it worked really well. Back then, I really wasn’t strong enough or competent enough to shoot a Krieghoff. It was a cracking gun, but unless you set the beast up correctly it can make shooting rather hard work. Then around 2010 I was asked…

Matt Hance is a top Sporting shot and coach – he has been shooting Sporting and Fitasc for Britain for more than three decades, and won multiple British and English titles. Matt has teamed up with one of his students, Rhys Plum, to write this series in which he shares his skills and experience – starting with the basics and going on to teach advanced techniques that are guaranteed to raise your game. If you have any questions for Matt about the subjects covered in this series, email fieldsports@futurenet.com and he will do his best to answer. This month we are going to look at how you can develop yourself into a more consistent shooter. That means making a plan for how you’re going to shoot every target – not…

With Tokyo 2020 just around the corner, British Shooting are trying to encourage more grassroots shooters to come and try the Olympic disciplines. The Olympics only comes around once every 4 years and is one of the most powerful sporting events that we can witness. With such an impactful and far reaching influence, it enables shooting as a sport to grab the attention of the public and inspire people to try the sport for themselves. British Shooting will be hosting their first Summer Camp from 28th July – 1st August 2021 to run alongside the Olympics as they are happening in Tokyo. The aim of the camp will be to develop shooters who have goals of going to the Olympics and to encourage those who might not have tried the…

I am writing this article at the end of January and we are in another time of restrictions due to Covid-19. However, there has been super exciting news this month – there’s progress on the road to Tokyo and there’s some more planning to be done for the months ahead. On 13 January, British Shooting announced the shooters who will use the quota places already obtained to represent Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. A massive congratulations to all selected. Among the shooters announced are the clay shooters Kirsty Hegarty, Matthew Coward-Holley and Aaron Heading who will compete in Olympic Trap. I will be watching the competition from my home and cheering for British success in all of the shooting events in the Olympics and Paralympics. I was…

I use my pre-shot routine to get rid of any negative thoughts and to talk myself through what I’m doing. It’s also an opportunity to refocus. A round of Olympic Trap lasts about 25 minutes, so it’s impossible to stay 100 percent focussed for that amount of time. My pre-shot routine ensures I’m mentally switched back on, focussed and my head is in the game. STEP 1 There will be six people shooting an Olympic Trap round. I’ll wait for the person in front of me to move before stepping on the peg and checking that my feet are in the right place. I make sure I have my cartridges in and I rest my barrel on the mat just in between my feet. STEP 2 I’ll establish where my…

ELEY CT 20 21g A fantastic 20-bore shell, even on the very hardest and fastest of targets. Recoil is minimal, so it's very smooth to shoot and extremely effective at letting you retain control of both barrels. Gauge: 20 Case 21g: 67mm Case 24g, 28g: 70mm Head: 16mm Load: 21g, 24g, 28g Shot size 21g: 7.5, 8 Shot size 24g: 7.5, 8 Shot size 28g: 7.5 Shot size 28g: Fibre: 7.5, 8 Muzzle Velocity 21g: 387mps, 1268fps Muzzle Velocity 21g Fibre: 387mps, 1268fps Muzzle Velocity 24g: 387mps, 1268fps Muzzle Velocity 24g Fibre: 381mps, 1250fps Muzzle Velocity 28g: 381mps, 1250fps Muzzle Velocity 28g Fibre: 381mps, 1250fps Material: Lead shot LYALVALE EXPRESS Supreme Game in 21g, 28 gauge spec This cartridge is an absolute pleasure to use for those who favour a…