Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2015 i Sporting Gun

It’s been a busy month in terms of news. There’s a suggestion of 10-year licences (see pg74 ), which BASC believes will bring down costs for Firearms Licensing departments, as well as helping to avoid the delays that many ticket holders experience by eliminating the five-year peaks and troughs in renewals. Then a letter on the Lead Ammunition Group (LAG) website that contained “a summary” of the report the LAG filed with DEFRA (see pg71). The summary contained numerous “facts” supporting a ban on lead, offered up with no explanation, proof or context, and was worded in a singularly inflammatory manner. This summary comes from a Lead Ammunition Group that has seen half its 10 members resign in the past year, citing a lack of confidence in the process…

It had been absolutely chucking it down all day. Following a tentative shower just after dawn had broken, a solid grey wall of cloud rolled in from the west to sit stubbornly overhead. With no sign of clearing, the ground was already saturated by midday, the water began to fill the tramlines and even create wide, shallow pools over low places on the open fields. At least the outlook was bright, an excited phone call from my shooting mate, Ed, revealed that teal had arrived in numbers at a notable flightpond, right in the heart of Broadland, but as they’re often a “here today – gone tomorrow” type of quarry, we needed to be there quick! A steady downpour hammered against the windscreen as we set out mid afternoon, the…

When reader Ian Taylor emailed to say he was being charged with shooting corvids, I couldn’t believe my eyes. Corvids such as rooks are on the general licence and may be shot for crop protection, protecting wild birds and a number of other reasons. The licences specify the methods which may be used and these include airguns, which is what Ian was using. Clearly there was something seriously amiss, and if Ian were to be found guilty the repercussions could have been considerable. Fortunately, he had a good legal team The circumstances Ian explained to me that he had been out shooting rooks on a local estate in Scotland, on which he had enjoyed the permission to do so for more than 14 years. In early May 2014, he shot…

Problem solved! Keep your pigeons blowfly free Having a problem getting your pigeons back to the gamedealer blowfly free after a long day’s shooting? I solve the problem by using a commercial carp fishery keep net – between 8in and 10in in length. By twisting the neck of the net you will stop the flies from getting to the birds, the net also allows the birds to cool down. Any commercial match angler or fishery owner who uses their own nets, will probably be able to give you an old one as most of their nets have to be replaced every couple of seasons, due to the big match weights caught on these fisheries. Any holes and tears can simply be stitched up before use. K Flinders, South Yorkshire A…

Supplementary feeding in late winter and spring is becoming standard practice on the majority of shoots up and down the country. If we go back 20 years, very few shoots continued to feed much beyond the end of the shooting season, as it was commonly believed that there would be sufficient natural food in spring for birds to find all the nutrients they needed. Concerns over poor survival and breeding success of pheasants prompted the GWCT pheasant research team to investigate whether there could be a nutritional bottleneck in spring that reduced the nesting success of pheasants. The results were striking. Where supplementary feeding continued until May, body condition scores were much higher in birds with access to grain and pheasants produced 85 per cent more chicks than pheasants that…

While I was on holiday in France I was given a jar of griottines (cherries in liqueur). It makes a fabulous sauce for venison. Once home I used ordinary bottled cherries, but marinaded them first in brandy. INGREDIENTS: » 4 venison steaks » 4tbsp cherries and liqueur » Venison or beef stock Heat a griddle pan over a hot heat. Coat the venison steaks in oil and quickly fry so they are browned on both sides. Put on a plate and rest. Deglaze the pan with some stock and then add the cherries and their liqueur. Simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly and then serve with the steaks.…

Of all the commands you will teach your young gundog, the stop whistle is probably the most important. It is the precursor to being able to stop the dog to the flush of a pheasant or to give it a left or right direction. Without “brakes”, the chances are at some point you will end up with an out-of-control dog and you will have no way to stop it. Right from the very start you must be consistent with the stop whistle, and when you use it the dog must know that it has to stop what it is doing and look at you for a further command. Before I e plain the training method we use at Gamegoer, it is worth looking at the different kinds of whistles on…

I have been lucky enough to travel across the UK in the pursuit of rabbits. I’ve seen rabbits, and their damage, in almost every conceivable place possible, although I never know what the next rabbit job will entail. I rely on a wide variety of control methods to provide my customers with the results they require. This often means that I have a little routine to my daily life and a strong element of unpredictability. However, there is one issue that pops up pretty frequently – rabbits visiting from neighbouring land to eat crops. Often it is a motorway or railway bank that harbours the rabbits, yet they persist on eating the nearby farmer’s fields. While remembering that there is always an exception to any rule, especially where rabbits are…

Due to the popularity of Shop Front we cannot guarantee when your FREE advert will appear. We operate on a strictly first come first served basis. Mossberg 500, 12- bore, c/w spare barrel, gc, a few subsonic cartridges. £400 ono. Tel 07951 349444 (Nottinghamshire). Browning 525 2015 model, m/c, 30in barrels, only fired 250 shots, brand new condition. £1,150 ono. Tel 07584 292725 (Falkirk). Miroku MK60 Universal Grade 5, 32” barrels, ¼ to ½ choke, beautiful wood, mint condition. £2,000. Tel 07980 774705 (Hertfordshire). AYA .410 no.4 Boxlock ejector, 27in barrels, 3in Magnum chambers,½ and full choke. Oiled 15¼in stock. £1,450 ono. Tel 07968 186515 (Kent). Browning 525 Sporter GD3, 30in, adjustable comb, five chokes, ex con. £1,150. Tel 07949 313184 (Bedford). Beretta 626, sbs, st, 28in barrels. £300. Tel…

With the UK police accepting the need for a sidearm to despatch larger wounded game more and more, it is easy to forget that this is not a new idea. In the mid-1600s, the flintlock firearm had become reliable enough to take hunting, and was rapidly replacing the traditional bow or spear, which had been the mainstay of the hunt for centuries. Now there was seldom a need for the hunter to face off an enraged boar or wounded stag with a sword. However, the need to administer the finishing stroke, or the “coup de grâce” as the French termed it, was always a possibility, and the hunting sword, or hanger soon evolved. The name hanger possibly derives from the German word “hirschfanger”, meaning deer catcher, but it is equally…

For the past four years, I am lucky enough to have been invited to my friend Freddie Honnor’s farm shoot day, in the South Lincolnshire Fenlands. I wrote about Fred’s amazing efforts towards grey partridge conservation in the August issue. Although not usually a large day number-wise, it’s the friendliest and most fun family day you could ever wish for. Fred’s wife, Maria, and daughters, Inca and Talia are as much a part of the day as the shooting. Each season, for the one day that the farm is shot over, there is always a theme, last year being double gunning with a twist: nine Guns shooting in pairs and alternating between drives, very much for fun rather than necessity, as the bag is usually around 50 birds. Previous years…

I like to customise my callers – as a result, together with a considerable amount of use, they end up looking somewhat battered! The modifications include: A small piece of reflective tape attached to the aerial – this not only helps avoid getting your expensive toy shot, but can also be of great assistance when trying to find it in long grass. I tape over anything that’s the slightest bit reflective, as well as any LED bulbs. The last thing you want is for a fox to realise that it’s been suckered in before you can shoot it. Foxes have extremely sensitive noses, so I make it a policy to never handle the caller with bare hands for at least six hours before using it. Over the years, I’ve had…

VETERINARY: NEIL MCINTOSH A practising vet in Scotland. TUITION: JOHN BIDWELL 6 times World FITASC champ and pro shooting coach. LEGAL: DAVID FROST Author of Sporting Shooting and the Law. TECHNICAL: MIKE GEORGE Engineering author with a deep love of gunmaking. GUNDOGS: LEZ GRAHAM Gundog trainer and author of the Pet Gundogbooks. PIGEONS: PETER THEOBALD Author of Woodpigeon: The Ultimate Quarry. STALKING: GEORGE WALLACE National Gamekeepers’ Organisation’s firearms consultant. FERRETS: ED COOK Professional rabbit catcher working over 30,000 acres. GOT A QUESTION? CONTACT: sportinggun@timeinc.com  or Sporting Gun, Time Inc. (UK), Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark St, London SE1 0SU…

Last month I covered the techniques I use to call ducks, this month follows on from that, but taking a look at how to call geese. Like duck calling, goose calls can help bring your quarry in range, hopefully to produce a shot and a nice Sunday roast. Replicating the different calls of the three main species in the UK can be difficult, but with the correct calls, tuition and practice it can be achieved. Recapping basic principles Goose calls work in the same way as duck calls, firstly it needs to be held correctly with the call being held between the thumb and index finger, with the other fingers cupped round to help create back pressure. The lips need to be placed on the mouthpiece, as though drinking from…

Easy to find? Not too bad, but download the website map and put the postcode into your satnav just to make sure. The ground is eight miles west of Skipton off the A56 up a long, winding, narrow, steep lane out of the village of Kelbrook. Easy access to the M65, M66, M62 and M6 motorways. › Disciplines: English Sporting, Compak, Sportrap, high tower layouts, and now automatic ball trap. › Traps: Fully automatic with solo release boxes. The place is stuffed to the gunwales with Promatic machines. › Practice prices: Non members pay £27 per 100 or £6.75 for a round of 25. Members pay £23 and £5.75 with other discounts available, including for cartridges. › Tuition: There’s a comprehensive package on offer here, with a qualified team of…

WHERE THEY WERE SHOT 1  Name: Dale Firth Location: Lincoln Dale Firth, his son Rhys and uncle Lyn Schofield had an all day affair on a blustery Saturday, picking up their biggest bag to date in Lincoln: “Rhys shot his first pigeon with his fist shot and was over the moon. A total of 106 woodies, four crows and two jackdaws. On the two previous Saturdays, 40 and 83 woodies were shot by us, giving a grand total of 229 woodies, plus a very happy farmer.” 2  Name: Jame Birbeck Location: Kirkby Thorne James Birbeck was shooting pigeons and crows on some cut barley at Kirkby Thorne, near Penrith, with two friends Lee Alderson and Thomas Dixon and my springer spaniel Duke: “We sat most of the day and ended…

Patrick Hook: Härkila Trapper Master GTX 6in I was excited to check out the super lightweight Härkila Trapper Master GTX 6in boots, which are expressly designed for situations where a quiet approach is vital. Being an obsessive foxer and stalker, hunting footwear is really important to me. Sadly, however, I’ve never really found anything that actually ticks all my boxes. Quality is paramount – it’s no good having something that falls to pieces with a bit of use. Then they must be really comfortable – that means they have to fit well and be incredibly flexible so that you can feel the ground as you walk. They also have to be visually covert – after all, bright colours are detrimental if you’re trying to remain unseen. I also want to…

I can’t believe it, Alfie is calming down! Okay, I admit this morning he ran off down the field chasing something I couldn’t see, but he did come back to the call. Okay, I hold my hand up and also admit it was the second call, but he did come back and he was only 400 yards away! He is going to be miffed though, probably for about a week. We are off to visit friends for a while and our niece and partner are kindly coming up to stay for a holiday. Holiday, oh yes, I forgot to mention, they will also be looking after the dogs, the cat, the chickens and some sheep. I wonder if they know what they are in for? On my return I will…

Clicker training is getting more and more popular in the gundog training world. I’m occasionally asked whether a gundog can be trained using a clicker and if it’s a better way of training? Obviously the clicker trainers think it’s fantastic and the only way to train, whereas many of the non-clicker trainers dismiss it out of hand as a waste of time. Me? Well, like many non-clicker trainers, the thing that tends to put me off more than anything is the fanatical “best thing since sliced bread, you have to do it” following that it has. Plus the fact that many people who use the clicker don’t use it correctly, and never move on from the click. Merit? Does it have merit and can it be used successfully to help…

Feeds: Cooking time: Ingredients Two woodcock 1 clove garlic 2 sprigs fresh thyme 25g butter 270ml good quality red wine Lemon juice 90ml glass of port Parsnips, caramelised apples and buttered cabbage 2 parsnips 25g butter 2 sprigs of freshly chopped thyme 1 large apple ¼ cabbage 25g butter Salt and pepper Rösti potatoes 2 large potatoes ¼tsp grated nutmeg 50g butter Salt and pepper Honey glaze 1 small jar honey 1tbsp soy sauce 1tbsp light balsamic vinegar 1tsp five spice COOKING METHOD 1 Once you have plucked the woodcock, singe off the last feathers with a blowtorch or over a gas ring and wipe clean with a damp cloth. There is no need to draw woodcock. In fact, you will need the giblets after it has been roasted to…

LINCOLN PREMIER 28-BORE When Sporting Gun first reviewed this gun in 2004, we gave it high praise because it was a bargain-priced gun built on a proper 28-bore action. Over the years we have seen 20-bores built on 12-bore actions, and rather more 28-bores and .410s built on 20-bore actions. As the barrel centre lines have to be at the same spacing as those of the major bore, the result is that the tubes are far too widely spaced, necessitating deep side ribs and unnecessarily thick metal around the chambers. This results in ugly guns, which may be overweight. When we gave the Lincoln a second look in 2006, the retail price was £795 for the multichoke version, and £725 for the fixed choke, at least £400 cheaper than its…

GUNS adj — adjustable ble — boxlock ejector blne — boxlock non ejector brls — barrels c/w — complete with cyl — cylinder db — double barrel dt — double trigger ej — ejector ex con — excellent condition fac — firearms certificate fc — fixed choke gc — good condition grd — grade hg — hammer gun imp — improved ltwt — lightweight m/c — multi-choke mod — modified o/u — over and under ono — or near offer ovno — or very near offer p/x — part exchange pa — pump action rf — rimfire rnds — rounds (ammunition) sa — semi-automatic sb — single barrel sbs — side by side sle — side lock ejector slne — sidelock no ejector sst — single selective trigger tge —…

Come November, most of the big bags made on post harvest stubble will be a distant memory, and, but for a few days on late drillings, we shall only have oilseed rape to keep us going until spring. But more of this crop later. So how has it been for us? Bearing in mind that the pigeons virtually vanished from the south east of England for nearly six weeks, it was some relief that they reappeared, as if by magic, in time for the laid barley and rape harvest, though they were still in quite poor condition. This probably explains why we saw very few young birds until the middle of August, as the adults were not fit enough to breed. Frustratingly, several rape stubbles, which we had high hopes…

First impressions of the Benelli 828U – it’s design for design’s sake. Surely Benelli would be better off sticking to what they do best, semi-auto shotguns? That may prove to be true, but I hope I am wrong, I have been wrong before! The gun seems to be aimed at the US market for hunting guns – lightweight guns used for walked-up shooting. For the UK, 30in barrels would be a given. No doubt they will come, but the 828 is only available with either 26 or 28in barrels. On the face of it, it looks an ugly duckling, but a great deal of innovation has gone into this gun. Benelli has never made an O/U before, to my knowledge it has never made anything other than semi-autos, and it…

I was feeling pretty fed up as I checked as many weather apps and websites I could find, the forecast ranged from thick fog to dense mist, the worst conditions possible for a walked-up day shooting over the dogs. And just to rub salt into the wound, we were due to visit one of our favourite estates. I was very tempted to try and re-arrange the day, but we are very privileged to shoot on the ground and I didn’t want to upset anyone. I wasn’t feeling very optimistic as I turned my bedside light off and pulled the duvet up around my ears. The alarm shrieked at some godforsaken hour, as I pulled back the curtains and peered into the blackness I could see… everything! It was as clear…

Pinkfoot A pinkfoot call is normally the easiest of the three main species to master. I use a Solway pinkfoot call, as I find it really easy to use and one the most realistic on the market. The main call of the pinks is the distinctive and easily recognised “wink wink”, this is achieved by blowing a double tap of two short bursts of pressured air through the call, remembering to still finish each note with the tongue at the roof of the mouth. I also extend the double tap to multiple ones to create a “wink wink wink”, this helps break the call up and prevents it from sounding to regimental. Back pressure isn’t as important with a pinkfoot call, the high pressured air from the diaphragm is enough…

With the season underway, I asked some shooting friends whether they keep a gamebook. I was surprised to find that few did. Call me old fashioned, but my post-shoot ritual runs like clockwork. Pub, home, long hot bath, large glass of single malt, chuck a log on the fire and update my gamebook. If I’m too tired to clean my guns and write up the day, then the book takes priority and the guns will have to wait. Admittedly it is sometimes a chore setting pen to paper, but it’s one of those jobs that’s best completed while impressions are still fresh in the mind. At the risk of sounding obsessed with records, if a genie popped out of a bottle and granted me any wish, near the top of…

Offering duck drives can elicit a mixed response from a team of Guns. Ducks can be hard to present well and there are not many shooters who want to shoot reared mallard that simply fly around a pond. However, with a bit of thought, mallard can make a good drive and, as we all know, excellent eating. Here on the shoot I like to have some duck drives as it means I can offer an alternative at the start of the season, on what would otherwise be purely a partridge day. As we slip into October, the chance of partridge, pheasant and duck drives makes for mixed and interesting shooting. Having a stand alone duck drive also means that Guns can switch over to non lead shot alternatives for its…

HOLLAND & HOLLAND LEATHER CLOSED-END CARTRIDGE BELT A traditional belt, handmade in England from bridle leather. With closed ends and a double-ended buckle so the excess leather can double back and tuck in. Available in all cartridge sizes. Expensive, but will last a lifetime. Price: £115 Web: www.hollandholland.com FUR FEATHER & FIN CARTRIDGE BELT Made from good quality strong harness leather, this cartridge belt is open ended with a stop band. 12-bore only. A good price for a belt that should last for years. Sizes available to suit most sizes ranging from 28in to 54in. Price: £49.99 Web: www.furfeatherandfin.com CROOTS MALTON BRIDLE LEATHER CARTRIDGE BELT Available in 12- and 20-bore, this waxed leather belt has open loops and a stopper bend. It holds 25 cartridges and has a…

The dew claw is the first of five digits on the foreleg and is occasionally present on the hind limb too. The foreleg dew claw is positioned above the foot inside the leg and is a proper toe – having a bony attachment. But frequently, the hind dew claw is merely a vestigial structure. Contrary to some opinion, and many vets get this wrong, the removal of dogs’ dew claws is not currently illegal. Granted, the 2006 Animal Welfare Act, section 5, specifically prohibits unnecessary mutilations that involve interference with the sensitive tissue or bone structure, but Schedule 1 of the 2007 Mutilations (Permitted Procedures) Regulations lists the removal as a permitted procedure. Schedule 9 further clarifies the situation by stating that anaesthetic must be administered, except where the dog…

If I am ever lucky enough to win the Euro Millions, and I mean the big money, not the odd £20, there’s one gun I would start searching for on the world’s prestigious auctions. It’s a Boss O/U, and to me there’s something special about this timeless classic. I would have to be prepared to spend a lot of money on a really good one. Just to give you an example of what I mean – three years ago, Holts sold an absolute beauty for £114,300. And, more recently, an American auction house sold a 28-bore version for $207,000, which at the time of writing equals £134,550. Strangely, a gun of huge historical significance was sold at a Gavin Gardiner auction in August 2011 for a mere £19,200 – small…

It’s reassuring to know that the non-biased BBC news department appears to uphold one of journalism’s oldest tenets – never let the truth spoil a good story. I tuned in to BBC radio news this morning in time to hear a report saying tighter controls on UK gun ownership need to be brought in soon to avoid another “gun massacre.” And to support the claim it interviewed a police officer, who made the case for gun owners to supply medical reports from their GP to support an application for grant or renewal. Strangely, not once did he say another massacre is in the pipeline. All he said was “shootings are rare”. The icing, and scare, was entirely of the Beeb’s making. In fact it was a non story, undeserving of…