Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2017 i Sporting Gun

This month we are launching our photographic competition. I’m sure many of you will be out with your guns, if not, why not get your camera out and start taking pictures of some great sporting action? You can take pictures of people shooting, game, dogs, a beautiful landscape, beaters, pickers-up, dawn on the foreshore or anything you like. We are looking for creativity, as well as photographic skill, but you don’t have to be a professional, or have a fancy camera. A phone camera will do. Just get out there and enter our competition on page 14. You might be the lucky winner of nearly £500 worth of Alan Paine shooting kit. Make sure you get your entries in before the competition closes on 10 November and send them to:…

Reading an article in the November 1992 issue of Sporting Gun entitled, “Times they are a-changing” by wildfowler, Eric Begbie, I was particularly struck by a comment he made. He identifies a “mutual disrespect between ‘country yokels’ and ‘townies’” as a threat to our sport. He goes on, “The battle lines seem firmly drawn with country sports being portrayed as being solidly on one side of the divide. In reality, I suspect that many shooting folk (and Sporting Gun readers) live in towns while, from the opposite view, many country dwellers have little appreciation of our sport.” To set this in context, Begbie is writing about the threat to shooting by commercialisation and other changes that have affected our sport for good or ill. This polarisation of “townies” and “country…

“Priced reasonable, Ridgeline has once again come up with the goods” Ridgeline Hinterland ladies fleece Price: £44.99 Ridgeline, the clothing that’s made in New Zealand, knows how to deal with inclement weather. It should do, they get plenty of rain in NZ! The company has a reputation for producing good quality, affordable, durable clothing and haven’t gone wrong with this fleece. It’s lightweight, so it would be classed as mid-layer and perfect for wearing under a jacket for extra warmth on those really cold days. It’s also ideal for autumn and spring when you need a lightweight fleece for warmth. The jacket’s classic ladies cut fits nicely at the waist. The full-length zip is piped with a token bit of pink, as is the collar so it contrasts well, but…

If like me you’ve invested heavily in IR, shoot predominantly at night and you’re an enthusiast rather than a pro £1,299 is a big ask. If you generally shoot smaller permissions from fairly fixed positions, you can certainly get by with your existing IR set-up. Do I want the Quantum? Definitely! Can I justify it? I’m certainly trying to. The biggest selling point for me is that the Quantum brings night vision into the daylight. My IR gear is useless to me during the day but a thermal delivers full body eye shine day or night. As a detection tool it’s a game changer and its enhanced daytime potential could well be the clincher for many. If you shoot large permissions and cover a lot of ground, target bigger game…

“There was a faint ‘pop’, followed by a distinct thud – first one down” Although my shooting partner, Paul, and I are passionate foxers, every now and then we like to branch out and do something a little different. One advantage is that our high-tech equipment and methods can also work well on other quarry. We recently had the opportunity to do just this when a local chicken farmer called to say that he’d had a fox near his house. I went over on my own as Paul was away – I saw no sign of vulpine activity, but I did see more rats than I’ve seen since I last watched an Indiana Jones movie. Dense fog closing in stopped me shooting that night, but I had a plan……

GUNDOGS GRAHAM WATKINS A professional gundog trainer for more than 35 years and runs Gamegoer Gundogs. 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. PIGEONS PETER THEOBALD Author of Woodpigeon: The Ultimate Quarry. STALKING GEORGE WALLACE Former National Gamekeepers’ Organisation’s firearms consultant. RABBITS ED COOK Professional rabbit catcher working over 30,000 acres. PEST CONTROL & WILDFOWLING TOM SYKES Passionate wildfowler and pest controller.…

“I’m not in Africa, nor am I dreaming. I’m in Middlesex on the brand-new Scheisskino range at Holland & Holland” A buffalo is staring straight at me. I hear my heart pounding in my ears and then the recoil hits me as I pull the trigger on my Holland & Holland 500. I’m not in Africa, nor am I dreaming, I’m in Middlesex on the brand-new Scheisskino range at the Holland & Holland shooting ground. This is the only range of its kind in the UK, although Schiesskino ranges are more common in other parts of Europe. This means us Brits can finally get in on the action that our European friends have been enjoying for years. What is Schiesskino? Literally translated, Schiesskino means, “shooting cinema” and as the name…

When I received the email from Tony Laughton from Stag Country Sports, importers of Fausti guns here in the UK, I was quite excited because I hadn’t seen much of Fausti for a while. I know it had been doing quite a bit of collaborative work because it teamed up with Sauer on the Apollon and Artemis projects, with great results, at the back end of 2016 and early 2017. I wasn’t sure what to expect other than there was “something nice” in the post, especially as Fausti effectively covers all budget ranges of shotguns. Well, after last month’s Rizzini, I thought I had reached my quota of what I term “posh guns” for this year. Oh how wrong was I! I think I have just found the present to…

Sportsmen and women are being asked to refrain from shooting woodcock until 1st December, in new guidelines issued by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT). This is due to concern that shooting may be a factor in the decline of home breeding birds. The UK breeding woodcock population has suffered a range contraction of 56 per cent since 1970, and breeding surveys between 2003 and 2013 showed an estimated 29 per cent decline – moving the woodcock to red status on the UK’s Birds of Conservation Concern list in December 2015. It should be said that there is no indication of any decline in the numbers of migrants that visit each winter. While there are annual fluctuations, partly driven by the severity of weather, an estimated 800,000 to 1.3…

“Pointing should be genetically bred into the dog” The solution Graham Watkins SG’s gundog guru The causes The Hungarian vizsla can be a very versatile breed and is part of the HPR (hunt, point, retrieve) gundog group. However, it can also be quite sensitive and to get the best out of its working attributes it needs an understanding trainer and careful considered training. A good gundog trainer will gradually build a sound foundation and then each further exercise is built on the success and understanding of the previous one. However, it can get a bit confusing, especially when one minute we are telling the dog to “leave it” and then the next we are telling it to “fetch it”! Pointing is something that should be genetically bred into the dog…

“I’m always keen to teach my cockers to go through obstacles” Age 20 months Countdown to first shoot Next month’s issue I have enjoyed shooting over spaniels for longer than I care to remember, and as I’ve said before it is – for me – the ultimate in shooting. The hunt, the flush, the shot, the retrieve – you can’t beat it, I quite often refer to it as “the complete package”. At the time of writing, it is now only a matter of weeks before I will have the chance to take Ted out into the shooting field in the pursuit of a partridge or two, but you will have to wait until next month’s issue of the Sporting Gun to see how we get on. Specific plan In…

Last month I mentioned I had a new permission, and our task would be to visit the area a number of times before even considering to take the rifle. There’s no point in taking a rifle onto ground that is unknown to the stalker and knowing the ground is key to successfully and safely controlling any deer population. Creating a deer management plan that is relevant is impossible without numerous trips, just to get an idea of the deer numbers on the ground. Any management plan starts out as an estimate. Indeed, they are always an estimate, but they hopefully become more relevant as the deer manager’s information becomes more detailed through time. At the start, the population can only be assessed by signs of deer rather than sightings. Signs…

“It was a delight to point, swing and shoot” We all know what a conventional break-action side-by-side or over-and-under looks like, don’t we? It doesn’t matter whether the gun is a Baikal or a London-best Boss, there are certain similarities which we expect to find, whatever the gun’s worth. So, has anyone dared to kick the conventions and apply some independent thinking on how a gun should be designed? Of course they have, and the first gunmaker that springs to mind is Regis Darne. Needless to say for a man whose invention was thought of as cranky by some and a work of genius by others, he was French. Also needless to say, he founded his company in the French capital of gunmaking, Saint Etienne. Strange logic Whenever I think…

GUNS FOR SALE Winchester Pigeon Grade, O/U, classic, made around 1980, mint condition, bored skeet and skeet, £550ono. Tel 01642 710834 (Middlesbrough). Browning Maxus semi-auto, 30in barrel, m/c, top of the range, lovely scrolling, excellent condition, £900. Tel 01642 483691 (Cleveland). Browning B25 B2G, 30in Sporter, long Teague choke, beautiful gun, hand-engraved, signed, c/w motor case, paperwork and second longer stock, £4,650. Tel 07710 153594 (Dumfries). Browning 525, 28in m/c, cased as new, used a few times on the clayground, £970. Tel 07710 153594 (Dumfries). Weihraugh model 80, air rifle, .22, with scope, good condition, £160. Tel 01642 710834 (Middlesbrough). Two rare BSA 1935 break barrel air rifles, £150 each. Tel 07909 766687 (Suffolk). BSA Mercury .22 air rifle, excellent order, £135. Tel 07909 766687 (Suffolk). BSA Meteor 177, very…

Send us an email at sportinggun_shopfront@timeinc.com and include: • Your name • Your address • Your postcode • Your daytime telephone number • And, most importantly, details about the item/s you have for sale or wish to advertise. To place your ONLINE advertisement (guns only) and add a picture of the gun you are selling go to: www.gunsforsale.shootinguk.co.uk. *There is a fee of £5 for online advertising for guns costing more than £1,000. This feature is not open to members of the gun trade If you don’t have email Alternatively, if you don’t have access to email or the Internet, you can still send your personal details and information about the item/s you wish to advertise to Sporting Gun, Time Inc (UK) Ltd, Pinehurst 2, Pinehurst Road, Farnborough, Hampshire GU14…

Robin’s say A deerstalking friend of one of Robin’s pals ran into trouble from the police… at a landfill site Robin Scott, Editor-at-large There will be exceptions, but most countryside and wildlife police officers that I’ve come across have gained the trust of many shooters. The best appreciate that the support of the shooting community is key to their role. And the effective ones use a quality too often lacking in job descriptions these day: commonsense. What a pity this doesn’t extend to some of their metropolitan colleagues, who wouldn’t know a pheasant from a partridge when stuck under their noses. I’m not kidding. The other day, my best pal’s stalking buddy endured the worst of ordeals caused by an urban cop’s unthinking ignorance, sparked at a landfill site in…

Farlows Litchfield Tweed Field Coat Launched in Farlows new autumn/winter collection last month, the Farlows tweed field coat is an exceptionally practical garment. The tweed is a high twist, compact fabric which will naturally repel moisture whilst being extremely hard wearing. The coat is interlined with a waterproof, breathable barrier lining which will keep the wearer dry and comfortable in all weathers. Price: £695 Visit: www.farlows.co.uk The Original Muck Boot Company Arctic Grip Wellie Get a grip this winter with the new Arctic Grip wellie from The Original Muck Boot Company. The new Vibram sole is engineered to give exceptional grip on wet ice and the boot has 5 to 8mm of CR Flex-Foam and a fleece lining to insulate the wearer from extreme cold. Available in two heights…

Berwick Men’s or Ladies Waterproof Coat • Zips inside to accommodate Alan Paine Aylsham waistcoat • Waterproof and breathable cotton blend outer • Inside collar trimmed with mock suede • Waterproof windbreaker cuffs • Anti-wicking strip hem • Adjustable draw cord waist • Two cartridge pockets with eyelet drainage holes/two hand-warmer pockets/map pocket under front placket/two secure internal pockets • Available in S to 5XL (men’s) or 8 to 20 (ladies) in olive and navy • RRP £224.95 (men’s) £219.95 (ladies) Ilkley Men’s Shirt or two Bromford Ladies Shirts • Soft, minimal iron cotton fabric • Cut to a longer length for comfort • Available in S to 5XL, or 8 to 20, in different check options • RRP £44.95 Berwick Waterproof Shooting Waistcoat • Waterproof and breathable cotton blend…

William Evans New St James Tweed Mens Formal Waistcoat The waistcoat has a six button closure and is fully lined in blue silk. This waistcoat is new for the 2017 season and can be matched with the sports jacket and formal tweed trousers. Price: £150 Visit: www.williamevans.com HJ Hall Worker durable socks This high performance outdoor sock has been constructed with hardwear in mind – a reliable pair of workwear socks Price: £11.50 Visit: www.hj.co.uk First Tactical Tactix 0.5 day backpack This backpack features First Tactic’s innovative Lynx™ Laser Cut Platform amd imclude the Hook & Hang Thru™ compartment. Price: £129.95 Visit: www.firsttactical.co.uk Fish4Dogs fish and apple treats . Like humans, dogs have an extremely sweet tooth. The launch of Sweet Ocean Wraps promises to give our four-legged friends a…

In terms of real-world performance, it’s very hard to knock. I spotted crows out to 200m, rabbits 250m. A couple of foxes, again around the 200m mark, plus countless squirrels and pigeons. The only situation that caused a slight drop in performance was an evening’s rabbiting. Persistent cold drizzling rain dropped the relative temperature of everything to pretty much the same level, losing contrast and flattening the overall image. The rain had no effect on the critters which still stood out strongly. Colonies of bugs in the trees and even those under the bark were easily spotted at close range. Perhaps the important point being that I didn’t really think twice about continuing to use the Quantum in wet weather, I’m not sure I’d do the same with some of…

“Variety was the watchword of the day, as it should be with any memorable day” I have been fortunate enough to be involved in the wonderful world of fieldsports for most of my life. From rough shooting with my father to great times on the beating lines, I can still claim that one of my greatest achievements was to be head beater by the age of 18. Such was my devotion to the line, I even managed to beat on beaters’ day. And one of the best experiences of my life was to spend my gap year working as a gamekeeper (although it certainly took some explaining during fresher’s week). As the years have passed and other responsibilities have taken hold, when I pick up a gun it is for…

Place: Sporting Targets, Knotting Lane, Riseley, Bedfordshire MK44 1BX. Email general@sportingtargets.co.uk, tel (general enquiries) 01234 708893 or (gunshop) 707005. Easy to find? Yes and no. Although the ground is tucked away off one of the many small lanes in and around the villages of North Bedfordshire. Sporting Targets is easily found on satnav. The ground is also well-signposted just one mile outside Riseley. 9 Disciplines: You’re spoilt for choice here with an endless selection of Sporting stands plus Down-the-Line, English Skeet and Sportrap layouts. There’s a driven grouse range too, but the real cream comes in the shape of three awesome towers – 120ft, 110ft and 60ft high! If you need more entertainment, try your hand on the air rifle range, archery gallery or 4x4 quad track. 10 Target…

The answer to this question has to be a resounding YES, it does matter a great deal – for a variety of reasons. The most important, and obvious, is that with poor gun fit the gun is less likely to be pointing at the target or where the shooter is intending. This in turn can cause the shooter to unknowingly develop all sorts of corrective measures to address the problems. What can sometime be worse is that these can become learned bad habits and are difficult to shake off. Shooting with a shotgun is an “art form”, based on a relaxed, easy and natural technique, ideally shooting with both eyes open to perceive distance and depth of field without conscious thought. Unlike that of a rifle, which is altogether a…

“I can’t beat the feeling of pulling a duck off of its course and straight in” Idon’t often leave the house during the season without my trusty calls around my neck. I am a great believer in the use of calls on the foreshore, and I am convinced that they often enhance my sport, thus producing more food for the table. I carry the standard mallard call or two, and a range of goose calls for the numerous different species. However, I do have the odd extra call that can help pull in birds when others have failed. A few years ago, I wrote two articles on standard duck and goose calls, covering a standard mallard call in the duck piece. This month I’m looking into the other calls that…

“The roar of wings can be heard from some distance” Heard faintly in the half-light of dawn, the distant “wink-winking” calls of pink-footed geese are guaranteed to send a tingle down the spine of even the most hardened wildfowler. Often first glimpsed as little more than a distant, undulating grey line rising above the horizon, the moving shape gradually materialises into geese as they approach, often with other skeins following close. Reaching their destination, each bird sets its wings to lose height and, breaking formation, whiffles sharply earthwards to alight. Morning flight Seen against the colourful backcloth of an autumn or winter dawn, the movement from roost, of what can be a huge congregation, is surely one of the greatest and most moving wildlife spectacles in the UK. En route…

Here at Gamegoer Gundogs we spend a lot of time trying to “undo” training issues and it is fair to say that it is always easier not to create the problem in the first place, rather than trying to rectify a “learned” bad habit. The first thing to say is that to steady your dog on both the point and flush you will need some professional help and, more importantly, you need to find a trainer that has experience with HPRs – they will have the proper facilities and experience to put you back on track with your dog. You need to take the dog back to the beginning. In the case of re-training your dog to hold a point, you will need to set up a controllable situation and…

INGREDIENTS Serves 4 • 10 grouse breasts • 10 grouse legs, roasted, de-boned and chopped • 500g pack ready made puff pastry •½tsp oregano •½ red pepper finely chopped •½ green pepper finely chopped • 4 cloves garlic crushed • 1 shallot finely chopped • 1tsp ground cumin • Zest of one lemon • Oil •(Optional) Beaten egg Cooking method 1 Firstly sweat the shallot, peppers, garlic, oregano, cumin and lemon zest until tender, season with salt and pepper and leave to cool. When cool add the grouse leg meat. Pan sear the grouse breasts for two to three minutes on each side, season and then leave to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. 2 Slice the grouse thinly and add to the pepper and leg mix. Roll out the dough to about ⅛in thick and…

WILLIAM MURRAY , LEEDS. Max price: How big’s the win? Type: Over-and-under or side-by-side Main purpose: Game and clays Preferred make: Don’t mind as long as it’s a prestige English name Mike George’s buying advice Frankly, even if I won several million I don’t think I would buy a new Purdey, Boss or Holland & Holland. It’s not that I don’t hugely admire the finest craftsmanship in gunmaking, but I would be frightened of damaging the gun every time I took it out. I’d also like to spend most of the winnings on my family and something good I’d be remembered for, and nobody really remembers a man just because he once owned a really posh gun. However, nowadays there is a way around our dilemma, in that some of…

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— teague chokes u/l— underlever vgc— very good condition DOGS b/w— black and white ess— English springer spaniel ftaw— field trial award winner ftch— field trial champion ftw— field trial winner hpr— hunt, point and…

£950 Stawell Clay Shooting Club’s annual charity clay shoot has raised £950 for Somerset & Dorset Air Ambulance. 400 Police are warning rural workers to remain vigilant after 400 pheasants were stolen from a Hertfordshire village in August. £240kA clay shoot and auction, organised by Gerard Eadie’s Shoot Charitable Trust, has raised almost a quarter of a million pounds for charity. 50 Brian Fratel, the director of fishing at Farlows, will retire in October after almost 50 years with the business. £100k Grouse shooting in North Yorkshire is expected to contribute more than £100,000 to hotels, restaurants and pubs throughout this season, according to a new survey. 1,114 Scottish capercaillie numbers are down from 1,285 to 1,114, according to the results of the latest national survey of their population. £4,200 The…

Newbie I’m pretty new to shooting, having had my shotgun certificate for a year now. I went beating on a local farm shoot last year and have shot some clays and been pigeon shooting with a friend a few times. I was always told that the shooting world is difficult to get into, with people being quite cliquey, so I was just wondering what advice you could give to a person new to the sport. What are the best ways to get involved and get recognised as a responsible shooter? Matt Grigg, Oxfordshire Ed – Thanks for your letter, Matt. Getting a permission is not an easy task. It’s not that shooters are cliquey, but land is a scarce commodity. We will do some articles on this over the next…

I’m sure you have all had days where, no matter what you do, the pigeons simply will not commit to your decoys. Of course, you go through all the likely causes: birds on their backs; the hide’s in the wrong place; whirly is scaring them away, and so on. But, still, the birds just slide past out of range to land, frustratingly, 200 yards further on. For the past four or five outings, Paul and I have experienced a distinct reluctance for the birds to decoy confidently, even though we have still ended the sessions with better than average bags in the 250 to 300 bracket. Talking to other decoyers, they are saying the same thing. So, it got me thinking, what is causing this phenomenon? Factors The fact that…

“If you lift your head you will shoot over the top” There are four basic building blocks for shotgun competence in clay and game shooting. *Stance and balance. *Gun-mount and the avoidance of head lifting. *Gun-swing and an understanding of the gun and target movement. *Lead or forward allowance. The best place to rehearse and train these competencies is on the clayground and you don’t necessarily need sporting targets to do it – everything can be practised on the skeet and trap layouts at your local club. This can be particularly improved if you have a good coach to advise you! Down-the-line Down-the-line trap (DTL) shooting will refine all the four building blocks mentioned above, but this clay discipline is particularly useful for honing the first two: stance and gun…

“My preference is a strong, powerful, determined hob” Given the opportunity, all ferrets – regardless of their background, gene pool, diet, or accommodation – will hunt rabbits with varying degrees of success. Some animals quickly, and naturally, shine with talent, while others are slow to mature but get there in the end with great skill and ability – others can be inconsistent. Required qualities I have worked ferrets from pet stock, wild hybrids, re-captured feral ferrets along with the working strain I keep today. But, the best way forward is breeding the best with the best. That’s not to say it’s a flawless plan because it’s not, and it can throw out animals that may not ever be as good as either parent. Also, you will need to think about…

“To the keen decoyer, oilseed rape can be the next best thing to sliced bread” Here we go again – another rape season! With countless sorties under my belt attempting to shoot woodpigeons over oilseed rape, over the years I’ve developed something of a love/hate relationship with the stuff. To the keen decoyer, at times it can be the next best thing to sliced bread, but while its pigeon attracting qualities are almost year-round and legendary, at worst it can amount to vast acres of the most frustrating stuff you can ever try to protect from damage. Don’t get me wrong – I’ve had my fair share of great days out, with streams of pigeons pouring in virtually non-stop, sessions of fantastic shooting, and even worries about running out of…

“Care must be taken during the off season to prevent weight gain” Vet’s advice Neil McIntosh SG’s gundog health expert Presuming you feel she should be fit enough, it is important to try and separate this problem into two issues – medical and management. The former will clearly require some veterinary input. The latter, some thought and detective work on your part. Medical A large number of medical conditions can cause the loss of form that you describe. Even in a young bitch, womb problems, such as endometritis, can result in a vague malaise that is difficult to diagnose. Often, affected bitches have a poor appetite, an increased thirst and occasionally they vomit. Any vaginal discharge should be reported to your vet. A non-invasive ultrasound scan, coupled with routine haematology,…

“I asked why things had gone wrong in the first place” With about 23,000 certificate holders, Hampshire is a middling size force as far as firearms licensing is concerned. As many readers will know from personal experience, its performance in recent years has left much to be desired. At one stage things were so poor that the force made an apology on Radio Solent. That’s the down side. The upside is that the force has been very open about its problems and has sustained a frank and transparent dialogue with the main shooting organisations through its six-monthly stakeholder meetings. Invitation It’s not often that forces will offer a warts-and-all invitation to visit their licensing department and see what goes on behind the scenes. When Hampshire made the invitation, Sporting Gun…

Tom’s easy recipe Pheasant Curry Ingredients • Onion • Mushrooms • Pheasant breasts • Jar of curry sauce Method To make this super easy pheasant curry, start by frying onions in a little oil in a large frying pan. Stir in sliced mushrooms and fry until browned. Once the onions and mushrooms have softened, add the sliced pheasant breasts and fry for a few more minutes. Stir in a jar of your chosen curry sauce to the pan, bring to the boil and leave to simmer. Finally remove the pan off the heat and serve with rice, poppadoms and naan bread. This is also a great recipe to be done in a slow cooker all day while out on the shoot. Brown the meat off first and add all the ingredients to the slow…

Last month we looked at the laminated metal known as Damascus steel and its use in making gun barrels. As I mentioned in my previous article, Damascus steel (also known as pattern welding) is much older than any firearm, and was first used in the manufacture of sword blades. Named Damascus for its supposed place of invention, no-one is actually sure where the technique was first used. Indo-Persia is the most likely place, however, the Vikings were pattern welding sword blades from around 600 AD. They certainly knew how to produce patterns that could be repeated over and over again, rather than leaving it to random chance. Many of these patterns were incorporated into a given blade to increase its aesthetic qualities, as well as its overall strength. There was…