Camping with shotguns – legal or illegal? Q: I’m planning on going camping with some friends when the weather gets warmer and we’re going to pitch our tents on some farmland where we have a roughshooting permission. The farmer is happy for us to camp there and carry out some…
Advice
What’s the law on transporting shotgun cartridges?
A reader wonders if shotgun cartridges create a potential explosive hazard in a vehicle. Bill Harriman advises.
Standing correctly to shoot clays is a key part of your technique. Here’s how to get it right.
The correct ready position when shooting increases your chance of hitting more clays.
What you need to know about the gralloch when stalking
Deer stalking: I am told you should bury the gralloch but if that is true, then how deep does it have to go?
Can you go clayshooting during pregnancy?
The Clay Pigeon Shooting Association says that we can go back onto the clay grounds from 29th March 2021. We can’t wait to get back out in the fresh air again. But what if you’re expecting a baby? Can you go clayshooting during pregnancy? Is it safe? Could the noise…
I forgot to tell the police about my new gun in time. Now what?
Gun notification is a legal commitment when you’re a shooter. You need to tell the police about owning a new firearm within seven days of buying one. So what happens if you get busy and communicating the purchase of a new gun slips your mind? Here’s what our legal expert…
Trigger freeze – or the ‘flinch effect’. Here’s how to cure it
Trigger freeze – also known as ‘flinching’ is becoming increasingly seen among shooters. For some Guns it only happens rarely, for others it increases over time. It can even cause some Guns to give up shooting altogether. What is trigger freeze or flinching? Flinching is the inability to pull the…
Judging speed of birds
It’s only when you drive down a country road and you have a pigeon fly parallel with your moving vehicle that you come to appreciate its true cruising speed — and it’s not, as published, 35mph. When last I glanced at my speedometer in this situation, it read 48mph and…
Should I use a sound moderator on my airgun?
Q: I’m planning to buy an air rifle to keep down the rabbits in our pony paddocks. I notice that a lot of airgun shooters fit their rifles with sound moderators — surely there isn’t much need to reduce the volume of an air gun’s muzzle report? Is a sound…
Should I start to close an eye when shooting?
Q: As an older Gun I sometimes struggle with my eyesight. I shoot off my right shoulder but my left eye is strong and my right eye is getting weaker. I have always shot with both eyes open but I am wondering whether I should start to close one eye…
Why predation control needs an integrated plan
Let’s start by noting the words ‘predation control’, rather than predator. In managing game and wildlife, how many predators you kill is of no great relevance; rather it is the predation that you prevent that matters. As a consequence, shooting odd random predators is of no great moment. What is…
Where should I keep my gun cabinet keys safely?
I have recently acquired my shotgun certificate and become the owner of a Silver Pigeon shotgun. I have set up a gun cabinet in my home according to the law but I was wondering about gun cabinet keys. Where should I keep the main set and the spare set? What…
Can a local registered firearms dealer ‘confiscate’ an air rifle?
All responsible airgunners should know their airgun law correctly so that their activities don’t put the sport into disrepute. But what happens if an air rifle is confiscated by a firearms dealer? Here’s what our legal expert advised when a reader felt he had a justified complaint as to how…
Can I find a steel-proofed English spec side-by-side?
Q: Much has been said about the steel shot debate and it looks inevitable that many old, and often hand-made, guns will be scrapped or become obsolete ornaments. While there are a huge number of steel-proofed over-and-unders, does anyone make a steel-proofed side-by-side to an English specification for less than,…
15 reasons to date a female Gun
Female Guns are confident. They are used to handling live weapons, they are self-assured and unafraid to ask for what they want. A female Gun appreciates important and interesting conversation about cartridges, the difference between brands and loads and pellet size. She will even join in with and appreciate your…
Want to get involved on a shoot day next season? Here are some of the jobs you could do
Wondering how you can get involved in shooting? Thinking about becoming a beater or a picker-up next season? The most common way to help out during the shooting season is to join a beating team. This can evolve into other jobs on a shoot day and to helping out of…
13 New Year resolutions for shooters
Encourage more people to eat game. This is one of the most important ways we can support our sport and ensure its future. Cook game whenever you can and encourage people to try it when they’re shopping in supermarkets – after all, Asda, Morrisons, Waitrose and Sainsburys all stock game…
Choke options for shotguns – just what are they?
The issue of shotgun chokes and which combinations are winners raises its head regularly in the shooting world. For some, it is a subject worthy of hours of deliberation and debate. For others, it is far less concerning. As a youth I recall a farmer who had a Mossberg pump-action…
How to think positively on a shoot day
We’ve all been there. We were shooting perfectly well and then, on one drive, we inexplicably have the equivalent of a batting collapse. Just as perfectly competent batsmen seem incapable of performing even the most basic functions under increasing pressure and are sent back to the pavilion, so we cannot…
Am I rushing my second shot?
Q: I have started to struggle with hitting two birds on the trot with a slight gap between them. I often kill the first bird and miss the second, is there anything I can do that will help? A: You are clearly doing something right as you say you are…