Pigeon shooting guns for under £9000

Pigeon shooting has changed significantly in the last 60 years. I have heard tales of young lads heading out into the field using strips of torn up newspapers as decoys, bringing in hundreds of birds.

Now there is a simply bewildering array of pigeon shooting accessories available on the market.

It is not without reason – pigeon shooting is a time-consuming and difficult sport; getting the birds to come to you is difficult and the birds themselves are fast and unpredictable.

Indeed, many serious shots credit pigeon shooting as the very best type of shooting available, speaking of the vast challenge of attracting these wily birds to just the right spot for a clean, satisfying kill.

Gone are the days when 10 grey plastic drain pipes cut in half and into the rough shape of a pigeon placed in the middle of a field would be enough to attract the pigeons.

However, proper preparation is just as essential as ever, and a couple of days spent watching movement patterns in the field will pay dividends.

Look out for regular flight lines and a good spot for building your hide in particular.

PROPER TECHNIQUE
Just as choosing the right equipment and deploying it appropriately is essential to bringing the pigeons in, using the proper technique and selecting the right gun is paramount.

STEADY AND SMOOTH
In order to stand, mount the gun and swing through on a bird for a successful kill simultaneously, you will need a gun which you are comfortable with.

For regular, consistent kills, therefore, proper gun fit is absolutely essential.

I have selected two side-by-sides and an over-under, but the most obvious choice might be a semi-auto.

Guns of this type are often used for pigeon shooting, and there is a vast array of them on the market.

There are excellent semi-autos available from Beretta, Benelli and Browning for around £1,000-£1,500, but for if you?re looking for a reliable semi-auto which handles well, you won?t go far wrong with an Escort from Hatsan.

These Turkish guns are only £450, and are a good buy.

Think like a pigeon In the past when I have gone pigeon shooting with a semi-auto, the only difference I found was my contribution to the cartridge manufacturer?s turnover increased somewhat.

However, I have seen one or two more professional pigeon shooters consistently get three birds dead in the air.

The old masters such as Archie Coats implored us to ?think like a pigeon?, a maxim carried forward by the modern greats such as Shooting Gazette?s own Will Garfit.

But with the modernising of pigeon shooting equipment, from moving decoys to high-tech layered camouflage nets, the whole affair can be quite overwhelming.

However, on the days when the birds do throw caution to the wind and commit themselves to the decoys well, or when roost shooting in early February when they take to the woods, there is no more satisfying type of shooting.

AYA Yeoman shotgun

£250
My first selection this month is an old favourite. During the 1970s and early 1980s we quite simply could not get enough of the AYA Yeoman – it was a wildly popular gun, perfect for pigeon shooting.