Shooting is rightly proud of its safety record. Compared with any other sport you care to name its safety record is second to none. In fact accidents of any sort are exceptionally rare. This happy state of affairs exists because sportsmen treat their gun and fellow shooters with the utmost…
Safety
Rifle safety
Safety On ranges, carry your rifle barrel up – if a round is fired towards the ground, there is a danger of ricochet. Always check after firing that your chamber is clear, and remove the bolt once you have finished firing your rounds. Many ranges insist on breech flags to show…
Why you should never fire a gun without wearing ear defenders
This tale of ringing in the ears, light-headedness, mild nausea and headaches will have you reaching for the ear protection every time you shoot
Etiquette: How to get invited back to shoot
Receiving an invitation to go shooting of one of the sport’s great pleasures. Hopefully you’ll receive several during the season. But have you never noticed a falling-off in the offers you receive. Or wondering why they have stopped altogether? What is the problem? Could you be doing something wrong? We…
Learning to shoot and cook game in Somerset
My experience of clay pigeon shooting has largely been limited to team-building days. And I found them immensely frustrating. For whilst some of my colleagues picked up their shotguns and were away, hitting clays with just about every shot, I was a complete amateur and a quick 10 minute lesson…
Airgunning in the cold
A lot of airgunners are fair-weather shooters; they take to the fields and the woods when the temperature is warm and the days are long, then pack their rifles away as soon as the chill of autumn sets in. As lovely as it is to enjoy our sport when the…
How to use a high seat for deer culling
There are plenty of stalkers who poo-poo the notion of using a high seat: “That’s not stalking,” they say, “you’re not using any fieldcraft.” They do have a point. However, high seats can be one of the most useful tools in culling deer. They give you the chance to observe what is on a patch of ground,…
10 shooting tips you need to know
To avoid frustration when out shooting in the field this season, follow these ten shooting tips.
10 tips for being the perfect shooting host!
Read our quick guide to becoming the perfect shoot day host!
10 top tips for women shooters
1. Join a club The shooting community is a warm one and there are new clubs springing up all over the country for ladies. The Shotgun and Chelsea Bun Club is one of the foremost. Founded and run by Victoria Knowles-Lacks, it prides itself on being inclusive and welcoming. Brilliant baking…
Pardon? Why shooters should ALWAYS wear ear protection
One of the safety rules of shooting should certainly be that the shooter wears efficient ear protection at all times. Take a cavalier attitude to protecting your hearing and you risk profound deafness and the lifelong misery of tinnitus with all the discomfort, annoyance, dizziness and disorientation that comes with…
Top pigeon shooting tips from Will Garfit
Want to make the most of your sporting day? Here are 10 practical pigeon shooting tips.
Why unannounced police visits are wrong
As new Home Office guidance sanctions evidence-led unnanounced police visits, David Frost explores the contradictions of this punitive campaign
How to stop a dog fight
Three Shooting Times gundog experts consider the best way to stop a dog fight – and how to prevent it in the first place
Bullet placement when deer stalking
Stalking trends come and go. From calibres to optics, all have their time. Fashion also influences the shots we take, and currently the head or high neck shot seems to be in vogue. Of all the decisions a stalker makes, bullet placement is surely one of the most critical. Not…
The shooting safety rules
When going back to basics, the first rule of good shooting must always be safety
Rabbit shooting – safety is no accident
Rabbit shooting can be as risky as it is thrilling. Simon Whitehead takes a few friends rabbiting to highlight the potential dangers of shooting over ferrets
Safety review for country workers
It has recently been announced that an inquiry is to be conducted into the death of a Scottish gamekeeper, which could have major implications for people who work alone in remote areas of the countryside throughout the UK.