Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game How much time….

… do you feel you really need to make a solid, well-aimed shot?




You guys that have 'been there' know the deal: sometimes you have lots of time, sometimes the opportunities are sudden and brief. How much time do you need to make a confident shot?

I have made shots where there was less than 5 seconds between the time I saw the moose and the boom. Maybe 2-3 seconds to get on target and squeeze one off.

Prefer more time than that though if I can get it..Id love to consistently have 10 seconds to make the shot.

For me, it's directly related to rifle fit.....I'm fussy as hell about fit......no searching for scope view.....no extraneous bubba equipment hanging on my rifle. I grew up hunting whitetails in thick woods....much like wingshooting.

I would have to say distance is certainly a factor as are such factors as can I get a rest. If it's relatively short (and you can get a rest or sling up), I'd say 3-5 seconds, but every situation is different as you well know

Sometimes having too much time can be a worse enemy.

Given my druthers I'd rather take a good rest and a deliberate shot. It don't allways work that way though, my last whitetail buck a 4x6 I took from offhand at 65 yds, the buck was running for all he was worth left to right, total time less than a second just like shotgunning on flushing birds you run on instinct or forget about it. That rifle an I been together for 45 years so I can get away with saying I am familiar with it. I am not telling anyone else how to do their shooting, I've shot a fair amount of running game and got the job done contrary to the advice of some internet experts on the fire. Some folks hunting out there just don't have a kill mode and screw around forever trying to get a shot off. Lack of skills, lack of experience, whatever can't talk for anyone. It isn't my problem on anything I'm after sitting, standing, walking, running, or flying I operate off instincts. You asked Magnum Man

I can either take the shot within 8-10 seconds, or I have to wait for a minute (or more) to get my adrenaline and breathing to a manageable level.

No right or wrong answers here….sounds like plenty of honest expressions, and that counts a lot.

It depends. If you need to range the animal and try to read the wind it and take a rest can take a while. But this year I saw a buck at 40 yards. I got the crosshairs on him and they settled down quickly on his neck. From the time I saw him to the time he was dead was 4-5 seconds. You don't have a lot of time in thick stuff.

Not as long as I thought, in general terms. My best buck this past year was a huge 8 pointer I shot offhand at a lasered 325 yards. He was courting 6 does when I spotted him. 2.5-3 seconds later he was on the ground. I surprised myself on that one, but was quite deliberate in my aiming, even while rushed. It was a nice heart shot. I practice a lot though,so the shot was do-able. Yep, I've missed some too before!

The last deer I killed was a 151 yard offhand shot with my .280AI.

It took about 10 seconds from the time I first spotted him to the time he was down.

Depends on the rifle. If it fits right, it's no different than one of my bird guns. I have killed a number of deer in very much the same fashion over the years. But...

I have also had to set up several times on a deer with a decent fitting rifle because it just didn't feel right. suppose how much I have been shooting lately makes a difference too.

Some people seem to walk the same trails….. (I probably shoot wrong, but I know how to be wrong consistently. )

The last 3 moose have gone down in 5 seconds or less. Took so long on that double tined one (3rdone back) because of antler restrictions..... All were standing still inside 100 yards. Tho I do admit that one back on Nov 2 at 30 yards I was already set up across the snow Machine seat as rest.. The second bull coming up over the bank and overlapping him slowed me down a bit..had to make a blink observation and a decision.....

I have killed a few(3-4)in around 3 seconds. Mainly because we saw one another at the same time and it had to be done quick. No time for precise aiming...aimed at center mass and pulled the trigger. powdr

All depends on distance, game, rest...
I grew up hunting quail which is like fast-draw with a shotgun so am used to getting on target and getting the shot off as soon as the sight picture looks right.
With an alert animal, you may only have 2 seconds so if you are not set up for a confident shot, your opportunity may be gone.

Distance and conditions play as big a role as anything else. It can vary from "oh schit... boom!" with very few seconds elapsed to waiting minutes for the perfect angle.

I took a decent 8 this year at about 75 yards. Total elapsed time from seeing the buck to squeezing the trigger was well under 10 seconds. I've taken others that I know were in about 1/2 that time, and one last fall that had to be in range and with me waiting for exactly the right shot for over 5 minutes.

It has varied from as quick as 3-4 seconds to as long as three hours waiting on a bull elk to step out from behind a tree. I once stepped off my horse and shot a buck as he jumped some brush going dead away and he hit the ground so hard it broke his lower jaw. Probably four seconds from time I saw him till he hit the ground.

Fred

I've never understood how a person could be successful if they couldn't get off a decent - not talking a 0.6525" precise- shot within about 3 seconds. It is truly painful to watch a person have to 'get set up', then take 10-15 seconds or better to get everything pointed 'right,' while the quarry saunters out of view.

I well remember a time when 'meat' was spotted and rifles were flipped off the shoulder as the bull walked up through scattered trees. There was no time for 'exactifying' anything: boom, boom; bullets 'whapped', and the third guy was still standing there with his rifle across his back wondering what just happened.

Another fellow who was a rather annoying acquaintance….I helped him look for a nice caribou. We found a good-looking bull - along with three or four lesser animals. The distance was perhaps 200 yards, if that. He was shooting a borrowed 300 mag with a 3-9x on it. He was looking through the scope. I asked him if he could see the bull.

"I can't see it."

"There's a cow coming up first, then a smaller bull; the big one is right behind that one. Do you see him?"

"Yeah, I got him. I think I better hold over."

"No, hold right on him; the rifle is sighted 1" high at 100. It's good."

BOOM………..snow sprays over the back of the small bull.

"You held over didn't you?"

"Yeah, that's a long ways."

"Well, that was the smaller bull anyway. The big one is right behind him. Hold right…." BOOM

The small bull fell.

And this was a fellow who had repeatedly bragged about his old military rifle he was so good with and could hit grapefruit at 300 yards with irons……offhand….

Needless to say, I was not much surprised when he later Gerbered himself while attempting to skin the animal.

Klikitarik;
Good evening to you sir, hopefully the week has treated you and your fine family well.

Once upon a time my hunting partner noted that I was the fastest shot he'd ever hunted with - and when our girls started hunting I told them both that on average we'd get a 5 count on a whitetail buck.

I'll note that old mulies before the rut don't hang about any longer than they need to either, especially if the wind isn't in one's favor.

Anyway sir, we've got point restrictions and multiple species to deal with where we hunt - but I'm fairly confident in saying that if the animal is within my comfort zone for distance then I'll be able to get a shot off in no more than a five count.

As others have noted, the rifles I head up the mountain with are set up for me and that's a huge benefit when one is trying to shoot under pressure in a timely manner.

Thanks for the interesting read tonight sir and all the best to you folks this spring.

Dwayne

I go crazy in front of the TV watching the nimrods wait until the animal is perfectly broadside and stopped dead still. Watched someone pass on a quartering walking shot at 100 yards on a caribou and wait until the animal was close to 300 yards away before he gave the right presentation. I was jumping up and down yelling "Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!"
Guess I'll never be on one of those hunting shows.