Home Forums Birds & Dogs Upland Game A shooting observation....

Today had the opportunity to have Merlot do pick-up work at a high tower Pheasant shoot. Around 70 Birds flew above and off to the sides of the three stations I was behind. Of the Birds that passed by 30 plus yards away or above.....only two were brought to ground. Of the total 70....only around 25 gave Merlot work to do.

Addition: With the exception of a few kids whose parents or Grandparents were giving them a great experience….most were adults….and the opportunities not all that difficult.

I've never tower shot pheasant. But, my gut feeling is that a lot of folks are going to look at the whole bird......long tail and all.......rather than look at the beak and shoot behind. Especially at 30+ yards it'll become apparent because a pheasant can be a speedier target than it appears.

Did you ever tell these guys what companies you were paid by in the Turkey hunting and choke tube industries for over twO decades ?

I am participating in a tower shoot in late March. Never done it before. What do you suggest I use? Supposed to be 250 birds not sure how many guns. Thinking a 12 or 20 gauge pump, improved cylinder or maybe modified?

35% sounds a bit better than normal for the average shooter in a pass shooting situation. For the typical shooter, shots beyond 30 yards become very difficult as they tend to have little experience on such shots whether on clays or birds. Trap shooting doesn't help much with those angles and many ranges do not offer skeet and for those that do, many do not attempt it very often. And sporting clays courses are even fewer and farther between not to mention more costly.

I attend 4 tower shoots a year, two as a shooter and two as a dog handler. Two of the shoots attract very experienced shooters, at least sporting clays and often hunting, where the average of birds shot is well over 50%. Even at these a handful of the shooters really boost the percentages upwards though the majority of shooters do better than normal.

The other two are attend by "normal" shooters and the percentage is much lower with again, a few shooters being much more accomplished than the majority. I've seen a 10% hit percentage from some and that might be generous. What was noticeable was these shooters seemed to have as good of a time as the rest which is probably the important aspect of these shoots.

I use a 12 ga O/U with Mod/Full choke. Shots can be out to 50 yards so I equip for the longest shot possibility. One pays for the birds up front so it doesn't make sense to limit one's opportunities. There may be prizes or at least bragging rights for the better shots and I try to give the top guns a run for their money. At the least, I wanted to outshoot an ex-girlfriend's father and uncle!

Another reason I tend to choke tight is the clubs I've done tower shoots have restrictions on shot, two of them limit size to 7 1/2; one at #6; and the other allows non-toxic only with #3 steel, #6 bismuth, or #7 high density shot as maximum sizes. They also limit charge weights to 1 1/8 oz except the one that allows #6 shot which allows 1 1/4 oz. With the limitations, putting down a pheasant can be a little harder at long range so I try to put as many pellets in the bird as possible. I try to not depend on the "golden BB".

Battue,

That sounds like heaven. And I’m not talking about being a shooter, but rather being able to put your retriever to work on that many birds.

Rick,

Yes it was, and the good part being we were told that anytime they have another, to just show up and they will fit Merlot in.

As far as suggestions, I can only say the quality of these events runs from great to poor. A lot depending on the grounds and the effort they place on presenting good Birds.Then there are the Birds themselves. Being pen raised, are they flight strong being the most important. Then there are extenuating circumstances....One of which would be what the wind is doing. On this recent morning the wind was strong right to left of the stands. Which meant in the beginning a lot of the Birds headed towards the left stands.

As far as chokes I like tighter for the most part, but a decent shot could have done well with IC at this shoot. However, that will change depending on the quality of the shoot.

With this shoot the stands were around 30 yards apart...Which means another stand would still be in range of the adjoining stands. No reason to be a hog if one has the skills to be dumping Birds in front of the next stand. You all will most likely have as many chances at the end of the day. Of course, if a couple Buds are trying to have some fun with each other, than have at it as long as the shooting is safe. And there will be some Birds that come out low...So the rule of having a lot of sky under them should always be considered.

Addition: And most likely the shoot will not be over when the last horn sounds. Most of the guys went out with the grounds Dogs and handlers and worked the Birds that got away on the tower shoot.

Sometimes the easiest shots can be the most problematic. Too much time to think about what’s going on. Maybe that’s what was going on here? I’m glad to hear that Merlot got some work in. It is a joy to watch him work. I hope Higgie is coming along well.

Tim,

Thanks...Higgie is a piece of work...So far he has chewed Merlots collar off his neck. Has chewed an antenna off one of my tracker collars and has worked on a bed comforter.

Then he decided he wanted to know what was inside a down comforter....He discovered it was electricity.... The good part is he leaves the furniture alone.

Hope yours is a little less of a pica.....

Hey Harry,

The family cracked up at hearing of Higgie’s antics. Rocky is at it too. He just destroyed a brand new garden hose, and he has pulled the drain pipe off the gutter. He sees nothing wrong! We sure love him though, as he is one sweet boy. Training is coming along pretty nicely. We have fun with him every day!