Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Long range whoppers and other shooting BS

My favorite is from those who I've party hunted with: "I forgot my knife" or "my knife isn't sharp".

They only go once.

Few years back I was in Kansas with a couple of friends, shooting P Dogs, wind was blowing hard from my right, P. Dog waaay out there, friend spotting for me, i shoot and hit about 6" left, make a adjustment, shoot again, hit same place, adjust more right, hit same place,i said i'm wasting ammo, friend said shoot one more, your digging a hell of a canyon next to him, he may fall in it and break his neck. Rio7

Rio7, that’s the kind of friend everyone needs. 😁

In the 70’s Mossberg owned Pedersen Custom Guns located at the same address. 7 Grasso Avenue. North Haven, Ct. They did put out a rifle from this shop based on a Mossberg design.

That's quite a coincidence, I had a "non-gunny" friend tell me the same thing about his 336 the other day. I just smiled and changed the subject.

drover

🤣

knew a small gunshop owner that would hunt Colorado in the 60's.
told of shooting a huge mule deer buck at 600 yards across a canyon.
"took my 30-06, the buck was running full out on the side hill. I held on his nose and broke his neck with one shot!. we paced it off at 600 yards!"

I always tell liars "the bullet has to land somewhere"

I saw an Ad in the Baker Montana newspaper: for sale a “bend over shotgun”. Always wondered if it was painted white for high class weddings.

I’ve always wondered, pre range finder days, how they paced off cross canyon shots. Do they pace down to the bottom, back up to the animal, estimate the angle between the two sides of this forming triangle then apply the laws of sines and cosines to find the distance of the shot, which would now be the final leg of this non right triangle? Wow! Incredible shots and talented mathematicians.

I am not a long range guru. I've never lived anywhere or belonged to a range with long range opportunities beyond 200 yards. As a result when faced with the buck of a lifetime who stood broadside at a lasered 350 yards I gave him a pass as I just didn't know for certain how much holdover to factor in. I've gotten good mileage telling that tale on myself the last couple years (like I did just now)!

Every hunting trip "out west" in my life netted my animals at short range, furthest shot being maybe 60-70 yards, including a couple antelope. My outfitter/guide, Randy Grier in Gillette, WY, liked to see me coming as he liked that I was willing to stalk/crawl or fail trying.

Had to listen (there was only 1 campfire) to a guy who thinks the sun rises and sets on the 6.5 PRC. Now, I've shot 1 cow elk with the PRC, but it's not like I'm gonna ask it out on a date.

Anyways, he tells the story of bringing his BIL out west to hunt elk. He told him not to worry about bringing an "elk rifle", 'cause you're gonna use my PRC.

So, he "eyeballs" an elk at 1,000 yards. That's right, he spotted an elk, in elk country, 1,000 yards away unaided by glass. Then, they "sneak" to 800 yards where said story teller decides it's close enough for the BIL to shoot. Hell, I can walk upright whistling Dixie on an elk that is 1,000 yards away. And why 800? Why not 700? Or 600? Oh, well.

Now it's the moment of truth. The story teller spins the dial-a-distance knob on the scope, and hands the rifle to the BIL who, btw, HAS NEVER SHOT THE RIFLE, and tells him to let 'er rip, tater chip. And sure enough, 1 shot later the elk tips over due to the sheer awesomeness of his beloved 6.5 PRC.

Oh, yea, almost forgot. During that particular campfire and hunt, the story teller was the only one to not tag out. Something about the scope being off...

Got myself one of those tall tales:
I was sitting with a shooting buddy on a high bank overlooking a small river in the high desert about half way between Reno and Susanville. We spotted a jackrabbit below us on the other side of the river, going away at maybe 125 yards out. I placed both forearms on my raised knees and wrapped both hands around my little Walther PP .22LR. Keeping the front sight centered in the rear notch, I raised it above the notch “some,” placed the jackrabbit on top of the front sight and squeezed the trigger single action. Darned if I didn’t roll that jackrabbit. My buddy was thoroughly stunned. He told that story to nearly everyone who would hold still long enough to hear it, while I just stood by silently. I was certainly happy he didn’t ask me to do it again. Bullet had to go somewhere; bad day for that jackrabbit.

Going with the RSO duty stories. Couple guys show up with 30 minutes to go before range is closed. Run a target out to two hundred and sprint back. Put three boxes of 7mag in the dirt and never hit the target. After the fact they say its brand new and never been shot. We just shake our heads and say you should have let us know and we would have told them to put it up at 25.

That barrel sure got a break in though.

Hell, if it was a bolt action that wasn't pathological it would be no trick at all to have it hitting near the middle of a sheet of paper on the first shot at 100 yards.

Guy I grew up with has one that he never talks about because people call B.S. on him. Back in 1969 a few of us were shooting .22's in an old dump on a dirt road. Finished up and were back at the car parked on the side of the road. Just putting guns into the trunk when something in the field across the road caused a pheasant to flush and take off. This guy still had his .22 loaded (unsafe move), threw it to his shoulder, swung it like a shotgunner, fired one round and the bird crashed to earth instantly, That bird to be at least 50 yards away, going from right to left, when he hit it. It was a solid head shot on a flying pheasant at least 50 yards away with a 22LR...... We stood there stunned for a couple seconds but not as stunned as the guy who just pulled the trigger in front of about 3 witnesses. What were the odds of him making that shot ? Pretty cool just to have been there to see it myself.

Same gun shop in PENN a customer was telling an employee that he shot a turkey and it took off flying, but he heard it crash to the ground a split second later. He said he looked for a couple of hours but couldnt find it.
The next morning he went back and looked again and finally found it but something had eaten half of it. He hunted the same area a couple of days later and called in another turkey, shot it, and it also flew off, but he heard it hit the ground. Once again he looked and couldnt find it, and once again he went back the next morning and found the second turkey half eaten. One of the ladies working the counter said, "You should have kept both of the half eaten birds, that way you would have one whole turkey. About 4 customers and 2 employees burst out laughing and the guy turned beat red

That's funny.

I read a story once. An LEO working the border country down south had shot a rabbit on patrol. Later that day he picked up a couple suspects for transport in the back seat. Being alone in the endeavor, he had an idea to impress compliance upon his guests. So he stopped the patrol car a mile or so from where he had shot the rabbit. He got out and fired his sidearm in the general direction of the dead rabbit, his passengers observing. Returning to the wheel he drove on to where the rabbit lay, got out, walked to it and held it up for the passengers to see. IIRC the LEO was named Bill Jordan.

Not saying the story isn't true. Only that life is too short to go without a bit of yarn from time to time.
:-)

Nothing for nothing ,My friend from a shotgun only area inPa was here a few years ago put 3out of 3 shots on a 15" steel plate out of my gun at 940 yds. Having never shot passed 200 yds at anything . He was more surprised than I thought possible. My gun , my laser , my charts, my experience, he only pulled the trigger as he was directed.