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Jim's article was written for deer season but this rifle info applies to all kinds of big game hunting. I see many folks in the field and on here posting about spraying the hillside and praying for a miracle they might hit something. Practice shooting and be proud of being a good marksman.
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September 25, 2008
Some tips on making sure your deer gun shoots where it’s pointed
By JIM MATTHEWS Outdoor News Service
Put a group of big game hunting guides together and they will invariably complain about one thing: Hunting clients who can’t shoot their rifles. My favorite descriptive line from one of them is: “He couldn’t hit a barn from the inside.”
They will tell you most hunters are poor shooters, and while I’ve always taken the word “most” with a huge grain of salt, I’m beginning to think they may be right. Recently, I did a story about hunters in the A zone who were using newly mandated non-lead ammunition. Compliance was good. What was shocking was that none of those contacted by Department of Fish and Game wardens had sighted in their guns with the new ammunition.
Not one.
This was a little disconcerting. So I started calling friends and gun shop clerks. I visited a couple of public ranges and watched. What I heard and saw is alarming:
-- Many hunters believe when they buy a gun that it is ready to go hunting, that it will shoot where the sights are looking.
-- A lot of sportsmen think all ammunition of the correct caliber will shoot to the same point of impact in their gun.
-- Even those who do try to sight in their guns, do not have a clue how to accomplish the task and if they manage to hit the target at all, they think that is good enough.
None of these things are true.
With deer seasons about to kick off throughout Southern California’s deer zones (Oct. 11 for most), a basic primer on sighting-in and ammunition variances is in order. If this is old hat to you, pass on this column to people doing it wrong that you meet at the range or in the field.
Rule One: Rifles should be sighted-in or rechecked at the range off a solid benchrest before each hunting season. If the gun gets bumped, dropped off a tailgate, falls down in the closet or gun safe, or crashes to the ground when you stumble while hunting, you should go to a range to make sure the gun is still shooting where the sights are looking.
When I was a kid, I missed an easy shot at a buck with my .243. I used my uncle’s .30-06 to shoot my deer. Later, I found the gun had obviously been banged and the .243 was shooting 18-inches to the left from where the scope was looking. When in doubt, check.
Rule Two: Whenever you change ammunition, your rifle should be checked at the range and resighted in. Very few guns shoot different loads to the same point of impact. Different bullet weights and different brands of ammunition frequently shoot dramatically different than each other. This is true even if you buy the same brand and bullet weight, but purchase the ammunition a year or two apart. Companies frequently change components. Don’t assume, always check.
I once had a .30-06 that was a tack-driver, shooting itty-bitty groups, but it shot every different brand and bullet weight of ammunition to a different point on the target -- and the difference was so great that I would miss a deer at 150 yards if the gun was sighted in with one brand and I shot another. But I also have a .30-06 that shoots just about everything to nearly the same point of impact. Always check.
Rule Three: Learn how accurately your gun shoots. It will help your confidence in the field. I’m so confident in my guns that I’m surprised if I miss in the field.
All of these rules require that you go to a rifle range and shoot your gun. And more is better. New hunters should spend a lot of time at the range and plan on shooting at least a couple of boxes of ammunition over a couple of trips.
At a range recently, I watched three guys show up to check their guns. I could hear their conversation and knew they were getting ready to go deer hunting. One of the guys had a new gun that needed to be sighted in, and the other two were just checking their guns.
They were attempting to do the right thing, but they proceeded to do it all wrong. The first two guys shot three shots off the bench with their guns, resting their elbows on the surface and wobbling all over, but both proclaimed things were good when they managed to hit the eight-inch black circle just two out of the three shots. The other guy’s new gun had been bore-sighted at the sporting goods store, and when his first three shots were also on the paper, they decided they were ready to go. I cringed.
Range-Shooting Basics: The purpose of going to the range is to set up a rock-solid shooting platform so you can test ammunition accuracy and precisely adjust your sights. Most ranges have small sand bags to help you accomplish this purpose. You want to stack up sand bags under the fore end of your rifle and place one under the butt stock of your rifle just ahead of the butt plate or recoil pad. “Mold” the bags to the shape of your rifle stock. When you are done positioning and “forming” the sand bags, your gun should sit upright on its own on the bags and be looking at the exact center of your target. Now all you have to do is nestle up behind the rifle, snuggle up to the stock, and squeeze the trigger. Don’t put your hand between the fore end and the front sand bag. Tuck that hand back under the buttstock by your armpit and apply slight pressure on the left or right side of the stock to make tiny adjustments in crosshair alignment. The crosshairs in the scope shouldn’t hardly tremor as you squeeze the trigger.
Recoil will jump the rifle, and you will have to reposition it again to the crosshairs are exactly in the center of the target. Squeeze off another shot. And then do it again. The three shots should be clustered closely together on the paper. Today’s factory rifles will place three shots in a one to 1 1/2-inch circle at 100 yards, almost across the board. (If your gun doesn’t do that you are using poor benchrest technique or have ammunition that doesn’t perform well in your gun.) Let the gun cool between three-shot groups. If the first three shots are not in the center of the target, take off the scope covers and make the adjustments you need to precisely center the group. Shooting three shots off your wobbly elbows, with shots sprayed over a 12-inch circle, is not the same thing.
It gives you great boosts of confidence to know that you can hit a bottle cap every time at 100 yards with your deer rifle at the range.
But shooting at a range off a steady rest also makes your realize how much the sights jump around in the field from less steady shooting positions. Adrenaline surges when you see game. Your heart pounds after a steep hill climb. Those things and poor field shooting skills can combine to make a hunter and gun incapable of hitting a “barn from the inside” -- even a hunter who can hit that bottle cap at the range.
Field shooting skills are learned from practice. Most of the good hunters I know spend a lot of time shooting, .22s and their big game rifles. Every shot you take makes you more familiar and confident in the shooting process. At the range, they practice offhand, kneeling, sitting down, and using any support that is similar to what they might find in the field. I shoot standing and resting my rifle against the side of a post at the local rifle range. The last several head of big game I’ve shot, or seen shot, were taken as the rifle and shooter braced against a tree, stump, or fallen log. I practice those kinds of shots. While not like a benchrest, those are pretty stable platforms.
Field Shooting’s Only Rule: Use the steadiest position you can find for the conditions when hunting. Never shoot offhand if you can kneel. Never kneel if you can sit. Get the most stable position you can find. If you don’t know, KNOW, that you can precisely make the shot, don’t take it.
=========================================================
September 25, 2008
Some tips on making sure your deer gun shoots where it’s pointed
By JIM MATTHEWS Outdoor News Service
Put a group of big game hunting guides together and they will invariably complain about one thing: Hunting clients who can’t shoot their rifles. My favorite descriptive line from one of them is: “He couldn’t hit a barn from the inside.”
They will tell you most hunters are poor shooters, and while I’ve always taken the word “most” with a huge grain of salt, I’m beginning to think they may be right. Recently, I did a story about hunters in the A zone who were using newly mandated non-lead ammunition. Compliance was good. What was shocking was that none of those contacted by Department of Fish and Game wardens had sighted in their guns with the new ammunition.
Not one.
This was a little disconcerting. So I started calling friends and gun shop clerks. I visited a couple of public ranges and watched. What I heard and saw is alarming:
-- Many hunters believe when they buy a gun that it is ready to go hunting, that it will shoot where the sights are looking.
-- A lot of sportsmen think all ammunition of the correct caliber will shoot to the same point of impact in their gun.
-- Even those who do try to sight in their guns, do not have a clue how to accomplish the task and if they manage to hit the target at all, they think that is good enough.
None of these things are true.
With deer seasons about to kick off throughout Southern California’s deer zones (Oct. 11 for most), a basic primer on sighting-in and ammunition variances is in order. If this is old hat to you, pass on this column to people doing it wrong that you meet at the range or in the field.
Rule One: Rifles should be sighted-in or rechecked at the range off a solid benchrest before each hunting season. If the gun gets bumped, dropped off a tailgate, falls down in the closet or gun safe, or crashes to the ground when you stumble while hunting, you should go to a range to make sure the gun is still shooting where the sights are looking.
When I was a kid, I missed an easy shot at a buck with my .243. I used my uncle’s .30-06 to shoot my deer. Later, I found the gun had obviously been banged and the .243 was shooting 18-inches to the left from where the scope was looking. When in doubt, check.
Rule Two: Whenever you change ammunition, your rifle should be checked at the range and resighted in. Very few guns shoot different loads to the same point of impact. Different bullet weights and different brands of ammunition frequently shoot dramatically different than each other. This is true even if you buy the same brand and bullet weight, but purchase the ammunition a year or two apart. Companies frequently change components. Don’t assume, always check.
I once had a .30-06 that was a tack-driver, shooting itty-bitty groups, but it shot every different brand and bullet weight of ammunition to a different point on the target -- and the difference was so great that I would miss a deer at 150 yards if the gun was sighted in with one brand and I shot another. But I also have a .30-06 that shoots just about everything to nearly the same point of impact. Always check.
Rule Three: Learn how accurately your gun shoots. It will help your confidence in the field. I’m so confident in my guns that I’m surprised if I miss in the field.
All of these rules require that you go to a rifle range and shoot your gun. And more is better. New hunters should spend a lot of time at the range and plan on shooting at least a couple of boxes of ammunition over a couple of trips.
At a range recently, I watched three guys show up to check their guns. I could hear their conversation and knew they were getting ready to go deer hunting. One of the guys had a new gun that needed to be sighted in, and the other two were just checking their guns.
They were attempting to do the right thing, but they proceeded to do it all wrong. The first two guys shot three shots off the bench with their guns, resting their elbows on the surface and wobbling all over, but both proclaimed things were good when they managed to hit the eight-inch black circle just two out of the three shots. The other guy’s new gun had been bore-sighted at the sporting goods store, and when his first three shots were also on the paper, they decided they were ready to go. I cringed.
Range-Shooting Basics: The purpose of going to the range is to set up a rock-solid shooting platform so you can test ammunition accuracy and precisely adjust your sights. Most ranges have small sand bags to help you accomplish this purpose. You want to stack up sand bags under the fore end of your rifle and place one under the butt stock of your rifle just ahead of the butt plate or recoil pad. “Mold” the bags to the shape of your rifle stock. When you are done positioning and “forming” the sand bags, your gun should sit upright on its own on the bags and be looking at the exact center of your target. Now all you have to do is nestle up behind the rifle, snuggle up to the stock, and squeeze the trigger. Don’t put your hand between the fore end and the front sand bag. Tuck that hand back under the buttstock by your armpit and apply slight pressure on the left or right side of the stock to make tiny adjustments in crosshair alignment. The crosshairs in the scope shouldn’t hardly tremor as you squeeze the trigger.
Recoil will jump the rifle, and you will have to reposition it again to the crosshairs are exactly in the center of the target. Squeeze off another shot. And then do it again. The three shots should be clustered closely together on the paper. Today’s factory rifles will place three shots in a one to 1 1/2-inch circle at 100 yards, almost across the board. (If your gun doesn’t do that you are using poor benchrest technique or have ammunition that doesn’t perform well in your gun.) Let the gun cool between three-shot groups. If the first three shots are not in the center of the target, take off the scope covers and make the adjustments you need to precisely center the group. Shooting three shots off your wobbly elbows, with shots sprayed over a 12-inch circle, is not the same thing.
It gives you great boosts of confidence to know that you can hit a bottle cap every time at 100 yards with your deer rifle at the range.
But shooting at a range off a steady rest also makes your realize how much the sights jump around in the field from less steady shooting positions. Adrenaline surges when you see game. Your heart pounds after a steep hill climb. Those things and poor field shooting skills can combine to make a hunter and gun incapable of hitting a “barn from the inside” -- even a hunter who can hit that bottle cap at the range.
Field shooting skills are learned from practice. Most of the good hunters I know spend a lot of time shooting, .22s and their big game rifles. Every shot you take makes you more familiar and confident in the shooting process. At the range, they practice offhand, kneeling, sitting down, and using any support that is similar to what they might find in the field. I shoot standing and resting my rifle against the side of a post at the local rifle range. The last several head of big game I’ve shot, or seen shot, were taken as the rifle and shooter braced against a tree, stump, or fallen log. I practice those kinds of shots. While not like a benchrest, those are pretty stable platforms.
Field Shooting’s Only Rule: Use the steadiest position you can find for the conditions when hunting. Never shoot offhand if you can kneel. Never kneel if you can sit. Get the most stable position you can find. If you don’t know, KNOW, that you can precisely make the shot, don’t take it.
