16ga.com ~ View topic - preseason tune-up

Joined: 13 Jun 2006 Posts: 145 Location: minnesota

took the 870 over to the target range yesterday with 2 of my shooting/hunting buddies and shot some wobble trap.
starting in the low-gun position, i went 44 of 50 and 45 of 50 Very Happy

my 2 pal's, both shooting 12's, and starting in the gun mounted position, both came in at least 10 clays behind on both rounds.
when asked why i start with the gun down, my reply is always "i've never had a rooster flush when i yell pull! in the field"
aside from being one of only two shooters with 16's at my club, i'm also in the minority when starting "gun down" at sporting clay's events. Surprised

my question to the board: how many of you out there frequently shoot from "low gun" in preperation for the bird seasons

That's great shooting low gun from the 16 yard line!
No better pre-season tune up than standing about 5 yds behind the trap house and shooting wobble trap with a low gun-and the open choke upland guns do just fine.

Member Joined: 09 Oct 2005 Posts: 76 Location: Denver

To answer your question, I always shoot low gun at every shot gun game. After I gave up on serious trap and started sporting clays, I can’t stand to have the gun up in my face. Starting down just makes sense for wing shooting practice. However, it does cost me targets in trap and skeet. Sporting clays I’m not so sure about.

I shot a round of sporting clays on Saturday with five other folks and I was the only one starting from a low gun position. Also the only 16g (Merkel 1620), and the only SxS. The other guns were all 12g sporting clays O/U’s, a few with adjustable combs and pads. There was much changing of chokes. We shot five stations on the easier front ten and five stations on the harder back ten at our local club. Final high scores were 84 (Browning 525), 80 (Perazzi with one of those bionic stocks) and 76 (me).

The Merkel is my first SxS and I’ve only been shooting it a few months, but I have the following observation. With 7/8 oz of 8’s it seems to be fine on crossers out to about 45 yds or so (when I do my part). After that, it seems harder to get the gentle movement I think is required for longer crossers. A longer barreled, heavier gun works better for me. Also, I can’t shoot the high tower with it very well. These days, my excuses at the sporting clays course tend to be: the Merkel is too light, the chokes are too loose, or I had something in my eye, depending on the circumstances.

That said, it has become my gun of choice, its really fun to shoot. Now I’m thinking about getting another SxS!

Good shooting Paul Cool

You might hold off getting a new gun-I suspect thuddd's Merkel will be for sale after his Kansas performance (after you fish it out of the pond) Very Happy

Good shooting Paul. Sounds like you were at Kiowa mentioning the tower.

I do all my clays shooting now with a low gun. The only interest that I have in scores is to gauge whether I am improving Very Happy

or getting worse Embarassed

. My last SC round was with my Merkel and I shot over 70. But I need to build some lighter loads than the 1 oz loads that I used that day.

Also used the Merkel on the Sage grouse opener and in Nebraska Sand Hills this past weekend. I smacked a few Sage grouse but got no reasonable shots at the chickens and sharptails. I will post some pics later this week showing 16s in action.

Member Joined: 25 Jul 2006 Posts: 781

Skeet, S. Clays and 5 stand are all low gun games with me. I have tried shooting them with a mounted gun and just can't do it.

But I do shoot trap with a mounted gun and it work's for me.

Jeff

Sporting Clays, low gun. I pretty much learned to shoot that way and for reasons already mentioned in this thread, I don't even attempt a premount.

One exception is a rabbit presentation where the window precludes anything but. Somehow, it just doesn't feel like "real" shooting to me though.