Wing shooters: question por favor...

[Okla-homey]

Yours Truly has been invited to a pheasant hunting trip up in the Flint Hills next weekend. It's one of these European-style dealios where the birds are driven by beaters. I've never done it. Will I make a total jackape out of myself, or is it rather instinctive if a person is otherwise comfortable with firearms?

FWIW, I'm planning on a lesson at a local trap range this Sunday to get the basic idea.

TIA

[ousoonerfan]

Lead the bird, keep swinging while you fire or you'll shoot behind the bird. I've never done the European style with beaters driving the birds. My group and I go to South Dakota every November and march through the public hunting grounds for five days. The ring-necked pheasant is the most fun bird for hunting IMO.

[Vaevictis]

I hear that it's a major faux pas to shoot someone in the face with a shotgun while on one of these trips. ;)

[olevetonahill]

Yup lead the bird a tad, the Trap thing will help ya with the swing and the follow thru .

[OUHOMER]

Dont these birds fly away from you instead of across?

[Okla-homey]

Dont these birds fly away from you instead of across?

I'm told they don't covey and explode like quail. Instead, I'm told they leap into the air to get their wings under them and then fly low and away.

[SoonerBorn68]

You are correct Homey. Those damn things would prefer to run than fly. When they do flush (sometimes right under your feet) it can get exciting.

[Okla-homey]

I'm also told a grouping of pheasant is called a "nye." As in "Bill Nye the Science Guy." Funky.

[fadada1]

I'm also told a grouping of pheasant is called a "nye." As in "Bill Nye the Science Guy." Funky.

no funkier than a "murder" of crows.

[olevetonahill]

I'm told they don't covey and explode like quail. Instead, I'm told they leap into the air to get their wings under them and then fly low and away.

Been years since I hunted em .
But I remember em Kinda crossin then swingin away from you .
so I guess it depends on how fast you get on target .

[King Crimson]

Been years since I hunted em .
But I remember em Kinda crossin then swingin away from you .
so I guess it depends on how fast you get on target .

when i used to hunt pheasant and quail with my pops and granddad, pheasant there was a lot more depth perception in your shot than quail. bird can be flying in your line of sight but away from you in a much different way, if that makes sense.

[olevetonahill]

when i used to hunt pheasant and quail with my pops and granddad, pheasant there was a lot more depth perception in your shot than quail. bird can be flying in your line of sight but away from you in a much different way, if that makes sense.

Yup it do bro
Like Ive said its been 25 years since Ive Hunted anything . But If I remember the Pheasants right . they Broke Cover any way they could either sideways or straight away . Once they got some air and could see they broke away from you .
Hell I got Most of the Ones I bagged with a 22 . cause they would try to hunker down and Hide .

[goodonya]

Just did the annual S. Dak. trip so I'll pass on what I know.

First, don't shoot the beaters. Don't shoot near the beaters or the dogs. Don't shoot the birds on the ground (it will ID you as a colonist)

I prefer #6 lead magnums in a .16 ga or .12 ga. When you've got birds flying up and away you've got to move the barrel up and into the flight pattern to the point that you cannot see the bird over the barrel. In fact sometimes you cannot see the bird at all.

Good shooting.

[SoonerJack]

We really need Sicem to weigh in on this activity.

[King Crimson]

We really need Sicem to weigh in on this activity.

i already have a routine with the hand lotion and pron...but i'm always willing to listen to an expert.

[IB4OU2]

Homey, I've been to a few Europeon pheasant shoots, the Birds are released and flushed by the beaters or released in front of the hunters in a wide circle either way they were normally high passing targets moving toward you and to either side. If the birds passes you it's normally to late. Instead of practicing at trap I would recommend skeet most of the shots will be coming toward you or to your side. Your shotgun needs to have an improved cylinder, avoid the modified or full. Normally after the European stage is complete you walk up these pen raised birds that are missed or escape using a dog and you still need the improved cylinder because the birds flush really close. Thats just my two cents though...I've been shooting skeet, trap and birds for a while (3 decades). Have fun!

[C&CDean]

I've never done a European hunt, but pheasant are my favorite game bird to eat. I've never hunted them either, but my brother does the South Dakota deal every year, and he says "without dogs, you're pretty much ****ed. Those rascals just keep running and running away from you until a dog can flush them up." He also said they take a second or two where they come up and are kind of hovering before they take off. That is the time to pop em'.

[IB4OU2]

Dean, apparently we don't deserve a response.

You're welcome Homey...

[Okla-homey]

Went to Zink Ranch today (the finest shooting range complex in the United States) and fired three rounds of skeet. Never done so before. By the third round, I was hitting about half of them with the Weatherby double-barrel 12 gauge my colleague loaned me.

I think I have a decent chance of bringing home some pheasant next weekend. I must also report, skeet shooting is da bomb! Waaaay fun. srsly.

http://www.tulsaredcastlegunclub.com/

[Rogue]

I've never hunted with beaters, but I can tell you that when a pheasant flushes nearby it can scare a few drops of **** right out. They're loud! Some are so ground-sneaky you can almost step on 'em before they'll flush.

[IB4OU2]

Went to Zink Ranch today (the finest shooting range complex in the United States) and fired three rounds of skeet. Never done so before. By the third round, I was hitting about half of them with the Weatherby double-barrel 12 gauge my colleague loaned me.

I think I have a decent chance of bringing home some pheasant next weekend. I must also report, skeet shooting is da bomb! Waaaay fun. srsly.

http://www.tulsaredcastlegunclub.com/

Red Castles a nice range....and skeet shooting is ALOT of fun. I shoot/shot at the Tulsa gun club quite a bit. Back when I was shooting alot of skeet my average was 95/100 but it's been a few years since I was involved in tournament shooting. Homey all you need to do now is go out and buy yourself a four barrel set 410/28/20/12 gage.

Good Luck on your hunt!

[ousoonerfan]

We cooked all our pheasant this past weekend.

Teriyaki Pheasant Poppers:

Cut the breast into chunks. Marinate in your favorite teriyaki sauce while you cut bacon and pineapple. Wrap pheasant and pineapple in bacon, secure with a toothpick. Broil in oven for about 30 minutes.

Jalepeno Pheasant Poppers:

Same as above without teriyaki and pineapple.

Your welcome.

:)

[Okla-homey]

Birdhunting AAR:

Okay, here's the dealio. I shot me some skeet last Sunday to get the whole thing worked out in my brain housing group.

Went up to Flint Oak, the premier bird hunting resort in North America on Friday. It's about 100 miles north of Tulsa near a town called Fall River, KS. Checked in around 10am.

We didn't do the European hunts. We did a guided field hunt on Friday, then one on Saturday morning in the blowing snow and again Saturday afternoon.

For the hunts, I was shooting a borrowed Weatherby "Athena" 12 gauge, with a skeet choke in my first barrel, and a modified choke in the second. I loaded 7 1/2 in my first barrel and 6's in my second. We hunted over two English pointers for all three hunts.

My weekend bag: 12 quail, 10 red-legged partridge (chukker) and 18 pheasant.

On the way out, you drive by the processing house and they put the birds, cleaned and vacuum packed into a cooler with your name on it. I am digging on this bird-hunting dealio. It is waaaay cool. I highly recommend it.

And you know what else? I had far more second barrel shells left than I had first barrel shells. IOW, One shot, one kill baby!

here's a linky for the place. It RMFO.

http://www.flintoak.com/

[C&CDean]

Yeah, but who amongst us commoners has lawyerin' money and can afford that ****?

[Okla-homey]

Yeah, but who amongst us commoners has lawyerin' money and can afford that ****?

I wouldn't worry about it, we'll all be in the poor house soon at the rate the Prez is spending OPM.;)

[Preservation Parcels]

Hobbies that fill the freezer make good sense these days. I'm looking forward to the snow going away so that I can plant my gardens.

Nice shooting, Homey.