Author Topic: How many of you.... (Read 815 times)

xphunter · « **on:** March 17, 2005, 07:20:43 AM »

I posted this on the Thompson Center forum, but I know not everyone reads both so I wanted to ask here also:
How many of you get off the bench and shoot from field positions at unknown distances with your hunting handguns?
I prefer painted steel, since it is easier to see and hear.
What about you?

willis5 · « **Reply #1 on:** March 17, 2005, 08:04:25 AM »

I don't shoot my hunting handguns from a bench unless I am sighting in or checking my zero. I shoot from ladder stands or on the ground in various positions. That is how I hunt, not from a bench.
Willis

xphunter · « **Reply #2 on:** March 17, 2005, 08:31:25 AM »

willis,
Same here. Bench use is for me a load development or a zero re-check.
What kind of handgun do you use and how far do you shoot when field practicing?
I can't say I don't shoot from the bench on other occassions, because I do, but the ranges 500+.

Dusty Miller · « **Reply #3 on:** March 17, 2005, 10:54:10 AM »

500 what? Yard? Feet? Inches? Millimeters? What I'd like to know is where others draw the line using a handgun. I've got a 44 mag. with a six inch barrel and a Bushnell Holoscope that shoots a 336 gr. WLN cast bullet and right now I'm not going to try and take a pig at any distance over 100 yards and I'd prefer to keep it to 50. Now with my FA 454 Casull launching a 345 grain bullet I'm very confident at 100 yards with a rest and maybe I'd go 150. I guess Elmer Keith could take game at 200 yards with a 44 mag. but there was only one Elmer Keith.

xphunter · « **Reply #4 on:** March 17, 2005, 11:10:07 AM »

Yards.
I'm not Keith, and don't pretend to be.
I rarely use a revolver or straight-wall cartridge to hunt with anymore, although I sure did have fun hunting with my 7.5 inch FA 454 (field grade) when I had it.
I practice beyond the ranges I actually hunt at. Since I use specialty handguns in rifle cartridges, that allows me to go easily past 200 yards, when the conditions are right.
My minimum practice distance with steel targets is 150 yards.

xphunter · « **Reply #5 on:** March 17, 2005, 11:17:34 AM »

Sorry, just realized I didn't answer all of your questions.
As far as drawing the line on distance as far as hunting is concerned I believe it is dependent on a number of factors:
Cartridge and bullet construction (type and BC) you are using.
External conditions like high winds.
Internal conditions as a high heart rate.
Field accuracy of your handgun and the abilities of the one using it.
The type of rest you actually have in the field.
Presentantion of the animal, etc.
There are times I wouldn't take a shot @ 100 yards on a deer where if the conditions were right I wouldn't hesitate @ a 350 yard shot.
Again, I am not using a revovler. If I was it would still all apply although my distances would be shorter.

SLAVAGE · « **Reply #6 on:** March 17, 2005, 12:24:14 PM »

i say only take a shot that your 100% sure of making
i can hit a plate at 150 yards with my 41 super blackhawk hunter but never im my dreams can i hit a deer at that range with it my hearts pounding 400 beats a sec lol
what we do is get one of them dog runner cable thingys lol thats a good name for it
its wire with two wheels on it an put a carboard deer on it an about 80 yards
so far i can make 4 out of 6 shots with it in the kill zone the other two all ways end up in the ass lol
so i only take shots at a deer that are less than 70 yards with my hand gun an were i hunt its thinker than dog dirt an over 100 yards are very uncommen

i hope that helps out some

Jerry Lester · « **Reply #7 on:** March 17, 2005, 02:06:29 PM »

Other than load development, or sighting in, all my handgun shooting is done from either offhand, or some other type of field position. I also regularly take on targets from off the barrel out to around 150 yards (almost always unknown ranges) just to stay sharp.

For the record, my hunting range limit is about 50-60 yards, with 10-30 yards prefered.

xphunter · « **Reply #8 on:** March 17, 2005, 06:22:02 PM »

Do any of you have access to a multiple steel target range where you can engage targets (at unknow distances) from a variety of angles and stances?

Questor · « **Reply #9 on:** March 18, 2005, 03:16:01 AM »

What's a bench? Oh! you mean that wooden thing that we use every now and then to sight in a new gun.

I use field positions almost exclusively and most of the guns I own have never been shot from a bench.

longwalker · « **Reply #10 on:** March 18, 2005, 03:43:05 AM »

I use one to check point of impact and load development. When using a bench I rest my place my elbows on the bench and rest my forearms on a bag, it's a two hand grip, and I fire double action. My hunting revolver is a SRH in 44 magnum.

Longest shot maybe 65 yards at a buck out in a bean field. Closest shot 5 yards on a walking doe. If you hunt with a hand gun you must be able to judge your ability and take or pass on the shot. Heart pounding excitement is what you must be able to handle. Lets face it the reason handguns were invented was to deal with danger in high stress situations. Practice with your gun, there is no substitute for trigger time. Join a hand gun club and participate in the activities you will gain experience and confidence.

longwalker

xphunter · « **Reply #11 on:** March 18, 2005, 03:49:55 AM »

longwalker,
Have you found that the further away the animal is the calmer you are and the closer they are the more excited you become?
I have found that to be a general rule with me.