Well gentlemen I am told that those "cheap" Wal_mart winchester loads have a tendency to expand on the rim or what ever and get stuck in the chamber. I had trouble cycling these loads in my 11-87 last year. Glad to know it's not my gun in any case. But what about you folks here? Any ideas?
I know the sigma or whatever loads jammed in mine....one shot and no ejection or got stuck in the ejection port...
I review in my head over and over what caused the misses i made and try to be aware of that next time i go....that isn't easy if you shot at a hundred crows or so to remember the conditions of each and every shot....however if it was a windy day and the crows had a tail wind? that might be one explanation. With me it is often the use of a new shotgun or new to me shotgun...I have corrected my lead and wow! I started hitting again! I don't know if that is what others face or not..what is mind boggling is someone shoots 500 crows with a .410! Did they just do that one day only or did they use it regularly? That is a huge advantage in areas where you have thousands of crows to experiment with to see how you perform doing that. It is very very interesting. Probably happened at the beginning of the season or some one shot at the crows coming into the roost?
One thing I used to do was to go in the rain using a single barrel where only one crow would come in every 5-10 minutes. easier to wipe off the light rain coming down like drizzle. Naturally you got to know what direction the crows will be coming in-luckily I did! It was a blast but i sure got wet! Next time under those conditions/ i would use a "cheaper' shotgun -a pump...that would have upped my numbers then but ehre again-that was years ago...I doubt i would ever find anything like that again.
Red posted some very good advise about semi autos, make sure all the gas ports are not clogged with carbon. Really scrub out your chamber with a 10 gauge brush in your 12 gauge. Plastic build up can cause problems in guns that are shot a lot.
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To listen to this radio talk show go to episode 12, Bob Aronsohn
okay great advice and I will do that but i hardly shot a box last year...couldn't get out-working-and overly cautious with my shots. One day excessively windy. Weird as when the when kicked up-in they came! far easier for me to hit a single than when they come in a dozen strong...I wasn't in an ideal blind as well...this year I doubt i am going back there anyways...just not enough cows. Better than nothing though...it's all about the place to shoot actually...if you got crows but you can only shoot in one section per the Farmers' rules well.....!!! And that happens to be where the crows ARE NOT. Well I was lucky. But the blind was so-so...anyways I got a bunch of shots off. I learned as to what i was doing wrong or should be better at..one trick is when a crow is flying into the wind it looks like it is going really fast as it is beating those wings really hard but it is an illusion....when I don't see shots like that i don't get skillful at them. So I am smarter.
I think had i gone there earlier in the season I would have done much better. When the snows come it is over up here. But it will be better this year.
It was really something seeing a crow harassing two bald eagles circling where the eastern roost would be later that afternoon...or the eastern roost period..some crows were already settling in there...so those eagles had to be driven off and eventually they wheeled away to the north. The crows returning from the south never even knew they were there earlier. But from personal experience barred and great horned owls have caused crows to go locate another roosting area.
Success shooting the cheaper target rounds will depend on the gun. The shells are plenty good for killing crows but some guns do not handle the cheap stuff well.
My 870 does not handle the cheap stuff well. I'll have about 3 hang ups per box using the cheap stuff. I have no issues when using a premium hull like Remington STS or Win AA. I reload and love the STS hulls.
If you are not shooting a ton, I would pick up a box or 2 of the premium hull shells and give them a try. It may solve your problem.
This is hot information-that is what i was looking for to complete the puzzle...! They screw up the 870 too! Still i will buy a back up gun all the same...no problems cycling the high brass loads how ever...! About shooting lots of crows? Well I am going to try this year indeed...our season opens in another 6 days oh but don't expect me out there any time soon though...I really hate ticks and mosquitoes...and all the old run and gun areas don't exist any more. People built houses on them and out of staters moved up here for summer homes and posted their lands...around here that is....but who knows? that is possible further north of here!
there are a lot of crows in this state. The problem is finding areas to get at them when the Montreal express turns up in full force! However, i did get a really hot tip about further north all the same; and i hope to have a good report come October or earlier!
missing, I've had days like that where I miss everything for the first 20-30 shots, then settle down, take my time and just knock the crap out of them LOL. 99.9% of the time, it's caused by NOT mounting the gun correctly and squeezing off to early. If the bird is coming towards you, blot out the bird with the barrels and squeeze off. If it's going away from you, put the head/belly of the bird on the top of the rib and squeeze off. If it's crossing, left to right, or directly overhead, then a birds length in front normally does the trick too. The saying in England is "butt, beak, bang" and that seems to work 99% of the time, except for very far birds flying very fast, when a little more lead is needed
Pin 99% of the cases! you have far more time to shoot the bird than you actually take! so my advice, slow down, take your time, and improve your kill ratio
-- Edited by Redditch on Monday 10th of August 2015 03:17:09 PM
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If it moves and is legal but also moral, SHOOT IT !!
missing, I've had days like that where I miss everything for the first 20-30 shots, then settle down, take my time and just knock the crap out of them LOL. 99.9% of the time, it's caused by NOT mounting the gun correctly and squeezing off to early. If the bird is coming towards you, blot out the bird with the barrels and squeeze off. If it's going away from you, put the head/belly of the bird on the top of the rib and squeeze off. If it's crossing, left to right, or directly overhead, then a birds length in front normally does the trick too. The saying in England is "butt, beak, bang" and that seems to work 99% of the time, except for very far birds flying very fast, when a little more lead is needed
Pin 99% of the cases! you have far more time to shoot the bird than you actually take! so my advice, slow down, take your time, and improve your kill ratio
-- Edited by Redditch on Monday 10th of August 2015 03:17:09 PM
Good advice I'll try to apply.
I recall my hunt this past spring with Big Honkers where I missed two that were coming straight for us and I think I had way too much lead on them (and way too little lead (pellets)).
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"Arms are the only true badges of liberty. The possession of arms is the distinction of a free man from a slave." -- Andrew Fletcher 1698
I just picked up a load of ammo yesterday at Walmart. They had a sale going on $ 4.94 per box for the 3 dram 1 1/8th ounce load. I had the shopping cart so full of ammo the cart would only go straight, it would not hardly turn because of the weight. Federal changed the color of the boxes, now they are white.
They asked me at the checkout counter what I was doing with all this ammo, I said "I needed it because I was such a poor shot and where there is lead in the air there is hope" they all thought that was pretty funny.
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To listen to this radio talk show go to episode 12, Bob Aronsohn
My friend and I use to have a lot of trouble years ago (15 years ago). We were both having trouble with ejection and this was from auto loaders and pumps. We where told back then that Winchester used poor brass. I really don't know how true it was but we believed it at the time and I haven't used their shot shells since.
That was funny Bob...reminds me of that comment you said in one of your videos:"What am going to do to you!" I tell you I about fell out of my chair laughing! I don't know why having watched it several times but Wednesday it struck me somehow incredible funny! I think I am still getting over the shock of all those crows. Well anyways in lousiana somewhere off Rte.10 I spotted a Rambo first blood #1 knife..just wanted it so I bought it...the clerk asked me what i was going to do with it? I answered ;"Going gator huntin'!"
Isn't lousiana a big gator hunting state-I couldn't believe why anyone would ask me why i would want a Rambo knife! I got a friend who bought this .338 caliber rifle...he doesn't hunt ith any of his stuff, just kind of stuffs them into the gun cabinet...! So what is the big deal-he wanted it so he bought it!
Well I'll be damned! Yeah i got flack in Virginia one day while driving truck and I replied about that ;"Hey Billy Bob we done got us a DAMNED Yankee!" i said:: Hey 'General lee-hey general lee! Who won the war? You southern dumbfox still think you're fighting the civil war!"
To be sure I was only raising hell with him; I sure didn't feel that way , long story. But he nearly died laughing-he was raising hell too...bored on the CB...
But if you feel that way or anyone well my posts about myself certainly suggest a "damned Yankee" all right(more like a "dumb Yankee")...but thanks to the general Washington attitude on fire arms ownership I think we'll find that us gun owners are all have more in common with the south than urban Washington DC where they are very contemptuous of gun owners...
(nothing to do with the shells...)
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