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Island Shooter


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A Beautiful Call from an "Old" Friend
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After a couple of missteps due to the Coronavirus debacle, I finally made it to the post office when it was being staffed.  Imagine my surprise when I saw a delivery from Daryal Gosey addressed to me!  What?  I hadn't sent any of my calls to be repaired by either Daryal or Darrell Gibson, greatest crow call makers in America!  What could it be?

With hands trembling, I open the package to find a note from Daryal saying the call is from an OLD crow hunter.  Although unnamed, he had to be referencing Skip Woody as he is the only crow hunter I know older than me!  Digging further, a call falls into my hands that took my breath away (ugh... bad pun).  What a piece of work!

The call was made out of whitetail antler and Bacote, a hard, dense, beautiful tropical wood with dramatic grain features.  Another beauty of this call was that the antler appeared to be full-length with the Bacote pulled over as a sleeve.  Quite a feat that can be executed properly only by a true craftsman.  

The sound of this call is what I would call "Crisp and Bold" as it would be the equivalent of turning up a FoxPro to the higher range in volume...it is not a timid sound!  I'm guessing the antler throat is a large part of the good volume it produces.  This is a sweet crow call in all respects!

Now back to Skip.  I did a small favor for Skip recently and the call is what he must have sent in return...this is not a fair swap!  It can only be considered fair if the same call can be used to bring in a crow to only 100 yards, then watch Skip drop the bird.  After all, that is what he did with a clay pigeon a couple weeks ago...what a sight!  (Details available)

Thank you Skip and Daryal...from the bottom of my heart!

Demi



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Big Honkers


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What a trophy!



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Granite Jaw


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That's a beauty Demi. Feel free to share the, "details available," part.

 

 Randy



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Island Shooter


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Randy,

On the details of Skip's "long bird," he is a fellow sporting clays shooter and has always quizzed me on details of shot size, powder loads, brand shells, chokes, back-boring, barrel length, etc.  I, on the other hand, hate details...don't confuse me with the many choices available to shooters.  Give me a gun, some ammo and a clay pigeon to shoot.  Barrel placement is the most important detail.

As the president of a local shooting club, I've arranged to have John Woolley https://www.woolleyshooting.com/about-john-woolley/ come in to give us lessons for the past 18 years.  He holds half-day clinics for groups of 5 students and gives us tips on how to improve our shooting.  For the advanced shooters, he sometimes chooses a target and, once everyone breaks the bird, we back up 10-15 yards and shoot it again... Back up and shoot it again... Back up and, before long, we are shooting the same target at 100 yards.  No, at that range we don't break it with every shot, but everyone generally breaks the bird at least once.  And this is 100 yards measured with a laser rangefinder!

Skip had a hard time believing the stories of how we break targets at extreme distances, particularly explaining that choke and shot loads are not important at those distances.  Rather than arguing with him, I asked him to take a lesson in person.  He is now a believer!  

Suffice it to say that it is a real rush when you pull the trigger on a 100-yard target then, as you are lowering the gun, you watch it break!  Fun times.

Demi 

 



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Granite Jaw


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Demi,

 Thanks for sharing that interesting story and information!

 Randy



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Skip


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"I did a small favor for Skip recently and the call is what he must have sent in return...this is not a fair swap!"  to quote Demi.  He is most certainly correct as a box full of Daryal and Darrell's crow calls would not approach making it a fair swap!! The experience I had as Demi and his wonderful wife's (an excellent shot in her own right) guest was something approaching a lifetime experience. Southern hospitality, southern cooking, beautiful pre-Civil War home, surroundings on coast of South Carolina, surrounded by God fearing, like minded conservatives, clay bird enthusiasts and world class instructor John Wooley and somehow... I got invited!

Now some further comments/observations on shooting clay birds with 1 oz. of 7.5 shot, 12 ga. at 60, 70, 80, 90 and 100 yards (in my case) using  light modified choke!! Demi was dead on when he said I was an "non-believer" remotely considering hitting a fast moving clay bird at such ranges! I just did not believe there was sufficient "pattern density" to break, must less consistently break a relatively small target regardless of choke or shot. Demi told me I was wrong years ago.. and I was! Old folks..me.. are often resistant to change!smile

It was my 3rd shot at 100 yards when I saw the clay break! Heck, I had to wait (seemed like it) several seconds for the shot to reach the bird.. but it broke nicely! Wow.. double wow! Please excuse my excitement a month later!! Now add this remarkable shot...  the gentlemen standing beside me was using a 28 gauge. I do not know what choke.. but the shot charge was typical 28 gauge..3/4 oz. If he was using 7.5 shot like me he had only 258 pellets vs. my 345!! As mentioned, it took me 3 shots but Mr. 28 ga broke (smashed) the bird on the first shot!  Cannot say for sure, but most of uf were shooting 1200 or 1250 fps ammo...nothing faster and no loads heavier than 1 oz.

Is there a lesson here? Yep, several, and one is a big one. Suspect many will not believe this but it is true...choke and pellet count are not nearly as important as most of us have believed all our shotgun lives me included. Demi can correct me on this but to hit that crossing, relatively fast clay it required something like 25-33 feet of lead... and slight "hold over" as the pellets were dropping in on the target at that range! Indirect fire using a shotgun! What!! Another lesson: am expanding my "killing envelope" for crows from 50 yards to 60-65 yards. If I can break a clay at 100.. crows are dead at 60+ and it ain't "sky busting". Lastly, never doubt a world class clay bird assassin like Demi Howard!

Skip



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Island Shooter


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Skip,

Thanks for the kind words. Ellie an I really enjoyed having you here. It took a few years to convince you to come, but it apparently was worth it. Only wish we didn’t have the downpours that washed out the oyster roast.  Nevertheless, we are still blessed beyond measure and enjoy sharing life with good friends.

A 25-33 foot lead is probably accurate, but as you know, I don’t measure leads...just look and shoot.   One point you failed to make about the Long Bird, however, relates to your comment on “pattern density.”  That 100-yard target was a 90mm midi, not a standard 108mm!!  An even more impressive shot!  

Liken the experience to crow hunting terms.  You are now officially indoctrinated into the Clay Bird Century Club.  Congratulations on a great accomplishment!

Demi



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boba


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Demi, do you know how much your shot drops at 100 yards? I would guess it to be at least two feet. If I am anywhere close how do you see the target with that much of a hold over? Now it's possible that a few inches in your sight picture could possibly equate to two feet down range in your hold over? A trap gun that's shoots high would be an advantage as you would have a built in hold over.

Have you ever patterned your firearms at 100 yards? What kind of results did you get?

Years back when I used to pass shoot sea ducks I could see the shot fall short on the water when you had the correct lead on birds that were some where between 60 to 65 yards from your muzzle. These ducks were flying perhaps 4 feet above the water.

The information I am seeking is on your standard trap load in either a one ounce load or a 1 1/8th ounce load with a muzzle velocity of 1200 FPS at the muzzle.

I'm sure Skip enjoyed his visit, you are a wonderful host.

Bob A.

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Bob Aronsohn
Island Shooter


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Bob,

At 100 yds. The shot drop would probably be about 1 1/2 - 2 feet, but I can’t say for sure. The only time I‘ve patterned my shotgun was at 20 yds. to confirm that both barrels hit at the same point. As I shoot a Zoli, it was a wasted exercise as the barrels are legendary in their accuracy!

Bob, your “hold over” question is easily answered. At those distances, the barrel is so far in front of a crossing bird that it is not blocking the view corridor. You have a clear picture of the bird, plus a lot of blue sky between the bird and barrel. On a rising teal, you can mount to the side and come above to make the shot. 

Long range shots, in my opinion, are largely a function of your “comfort zone” more than anything. If you are comfortable in making the shot, it’s a dead bird. If it’s beyond your comfortable range, you revert to mechanics and ”measure” the shot, missing behind & below almost every time. Practice and confidence is what will stretch out the circle of your comfort zone.

On my last hunt, 2 of the 32 crows I killed were in the 60-65 yd. range and both hit the ground hammer-dead. That is usually the longest shot I’ll take, although on a very slow dove hunt, I once bagged a dove at 92 yds.! I didn’t think it was that long a shot until I measured it later, but as I pulled the trigger, I knew that bird was going down!

Your mileage may vary, and keep in mind that in my case, I shoot A LOT of sporting clay targets. So much that I buy ammo by the pallet. Practice definitely helps!

Demi

 



-- Edited by Island Shooter on Sunday 12th of April 2020 12:30:36 AM



-- Edited by Island Shooter on Sunday 12th of April 2020 12:34:59 AM

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boba


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Demi, comfort zone AKA confidence takes plenty of practice outside your comfort zone to get the feel for very long shots. My skill level tells me a 50 yard shot on a crow is a damn good shot. I can kill some out to 60 to 65 yards but my percentage also takes a hit at that distance, Some gents whom I've shared a crow blind with think a crow at just under 50 yards is a 60 to 65 yard shot. When I take a high bird I can not say what yardage he is at because it's all blue sky up there and you have no real depth perception. What I do know weather I get him or not is that he was a killing shot and I did not have the sufficient hold on him if I missed. But that holds true for other sports as well. I'm practicing squirt shots on my pool table at home. They come in handy when you are blocked by one of your opponents balls and you get the cue ball to swerve around and make your object ball on the table. Then they have a true Masse' shot where your cue is at almost 90 degrees vertical and you need to really practice to get the right stroke so the cue ball breaks at the right point on the table to make the shot.

Bob A.

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killer Crowalski


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I wish we had fire arms that wouldn't shoot unless we were guaranteed a hit!!! Then again that would take the sport out of crow shooting! And everything else we legally shoot at as well...

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Island Shooter


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killer Crowalski wrote:

I wish we had fire arms that wouldn't shoot unless we were guaranteed a hit!!! Then again that would take the sport out of crow shooting! And everything else we legally shoot at as well...

 K.C.

The long range shooters & snipers are not far off from what you propose!  With iPhone apps and wind gauges, they are close.  The military is developing guns that won't fire unless all is right. 

But for us shotgunner hunters, not so much... at least for now!

Demi



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M12Shooter


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Occasionally when cover is sparse and shots can be long I employ one of my trap shotguns. Killing crows at 50, 55 and even 60 yards is not difficultwith a tight choke but if shots present themselves at shorter ranges, one may miss a few more of these than he/she is used to. Rifle shooting crows? Now that’s long range crow killing fun!

Ted



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Island Shooter


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boba wrote:


Demi, if you are 30 feet in front of the bird it has to be feel because you are so far out in front that you can't see the bird anymore? I experience that with very long crossing shots on crows where you have to force yourself to get a pickup length out in front of them in order to connect with them. 

Bob A.

 Bob,

When shooting an extremely long target with a 30 ft. lead, you cannot see the target IF you are only looking at the barrel. My method of shooting (Move-Mount-Shoot) requires the shooter to look ONLY at the target!  The actual lead is set by your subconscious brain vs. consciously placing the barrel at a certain gap in front of the bird. 

It sounds like magic, but it works if you can let go and trust your subconscious mind. When I pull the trigger on a super long target or bird, I have no idea what the actual lead is. 

Trust me, it really works.

Demi



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boba


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Hi Demi, I do the same thing ( subconscious/feel ) only I am still using the muzzle with my method.

Hey, my partner has a style that is completely instinctive I have never seen anyone shoot like he does in regard to shooting form. His face is never on the comb of the stock and he does not use the barrel for reference. On multiple targets he is very fast at acquiring the target at close range up to roughly 30 to 35 yards. On long shots he is only mediocre.

Bob A.

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