Is it worth learning to shoot?

[Wingfoot]

@ForgeCorvus

I'm going to stand to be corrected here but I am 99% certain that SGC limits shot size to BB.

Shotgun ammunition in the UK is defined as being 5 pellets per cartridge or more, any less & it requires an FAC to possess, BB are 4.5mm in diameter & there are approx 70 pellets per ounce.

SG & LG pellets or as the Americans call them 00 & 000 Buckshot are 8.3mm & 9.1mm respectively.

SG (00) usually have 9 pellets per cartridge but some like those made by sellier & bellot can be found with 12.

LG (000) typicaly hold just 6 pellets, both SG & LG are legal on shotgun certificate within the UK.

Gamebore "Buffalo" are a good brand of SG (00) buckshot available in the UK as they have the gordons recoil reducing system & pattern quite well, but not as good as the Federal Flite Control which employ a special wad that holds the shot pattern together for longer, giving a much improved pattern on target with a reduced "doughnut" effect over far greater ranges.

The federal flite control rounds are hard, if not almost impossible, to find here but can be brought back from the USA if you ever get the opportunity to visit.

These heavier loads must be treated with a greater respect & are deadly at much greater ranges than regular birdsot ammunition & care should be given to ensure a suitable backstop when using them.

Wf

[lightningxl]

IN short yes. Shooting is both a mental and physical skill - like any skill the more you practise the better you get. I shoot a .22 air rifle and realistically limit my shots to 30 yards when hunting, learning good field skills gets you close to nature and in tune with your environment. Whilst out on my permission have sat still in a hedge bank and had a wren land so close to me I could have touched it.

With a springer gun and a tin of pellets at £6 - £12 pounds per 500 a lot of fun for your buck.

Hope you give it a go you might be a natural.

[Stasher]

IN short yes. Shooting is both a mental and physical skill - like any skill the more you practise the better you get. I shoot a .22 air rifle and realistically limit my shots to 30 yards when hunting, learning good field skills gets you close to nature and in tune with your environment. Whilst out on my permission have sat still in a hedge bank and had a wren land so close to me I could have touched it.

With a springer gun and a tin of pellets at £6 - £12 pounds per 500 a lot of fun for your buck.

Hope you give it a go you might be a natural.

Agreed

Also food for thought
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/j ... ott-review

Whatever your take on his approach and the book -I remember him saying this in an interview

Emmott tells us that the violent spillover of environmental crisis is attracting the concern of military thinkers, and reports a young scientific colleague telling him that, looking ahead, he plans to teach his son how to use a gun. A course in computer hacking might be more useful, but the point is sound. While the planet is changing at a rate unknown in human experience, there is no prospect of any radical change in human behaviour.