Is shooting offhand....

[d.id]

...I use to try and use freehand positions allot, Now days: I don't. I also use to miss, Now days: I don't.
The adjustable bipod was the last great evolution in small arms.

That's hilarious. Keep telling yourself that and one day when that miss comes, and it will (or already has and we just don't know about it), you will think otherwise as you are eating your slice of "humble pie"

Misses happen, everything is relative.
I should not say I never miss but in comparison to freehand positions shooting from a bipod increases hit probability about a 1000%.
On another note:
Hunting is what it's all about for me, But hunting has changed. Training to hit a running animal would only make sense if I shot at running animals which I do not.
Shooting from tall grass I can't see over without standing would mean I did not pick a good spot and made a bad mistake.
Looking for a rest in the field would mean I failed to bring the appropriate tools to build one (bipod) and ruck bag. Another bad mistake.
.
In a world of hunting were rangefinders are the size of cigarette packs and cheap enough for anyone to own, ballistic calculators have bean tuned to a science and the modern rifle scope can compensate for precisely ten feet four inches of bullet drop like clock work..........................."Hunting" has changed.

 

[d.id]

Haven't we become a precious bunch!

Let's drop all this BS about shooting like a man because our ego demands it. If a more stable position is available, a hunter should make use of it; be it a tree, walking stick, shooting sticks, bipod, etc. This is what we teach in Hunter Safety classes. I agree that all shooting positions should be practiced, but in reality most hunters use their rifle for less than 10 shots a year. Why not afford them the tools necessary to make the most accurate shot possible? Seasons are short, time is valuable and the game animal deserved to be killed cleanly. Hunting is under attack from all sides and we don't need to attack ourselves just because some use equipment that others dislike. Unless we are making out own spears from stick and rock, who are we to judge?

Scott

Amen.

 

[JRS]

Ever wonder why the success rate on big game is lower now than it has been in years past? You need this caliber... you need that caliber… you need a 50 power scope… you need a picatinny rail mounted light… you need a sturdy rest… you need a bipod… you need shooting sticks… etc; etc; etc. By the time you drop your 200 pound load, set up for a shot and try to get that animal in the 15" FOV of your scope, he/she is gone.

 

[M14AMU]

Ever wonder why the success rate on big game is lower now than it has been in years past? You need this caliber... you need that caliber… you need a 50 power scope… you need a picatinny rail mounted light… you need a sturdy rest… you need a bipod… you need shooting sticks… etc; etc; etc. By the time you drop your 200 pound load, set up for a shot and try to get that animal in the 15" FOV of your scope, he/she is gone.

;D ;D ;D

 

[drags]

I am curious RMhulhern did you shoot the buck in your Kansas buck thread offhand? You hit the nail right on the head effendude.
Drags

 

[people]

Haven't we become a precious bunch!

Let's drop all this BS about shooting like a man because our ego demands it. If a more stable position is available, a hunter should make use of it; be it a tree, walking stick, shooting sticks, bipod, etc. This is what we teach in Hunter Safety classes. I agree that all shooting positions should be practiced, but in reality most hunters use their rifle for less than 10 shots a year. Why not afford them the tools necessary to make the most accurate shot possible? Seasons are short, time is valuable and the game animal deserved to be killed cleanly. Hunting is under attack from all sides and we don't need to attack ourselves just because some use equipment that others dislike. Unless we are making out own spears from stick and rock, who are we to judge?

Scott

You are right use what you got to make the best shot you can. I am not knocking that at all I am knocking those who do not practice and blaze ammo out in hopes of hitting that buck. In many cases they are shooting offhand and at a running target. Here in ND deer hunting is mostly done from the window of a pickup or while walking. So practicing off hand would be beneficial. I could tell story after story but not the time.

Outside competition it is almost gone

 

[M14AMU]

I am curious RMhulhern did you shoot the buck in your Kansas buck thread offhand? You hit the nail right on the head effendude.
Drags

You bet! Does THAT mean that I don't use a rest at times? You bet I do! And to get down to the 'nut cuttin' of my initial post....nowhere did I state or even remotely imply that using a rest puts a blemish upon anyone but I do think, after having instructed in marksmanship many years that new shooters are getting the short end of a crappy stick because right off the bat they aren't being taught those things necessary to be able to shoot standing or offhand! If one is serious about hunting it's highly necessary to be able to shoot standing without a rest because at times the terrain prevents any other method of shooting and there is always the time factor involved! Most animals don't pose for very long...or at least that's my experience with game!

This guy shoots standing quite well!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKh_13zOGFc

 

[d.id]

RMulhern...........My point was it depends on the kind of hunting you do.
I have no use for a standing rushed shot.
At distance I have all the time in the world to make it count, no need to panic or sling lead..
.
All these comments about shooting fast, narrow field of view at 20yards............they don't apply.
That has allot to do with the different practices at the range.
Then of course you have lazy slop hunters that would need that skill given there total lack of tactics and they do not train for it. But you always have had that, nothing new there.

 

[Racebannon3855]

It is easy to fall victim to the "arms" race and get a rifle that is fantastically accurate but heavy and/or difficult to shoot from any position that is human supported. It is fun to turn the scope to 20 x and eliminate an unsuspecting coyote, and if I was watching a long sendero I would want the same kind of rig. That kind of rig is just tricky to shoot offhand with. Ruger has brought back offhand and position shooting with the scout rifle and eer scope setup. Jeff Cooper must be smiling down on that one....
Another factor in the "arms" race is "premium" ammunition and bullets. It is easy to price yourself out of practice ammo, give me game kings, pro hunters, ballistic tips or hornady interlocks, even corelokts work fine in my savage 99. I use a post type scope when hunting heavy cover, or a low power variable.
My brother and I were as competitive as any other brothers and we shot offhand most of the time as kids. Once we were asked to leave a turkey shoot after he won twice and I won once. Seems the folks at the shoot did not stand and shoot very often.
The last deer I shot this year was in heavy cover and I was in heavier cover. No time for sticks or bipods, got down on one knee, found a hole and ballistically separated the heart from the rest of the pulmonary system.

I am a 4H shooting sports instructor and a hunter safety instructor and our students learn to shoot from different positions, whatever is the most appropriate to cleanly harvest their quarry.

 

[papa]

Well, while on the subject how many of you practice shooting with the "other" hand? There are times while in a blind or tree stand it's either use the "other" hand or let that buck get away.

 

[Corey Schwanz]

I hunt deer almost exclusively from stands, most if not all of which have a shooting rail built on it. Ill be the first to admit I don't practice offhand shooting much anymore because in hunting situations, I'm always using that rail for support. On the times I hunt from the ground, I carry a shooting stick with me to give myself some forward support of the gun. Because I only ever practice hunting shots with my hunting guns with those types of supports, that's all ill take in the field. If I don't have a good rest, I wont risk the shot. Luckily enough I've never had a problem shooting all the deer I want/need for the year. Although this year has been quite a bit tougher, I'm still getting it done.

From a competition standpoint (3-Gun mostly) I shoot my ARs off hand in practice because that's how we compete. There are times on long range targets we can go prone or use a barricade for support, in which case, I do! One of my goals this winter and spring is to get myself comfortable with shooting longer range targets offhand. Working on assembling a new rifle that is a bit heavier and I think will hold better for me. At least that's the theory...

 

[Precision Hunter]

Not for me it isn't.

Precision Hunter