In the late 80's I got a call one evening from a rancher friend . He was gathering cow calf pairs that morning and going to move them to another pasture . At the top end of a draw his dog had been attacked by a couple of coyote he wanted me to see about taking care of the aggressive coyote for him . He gave me directions as to where they were and told me the best way to get into the pasture and how to find the correct draw . I got there the next morning figured out where best to set up and call did my howls and got an immediate response . I got a pair of them a male and a female then I saw another coyote up the side of the mountain . It just sat there watching me . The female I had shot showed 7 pups . I went up the draw found the den and started to take pups out of it when I noticed that there were two age groups of pups some were around 6 weeks old and some didn't even have their eyes open . I ended up taking 13 pups out of that den . I then sat up and did some puppy squeals another female showed up from up the side of the mountain out of some buck brush she showed that she had had 6 pups and that they were around a week old or less by the size of the lumps on her uterus . She would have had a hard time raising 13 pups on her own . But in a lot of other instances I have seen coyote bring in another coyote to help them do that . I took an old female one time that showed she had 4 pups but couldn't find the den . Two days latter I took a younger female from the same area that showed she had nursed pups but didn't show signs of having had any she wasn't lactating but had let pups nurse her . The old smart male eluded me and when I found a hole where the pups had been it was empty . He had taken the pups and they all were living in the rocks and sage brush at an earlier age then normal . A week later I howled in that area and the pups talked he then talked . I ended up sniping him and the pups . Another time I shot a pair in mid May and didn't find the den that day so went back the following morning . There in the dust of a two track road were one set of adult coyote tracks and the tracks of four pups following behind the tracks of a female . A mile latter they left the road and I lost them in the grass but they had been going toward a large draw with a big rock pile in the bottom end of it . I sat up and howled one long howl waited a while and repeated it . Down at the rock pile pups howled back at me then a female howled . She came in and when I checked her she showed 6 pups . When I took the den in the rock pile there were her 6 pups plus 4 older pups . Coyote are survivors and will care for others pups . I have also gotten called because the plane or helicopter shot a pair that showed pups but they couldn't find a den . I then found pups camping in the sage brush with out adults living on insects and cow manure . Some of them may have starved to death they weren't doing real well but I'm pretty sure they would have lived been smart and cagy but not have had a good life in the beginning . As long as we don't see something it's okay for it to take place . I have been called hard hearted and many other things for killing coyote pups and fox kits after taking the parents but to me it's kinder to kill them then to let them suffer on their own if they aren't adopted by others . But that's just me each and every one of us has our own way of looking at things and what is right and what is wrong for us .
Ramblings and Such From Hunting Coyote
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nealm66
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I believe thats the humane thing to do
nealm66
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There was 72 shooters at the 600 match and at least 30 bipods trying to shoot off the bench. I was really studying them and could tell by the sighter shots at the little gongs the majority of them weren't doing very well. No backstop so unless you could follow your vapor trail you were shooting blind. Seen a lot of discouraged faces. I did see some very nice looking setups though and saw some pretty elaborate methods for sledding the bipod feet. I did see a few guys doing ok but very little recoil. I was watching for movement and technique and listening for hits and in the end I'd say I didn't learn a dang thing from it lol. Should be heading out to help my buddy get dialed in here in a bit
nealm66
Well-Known Member
I did meet up with a couple guys who shoot at a rifleman's team challenge with targets from 600-1600. They were shooting 6.5 creedmoor with Hornady factory ammunition off bipods. One bergara and one savage precision. They were about 8" groups which sounds bad but I seen a lot worse. There was some mirage playing with poi as well. My 300 prc shot About 6" but off to the left. Way too much cartridge for 10 rounds and 15 minutes. Barrel got pretty hot. Had an interesting conversation with straight jacket armory about maybe putting together a 280 ai or 7 saum but they said it's still too much for that type of fire. They did surprise me and said my 22 creedmoor would be good to 1600 yards which seems far fetched but they offer long range courses and said it definitely a thing. That 7 saum looks extremely cool though with 190 Atips, dang
Repeatability is the key here . No matter how you are resting your fire arms , rifles or pistols , it needs to be repeatable over and over again to make consistent groups . The trigger needs to be repeatably moved to fire the shot the same each time . Have someone rest a nickel on your barrel near the muzzle and see if you can fire an empty chamber with it staying put . Set your rifle up for your shot then move your head around to see if the recital stays on target in the same location .
Redfoot Ranch
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You can shoot targets at 1600 but it's not the same as shooting at a living body of any sort . Large cases and amounts of powder aren't good for me to be shooting high numbers of shots at one time I tend to flinch after a few rounds . Shooting a rifle and pistol are similar in the trigger usage . Aim your trigger fingers first bone at the target then just move your finger from the second and tip to make the shot so you aren't pushing or pulling with your finger just making it move straight back towards you . You can practice this with out a firearm so that you can watch your hand and fingers working correctly and know they aren't bent the wrong direction all things lined up on target setting at home in your living room . I practice getting set up on the grip the same every time , gripping the pistol grip the same every time with my wrist and hand straight with the first joint of the finger pointing at my target . I practice getting set up with my target having my eyes closed till when I open them I am set up aligned with my target , natural point of aim . I work at setting up so that I am comfortable and every thing has the same point of aim every time with the same amount of pressure placed on every thing every time no pulling my fire arms into place I want them to just fall into the correct position by the way my body is placed . I work on my set up with out any ammo even around me or my firearms , dry practice . When I want to work on repeating my use of bipods I will take some chalk and set up get lined up with a rear bag set up and make a chalk mark to reline my bipods on after the shot . being comfortable before the shot , during the shot and when relined for the next shot is what I am looking for If you don't want to fire your weapon with out a round in it use a fired brass in the chamber of your rifle and practice just working the bolt to cock the action you don't have to chamber a round to get the feel of cocking it . I don't have to fire a single round to teach my mussels the proper memory and techniques but I do need to know what they are for me and do them often enough that it becomes second nature for them to just do it with out thinking before they do what I am wanting them to . It is by far easer to teach them correctly first then to try and unteach them and reteach them a different way . I like to have my whole body comfortable when I'm in my bubble and going to make my shot every thing lined up and pointing at the target the best that it can in a natural position that it can return to after the shot again and again . If you want to bench shoot practice at the bench if you want to shoot in the field then practice in the field in different positions just do it often so it becomes second nature and you are comfortable doing it with out having to analyze your movements they just become relaxed and comfortable no ammo needed set up get comfortable look at a target in your sights set up and repeat . You are building mussel memory and thus repeatability at this time you really don't need to worry about how tight your group is that will come with repeatability of your body and firearms positioning .
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"Perfect practice makes pefect!"
Shooting is a perishable skill and if you haven't built strong muscle memory, it takes longer to refresh your skills.
Mastering the basics of body positioning, trigger finger positioning, hands positioning, cheek rest, breathing, eye-to-scope positioning, and feet positioning at the bench is absolutely essential to repeatedly shoot small groups at long range.
Shooting from field positions is another story, but the basics are still there and can be refreshed at the bench prior to going afield.
Predator hunting requires the ability to be flexible with your body position while maintaining the other positioning in order to hit a small target at long range.
Focus is the key to repeatability and consistency in your precision and it's hard to stay focused when you're in an awkward, uncomfortable position to make the shot.
Getting that solid muscle memory in place will allow you to focus on adapting to the terrain/environment/discomfort and adjust for that/those factors without having to worry about the other basics.
As I was taught by one of my mentors long ago;
There are four levels of competence in any endeavor.
1. Unconscious Incompetence is not knowing what you're doing and not knowing that you don't know.
2. Conscious Incompetence is not knowing what you're doing but knowing that you don't know.
3. Conscious Competence is knowing what you're doing, but you have to think about what you're doing to make sure you don't make a mistake.
4. Unconscious Competence is being able to do the task without having to think about it.
Only through mindful practice can we achieve the Unconscious Competence.
Ed
nealm66
Well-Known Member
Well the guy with the 6.5 prc canceled. Weather isn't great so probably a good call. I went shooting anyways ha ha! It was a weatherby kind of day. The 300 is just plain nasty on the shoulder but it's extremely accurate. I shoot different than most. I pull the rifle into my shoulder with my off hand and watch for movement off the bullseye to make sure I'm in my pocket wether I'm prone or bench. Then I'll pull it in pretty tight and don't put any torque on the pistol grip, basically just the tip of my finger on the trigger and a slow squeeze. I can shoot the lighter recoil guns like they say your supposed to but for the big light magnums, this technique works way better
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Neal,
Try this; while you're pulling back with your off-hand keep that off-hand thumb parallel with the barrel, using the ball of that thumb and the four fingers to apply the grip. Also, pull straight back with your middle, ring, and little finger of your shooting hand but do not wrap your thumb over the stock wrist at all. Put your shooting hand thumb parallel with the barrel alongside your trigger finger. This will greatly reduce the opportunity to torque the stock.
I have several hard recoiling rifles and this technique works best for me while maintaining reasonable precision. It also helps me to keep from canting the rifle.
Ed
Try this; while you're pulling back with your off-hand keep that off-hand thumb parallel with the barrel, using the ball of that thumb and the four fingers to apply the grip. Also, pull straight back with your middle, ring, and little finger of your shooting hand but do not wrap your thumb over the stock wrist at all. Put your shooting hand thumb parallel with the barrel alongside your trigger finger. This will greatly reduce the opportunity to torque the stock.
I have several hard recoiling rifles and this technique works best for me while maintaining reasonable precision. It also helps me to keep from canting the rifle.
Ed
nealm66
Well-Known Member
That's pretty close to what I do. That 300 weatherby has way more felt recoil than the 30-378 I was working on recently and if you do anything wrong you'll get a flyer. It's the perfect technique practice rifle. I had a light coat with a heavy coat over and pretty sure I'm still going to have a bruise lol
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