The key to successful and cultural hunting is rightly considered the ability to shoot. This is a whole complex of theoretical knowledge and practical skills. One of the main elements in it is aiming, which is a system of visual-motor actions of the shooter. In other words, the ability to aim is a sure guarantee of successful shooting.
Aiming is understood as giving the aiming line of the gun a certain spatial position relative to the target, necessary for its destruction. The basis of aiming when shooting from both rifled and smoothbore weapons is to combine the aiming line of the weapon with the line of sight passing from the pupil of the shooter's eye to the target, especially at the moment the trigger is pressed, that is, the pupil of the eye must be on the continuation of the aiming line of the gun .
For a smoothbore gun, the aiming line is an imaginary line passing strictly through the middle of the reticle of the barrel(s) and the base of the front sight. When the line of sight coincides with the sighting line, the shooter sees only one front sight, located in the middle of the aiming bar and the upper contour of the receiver shield. True, many highly qualified shooters shoot on a stand with a so-called “visible” bar (the pupil of their eyes is slightly higher than the aiming line of the gun, approximately 2-3 matches high, if they are placed on top of each other and on the bar of the gun at the breech cut of the barrels ). This position of the pupil of the eye, firstly, improves the view, which has a positive effect on the perception of the departure of the target (especially on a trench stand), and secondly, it facilitates the control of the trunks in the process of leashing.
The sighting line for rifled weapons passes through the top of the front sight and the middle of the slot in the sighting plate at the level of its upper edge.
In order to clearly see an object, our eyes do a certain job. Its essence lies in a reflex change in the focus of the eye so that the light rays passing through the lens of the eye and carrying information about the object are focused on the central part of the retina. A characteristic feature of our vision is that it is impossible to simultaneously see objects located at different distances from the eye with equal clarity. The closer the object that we are trying to see is, the worse the visibility of objects located at large distances in the direction of the line of sight, and vice versa.
Shotgun aiming
A simpler “sighting” device on a smooth-bore weapon makes it possible to give the gun the necessary orientation relative to the target much faster, and small “inaccuracies” in aiming are compensated by the scree of the shot shell. And if the parameters of the gun correspond to the constitution of the shooter (the gun is butted), then after appropriate training he can achieve the correct position of the line of sight relative to the aiming line of the gun immediately at the moment the gun is thrown (without subsequent adjustment, the implementation of which requires a change in focusing the eye on the bar and front sight) . This allows the shooter to focus almost entirely on the target, which is very important when firing shot at moving objects. In this case, the shooter must clearly see the aiming object (especially moving), focusing his vision on it. The bar and the front sight of the gun, located appropriately relative to the line of sight, the eye will perceive indistinctly, vaguely. But if you paint the front sight or the end of the bar of the trunks in bright colors, then their visual perception will be more distinct.
Experiments carried out with highly qualified poster shooters showed that the absence of a front sight had almost no effect on the effectiveness of their shooting.
The very process of aiming at a moving target, i.e., adjusting the position of the aiming line of the weapon relative to the target, occurs simultaneously with the leash.
If, at the final moment of aiming (by pulling the trigger), the shooter tries to control the position of the front sight relative to the bar or sighting line by focusing his eye on them, then a miss is almost inevitable. In this case, for a certain period of time, the flow of visual information about the movement of the target stops (the eye stops seeing the target). The connection between the work of the tracking system of the eyes and the movement of the ends of the gun barrels synchronous to it is broken.
Here is a typical example. If a hunter, when shooting at a large flock of flying ducks, makes a shot “at a flock”, without focusing his vision on a specific duck, then the result of the shot is usually unambiguous - a miss.
When training in aiming at a fast-moving target, it is necessary to achieve a constant position of the head on the crest of the box, repeatedly repeating the methods of throwing the gun. When throwing a gun, their requirements are met. They are the subject of a special discussion. Here we note only the main thing: at the end of the vskidka process, the sighting line of the gun should be directed to the point where the eye is looking (or possibly closer to it).
Shotgun shooting requires the participation of both eyes, which will ensure the effective operation of their tracking system, under the control of which complex visual-motor actions of the shooter are performed. Thus, when firing shots at moving targets, one-time focusing of the eyes on the object of the shot is performed.
Aiming when firing a bullet
Successful shooting with a bullet from a smoothbore gun at large ungulates (elk, deer, wild boar) and a bear is due to slightly different requirements. Firstly, it is necessary not only to get into the beast, but also necessarily - to a slaughter place. Secondly, the accuracy of aiming should be much higher, since the shift of the line of sight relative to the sighting line of the gun will lead to the deviation of the bullet from the aiming point when fired. The more significant this mismatch is, the more the bullet will deviate.
Preparing for a shot at an approaching animal, the hunter first of all decides on the expediency of the shot. For example, if the arrow and the beast are separated by dense undergrowth, then even at a distance of 20-30 m the effectiveness of the shot will be so low that it is necessary to refrain from it.
Then you should outline the line most favorable for shooting, and the lethal place in the beast where the bullet will be sent. They depend on the direction and speed of the movement of the animal, the distance to it, the conditions of the terrain, the requirements of safety rules.
When the animal approaches the chosen line, the gaze is focused on the place in the body of the animal where the bullet will fly. A smooth vskidka of the gun in the shoulder is done either when the beast is directly approaching the chosen line, or a little earlier. This is due to the hunter's individual shooting style, his qualifications and hunting conditions. Having made a vskidka, the hunter performs a preliminary correction - he combines the line of sight with the aiming line of the weapon, focusing his vision on the relative position of the front sight and the bar (sight shield) of the gun. Further, without changing the position of the head relative to the crest of the stock, he directs the sighting line of the gun to the killing place, taking into account the lead, if the beast is moving. At this moment, the shooter's vision must be so focused that the front sight directed to the kill site is sure to be visible.
The final correction of the position of the front sight relative to the aiming bar (sight plate) and the target by changing the focus of the eye can be performed either at the moment the trigger is pressed, or somewhat earlier. The latter is much more profitable. In the first case, it is very difficult to "set" the vision in such a way as to simultaneously see the aiming bar, the front sight and the target, which at the same time is seen vaguely. Experienced shooters say: you need to look at the beast through the front sight.
Thus, we are convinced that the process of aiming when firing a bullet is somewhat more complicated and requires more time. From this follows one of the main hunting commandments: do not rush to shoot, the bullet will catch up with the beast.
Most hunters close one eye when shooting a bullet, since it is quite difficult to perform the complex correction described above with binocular vision. Only people who are fluent in weapons shoot with both eyes open. By the way, this historical fact is not without interest. When the famous gunsmith F. Matska created a small-caliber (24) paradox on the order and drawings of the famous weapons expert, biologist and excellent shooter S. A. Buturlin, there were no sights in the drawings, not even a front sight. F. Macka, on his own initiative, installed a front sight on the finished gun, explaining to the customer that he simply could not fire his guns without a front sight. About his paradox, S. A. Buturlin wrote that it is easy to hit a thrown apple with a bullet, and also successfully shoot moose at 150-200 steps.
Some experienced shooters correct the line of sight relative to the aiming line of the weapon by closing one eye, and the shot, i.e. pulling the trigger, by opening both eyes. Moreover, the final aiming is performed only at the front sight.
The formation of an effective system of actions during shooting is developed in the process of their repeated repetition, the achievement of the most rational sequence, logical interconnection and subordination. Moreover, the participation and control of the consciousness (attention) of the hunter are obligatory. Success is facilitated by the practice of shooting at the “running boar” shooting range, as well as training with an unloaded weapon at home.
An ordinary smooth-bore gun, when selecting the appropriate bullet, gives quite satisfactory accuracy at distances up to 30-35 m, but when firing at longer distances (up to 70 m), conventional sights do not provide a reliable bullet hit. Therefore, many foreign firms produce magazine guns (the so-called “deer gun”) with rifle-type sights.
On some models, the height of the rear sight may vary depending on the firing range (Browning automatic with a movable barrel for 5 rounds, weight 3.2 kg, with a special choke, barrel length 60 cm; Remington, model 1100, automatic operates on the principle of gas removal, weight 3.3 kg barrel drilling - improved cylinder, length 55 cm).
Similar guns are produced by many other companies: Winchester, model 1200, reloading is carried out using a movable forearm, 4-round magazine, barrel length 55 cm; model 1400 of the same company with a magazine for 2 cartridges, reloading is carried out by a vapor mechanism. Franchi produces a special 12-gauge and 20-gauge cylindrically drilled bullet barrel, 55 cm long, it can be installed in the company's five-round magazines instead of a choke-drilled barrel. Ithaca manufactures model 51, on which it installs an optical sight (calibers 12, 20, weight 3.4 kg, barrel 60 cm, special drilling) and recommends a branded bullet.
A relatively short barrel (no more than 60 cm) when using progressively burning powders does not in the least affect the muzzle action of the gun, giving it greater maneuverability and controllability.
Unfortunately, the domestic industry does not produce similar models. But some of our hunters install homemade “pillars” similar to rifle ones on their guns, thus achieving more accurate, accurate and long-range bullet action. In subsequent articles in The Hunter, other terms of accurate shooting from hunting weapons will be considered.
The most efficient waysshooting shots at moving targets
An analysis of the literature (S. Buturlin, 1928, 1937; A. Burdenko, 1948, 1962, 1967; B. Sventitsky, 1955, etc.), our own experience, as well as numerous surveys of bench shooters and hunters of various qualifications, allow us to identify several the most rational ways of shooting at moving targets (preemptive shooting at moving targets).
But first it is necessary to say about the decision to shoot. When a target appears, the shooter must decide, sometimes in a matter of fractions of a second, whether he will shoot. The main thing is safety conditions.
The decision to shoot consists of visual perception of the direction of movement of the target, determining the distance to it, as well as the very nature of the game allowed to be shot. The faster the hunter saw the game that appeared, the better, since he spends a certain time on the perception of the target that has appeared, after which he makes a decision appropriate to the circumstances.
The decision to shoot is made only after a clear visual perception of the game that has appeared. This is one of the most important conditions, non-compliance with which (shooting at noise and at an unclearly visible target) can lead not only to poaching (shooting of prohibited game), but also to tragic consequences.
Readiness for shooting plays an important role in the success of the shot. There are two varieties: “from the shoulder” and “off-the-shoulder”. In the first version, the shooter inserts the gun into his shoulder in advance, before the game appears in the shot zone, checks the correct alignment of the line of sight with the aiming bar of the gun, and then either waits for the approaching game, or sends the dog forward from the rack.
If the shooter puts the gun in the shoulder only when the game is approaching the distance of a killing shot, this method of preparation is called “shooting with a vantage point” *.
The use of this or that preparation in hunting is largely determined by the type of hunting and the individual characteristics of the shooter. If hunting is carried out without a dog (“from the rise”) for swamp, waterfowl or upland game, then the use of the “shoulder” position is completely excluded, since the game appears unexpectedly. If the hunter noticed the approaching game from afar, then he can insert the gun into his shoulder in advance, which is used on duck flights, woodcock traction and a number of other hunts.
Beginning hunters, especially those with "non-handy" guns, spend much more time getting the eye to the correct position of the gun's aiming line after the weapon is inserted into the shoulder. Therefore, for them, the most effective shots will be those fired from the shoulder.
Successful shooting in the manufacture of "with a vskidka" will be if the gun corresponds to the morphological features of the hunter - "attached". To make a gun like this, you need to “fit it for yourself”. The description of this process is given in many publications (Shteingold E.V. All about hunting weapons. 1978 and others).
It is not enough to have a butt gun, one must learn how to properly carry it out, which is achieved by repeated repetition of the technique. One of the main requirements in this case is that at the moment the butt plate of the gun touches the shoulder, the sighting line must coincide with the hunter's line of sight.
When making “with a vskidka”, the hunter keeps his eyes on the moving game. Simultaneously with the rise of the stock to the shoulder, the hunter, in accordance with the direction of the target's movement, rotates the body (and not the head), trying to direct the ends of the trunks to the desired point. This allows, firstly, to carry out a monotonous throw of the gun, and secondly, to control the position of the barrels relative to the game in the process of raising the stock to the shoulder.
Having completed the throw of the gun (regardless of the variant of manufacture), the hunter gives the barrels a movement in a certain direction, but only by turning the body (and not the arms). Having given the barrels a certain orientation relative to the target, the hunter pulls the trigger without stopping the gun. In other words, the shot must be fired with the continuous movement of the barrels. They say about such shooting: the shot was made “with a leash” of the gun.
The leash of the gun by the shooter can be carried out in two ways: “with the proactive removal of the gun barrels” and “on overtaking the target”. The first involves the removal of trunks forward of a moving target. After that, the hunter equalizes the angular velocity * of the movement of the trunks relative to the target, simultaneously bringing them to the required “lead”.
With this method, the movement of the barrels is uneven, often with a tendency to decrease in speed, which, from our point of view, is unfavorable, since it can lead to braking and even stopping the barrels. The complexity of carrying out the leash of the gun in this case is also explained by the fact that the angular velocity of the target is constantly changing relative to the shooter, gradually increasing when approaching him and decreasing when moving away. Only when the target moves at an angle of 90 ° to the direction of the line of fire, and then at the limiting distances for a shot shot, the angular velocity of the target relative to the shooter changes slightly (while maintaining a constant own speed of movement).
In turn, changing the angular velocity of the target accordingly requires changing the speed (angular) of the movement of the gun and the “visible” leads that the shooter sees before pulling the trigger (more on this in the next publication).
It should also be noted that the method of leashing under consideration requires, at equal angular velocities of the target and barrels, the greatest “visible” lead. In addition, the process of adjusting the barrels relative to the target and taking the necessary lead becomes more complicated. This is due to the fact that our eye cannot leave the tracking object (target) for a long time, i.e., the line of sight passing through the sighting line of the gun when firing in this way should not be directed at the game, but at a certain point located in front of target's trajectory.
For these two reasons, the effectiveness of shooting, of course, is reduced. Without knowing this, many hunters use a "preemptive" lead. Experienced athletes shoot in this way only at long distances (up to 50 m) at a bird or animal moving at an angle of 90 ° (or close to it).
A more rational and efficient method is “on overtaking the target”. Its characteristic feature is that at the end of the throwing of the gun, the barrels should be directed behind the target, and the closer to it, the better. Highly qualified shooters complete the throw of the gun practically “on the target”, i.e. the barrels, together with the aiming line of the gun, are directed quite close to the target. In the process of leashing, the gun barrels smoothly approach the target, moving along the trajectory of its movement, but with a higher angular velocity. Otherwise, the barrels will not be able to overtake the target.
From the moment of the start of the vskid and during the leash of the gun, the hunter's eye must be focused on the moving target. The barrels of the gun, including its aiming bar, are “seen” by the shooter indistinctly during the leash, but as they approach the target, their image gradually “appears”, becoming most distinct at the moment the barrels of the target are reached, when the line of sight passes through the aiming line of the gun and target. Then the trunks smoothly overtake it and move forward synchronously with the eye. As soon as the necessary, according to the shooter, gap between the target and the barrels is formed, a smooth pull on the trigger follows without stopping the barrels of the gun.
The optimal difference between the angular velocities of the barrels and the target is very important. With a very large difference, it is difficult to correct for combining the trajectories of movement of the target and the weapon and the choice of the timely moment of pressing the trigger. In this case, the eye-analyzer apparatus does not “have time” to process the incoming visual information, and the motor centers cannot issue the necessary commands. The shooter must overtake the target at such a speed that the moment the barrels approach the target and pass through the target is fixed with the eye.
Depending on where the gun barrels ended up after vskid relative to the target, their movement during overtaking can be either very short (if the barrels are close to the target), or quite long (if the barrels are far from the target). Naturally, in the latter case, the hunter will spend more time on the leash and the shot itself. But do not rush, trying to quickly overtake the target with trunks. The movement of the weapon must always be very smooth. One of the most common mistakes novice shooters make is haste when raising the gun while overtaking the target.
The main advantages of the second method of leashes over the first: the ability to shoot with less “visible” lead; the probability of stopping the weapon when firing is reduced; less time spent on a reliable conscious shot.
Now about offhand shooting. A characteristic feature of this method is that the trigger pull is completed at the moment the gun stock touches the shoulder.
Successful shooting in this way is possible only when the hunter has reached a high level of skill in shooting, that is, he has learned to master his gun perfectly. This means that after the completion of the throw, the butt plate of the stock of the gun is located stably in a certain place of the shoulder cavity, the head of the shooter occupies a strictly permanent place on the crest of the stock. In addition, the hands hold the gun in the same places and, most importantly, the position of the index finger on the trigger is strictly constant.
The position of the legs is also important. But on the hunt to give them the right position is not always possible. Therefore, the shooter must learn how to correctly raise the gun with different positions of the legs. In a word, you need to “feel the gun”, to achieve complete automatism in owning it.
Offhand shooting is most effective on targets with small angular velocity of movement relative to the shooter. Such options quite often arise when hunting with a pointing dog and “from the approach”, when the game moves away from the shooter. When shooting on a stand, this method is used when shooting at a hijacking target.
Let's try to outline the technical side of the matter. When a target appears, based on visual perception, a decision is formed to execute a shot (sometimes you have to let go of the game so as not to break the charge). The hunter's vision is focused on the flying bird. The hunter begins to throw the gun, trying to bring the ends of the gun barrels closer to the flying game. In this case, the gun is simultaneously raised to the shoulder and the body is rotated.
The angular velocity of the gun is greater than the angular velocity of the game. As the trunks approach the target, the hunter begins to see them more clearly (they are most clearly perceived at the moment the trunks overtake the target). Having caught up with the target, the eyes and trunks are synchronously directed to a point located ahead along the target's trajectory. At the same time, the index finger smoothly presses the trigger, and at the moment the stock touches the shoulder, a shot sounds.
The main condition for success is a smooth throw of the gun, during which the barrels of the weapon are corrected relative to the moving target.
Experienced shooters quickly shoot offhand, and from the side it seems that they are not aiming at all, since they do not have a gun leash. The execution time of a snap shot depends on the skill of the shooter and the angular velocity of the target. The shortest time can be spent shooting at a target whose angular velocity is equal to zero (hijacking or oncoming target flying at the level of the shooter's eyes).
The effectiveness of shooting is achieved not only by using one or another method, but also by the conscious execution of all visual-motor actions. Awareness is understood as a high level of control over the system of motor actions occurring under the control of the shooter's eye-analyzing apparatus.
*The term was first introduced by A. A. Burdenko, one of the prominent specialists in the field of shooting. This method should not be confused with offhand shooting, which is described below.
*Angular velocity is measured in degrees per second and defines rotational movements.
Shot preemption at moving targets
To hit a moving target, gun barrels must occupy a certain spatial orientation. The shooter must direct the ends of the gun barrels to the desired point of the trajectory in front of the target (take the lead) and pull the trigger in a timely manner. Only, in this case, the shot shell will meet the target.
In the shooting literature, the speeds of movement of various types of game are usually given. Depending on them and the time of flight of the shot over various distances, lead values are recommended. In this case, one should also take into account the angle between the trajectory of the target and the line of fire (the trajectory of the shot projectile). But is a hunter able to calculate all this in a matter of seconds before firing a shot at an unexpectedly flying target? We can confidently say that none of the high-class sports shooters, in preparation for a shot, does arithmetic calculations to determine the amount of lead needed for a particular game.
The shooter needs to know the values of the maximum lead when firing at targets moving at different speeds, to represent the change in lead depending on the firing range (with increasing firing distance, the lead increases). In addition, we must remember that a teal can fly faster than a mallard, and a goose flies no slower than a mallard, etc. But remembering all the speeds of movement of various game and all the magnitudes of lead depending on the angle of their movement is not necessary, and simply burdensome.
The distance to the target (to determine the expediency of a shot) and the place most favorable for hitting it, based on specific conditions, are necessarily fixed by the shooter.
The arrow determines the speed and direction of movement of objects with the help of vision. The mechanism of operation of the tracking system of the eyes is that it detects, “points” the eye to a moving object, accompanies it and transmits information about the direction and speed of the target’s movement. Physiologists have determined that small movements of an object (less than 5 arc minutes per second) are not noticed by the eye, as well as very large angular velocities. When the speed of the object is more than 10 - 15 degrees per second, the eyes do not have time to track it. In this case, the determination of the speed and direction of movement of the object is difficult.
Information about the absolute speed and angle of movement of objects is perceived by the tracking system of the eyes through the angular velocity of the movement of the object while continuously tracking it with the eyes.
The angular velocity of an object is directly proportional to its absolute velocity and the angle between the direction of the line of sight and the trajectory of the target, and inversely proportional to the distance.
S. A. Buturlin in his book “Shotgun” (1937) cites interesting results of numerous experiments carried out by the American company “Winchester”. If the shooter aims at the point where the target should appear, then from the moment it appears to the first movement of the index finger pressing the trigger, 0.14-0.35 seconds pass, on average from 0.25 seconds for inexperienced to 0.20 seconds for highly trained shooters. The course of the descent - a movement of about 1 - 3 mm - takes (according to Journe) from 0.001 to 0.003 seconds *. The fall of the trigger in the best hammerless guns occurs in 0.0022 - 0.0025 seconds. From hitting the trigger on the primer to shifting the projectile, it takes (with good primers) about 0.001 seconds. It takes 0.029 - 0.067 seconds for the projectile to pass through the barrel before the shot takes off. In total, from the appearance of the game to the departure of the shot from the barrel, it takes from 0.17 to 0.41 seconds.
Thus, from the moment of obtaining visual perception of the relative position of the barrels and the target to the departure of the shot from the barrel, an average of about 0.23 seconds passes (for highly qualified shooters).
So that this time does not affect the choice of the necessary lead, the ends of the gun barrels must necessarily move during the shot (it is better if they keep moving for some time after the shot). In this case, the lead is mainly affected by the flight time of the shot to the target.
Estimated lead - the distance that the target will move during the flight of the shot to it. The value of the calculated lead (Ur) is determined by the formula Ur = Vc x Tdr (Vc is the linear velocity of the target at the time of the shot, Tdr is the time of the shot to reach the target).
The lateral displacement of the shot fired from the moving gun barrels can be ignored, since its speed will be as many times less than the target’s speed, as long as the length of the gun (about 1 m) is less than the distance to the target. For example, if the target is moving at a speed of 20 m/s 20 m from the shooter, then the lateral velocity of the shot will be only 1 m/s, that is, it will be only 5 percent of the target's speed; the lead should differ by the same amount.
Depending on the angle between the trajectories of the target and the shot projectile, the value of the actual lead (Uf) can vary from 0 to the calculated one. UV - the position of the barrels relative to the target at the moment the shot leaves them, ensuring its defeat. It is determined by the formula Uf \u003d Ur x Sina. Ur is the calculated lead, and is the angle between the trajectories of the target and the shot projectile.
With the method of firing with “preemptive takeaway” (when the ends of the gun barrels and the target have the same angular velocity), the “apparent” lead coincides with the actual one.
“Visible” lead is the mutual position of the barrels (sighting line) of the gun and the target (providing, according to the shooter, its defeat), which the shooter sees before pulling the trigger.
With the shooting method “overtaking” the target (when the barrels move at a higher angular velocity than the target), the “apparent” lead will be somewhat different from the actual one.
From the moment of visual perception of the mutual position of the barrels and the target until the shot takes off, about 0.23 seconds pass, as mentioned above. During this time, the barrels continue to move at an angular velocity exceeding the angular velocity of the target. In 0.23 seconds, the barrels will already occupy a different orientation relative to the target, i.e., due to the difference in angular velocities, the ends of the barrels will increase the clearance between them and the target, moving ahead of the target along its trajectory.
For the shooter, the determining factor in the effectiveness of shooting is the moment of perception of the mutual position of the barrels and the target before pulling the trigger, and not the moment the shot leaves the barrel when the action is already completed. And at the moment when the shot leaves the barrel, the sighting line of the gun will take a position corresponding to the actual lead (UV).
Thus, the method “on overtaking the target” allows for effective shooting with less “visible” lead. “Visible” leads largely depend not only on the skill of the shooter (as evidenced by the experiments of the Winchester company), but also on the nature of the trigger pull, and on the length of the trigger stroke before the sear vanishes from the cocking of the trigger. The objective data of the above experiments allow us to assert that the various tricks of the manufacturers to reduce the time of the trigger movement (the creation of the “blitz” system) give practically nothing, except for the reduction in the service life of the mainsprings, since the gain in time is extremely negligible and amounts to only some athletes seconds. In addition, the opinion of many athletes and coaches about the effect of combat coil springs used in some models of guns on the processes of shooting and choice of leads is unfounded. The fact is that the difference in the response time of spiral mainsprings compared to flat springs does not exceed a few thousandths of a second, which is incomparable with the total time affecting the lead value, measured by 0.19-0.23 seconds.
How do “apparent” lead times differ from “actual” and calculated ones? Surveys of many highly qualified athletes, for example, showed that when shooting a target on the 4th number of a round stand from a high booth (left), where the lead should be the largest (the calculated lead is equal to the actual one and should be about 1.7 m), the shooters called "visible" lead from 0.5 to 1 m (most often called 0.6 - 0.8 m). In this case, the value of the “visible” lead is almost 2–3 times less than the actual one. When firing targets on the 3rd and 5th shooting numbers of the round stand (shooting direction at an angle of about 60° to the target trajectory), the majority of the interviewed shooters answered that the trigger was pressed at the moment the barrels overtook the target, i.e. when the barrels they began to “break away” from the target - to move forward (the actual lead in this case should be about 0.9 m).
In the process of training, shooters form visual “images” of the mutual position of the gun barrels and the target at the moment the trigger is pressed, depending on the angular velocity of the target.
When shooting on a round stand, where there is a significant variety of directions and angles of target flight, several images (3-4) of the relative position of the barrels and the target are generated at the moment the decision is made to pull the trigger:
1. Barrels approach the target (shooters say “along the trailing edge of the target”) when shooting targets at an angle of up to 15-30° to the shooting line.
2. Barrels pass the target (“at the target”) when shooting targets at an angle of 20-40°.
3. The barrels overtook the target with a small gap (“the barrels went away from the target”) when shooting targets at an angle of 40-60 °.
4. The barrels overtook the target with a significant clearance - 0.6-1 m (“the barrels went far away from the target”) when shooting targets at angles of 70-90 °.
The mutual positions of the barrels and the target described above, i.e., “visible” leads, make it possible to successfully hit almost all targets on a round stand.
It should be emphasized that on a round stand, the targets, having almost the same absolute speed during takeoff and at the point of impact, have different angular velocity of movement relative to the shooter at the time of the shot, while the angular velocity of the target during the flight almost always changes in one direction or another. This is due to the change in the angles between the trajectories of the target and the directions of the line of sight (see figure).
In the previous article, it was noted that when overtaking a target with barrels, an optimal difference in the angular velocities of the target and gun barrels is necessary, which allows timely and, most importantly, consciously pulling the trigger and using the minimum number of visual images of “visible” lead. Therefore, when shooting targets of different directions, the movement of the barrels when overtaking the target is carried out at different angular speeds. The greater the angular velocity of the target (the greater the angle), the greater should be the angular velocity of the gun barrels, and vice versa.
Some authors recommend laying a certain number of game bodies (ducks, hare, etc.) to determine the amount of lead. Any account is associated with pronunciation of numbers. Well, if you need to put aside 1-2 bodies of game (target), but, and if 4-5 bodies, then it is almost impossible to do this with respect to a moving target in a short period of time allotted for a shot. It is also impossible to practically use the recommendations on the use of a large number of leads expressed in centimeters (40, 60, 80, 120, 150 cm), since the formation of a significant number of visual images of leads and their quick “recreation” is simply impossible.
Hunting shooting has some differences from stand shooting. They consist in a variety of shooting distances and a rather subjective perception of the speed of movement of the game, depending on its size. For example, it seems that a goose flies rather slowly, although in fact its speed is no less than that of a mallard. So where to start, how to learn how to take the right lead in order to successfully hit the game?
The first thing you need to learn is to accurately determine the distance, especially the maximum - 35 meters. And not only to objects located on the ground, but also in the air. For example, to the top of a tree, the corner of a house, to birds flying at a predetermined distance: at the height of the roof of a house, pipes, electrical wires, etc.
Next, you need to gradually form visual images of certain segments of distances corresponding to the maximum lead at a distance of 20 and 35 m. If we take the average flight speed of most hunting birds as 20 m/s and take into account that shot No. the calculated lead will be equal to 2.7 m. When shooting “on overtaking the target” at a distance of 35 mm, the maximum visible lead will be approximately 1.5-2.0 m. distance 35 m.
When shooting at 20 m, the calculated lead will be 20 m/s x 0.064 s = 1.28 m. Therefore, it is necessary to create a visual “image” of a meter segment at a distance of 20 m.
The formation of visual “images” of various segments is a long and gradual process (first one image, then another) and requires a certain amount of time.
Upon achieving positive results of such training, one can proceed to “binding” the images of segments / lead relative to the aiming line of the gun inserted into the shoulder. First with a stationary gun, then in the process of his leashes. When performing this technique, it is necessary to press the trigger (with an empty sleeve, in the primer hole of which a rubber cylinder is inserted) at the moment when the barrels (the aiming line of the gun) will be oriented relative to the “target” according to the formed visual image. First at a target located at 20 m, then at 35 m. After that, move on to training on a moving target, aiming at flying birds (ravens, jackdaws, etc.). At the end of this stage of training, shooting on a round stand will be of great help, provided that the methods of throwing the gun have been developed. At the same time, it is not at all necessary to fire a shot at each target fired on command. The learning process is more effective when firing with a “conditional shot” (when an empty cartridge case is placed in the chamber) with a real shot (a live cartridge is placed in the chamber). Under the guidance of a qualified coach, mastery of shooting skills is accelerated.
When shooting at targets moving at angles less than 90° to the line of fire, the visible lead is reduced and may be zero, as when shooting low-hitting targets (shooting at a target from a low booth at the 7th shooting station).
Visual control over the position of the barrels when firing with less visible lead is carried out successfully only in the case of the optimal speed of the barrels overtaking the target.
In the process of leashing the gun, i.e., when the ends of the barrels approach the target, the trajectory of their movement is corrected (the ends of the barrels seem to “fit” into the trajectory of the target). And already in the immediate vicinity of the barrels from the target, the necessary lead is determined depending on the angular velocity of the target. This, obviously, occurs on the basis of a comparison of the visual perception of the real position of the barrels relative to the target with the “reference image” that was formed in the process of training work, was fixed and confirmed by successful shots.
Shooting practice in hunting shows that if three “images” of visible lead are formed for distances of 20 and 35 m, which will correspond to the maximum lead (when shooting targets flying at angles of 70 - 90 °), half the maximum (for targets at angles 40-60°) and one third of the maximum (when shooting targets at angles of 20-40°), this is already quite enough for accurate shooting at animals and birds.
It should be remembered that the development and consolidation of skills for determining the relative position of barrels and targets moving at different angles is achieved in the process of practical shooting on a hunt and on a bench. This equally applies to motor skills that provide optimal speed for overtaking target barrels.
Summing up all that has been said, we will formulate the main conclusions that characterize the main conditions for the execution of a productive shot:
- single focusing of the eye on a moving target;
- continuous “tracking” of the target with the eyes, especially from the moment the gun is raised and until the trigger is pressed;
- smooth execution of all actions: throwing the gun, leash of the weapon (when the ends of the gun barrels approach the target, overtaking it) and pulling the trigger;
- the optimal difference in the angular velocities of the target and the gun, which ensures smooth overtaking of the target by the barrels;
- maintaining a constant movement of the gun at all stages of the leash, especially when the trigger is pressed;
- obligatory visual control of the ends of the gun barrels during the vskid and in the process of leashing the weapon and their corresponding adjustment relative to the trajectory of the target and the target itself at the final phase of the leash;
- stable implementation of the shoulder throw of the weapon without subsequent adjustment of the position of the head relative to the aiming line;
In order to correctly hit a duck on a hunt while shooting it in years, you need to know what lead to take when shooting at a duck, which we will actually tell you about in this topic. But remember, nothing will allow you to shoot a duck well and take the right lead as practice gained by hunting duck and goose.
Duck hunting is considered the most massive. In swamps, lakes, river bays, you can meet thousands of hunters waiting for morning or evening duck dawns. In this case, shooting is carried out from one place where the hunter is sitting in a barrel, boat, hut. It is worth remembering that it is much more convenient to shoot while standing. Therefore, disguise yourself so that the hut, when you are standing, only reaches your chest in height and does not interfere with 360-degree shooting.
If you are shooting at dawn, or on the fly, then you can hunt for oncoming, hijacking, lateral and semi-hijacking birds. There is an opinion that it is best to beat the bird under the feather, in half-hijack, then the feather cover produces less resistance in front of the shot. However, in August, when the duck is still young and has a weak cover, you have the opportunity to get into the most lethal places - the head and neck.
A young duck can easily be killed with a seven. If you went hunting in the late period, then you need to increase the fraction number.
Get the duck as close to you as possible, cover it with the trunk and start walking forward, and then press the trigger. If you suddenly missed, you should turn around and beat under the duck. Such a shot is called a steal shot.
For a side shot, you should use the direction from right to left or from left to right. Remember that during a shot on the left, the body is untwisted, and during a shot on the right, on the contrary, twisting.
In case of picking up a side duck, point the trunks directly at it and start overtaking until there is a gap. Clearance depends on the range of the target, as well as the speed of the bird. It is known that in comparison with gray or mallard ducks, diving breeds have a much higher speed of summer. There are legends about the incredible speed of the teal. The essence of overtaking shooting is that the gun moves faster than the bird flies. But remember that you should not throw the trunks forward with a jerk. Otherwise, the gun may stop and miss as a result.
If you are shooting at a duck that is about to land, it is best to point the barrel at the landing bird. Fire a shot, moving away from her in a downward motion.
They shoot from the entrance or from the approach, usually at a duck that takes off. In the case of departure from the reeds, the bird immediately begins to rise vertically upwards. In such a case, you just need to close it with trunks and press the trigger. When the duck has switched to level flight, the shooting should be lateral or hijacking, while the barrel should be raised slightly above the hull.
Two types of geese hunting can be distinguished: hunting from a shelter (pit, hut) and shooting, when a bird flies from water to fodder fields and vice versa. In the case of hunting from cover, if there are stuffed animals and profiles on the field, take your time with a shot. The scarecrow is designed so that the geese fly as close as possible for a shot. After 2-3 laps they seem to hover over the imitators. This moment is the most favorable for a shot. The first shots should be made on the heads of the bird. In case of delay with a shot, the shooting should be already as for semi-stealing or hijacking geese. This means that it is necessary to shoot at the body or with a gap in the outgoing side.
A goose that is going to sit on a stuffed animal is shot in the same way as a duck, or in the case of a close landing, they aim at the hull itself.
When hunters shoot in flight, they stand next to the water's edge. In such situations, it happens that it is better to skip the bird and shoot at the hijacker. Then it's easier to pick up a shot, and get wounded animals on the ground. In addition, a shot under the pen is considered the most reliable. After all, the goose has a rather strong feather on its chest, since hunting is usually carried out in the spring for a seasoned bird or already in late autumn for young animals that have grown stronger.
Compared to stuffed geese, migratory geese fly higher and much faster. You have to shoot them over your head.
Thanks to the slow flapping of the wing, hunters form an opinion about the slowness of the bird's flight. However, this is only a deceptive appearance; in reality, a wedge of geese or a herd flying in transit have a high speed. Therefore, the amount of clearance, lead and overtaking speed should be significant.
Here are some rules that you need to know the same in order to accurately work out your targets. Does everyone shoot like that when hunting? You just need to learn this at the beginning, sometimes without even understanding, but simply by remembering. As in the old joke: the word sol is written with a soft sign, remember, because it is impossible to understand.
Shooting in flight at a bird is done as follows:
- The bird flies away from the hunter, keeping at the level of his shoulders.. You need to aim directly at the bird. If the bird flies below the hunter's shoulders, aim ahead of it.
- bird on the rise. You need to aim, covering it with trunks, keeping them all the time above it, and, at the same time, unbending the body back, fire a shot.
- The bird flies and sits in front of the hunter. You need to aim at the bird and, leaning forward with your body, shoot.
- The bird flies forward over the hunter's head. You need to aim under the bird and a little forward and shoot, tilting the torso slightly.
- The bird flies high in the air towards the hunter. You need to aim in front of the bird, covering it with trunks, and, tilting the body back, fire a shot.
- The bird flies across or sideways while simultaneously rising up. You need to aim, holding the trunks on top of the bird and in front, taking the necessary, in this case double, lead, and, turning the body along the line of flight, shoot.
- The bird is landing. In this case, you need to aim in front of and below the bird, maintaining the necessary lead, and, at the same time, turning the body in the appropriate direction, transfer its weight to the right leg if the bird goes to the right, and, conversely, to the left leg if the bird flies to the left.
Shooting at a moving target requires knowledge of how to aim a gun and more thorough training of the shooter. Shooting with shot at a flying duck is carried out with a fixed gun or with a leash.
Shooting with a fixed gun
Such shooting is characterized by the fact that the gun is directed to a point located in front of the target, along its line of movement. When the target approaches the calculated distance to the aiming point, the trigger is released.
Do you hunt duck? Then you need to know how to shoot a duck in years. From the moment the decision is made to shoot until the shot itself, when the shot leaves the muzzle, 0.024 seconds pass. During this time, the duck manages to overcome 48 cm.
Accordingly, the charge passes by if you take the sight clearly on the bird. To avoid this, use a leash. That is, the gun does not stop at the moment of the shot, but continues to move after the target.
The trigger is pressed smoothly, without jerking and without stopping the weapon. To this must be added a correct calculation called duck lead, which depends on the number of the shot and the range of the target, as well as the speed and direction of its flight.
There are certain rules on how to shoot ducks correctly:
- The flying duck makes the leash accelerate and reduce the lead.
- A duck passing sideways, at a distance of up to 40 meters, significantly slows down the leash, and you have to use large lead times, up to 1.5 meters. In this case, the gun may stop, so it will be more efficient to use a method called overtaking shooting, starting behind the bird on a leash, and, having overtaken it to the required distance, fire a shot.
- The game going to the bayonet, at low altitude, requires a slow leash, and if it suddenly goes above the hunter, then the shot is fired at the moment the prey is blocked by the trunks. When flying low, it would be better to release the duck forward and hit the hijack.
One thing should become an indisputable rule for the shooter: in whatever direction the gun barrels have to be moved, this movement is made only by the body, and not by the hands.
The unified arm-body-gun system remains motionless, the direction changes only with the help of the body. The hunter must stand half a turn to the intended point at which the ducks will be shot.
Usually there are three ways of shooting at fast-flying objects from a hunting rifle: shooting with a leash, shooting at a vskid, shooting with a stationary gun.
For example, shooting with a stationary gun is not very perfect. In this case, the hunter, when he starts aiming his gun at the meeting point of the bullet with the target, must wait until the target itself approaches the point that he has chosen, after which he can shoot.
Shooting with a leash is different in that you need to prepare in advance for a shot at a rapidly approaching target, and you should take the necessary lead along the entire path of the intended target and not stop leading the gun, that is, turning it. Only then should you shoot.
Vskid shooting.
Vskidku shooting is more interesting and perfect. The hunter should shoot almost without aiming (aiming is mechanical), at the same time as the butt touches your gun. This kind of shooting is very fast, but its accuracy can be inferior to shooting with aiming. Consequently, even a young hunter needs to shoot only when the target (game) appears only in his field of vision for only a small fraction of a second. For this method of shooting, the gun must fit well in the hands and be very applied.
Let us consider in more detail such a method of shooting as shooting at a glance. With such shooting, the hunter should look at the target, his attention should be completely focused on this target, then the hunter should throw the gun on his shoulder, almost without following his line. The shot must be fired quickly, as soon as the gun is in place. Point-and-shoot shooting is the fastest shooting and will come in handy when hunting in the bush, or when the target only appears for one second. But such shooting is possible only with a well-applied gun and some experience of the hunter himself, who is able to quickly throw up and point the gun at the target.
The amount of lead during shooting at a glance may depend on the flight of the shot to the target and on the speed of the fast-flying target.
Shooting with Conscious Aiming
When hunting with hounds, it is most advantageous to use shooting with conscious aim and a moving gun. Such shooting is called a leash. The essence of such shooting is that the hunter throws the weapon in the shoulder, while aiming at the target, taking the necessary lead, keeping it for a while, and then must lead the gun along the movement of the target. The shot should be made, but the movement of the gun should not be stopped when firing.
The hunter, especially when he is a beginner, must be careful not to stop the movement of the gun at the moment of the shot, since during such a stop all the advantages of this method of shooting may be lost. And so it all comes down to shooting with a stationary gun, which is ineffective when shooting at moving targets.
But it is not recommended to carry a gun for a long time. If the distance is small, and the sight is checked, then it is necessary to pull the trigger of the gun. Excessive turning time is useless for hunting success and may well be dangerous to others during a group hunt.
But despite all the simplicity, such methods of shooting are very difficult, and in order to master them in practice, one should systematically train, especially in pulling the trigger, and most importantly, without stopping the gun when pointing at the target. In order not to click the trigger in vain, it is necessary to put in the chamber special made spring sleeves or ordinary ones, but already with fired primers. But in the second case, the cartridge cases must be replaced after two strikes of the striker, because then the primer is already broken so much that it loses all its protective ability.
Sometimes a good result is obtained by an interesting and ancient method of training, which has been used for a long time, even before the ramrod guns with primers were created. This method is as follows. First, an icon lamp is suspended from the ceiling or to a high surface at chest height, on a certain pendant, into which a lit candle is inserted, protruding beyond the edge of the icon lamp. The person watching the shooting had to swing the lamp so that it was like a pendulum, not much, so as not to extinguish the flame of the candle. And the shooter must, from a distance of 4 steps, with one shot with a primer, extinguish a slowly swinging candle at the point that was indicated by the observer. Then they could already start shooting at the vskidku. More than a century has passed since the fascination with such shooting. But, of course, such a good training could have a positive effect on the result of hunting shooting.
"Jerk" method.
But some shooters like to use the "jerking" method of shooting, in which the hunter aims straight at a fast-moving target and dribbles with the butt of the gun while holding the target for a while until he aligns the position of his gun.
Before the shot itself, he takes out the gun with a “jerk” forward towards the target for the required lead, and then shoots. But the success of such shooting is much worse than, for example, with a smooth "leash".
The methods of firing at fast-moving targets are varied, and each must be approached with great care, as well as with a lot of practice. Practice pulling the trigger more often. The descent should not be abrupt and vigorous, as the jerk may move the gun downwards at the moment of the shot. The gun at the moment of firing at fast-flying targets should not have a deviation from the direction that was given to it when aiming. The pressure on the hook should be done with the index finger, its first phalanx. And the second phalanx of the index finger should not be pressed.
To have a smooth descent of the hook, you should not strain the muscles of your right hand too much.
You can’t put 2 fingers on the trigger, because when one index finger is bent, the middle one can also involuntarily bend, which causes a shot from two barrels, and this leads to a large recoil or damage to the gun.
The more you train in shooting, the fewer mistakes and errors you will make on a real hunt.
I was inspired to write this article by numerous publications about famous shooters of the past, about their unique shooting technique on the hunt, and even more numerous recommendations on self-loading cartridges with calls to learn from these masters. It seems that progress stands still and grandfather's legends now is the time. Almost all periodicals and books about hunting give various tables of lead calculations and practical advice from the authors on how much to take hulls ahead of a flying bird or a running animal. Moreover, references go to the authorities of past centuries. There are no words, many of them deserve great respect as hunters and trackers, but time is running out. If in sports young athletes repeated the technique of honored veterans, then what kind of records could we talk about? The famous swimmer, the world champion who played Tarzan, would not have passed the qualifying competitions of the lowest level today. Athletes, including shooters, do not stand still. Why should hunters shoot the way they shot from muzzle-loading guns. Try to go to the shooting range "Fox Hole" and shoot at the "goose" sporting ground. I assure you shooting ahead, you will not only miss, but you will not hit any targets at all. At high-speed and long-range targets (on a hunt or on a stand), you need to shoot only when overtaking. And if the authors do not know this modern technology, then there is no need to teach young people to shoot. Relearning is much more difficult than relearning. This I know firsthand. In the 70s, when we studied at the School of Higher Sportsmanship, our first coaches were retired veterans who, unfortunately, did not know how to shoot competently themselves. How difficult it was to relearn after their lessons.
The overtaking shooting technique is much more complicated than the lead shooting technique, but it is this technique that gives the hunter power over a flying bird and a running beast, allows him to manipulate the gun before firing and fire at a point convenient for the shooter. Since the gun moves much faster than the target during overtaking shooting, this negates all the speed advantages of the game.
The principle of overtaking shooting is quite simple. Gun barrels are thrown not at the point of lead of a flying bird, but directly into it or a little behind. Then comes the overtaking. At close range - fast, at a distance - smooth. And with the advent of clearance - a shot. The size of the clearance is determined practically or (to whom it is given) intuitively. The most difficult thing in this technique is the lack of a fixed lead. As soon as you can say that you are two lengths or a meter ahead, then a difficult and distant target is likely to miss. I understand that this is not only difficult to depict in practice, but even to digest in the mind. However, I repeat: the lead should not be fixed, but growing all the time. We often say that we were left without prey because, they say, the game flew high. At the same time, without suspecting that the reason is different: you just don’t know how to shoot at long distances with shot. Shooting while overtaking allows you to make effective shots at the limit. By the way, the throwing machines on the “goose” sporting grounds are located at a distance of 72 meters from the shooting number. And they fly not to the shooter, but parallel to him and up. Therefore, the shot is fired from an even further distance. Think about whether you will be able to hit a target with a cross section of a couple of centimeters (the plate is turned sideways to the shooter), taking any lead? Hardly. And modern overtaking shooters beat them all. It's the same with game. Shooting with lead gives confidence in the defeat of the body of the trophy only at a short distance and under ideal conditions.
When hunting in the forest on a feather, shooting “on overtaking” is much more effective than even shooting “offhand”. In his book "Hunting for a hazel grouse", the most experienced hunter and biologist Pyotr Zverev wrote that shooting at a hazel grouse "from the rise" is impossible. But after all, we, former and current stand-builders, for the most part, have no other opportunity to get hazel grouse. For too long, shots have been pounding on our ears every day, and I, for example, do not hear his whistle and am deprived of the opportunity to hunt decoys. But shots from the approach, thanks to shooting "on overtaking", often work out. After taking off in a dense forest, the hazel grouse, as a rule, appears only for a short time in a small gap. The hunter who takes the lead finds its point, usually on the nearest Christmas tree. As a result, he either refrains from shooting, or, having hesitated, is late with it. Arrow "on overtaking" is enough to cross out the bird with the barrel and immediately press the trigger. Even if an obstacle appears on the path of the sheaf, the shot, with the right leash, will still get the game through the needles, branches and leaves.
When shooting while overtaking, such a gross mistake as stopping the gun is excluded - it moves faster than game.The bird will not be able to get away from the shooter with a maneuver - the barrel of a gun,thrown up behind the game, as if tied to it and will follow the prey, no matter where it turns,catch up with her, overtake and cover with a sheaf of shot. A hunter who has taken the barrel to the lead point risks losing the target when the bird suddenly changes course (often chaotic), and to return to it means to completely knock down the leash and the aiming line.
Lead calculation tables based on airspeed, game run, and distance to target are not needed at all today. Not only does it never occur to anyone to produce them before a shot, the game very rarely runs and flies at the speed prescribed for it. It is enough for the arrow “on overtaking” at any speed of prey to overtake it, respectively increasing the speed of the gun (naturally, by moving the body). I'll make a reservation there are some hunts where you need to combine shooting "offhand", "on overtaking" and "preemptively". For example, hunting for hares and ungulates in the forest. On them, due to the numerous obstacles of the landscape, you often have to beat the beast in the gaps between the trees, snow drifts and bushes. A long leash in this case is contraindicated (inopportunely a tree that has turned up can take on a charge of shot or a bullet). The gun is taken out in advance to the intended point of passage of the beast, if necessary, a lead is taken and a short shot is fired. When hunting "from the approach" shooting "offhand" has also proven itself well. The trigger is pressed at the moment the butt touches the hunter's shoulder. Simultaneously with raising the gun to the shoulder, the front sight is carried to the front of the body of the game or, if required, to the lead point, and the shot is fired without the slightest posting.
I am very annoyed by the “experts” who are throwing down on an inexperienced shooter who has made a mistake: “You shot in the backside.” But after all, a shot from behind at a game or a target is a consequence (by the way, this is 90% of misses) And the reason? Stopping the gun. Why? Hand whip. Why? The hull didn't work. Why? There was not enough turn to the point of the shot, and the hands turned on. With the hands, only the lifting of the gun from the waist to the shoulder is performed. Why? Initially, the shooter’s wrong stance (or hunter’s position) and the wrong grip of the gun, or tearing off the cheek (head) from the stock of the gun. This is an abstract example, but this is how you need to analyze each unsuccessful shot and correct errors. And memorize effective shots. That's when there will be progress. If shooting stopped for an experienced shooter (this also often happens), then one of my trainers, Valery Konshin, advised me to forget everything and do it as if you were just starting to comprehend the ABC of shooting.
Magazine "MASTERRUG" No. 146
O. Sergeev
Photography by the author
I think many hunters thought about which game to take which lead. Digging in the bowels of the Internet, I found this article and decided to post it for your discussion:
Success in hunting consists of three components: the first is to find the game, the second is to shoot successfully, and the third is to find the trophy after the shot. They are equally important for the hunter, and the absence of at least one of them deprives you of the chance for a successful hunt. Let's talk mainly about the second component - a successful shot, the most emotional part of the hunt.
I would like to draw the attention of a young hunter to a very interesting manual - "P.V. Sergeev's hunting shooting "ruler", - which, when I was a novice hunter, helped me a lot and contributed to the fact that even my first hunts were more or less successful . I do not remember the original source where this "line" was published, and therefore I reproduce it according to my notes. I can only say for sure that it was pre-war and was published in the hunting literature of the 20-30s of the last century. The ruler was given in the form of tables, which require some explanation.
Table No. 1 gives the charges of gunpowder and shot only for black powder, in those days it was used by most hunters. For the modern hunter, the masses of the charges are indicated on the labeling of smokeless powder. They, as a rule, provide an initial speed of a shot charge of about 400 m / s.
Charges of black powder give a slightly lower initial velocity, but given that the velocity of the shot drops rapidly due to air resistance (in proportion to the square of the velocity), this difference does not play a special role in calculating the lead.
The second table (No. 2) remains relevant in our time, with the possible exception of the point where it is recommended to shoot young black grouse with shot No. 8. This is possible only when shooting grouse broods in August from under the stand of a pointing dog. But such lambing is not currently practiced.
Table No. 3 is already closer to our topic, as it gives a formula for determining the magnitude of the lead. Try to determine for yourself the lead required when shooting on a duck flight, and compare with the lead you did on your last hunts. Compared, so what? Remember that the body length of the mallard duck is about 50 cm, and if you shoot it at the limit of the shot, then most often you need to take a lead of 5-6 bodies.
Table number 4 does not require much explanation, just look at it more often before hunting, it helps a lot. Table No. 5 - also without comments. Table number 6 is very useful, especially before hunting. Table No. 7 - the same as No. 4, only the calculation is in meters. Do not be surprised at such a large lead, because 50m is the height of a 14-story building, so imagine a bird flying at the level of this house, and 2-3m lead will not seem very large to you. For a hunter, this table is especially important for determining the allowable shooting distance for hunting. It has been verified on numerous hunts and needs only some adjustment in one direction or another, depending on the specific conditions of the hunt. A lot depends on the gun you're using, and even more so on the cartridge. By properly loading a cartridge and using a plastic container, you will be able to move this table at least one column for shot numbers from "five" to "zero". To enhance the effect, you can evenly sprinkle the shot with starch, close it with thin paper on top and apply an asterisk twist. This is a reliable guarantee of accuracy and range of the shot.
If you didn’t have a polyethylene wad container at hand, then you can replace it with a home-made cylinder made of thick paper such as Whatman paper, wrapping a tape of this paper around a cylindrical rod for sending wads, fix the bottom and place it in a cartridge, then all the operations are the same. The cartridge is ready. Its only drawback is a stronger recoil when fired. But this also indicates that the cartridge is loaded correctly and the charge has good sharpness.
One more piece of advice. If you load the cartridges yourself, use salted felt wads and be sure to put a thick cardboard pad on the gunpowder, preferably polyethylene, which can be found in stores. When using wood-fiber wads, a polyethylene gasket is required.
A cartridge with a polyethylene container is able to ensure reliable defeat of game up to 70m. But hitting a target at such a distance is much more difficult, and finding a downed duck in the marsh thickets that has fallen at 70-80m without a dog is even more problematic. Therefore, the use of this cartridge is limited. It is necessary when hunting geese and hares. They almost always have to be shot at long range. Now for another cartridge. It is not always necessary to shoot at extreme distances. In the forest, on woodcock outcrops, when hunting swamp and meadow game, you often have to shoot, at least for the first time, at a distance of 10 to 20 m, then the standard cartridge turns out to be too accurate, which leads to annoying misses, and when it hits, it tears the game .
In this case, I have been using the so-called "forest" cartridge for many years, the scheme of which is given in the figure. From the picture it is clear how to equip it. A small explanation: the wads are necessarily felt, the shot is divided into three equal parts, the wads that separate the shot are 1/2 of the main wad. And one more thing: you can slightly increase the charge of gunpowder, by 0.1-0.15g, and cut the sleeve to 65mm with a 70mm chamber. Such a charge reliably hits a target at a distance of up to 25 m, even with not very accurate aiming, although I have had occasion to shoot down game with it at 40 m. When hunting on draft, it can be used for the first shot, when the woodcock flies 15-20 m from the shooter. I remind you that the fraction for such charges should not be larger than No. 6. Everything that is said above, so to speak, is theoretical baggage. But how to put all this knowledge into practice not for reloading cartridges, but for shooting? For successful hunting, home training with a gun is necessary, consisting of jumps and a leash.
I will share my experience, how I mastered this table. Let's say you have determined that the bird is moving at a distance of 50m and you need to take a lead of six lengths. You take out the aiming point by this value, but in no case do not stop the gun at the moment of the shot, otherwise a miss is inevitable - the gun must continue to move with an angular velocity equal to the angular velocity of the bird. True, there is not always enough time for such a shot, especially at dusk ... But this is the beauty of hunting. Another way, more effective and requiring some skill, which is also acquired by home training: quickly throw the gun into the lead point and, while continuing to move, quickly pull the trigger. The first way is more convenient to shoot at a clearly visible target, as if approaching the shooter from afar. If time is running out, then there is no other option. In the first case - this is shooting "leashed", or "with a leash", in the second - "offhand". But you can train yourself in shooting even without a gun. While walking, follow the flight of birds and mentally find the aiming point at which you would throw the gun. This will come in handy when hunting.
When hunting on a flight, when choosing a place from where you will shoot, determine the maximum distance of the shots, focusing on the surrounding objects: trees, shrubs, grassy thickets, etc. This will help you take the lead correctly and save you from useless shots. If you don't have a dog, choose a location where downed game can be easily found.
The formula for determining the amount of lead: Y=Vv*t
Y - lead value in meters
Vv - target movement speed, m/s;
T - shot flight time to the target, sec
cat
- City Krasnodar region
For high-speed and long-range targets (whether on a hunt or on a stand), you need to shoot only “on overtaking”. And if the authors do not know this modern technology, then there is no need to teach young people to shoot. Relearning is much more difficult than relearning.
The overtaking technique is much more difficult than lead shooting, but it is precisely this technique that gives the hunter control over a flying bird and a running beast; allows him to manipulate the gun before the shot in a way that is beneficial to him; shoot at a convenient point for the shooter. Since the gun moves much faster than the target during overtaking shooting, this nullifies all the speed advantages of the game.
The principle of overtaking shooting is quite simple. The barrels of a gun are thrown not at the point of lead of a flying bird, but directly into it or a little behind. Then follows overtaking (at close range - fast, at long range - smooth) and, with the advent of clearance, a shot. The size of the clearance is determined practically or (to whom it is given) intuitively. The most difficult thing about this technique is the lack of a fixed lead. As soon as you set a lead of two lengths or a meter, then there will most likely be a miss on a difficult and distant target. I understand that this is not only difficult to depict in practice, but also to imagine in the mind. However, I repeat: lead should not be fixed, but growing all the time. We often say that we were left without prey, because, they say, the game flew high. At the same time, not suspecting that it was not a matter of height, but of the inability to shoot shots at long distances. Shooting "on overtaking" allows you to make effective shots at the limit. By the way, the throwing machines on the “goose” sporting grounds are located at a distance of 72 meters from the shooting number. And they fly not to the shooter, but sideways and up. Consequently, the shot is fired from an even further distance. Think about whether you will be able to hit a target with a cross section of a couple of centimeters (the plate is turned sideways to the shooter), taking any lead? Hardly. And modern arrows "on overtaking" beat them all. It's the same with game. Shooting with lead gives confidence in defeat only at a short distance and under ideal conditions.
When hunting in the forest on a feather, shooting “on overtaking” is much more effective than even shooting “offhand”. In his book "Hunting for a hazel grouse", the most experienced hunter and biologist Pyotr Zverev wrote that shooting at a hazel grouse "from the rise" is impossible. But after all, we, stand-builders, for the most part, have no other opportunity to get hazel grouse. For too long, shots have been pounding on our ears every day, and I, for example, do not hear his whistle and am deprived of the opportunity to hunt with decoy. But shots from the approach, thanks to shooting "on overtaking", often work out. After taking off in a dense forest, the hazel grouse, as a rule, appears only briefly in a small gap. A hunter who takes a lead usually finds his point on the nearest Christmas tree. As a result, he either refrains from shooting, or, having hesitated, is late with it. Arrow "on overtaking" is enough to cross out the bird with a barrel and immediately press the trigger. And even if an obstacle appears on the way again, the shot, with the right leash, will still get the game through the needles, branches and leaves.
When shooting “on overtaking”, such a gross mistake as stopping the gun is excluded - it moves faster than the game. The bird will not be able to get away from the shooter by maneuver - the barrel of a gun thrown behind the game is, as it were, tied to it and will go after the prey, wherever it turns, overtake it, overtake it and cover it with a sheaf of shot. A hunter who has brought the barrel to the lead point risks losing the target if it suddenly changes course (often chaotic).
Lead calculation tables compiled on the basis of the speed of the game and the distance to the target are generally not needed today. Not only does it never occur to anyone to produce them before a shot, the game very rarely runs and flies at the speed prescribed for it. It is enough for the arrow “on overtaking” at any speed of prey to overtake it, respectively increasing the speed of the gun (of course, by moving the body). I’ll make a reservation, there are some hunts in which you need to combine shooting “offhand”, “overtaking” and “preemptively”. For example: hunting for hares and ungulates in the forest. Because of the numerous obstacles of the landscape, they often have to beat the beast in the gaps between trees, snow drifts and bushes. A long leash in this case is contraindicated (inopportunely a tree that has turned up can take on a charge of shot or a bullet). The gun is taken out in advance to the intended point of passage of the beast, if necessary, a lead is taken and a short shot is fired. When hunting "from the approach" shooting "offhand" has also proven itself well. The trigger is pressed at the moment the butt touches the hunter's shoulder. Simultaneously with raising the gun to the shoulder, the front sight is carried to the front of the body of the game or, if required, to the lead point, and the shot is fired without the slightest posting.
I am very annoyed by the “experts” who are throwing down on an inexperienced shooter who has made a mistake: “You shot in the backside.” But after all, “behind” the game or the target is a consequence (by the way, this is 90% of misses). And the reason? Stopping the gun. Why? Hand whip. Why? The hull didn't work. Why? There was not enough turn to the point of the shot. Why? Initially wrong shooter's stance (or hunter's position) and wrong grip of the gun. This is an abstract example, but this is how you need to analyze each unsuccessful shot and correct errors. And memorize effective shots. That's when there will be progress. If shooting stopped for an experienced shooter (this also often happens), then one of my trainers, Valery Konshin, advised me to forget everything and do it as if I were comprehending the ABC of shooting.
A few words about self-equipment of cartridges. One engineer from a plant that manufactures Record cartridges confided that 40 percent of the yield was defective. 40 goes for export, 20 for trap shooting and 40 (that is, the whole marriage) goes to stores. As a result, purchased cartridges misfired, spat, and the shells were torn in them. Among other things, the Soviet hunter was allowed to purchase only 300 cartridges per year. That's when I understand, it made sense to load the cartridges myself. But why today? The best cartridge companies, both imported and domestic, competing for the right to be the first on the market, improve the quality of the cartridge every day.
Cartridges are sold for every taste and for a hunter of any income.
I understand that for some this is a long-term tradition and, in a way, a sacred rite. But why promote a self-line cartridge among young people? You like it - load and shoot, but why write articles and publish books about some special qualities of a self-loading cartridge?
I don't understand A. Blum's articles titled "The Fox Cartridge" or "The Duck Cartridge". I have been hunting foxes for 30 years and I know one thing for sure - at a distance of an acceptable shot, a fox beats cleanly with any factory cartridge equipped with shot of the first number. You can use any other large fraction. And that's it! The hunter does not need to know anything more. What about close and long range ammunition? When will the fox let you change the cartridge in the barrel? You have to shoot with what you have (especially for submachine gunners). Well, and if there is a need, then any stores are sold - from long-range to dispersant. I will be told that faith in your patron helps psychologically. And I will answer that such a cartridge, on the contrary, can break the psyche of a young shooter. If everyone around hits, and he “smears”, then involuntarily the hunter will begin to sin on the cartridge of his (or someone else’s) charge. If everyone around is hunting with the same cartridges, and the result is better for others, then the reason for the misses is something else.
We immediately dismiss all the talk about the efficiency of self-loading cartridges. Today, hunting is a very expensive sport. Hunters who can afford to burn hundreds of ammo per ride don't complain about how expensive they are. The villager, who shoots two dozen rounds of ammunition per season at a hare, will somehow find money for them. Vouchers and contributions are much more expensive. And the wealth of most hunters allows you to buy relatively inexpensive cartridges today. For example, I'd rather not buy myself new pants, but go hunting with good, expensive cartridges. (This is me in the garden of my colleague Yarkovoi, who, like all provincials, considers Muscovites spoiled and snickering. By the way, I assembled my first Browning from three faulty ones, and saved up for a new one for several years.)
I'll say more. It is self-loading cartridges that are the cause of most hunting accidents. No wonder in Europe it is allowed to use only factory ones.
I am not a representative of any cartridge company, and do not depend on them in any way. I just saw the unfortunate with torn cheekbones and hunters who missed a rare trophy due to the fault of self-loading cartridges, who spat at the most crucial moment. Today, in times of the latest technology, you should not bother yourself with an extra problem. Focus better on shooting and on finding places for good hunting, which, alas, there are not many left.
I foresee the indignant articles of lovers of wood-fiber wads cut from felt boots, and “centrifuge” capsules with the addition of black powder. Well, let's argue, zealots of traditions.
"Russian hunting newspaper"
Sergei Losev
And do you get it often? Normal shot, offhand.
D. Polyakov
"Hunting and hunting economy No. 07 - 1983"
It must always be remembered that a shotgun has a limited effective range. So, from barrels with drilling close to cylindrical, the optimal range of actual damage is within 17-30 m (maximum - 35 m), and from trunks with drilling, a full choke is 25-45 m (maximum - 50 m). These restrictions impose their own requirements on the hunter. He must be able to correctly and quickly determine the distance to the target, both to a stationary one and to a fast moving one. This is not such an easy task as it seems at first glance. In order not to deviate from the main topic, I just want to note that in various terrain conditions, depending on the lighting, the density of the vegetation cover, and the size of the game, it is common for a person to err in one direction or another when determining the distance to it. Only constant training in determining the distance to objects in conditions close to hunting conditions, followed by a step-by-step check, can save a hunter from gross mistakes.
A relatively correct determination of the distance to a moving target is necessary both in order not to shoot beyond the effective range of a shotgun, when a miss becomes a natural inevitability, and in order to correctly determine the amount of lead.
Is it difficult to learn to shoot offhand? The answer depends on what results you want to achieve. If we compare the difficulties of achieving average sports results (3, 2 and 1 categories) on a round stand, then they are not at all greater, and for some people even less than achieving the same results in athletics or team sports (volleyball, football, hockey, basketball, gorodki, tennis). I met novice hunters who, after several trainings on a round stand, fulfilled the norm of 3 categories. The difference in results between an average shooter and a high-class shooter lies mainly in willpower and consistency in training. In principle, almost every person with normal coordination of movements, normal vision and athletic temperament can learn to shoot well offhand and achieve high results in shooting sports. But for this you need to strictly adhere to certain rules.
Shooting stance
If you look from the outside at the shooting of a good hunter or stand-up, then the first thing that catches your eye is the simplicity and ease with which targets are hit. All this happens as if it could not be otherwise. And secondly, it seems that the shots are fired almost simultaneously with the appearance of the target, incomprehensibly quickly for a novice hunter.
To achieve such results, first of all, it is necessary to develop a correct stance that is convenient for shooting. It allows you to quickly turn the shooter's body to the right and left, provides a stable position if you need a second shot. The feet should be placed at such a distance from each other that there is a distance of about one foot between the heels, and a little more between the toes. If the feet are wide apart, then body turns will be difficult and the shooter will begin to make the leash of the gun with a movement of the hands, which will lead to a miss. If the soles of the feet are too close together, the shooter loses stability both when turning the body and when recoiling from the first shot.
The position of the shooter's body to the shooting plane should be at an angle of approximately 45°. The legs should be slightly bent at the knees, as when skiing down a small hill. The body is slightly tilted forward in the direction of the intended shot. Such a stance allows all muscles to rest between shots and provides the ability to hit targets only by turning the body in the 160-170 ° sector without losing stability.
The hunter must hold the gun by the neck of the butt with his right hand so that the index finger in the middle of the first phalanx can pull the trigger. The left hand holds the gun by the forearm. The shooter, who is in such a stance, already by the position of his body "aimed" in a given direction even before the butt touched his shoulder.
Attaching a gun
In off-hand shooting, the attachment of the gun to the shoulder is usually combined with the leash of the gun. In most cases, the gun has to be applied while the hunter's body is turning. Proper attachment of the gun, combined with the correct stance, ensures that the gun is aimed at the same point where the hunter's eyes are looking. Before applying the gun to the shoulder, the hunter must hold it so that the weight of the gun is evenly distributed between the right and left hands. This is determined by each hunter individually by selecting the position of the left hand on the forearm during trial butts. When the hunter has found the right position of the left hand, one must strive to keep the forearm in the same place in any conditions.
When applying a gun, it must first be thrown forward and up, and then, with the movement of both hands, press the butt against the shoulder into the shoulder cavity. When throwing up the gun, the right shoulder slightly rises up, the head leans slightly forward. When the butt touches the shoulder cavity, the ridge of the butt should be pressed against the hunter's cheek under the right cheekbone. When you watch a good shooter shoot, you will notice that he throws the gun forward and up and puts it unhindered to his shoulder and cheek. At the same time, he simultaneously turns his body and looks in the direction where the shot should be directed. As soon as the gun is attached, its barrels are automatically fixed in the direction of the shooter's gaze, and he fires.
The most common mistakes beginners make when putting down a gun are:
1 - dragging the butt to the shoulder from under the arm, which slows down the application, does not ensure the constancy of application to the same place - the shoulder cavity; as a result, you have to correct the butt and offhand shooting does not work;
2 - the hunter puts the gun to his shoulder too low and he has to tilt his head strongly so that his cheek rests on the comb of the butt; such a habit among some hunters quickly takes root, which slows down the butt, makes shooting offhand difficult; some trainers say: "A good shooter puts a gun to his cheek, a bad shooter puts his cheek to the gun";
3 - sometimes the hunter fires a shot before the butt comb touches the cheek. Although such a direction in offhand shooting exists, a novice hunter should not do this, because this method requires stable shooting skills and gun ownership, which is not given immediately. A novice hunter should fire a shot only after his cheek has touched the crest of the butt, since in this case we get a strictly fixed position of the gun barrels, directed to the same point where the hunter's eyes look.
In the process of application, the gun barrels are directed to the point of interception of the target by a shot sheaf and, until the trigger is pressed, they are held for a moment in front of the target by the amount of lead, while on the move. For some time the leash continues after the shot. But all this happens so quickly that it seems as if there is no leash when shooting offhand. Offhand shooting differs from shooting with a short leash in that, if in the first case, the gun is first applied, and then the leash begins, then when shooting offhand, the gun and leash are combined into one movement.
In hunting literature, a lot is written about guns that are applied and non-applicable. I can't talk about handicraft guns and guns with modified stocks, but standard factory-made guns are made with the latest scientific research and are useful for the vast majority of hunters. Of course, a buttstock made at the factory to order, according to the measurements taken from the hunter, is better than the standard one. But how much better? Little is thought about it and little is written about it. The experience of the best test benches in the world convincingly proves that when comparing the results of shooting from guns with standard factory-made stocks and from guns with stocks made by the best gunsmiths in the world to order, the latter show an improvement in shooting results for various shooters by 2-5%. For top-class athletes, this is an impressive improvement, but it can hardly be felt even by a very good hunter on the hunt. There are so many additional interferences that they absorb these 2-5% of possible misses associated with insufficient applicability of factory guns in excess. That's why you should not look for the causes of failure in the unapproachability of the gun: look for them in your mistakes and correct them.
Aiming
About offhand shooting, some weapon experts write that with this method the hunter shoots "as if not aiming", but this is far from the case. Due to what happens aiming when shooting offhand? Due to the fact that a person tends to direct his actions where his eyes look. So, a person can quite accurately throw stones, snowballs, a ball; the carpenter hits the heads of the nails with a hammer without missing; a hockey player sends the puck into the goal with a stick; a football player kicks the ball into the goal with his foot; a tennis player, being on the move himself, intercepts the ball with a racket and sends it towards the opponent with enviable accuracy... And all this is done without any aiming devices! The shotgun shooter is in a relatively advantageous position compared to other athletes. It shoots a shot that covers a large area when fired. At optimal firing ranges, the diameter of the circle of actual destruction of a shot sheaf reaches 106 cm and has an area of 8824 cm2, that is, almost a square meter. Such an area of actual damage guarantees against misses with minor errors in the accuracy of the direction of the gun barrels when shooting offhand.
Offhand shooting, like any other, should be done with both eyes open. Anyone who squints one eye when aiming a gun at the point of interception of the target deprives himself of the binocular vision given to him by nature. This makes it difficult to estimate the distance and reduces visual acuity. The whole picture at the time of the shot is not so clear and is remembered worse. Only when a hunter shooting from the right shoulder has the left eye as a commanding one, you either need to squint it or retrain to shoot from the left shoulder.
At the moment of finding the target, the hunter must focus all his attention on it. At the same time, the distance to the target, the direction of its flight are estimated, and the lead is determined. As soon as the magnitude and direction of the lead are worked out, and this happens simultaneously with the application of the gun (and, of course, without any mathematical calculations), the hunter shifts his gaze to the point of interception of the target by the shot sheaf. In this case, the target continues to be in the field of view of the hunter. If the hunter does not move his gaze to the point of interception of the target with a shot sheaf, he will miss, since lead will not work. The hunter sees the aiming bar (trunks) out of focus, very blurry. Some great shooters, focusing on the target, say they can't see the barrels at all, but that's certainly not the case. They see the trunks because, when properly applied, they are in the hunter's field of vision, but in a fit of passion they pay so little attention to them and see them so vaguely that they may get the impression that they do not see them at all.
As already noted, the range of the shotgun is limited. The hunter must have time to shoot while the target is in the zone of actual destruction. The novice hunter must train himself to shoot quickly even if there is time to aim at the game. As soon as aiming begins, the leader slows down, the game flies out of range of the shot and, as a result, a natural miss. If at the beginning of training the hunter shoots quickly and misses, this is a fixable problem. As they say, it's better to miss a good shooting style in the beginning than to hit a bad one. Bad habits take root and it is very difficult to correct them in the future.
The preemption problem
Determining the amount of lead more than other shooting problems causes controversy and contradictory statements. A huge number of different schemes, tables, graphs and drawings have been created showing what the lead should be when firing at fast-moving targets in one case or another. These allowances show the magnitude and direction of lead. The study of such manuals for a novice hunter is useful, as they provide a basis for reflection and teach you to think about the need for lead, which creates the prerequisites for developing specific shooting skills.
There is also a significant number of sights that assist novice hunters in determining lead. Some hunters at the initial stage of learning to shoot use such devices, but as soon as the basics of shooting offhand are mastered, the need for such sights disappears, and the hunter no longer uses them.
The complexity of solving the problem of determining the lead lies in the extremely short time allotted for its solution, in the incredibly large number of options for shooting at flying game, in the fact that a person tends to make mistakes both in determining the distance to flying game, and in determining the direction and speed of it. movement. So, a lead sufficient to hit a bird flying at a distance of 30 m from you will lead to a miss on the same bird flying at a distance of 40 m from you. Many annoying mistakes are made even by experienced hunters due to the incorrect determination of the angle of takeoff or landing of game . Yes, and different game differs from each other both in flight speed and in flight behavior.
But the most important thing is that each person is individual, and it is almost impossible to meet two equally shooting hunters. Between persons who underestimate this factor, disputes or misunderstandings usually arise when they do not agree with each other regarding the amount of lead in a particular case. In fact, one may have a fast reaction, the other - a slow one. Usually it seems to everyone that he has a quick reaction and that he pulls the trigger as soon as the decision to fire a shot has matured in the brain. In fact, for each person, the time from making a decision to pulling the trigger is different, and even a difference of 0.05 s affects the amount of lead. The speed of applying the gun and turning the body is also different for each hunter, and this, in turn, gives a different speed to the leash with a gun. It should also be taken into account that for each specific hunter, the speed of reaction may vary depending on mood, health status, amount of training, etc.
Usually, the faster the lead with the gun, the less lead. Experience shows that if with a fast leash a lead of 30-40 cm is sufficient, then with a slow leash it can reach 1.5-2 m, and with a leash with a gun stop - 3-4 m. But there may be such cases, when the hunter has a fast leash, but a slow shot reaction. Such a hunter with a lead of 30-40 cm will have misses, and to hit he will need more lead. Conversely, you can meet individuals with a slow leash, but a quick shot reaction (the muscles of the hands are more developed and trained than the muscles of the hip girdle). In short, the great variety of human characters, temperaments, physiological features and ways of thinking does not allow one to unambiguously solve the question of what should be the lead when shooting at a fast-moving target for this or that hunter. Each hunter must decide this question on his own, either with the help of a good coach or an experienced senior comrade.
But there is no need to exaggerate the difficulties of the preemption problem. It is successfully resolved with the acquisition of shooting experience based on the features of our brain to capture only positive shooting results in memory. Misses in the hunter's memory are recorded only when he has accurately determined their cause and, therefore, can eliminate it. The rest are not stored in memory. Hits are fixed in the memory of the hunter always and remain for life. At the same time, our brain fixes in memory not only the position of the barrels in relation to the game, but also the hunter’s stance, the speed of applying the gun, the speed of the leash with the barrels, etc. In the future, in similar situations, our brain gives us a timely and accurate command to shoot, obviously , solving it by the associative method. Therefore, personal shooting training, personal positive shooting experience is important for each hunter.
It is best to train in offhand shooting on the stand, but not everyone has the conditions for this. It is also possible to train in shooting offhand in any shooting range, both from an air gun and from a small-caliber rifle. You can shoot at both stationary and moving targets, but at the same time you need to forget about the front sight and the rear sight, focus your eyes on the target and pull the trigger when you touch the butt to the shoulder. Having achieved the result, proceed to shooting with the rotation of the body.
It is possible to adapt a flashlight to a hunting rifle, the beam of which is aligned with the direction of the aiming bar or with the axis of the bore. Focus the beam of a flashlight with a narrow beam. The flashlight should turn on when the trigger is pressed. With such a device, you can successfully train in the room.
Before each workout, as well as before going on a hunt, a physical workout for the arms and hip belt is very useful.
These are the basic principles of offhand shooting. Having mastered them, the hunter can begin to comprehend the intricacies of this method of shooting, shooting with a doublet, as well as quickly learn the methods of shooting with careful aiming of the game, if necessary.
But in order for the results of offhand shooting to satisfy you, you need to firmly remember its main provisions: observe the correct stance in anticipating a shot; correctly and uniformly apply the gun with the uniform position of the right hand on the neck of the butt, the left hand on the forearm; direct the gun and make a leash with it only by turning the body; shoot with both eyes open, focus on the game, before pulling the trigger, look at the point of interception of the target with a shot sheaf; fire shots quickly, without delay, without stopping the movement of the barrels; remember the results of the shooting.
D. Polyakov
"Hunting and hunting economy No. 07 - 1983"
MR - 153 STK
Umansky settlement, Krasnodar Territory
1. Shooting without leashes.
With this method of shooting, the authors recommend moving the front sight to a certain point ahead of the bird on its flight path, in which the shot charge should be after the shot, provided that the gun, starting from the moment the trigger is pressed, will be STILL.
What will this lead to in practice? Firstly, fans of this method will have to do WELL, VERY LARGE LEAD, the correct value of which is much more difficult to calculate than with other shooting methods. This, of course, will contribute to misses. Secondly, this will significantly increase the number of misses made due to the vertical downward displacement of the gun at the time of the shot. Don't believe? Then try doing the following experiment with one of your hunter friends. Give him a loaded but safety-locked gun, and offer to take an immediate (this will distract him from control, and will not allow him to notice the catch) shot at some stationary target. But before placing the gun in the hands of the shooter, tell him that the gun is off the safety and is ready to fire. And you will see what I have seen many hundreds of times: the muzzle of the gun barrels, when you press the trigger, “peck” down TEN CENTIMETERS!
The conclusion suggests itself: it is better to refuse such a method of shooting.
2. Shooting with a leash
With this method of shooting, the authors recommend moving the front sight to a certain point in front of the bird on the trajectory of its flight, in which the shot charge should be after the shot, provided that the speed of movement of the bird and the gun sight accompanying it (in the mind of the shooter) will be the SAME.
I must say that this method of shooting, according to my observations, is the MOST COMMON among amateur hunters. The reasons for this attachment are quite obvious. Everything is much simpler here: I caught the silhouette of a bird on the fly, overtook it, equalized the speed, taking the necessary lead, and ... press the trigger. It is much more difficult to make a mistake with determining the CORRECT amount of lead with this method of shooting. The periodicals contain a lot of tables with reference data containing recommended lead values depending on the flight speed of a certain type of bird, the direction of flight and the distance to it.
It would seem that everything is easy and simple, but, alas, the results of the shooting lead to a very disappointing conclusion: the number of targets hit is obscenely small compared to the total number of cartridges used. And this despite the fact that the guns are magnificent, and the cartridges are excellent. It means “it’s not about the reel”, as motorists say, but that the adherents of this popular method of shooting are in wait for “pitfalls”, the existence of which many of them, perhaps, do not even know.
The biggest stone is STOPPING THE GUN WHEN THE SHOT IS SHOT. At the same time, I should note one of my most interesting observations: NO ONE OF THE HUNTERS WANTS TO ADMIT IT! And it's not that they want to hide it. Surprising fact: none of them notice it! Meanwhile, an extraneous attentive glance without any difficulty reveals this error. It is difficult to say what are the underlying causes of this most harmful habit? I am not a psychologist, but, perhaps, the whole point is in the subconscious desire of the shooter to fix the lead that was perfectly chosen according to his understanding before the shot. Alas, this turns into a real disservice.
There is one more stone that lies in wait for lovers of shooting with a leash: SHOOTING WITH HANDS. This definition cannot serve as a pretext for caustic remarks like, what, they say, you can shoot with your feet? It implies only a fairly common mistake in aiming, when the shooter guides the gun not with the body with the arms motionless relative to it, but with the hands with the body motionless with respect to the legs. This leads, firstly, to a sharp narrowing of the practical shooting sector, and, secondly, it deforms the shooter's stance. Both, of course, contribute to the deterioration of the accuracy of shooting.
And, finally, such a pebble as CLUTCHING AN AGAINST EYE while aiming also reduces the accuracy of shooting. Shooters aiming with only one dominant eye (monocular aiming) deliberately deprive themselves of the advantages that binocular aiming provides: the maximum field of view angle and the volumetric binocular "picture".
Instead of a conclusion, I will note only such an indisputable fact: hunters who have coped with these bad habits shoot very successfully with a leash. Moreover, they are deeply convinced that there is nothing better than this method of shooting and cannot be. MAYBE!
3. Shooting strikethrough.
With this method of shooting, the authors recommend ONE QUICK CONTINUOUS MOVEMENT in the direction of the bird's flight to cross out its silhouette with the front sight and at the moment when it overtakes it, immediately press the trigger.
It is my deep conviction that this method of shooting should be strongly recommended to all novice shooters and those who have not yet decided and are in search. I will list its advantages:
The shooter WILL NEVER stop the gun before firing, for the simple reason that it is by definition impossible to do so.
The probability of making an error in determining the correct lead value is reduced to a minimum.
Strikethrough shooting is surprisingly transient, which is extremely advantageous from other shooting methods.
The possibility of making such a mistake as RETAILING, that is, delaying the time for aiming, as a result of which the target leaves the zone of guaranteed destruction, is reduced to a minimum.
Mastering just this method of shooting will help the shooter eventually shoot EFFICIENTLY offhand. In other words, I want to draw the following somewhat unusual conclusion: point-blank shooting is not some single method of shooting. This is the same strikethrough shooting, which is only performed at the highest possible speed.
The dignity stipulated in paragraph 2 deserves, in my opinion, a more complete explanation. First, readers should not be given the false impression that there is no need to lead at all when shooting strikethrough. WARNINGS MUST BE PRESENT! And although they are minimal with this method of shooting, the question still remains: what should they be, and in what ways is this achieved? IT'S ALL ABOUT THE SPEED with which the front sight overtakes the target. The amount of lead and overtaking speed are inversely proportional. That is, the faster the front sight overtakes the target, the smaller the lead value should be. And, conversely, the smaller the difference in the speed of the target and the front sight, the greater the lead value should be.
So we can agree to the point that shooting with a leash, by and large, is just an ordinary special case of strikethrough shooting. The only thing is that the shooter, at the moment when the front sight overtook the target, turned on invisible brakes in his mind, and their speeds (front sights and targets) became equal. (A joke in which everything is true).
The speed of overtaking (and, accordingly, the amount of lead) each shooter chooses individually. Perhaps THIS IS THE MOST SUBTLE MOMENT in mastering this method of shooting. According to my observations, there is a place to be in full compliance with the temperament of the shooter. Cholerics (like me) shoot extremely fast, almost instantaneously. Phlegmatic people manage to do it no less beautifully, but, as they say, with feeling, really, with arrangement. But the former manage to shoot (and hit!) Faster than the latter.
How to decide on speed and lead? My hunter friends! No most eloquent, sweet-voiced and expert in the art of shooting in flight can teach you this in his own words on paper. Only your practical shooting (at least ten times fifty - one hundred shots with weekly intervals, but without breaks) will allow you at one fine moment to suddenly understand: HERE IT IS! GO! I assure you that this moment will come much sooner than you think. It's like learning to skate. You fall, you fall, and suddenly... LET'S GO!
For beginners, I will add to the above just one thing: DON'T BE AFRAID TO TAKE SIGNIFICANT LEAD, ESPECIALLY WHEN SHOOTING SIDE TARGETs at the very beginning of mastering the art of shooting in the air. With this advice in mind, you will save a lot of ammo. Don't believe? Check it out!
Alexander POSUDIN
sportguns.ru
The lead and aiming points depend on the initial flight speed of the shot projectile, since the aiming point changes in height and the amount of the required lead depending on the steepness of the trajectory.
Shooting at moving targets is carried out in four ways:
1 - with a fixed gun;
2 - with a smooth leash;
3 - with a leash and a throw before a shot;
4 - offhand.
The most imperfect and bad way- the first, when the shooter directs the gun along the line of flight of the target and keeps it motionless, waiting for the moment when the target is at the desired lead value, and pulls the trigger. The lead is gently taken very large, which is why the accuracy of pointing the gun along the target’s trajectory suffers and therefore it can be “ lower" or " raise". However, despite the correctness of the lead taken, there may be a miss. In this way, the most inexperienced shooters tend to shoot.
The second method is inherent in old experienced hunters. It consists in the fact that the shooter, having thrown the gun at the target, overtakes it smoothly, leading the barrels in front of the target, setting the necessary lead without stopping the gun, pulls the trigger and fires. However, this good method of shooting is not always possible, as it requires a significant investment of time on the leash of the gun. In the thicket, in the forest, such a shooter often remains without a shot, because he does not have time to fire it before the target hides behind the vegetation. In open areas, this method gives confident and effective shooting.
Methods of shooting with a leash and a throw differ from the previous one in that the gun moves all the time pointed at the target and is thrown ahead of the target along its flight with a jerk (throw) while pressing the trigger. This method can be applied when shooting in the forest and other thickets.
Finally, the last method is used by the most skilled and skillful shooters. It consists in the fact that the shooter, constantly following the target with his eyes, simultaneously turns the body and throws the gun at a certain point lying in front of the moving target, and at the moment the butt of the butt comes into contact with the shoulder, pulls the trigger and shoots. This method requires an exceptionally good fit of the stock according to the constitution of the shooter, excellent balance, applicability and seating of the gun.
Shooting at moving targets generally requires an excellent fit of the gun according to the constitution of the shooter, well-tailored and fitted clothes, comfortable equipment for the hunter, when nothing interferes with the free movement of the hands and body of the shooter, the stock never touches when the gun is raised and always lies in one and the same the same place in the shooter's shoulder.
They aim from a gun during any shooting in two ways: with a closed aiming bar and with an open one. The second method is more convenient for the shooter in that it allows you to aim at the target and see it completely during the shot and the projectile hitting it. In the first case, the gun covers the target and it is not always visible. However, the first method should be considered more reliable, because it is easier for the shooter to check himself in the correct position of the gun relative to the eye, because he sees the top of the front sight, which is combined with the upper edge of the block shield in its middle.
Tokmochek
Art. Leningradskaya, Krasnodar Territory
I fully share the opinion about the inadmissibility of stopping the barrels when fired.
Everyone's intuition and subconsciousness are individual and have no dimension, and the speed of the shot and the movement of the target have a value and fit into a rather narrow range.
Ask yourself and familiar hunters: what lead should be taken on a duck flying from the side at a distance, for example, of 30 or 50 meters? You will find that most hunters tend to "outrun" the game. Hence the misses, the passion for large fraction numbers, etc. Yes, and on the stand, without knowing the magnitude of the lead, the shooter will feel insecure.
The table was created more than 10 years ago according to information from the hunter's encyclopedia of the 1952 edition.Target angle - 1/2 (90 degrees)