Shotgun Design – Three Types
Side by side, semi-automatic and over and under are the 3 main shotgun designs used by the majority of shooters.
Side by side shotguns are frequently used by game shooters.
Their barrels are next to each other.
Over and under shotguns have one barrel above the other.
Shooters normally use an over and under gun for /en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clay_pigeon_shooting”>clay pigeon shooting .
Auto’s have a single barrel and cartridges are loaded into the clip below the breech.
/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shotgun”>12 bore shotguns offer the perfect combination of performance and weight for most adult shooters.
20 bore shotguns are often used by juniors, ladies and by other shooters who want a lighter gun with less recoil through their shoulder.
Clap Pigeon Shooting Equipment
Gun Slip
Gun slips come in many different styles, designs, colours and materials including canvas and leather.
Cartridge bag
Different disciplines require different shooting attire and cartridge bags. For some a pouch or pocket will be sufficient.
Eye protection
Many shooters have protective glasses with different types of lenses to protect their eyes while also ideally suiting different shooting conditions.
Ear Protection
To protect your ears against potential damage you should wear ear plugs of defenders whilst shooting. Ear protection is mandatory at professional shooting venues.
Cartridges
There are lots of cartridge manufacturers to choose from and most shooters have a preference. Your favourite cartridges will normally be the ones you have shot best with!
Different types of target often require different sizes of lead shot for the optimum chance of hitting it consistently. Larger shot flies further by there are less pellets in each cartridge. Smaller shot doesn’t travel as far but you have a bigger ‘pattern’ to hit the clay with at closer range.
The amount of ‘lead’ that a target requires will vary depending on the speed of your cartridge. Speeds vary from 1350 – 1650 ft/second, and a specific speed will suit your hand eye coordination better than others.
Skeet and Sporting Clays
Skeet
Skeet shooting is the same wherever you shoot. The two targets fly through the same path, so you can practice the discipline with the same (or very similar targets) worldwide.
Skeet has 7 stands set out in a semi circle between the two trap houses, and you shoot a round of 25 birds as you move through the 7 stands. Many skeet shooters will shoot 100 straight on a regular basis, and it is a competition based around control and concentration.
Sporting Shooting
Sporting is more like simulated game shooting in so far as each ground will put on a large variety of different targets. From week to week there is always something new to try and the variety is endless.
Types of Clay Target
‘Standard’ targets have a 110mm diameter and are domed.
A Midi is a smaller standard shaped clay, 90mm in diameter
The smallest ‘standard’ shaped clay is a Mini, which is only 60mm across.
A Battue is a flat clay with a lipped edge. They turn in midair and dive to earth when you least expect it!
Rabbit – 110mm Diameter – Stronger than a standard, designed to run along the ground at speed.
Basic Clay Pigeon Shooting Principles
Shooting clays is similar to catching a ball. Your hand eye coordination will automatically reach out with your lead shot to where the clay will be when the lead reaches it.
If you have reasonable hand eye coordination and can understand what a target is doing, you will naturally be able to hit it.
As your shot leaves your gun barrels, it moves through the air in a cigar shaped cloud. All you need to do is to make sure that the clay flies through that cigar of lead.
Shooting Techniques
Putting your shot in the right place requires only two things to be right, your gun speed and the moment in time when you pull the trigger. There are two basic ways to shoot, ‘swing through’ and ‘maintain lead’.
A target requires an amount of lead in front of it where you need to shoot in order to hit the clay. Maintain lead means tracking the target, staying in front of it by the amount of lead that you think the target requires.
Instead of measuring each target using maintain lead, more experienced shooters often use swing through as their preferred technique. Coming from behind the target, you swing through the target until you have enough lead in front of the target. Squeeze the trigger while keeping the gun moving and watch the clay break.
The Different Types of Clay Targets
There are 7 basic types of clay targets for sporting shooting, which simulate many different types of game.
Rabbit
A rabbit is a strong flat 110mm clay designed to bounce along the ground at speed. Rabbits are often unpredictable with a bounce when you least expect it.
Teal
A Teal clay simulates Teal duck, and flies straight up in the air, often at great speed, usually falling on the same path as it went up. These fast clays are challenging for many shooters.
Quartering
By looking at where the target comes from and where it lands you can see how much the target is quartering towards or away from you. Quartering targets need less lead than a crossing target, so knowing its true flight path is important.
Driven
Consistently hitting driven clays requires a good swing through technique. The targets mimic driven game flying towards you, and your gun barrels will hide the target just when you want to pull the trigger.
Incoming
Incomers head towards you, but unlike driven birds, they drop before reaching you rather then flying over your head.
Going away
Going away targets get small very quickly so don’t hang around or you will miss your opportunity.
Loopers
Loopers are very often quite far away, and often ‘q are frequently used by game shooters.
Their barrels are next to each other.
Over and under shotguns have one barrel above the other.
Shooters normally use an over and under gun for /en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clay_pigeon_shooting”>clay pigeon shooting .
Auto’s have a single barrel and cartridges are loaded into the clip below the breech.
/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shotgun”>12 bore shotguns offer the perfect combination of performance and weight for most adult shooters.
20 bore shotguns are often used by juniors, ladies and by other shooters who want a lighter gun with less recoil through their shoulder.
Clap Pigeon Shooting Equipment
Gun Slip
Gun slips come in many different styles, designs, colours and materials including canvas and leather.
Cartridge bag
Different disciplines require different shooting attire and cartridge bags. For some a pouch or pocket will be sufficient.
Eye protection
Many shooters have protective glasses with different types of lenses to protect their eyes while also ideally suiting different shooting conditions.
Ear Protection
To protect your ears against potential damage you should wear ear plugs of defenders whilst shooting. Ear protection is mandatory at professional shooting venues.
Cartridges
There are lots of cartridge manufacturers to choose from and most shooters have a preference. Your favourite cartridges will normally be the ones you have shot best with!
Different types of target often require different sizes of lead shot for the optimum chance of hitting it consistently. Larger shot flies further by there are less pellets in each cartridge. Smaller shot doesn’t travel as far but you have a bigger ‘pattern’ to hit the clay with at closer range.
The amount of ‘lead’ that a target requires will vary depending on the speed of your cartridge. Speeds vary from 1350 – 1650 ft/second, and a specific speed will suit your hand eye coordination better than others.
Skeet and Sporting Clays
Skeet
Skeet shooting is the same wherever you shoot. The two targets fly through the same path, so you can practice the discipline with the same (or very similar targets) worldwide.
Skeet has 7 stands set out in a semi circle between the two trap houses, and you shoot a round of 25 birds as you move through the 7 stands. Many skeet shooters will shoot 100 straight on a regular basis, and it is a competition based around control and concentration.
Sporting Shooting
Sporting is more like simulated game shooting in so far as each ground will put on a large variety of different targets. From week to week there is always something new to try and the variety is endless.
Types of Clay Target
‘Standard’ targets have a 110mm diameter and are domed.
A Midi is a smaller standard shaped clay, 90mm in diameter
The smallest ‘standard’ shaped clay is a Mini, which is only 60mm across.
A Battue is a flat clay with a lipped edge. They turn in midair and dive to earth when you least expect it!
Rabbit – 110mm Diameter – Stronger than a standard, designed to run along the ground at speed.
Basic Clay Pigeon Shooting Principles
Shooting clays is similar to catching a ball. Your hand eye coordination will automatically reach out with your lead shot to where the clay will be when the lead reaches it.
If you have reasonable hand eye coordination and can understand what a target is doing, you will naturally be able to hit it.
As your shot leaves your gun barrels, it moves through the air in a cigar shaped cloud. All you need to do is to make sure that the clay flies through that cigar of lead.
Shooting Techniques
Putting your shot in the right place requires only two things to be right, your gun speed and the moment in time when you pull the trigger. There are two basic ways to shoot, ‘swing through’ and ‘maintain lead’.
A target requires an amount of lead in front of it where you need to shoot in order to hit the clay. Maintain lead means tracking the target, staying in front of it by the amount of lead that you think the target requires.
Instead of measuring each target using maintain lead, more experienced shooters often use swing through as their preferred technique. Coming from behind the target, you swing through the target until you have enough lead in front of the target. Squeeze the trigger while keeping the gun moving and watch the clay break.
The Different Types of Clay Targets
There are 7 basic types of clay targets for sporting shooting, which simulate many different types of game.
Rabbit
A rabbit is a strong flat 110mm clay designed to bounce along the ground at speed. Rabbits are often unpredictable with a bounce when you least expect it.
Teal
A Teal clay simulates Teal duck, and flies straight up in the air, often at great speed, usually falling on the same path as it went up. These fast clays are challenging for many shooters.
Quartering
By looking at where the target comes from and where it lands you can see how much the target is quartering towards or away from you. Quartering targets need less lead than a crossing target, so knowing its true flight path is important.
Driven
Consistently hitting driven clays requires a good swing through technique. The targets mimic driven game flying towards you, and your gun barrels will hide the target just when you want to pull the trigger.
Incoming
Incomers head towards you, but unlike driven birds, they drop before reaching you rather then flying over your head.
Going away
Going away targets get small very quickly so don’t hang around or you will miss your opportunity.
Loopers
Loopers are very often quite far away, and often ‘quarter’ towards or away from you for added complication. There are different techniques for hitting loopers depending on whether you favour shooting them as they rise, when they reach their peak, or as they are dropping.
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