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  • old06

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    Sep 15, 2009
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    What is it hunting or shooting Recently I saw a few TV shows where everyone was using large scopes and shooting critters at extremely long ranges 800 to 900 yards.
    My question, not trying to start a riot-just curious is; What do you experienced and knowledgeable professionals consider long range on game? When does it go from hunting to shooting?
     

    whbonney26

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    You prob. seen Best of the West. They use gunwerks guns and the scopes are calibrated for the altitude, bullet grain and they usually shoot between 800-1000 yards.

    I think as long as you have the right equipment and experience to take a long shot then there is nothing wrong with taking a shot that far.
     

    old06

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    You prob. seen Best of the West. They use gunwerks guns and the scopes are calibrated for the altitude, bullet grain and they usually shoot between 800-1000 yards.

    I think as long as you have the right equipment and experience to take a long shot then there is nothing wrong with taking a shot that far.




    Yep I believe that was the show but do you feel it is in the hunting or shooting realm I understand the equipment aspect but feel they could have gotten closer
     

    CZowner07

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    You prob. seen Best of the West. They use gunwerks guns and the scopes are calibrated for the altitude, bullet grain and they usually shoot between 800-1000 yards.

    I think as long as you have the right equipment and experience to take a long shot then there is nothing wrong with taking a shot that far.


    +1. If you have the experience and equipment those shots are possible. My dads killed a deer at 550yrds in the marsh.. I know thats not 800 yards, but it is still pretty far. These gues we proably shooting from an elivated spot (the were on a mountain and the animal was in the valley). My dad didnt have a range finder so he couldnt tell how far it was when he was shooting it. If he would have known he could have adjusted his riflle to accomidate for the drop of the bullet, but he shot 3 times and killed it the 3rd shot. It would have probably taken him one shot if he had a range finder because he is a very good shot and knows how to accomidate for drop if he knows the distance. He did it with a A-bolt 7mm mag and a 3-10x42 swarovski scope.
     
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    topgunz1

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    I think to be called hunting it should require some sort of effort on your part... driving up in the truck, setting up a bench and shooting prairie dogs all day isn't very difficult.
     

    old06

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    +1. If you have the experience and equipment those shots are possible. My dads killed a deer at 550yrds in the marsh.. I know thats not 800 yards, but it is still pretty far. These gues we proably shooting from an elivated spot (the were on a mountain and the animal was in the valley). My dad didnt have a range finder so he couldnt tell how far it was when he was shooting it. If he would have known he could have adjusted his riflle to accomidate for the drop of the bullet, but he shot 3 times and killed it the 3rd shot. It would have probably taken him one shot if he had a range finder because he is a very good shot and knows how to accomidate for drop if he knows the distance. He did it with a A-bolt 7mm mag and a 3-10x42 swarovski scope.


    I feel you dad is at the edge of the hunting range, those guys on the show could have had a card game going and not disturbed the game .I feel that if you make the wrong move and its not detected by the game its shooting.
     

    CZowner07

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    I feel you dad is at the edge of the hunting range, those guys on the show could have had a card game going and not disturbed the game .I feel that if you make the wrong move and its not detected by the game its shooting.

    The reason the deer he was shooting didn't run is because they don't know where it is coming from, so they get startled and don't know what to do. He only hunts in the marsh once a year. On our lease in the basin the farthest shots are probably hhhmmm.....350yards. mabe 400.
     

    hunter5567

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    Most of those hunting shows on TV are really just shooting shows where you see 15 large bucks parading by your clubhouse stand. The hardest thing to do is pick the one that you want to shoot. All you need is money to hunt there and unless you are a poor shot, you'll get your buck.
     

    scubasteve

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    Mar 12, 2007
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    What you described is shooting, not hunting. "Bill, hand me another beer while I glass this valley."
     

    stancel

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    Realistically, very (VERY) few people hunt anymore. Most have baited plots with corn or planted greenery, use house blinds, hire a guide, etc. etc.

    Hunters actually HUNT. That means scouting a animals natural feeding areas (not creating one), studying game trails to figure out routes between feeding and bedding locations, looking for rub lines and patterning bucks, and so on.

    If that all sounds like a bunch of work to you, then you just don't enjoy hunting. And that is ok. To each his own. But don't expect me to be impressed when you shoot a 10 point munching on a pile of corn. That is just target practice in my book.

    Oh yea, and to answer the original question, yes, that is just shooting. Not saying it doesn't take skill, but much of it also rest on being able to afford very high quality optics and a damn accurate firearm. Maybe that is why this poor white boy hunts the brush and swamps!!
     
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    Ritten

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    Realistically, very (VERY) few people hunt anymore. Most have baited plots with corn or planted greenery, use house blinds, hire a guide, etc. etc.

    Hunters actually HUNT. That means scouting a animals natural feeding areas (not creating one), studying game trails to figure out routes between feeding and bedding locations, looking for rub lines and patterning bucks, and so on.

    If that all sounds like a bunch of work to you, then you just don't enjoy hunting. And that is ok. To each his own. But don't expect me to be impressed when you shoot a 10 point munching on a pile of corn. That is just target practice in my book.

    Oh yea, and to answer the original question, yes, that is just shooting. Not saying it doesn't take skill, but much of it also rest on being able to afford very high quality optics and a damn accurate firearm.


    +1

    That said...........I like shooting. :D:D
     

    whbonney26

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    What you described is shooting, not hunting. "Bill, hand me another beer while I glass this valley."


    I think it depends on the game. I got to tag along on a big horn sheep hunt one year and the shot made was about 375 yards. We were on one peak and the rams were on another. They have very good eye sight and smell. They can spot you from way off and they bolt higher up the mountain. Granted, that is not 1000 yards but more goes into it than just making a long shot usually. You have to scout and walk up and down lots of mountains sometimes to get your animal.

    Here are a couple videos from that series.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVlea8pZA2g[/ame]

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuEcZazhWYE[/ame]

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLPCEKqNTyA[/ame]



    Here is their site.

    http://www.gunwerks.com/


    I have been able to shoot one of their systems and it really is a nice system if you know your altitude, bullet weight and weather conditions. The scope is pretty nice and really allows the shooter to put bullets where he wants since its built with those factors in mind.

    I would not mind owning one in 7mm Rem Mag
     
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    BobKaro

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    Dec 16, 2008
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    I kinda fall into the middle ground I guess in regards to "what is hunting?"

    I think if they're not having to do anymore that get a range and be capable of the shot, that's just shooting. I'm not going to say you need to scout for weeks on end either. I think if you go out and hunt squirrels without scouting first it's still a hunt. You need to have a few basic skills outside being able to place the shot. Same goes for a field known to have doves. You need to be able to conceal yourself along a flight line and not spook them too early.

    I've been on a few pen raised quail "hunts" that I enjoyed. It was probably more of a hunt than these shots on deer. Sure we knew an area that was going to have the quail but not their locations within the area and had to let the dogs work. It still wasn't a hunt. Neither is shooting up a colony of prarie dogs. It's all opinion and I won't seriously put anyone down if they aren't doing anything cruel.
     

    Speedlace

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    That ain't hunting.

    Most of those hunting shows on TV are really just shooting shows where you see 15 large bucks parading by your clubhouse stand. The hardest thing to do is pick the one that you want to shoot. All you need is money to hunt there and unless you are a poor shot, you'll get your buck.
    Realistically, very (VERY) few people hunt anymore. Most have baited plots with corn or planted greenery, use house blinds, hire a guide, etc. etc.

    Hunters actually HUNT. That means scouting a animals natural feeding areas (not creating one), studying game trails to figure out routes between feeding and bedding locations, looking for rub lines and patterning bucks, and so on.
    What they said.

    :)
     

    old06

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    Sep 15, 2009
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    Well where I hunt for the last few years my only choice was to hunt gas lines or thickets which is impossible these things are almost impenetrable. This past spring we got on a bunch of the old logging roads and bush hogged them I now have a place to hunt not just shoot some deer. The new set up is out to about 60 yards we have some scrapes an the road has the only stand of old growth trees both pine and hard wood . I just cane from there and the road is full of tracks the oaks are starting to drop acorns.
     

    Ske1etor

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    Jan 30, 2008
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    The word "Hunt" is defined as "To pursue for food or in sport."

    Regardless of your opinion of how one does it, it is still very much hunting. They didn't shoot those deer from their living rooms so they were in fact, by definition, hunting.

    Stancel, growing food plots does not take away the fact that the animal is still being hunted. There is no guarantee that any animals will show up over a simple pile of corn or over a huge soybean field. Sure, you up your chances but the deer population gains more from supplemental feeding than the hunter does.

    Like I stated before, just because you don't agree with it, does not mean it isn't hunting.
     
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    Cowboy55

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    Hunting season is fast approaching, so it's time again to talk about long-range hunting vs shooting. Back in 2009 when this thread first started, nobody mentioned "fair chase."

    Long cross-canyon shots on sheep or goats require stalking and skilled shooting, AND those animals can see hunters a long ways off. That's fair chase.

    But fair chase is missing from these 500+ yard shots on TV shows. The game have no way/chance to know they're being stalked. They're just living targets. No fair chase = no hunt.

    The guys taking those long shots are skilled shooters, not hunters.
     

    Ritten

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    The game have no way/chance to know they're being stalked. They're just living targets. No fair chase = no hunt.


    So the guy that successfully eludes an animal's senses and makes an ethical kill isn't hunting? What if the guy hiked for 4 days, stalked over two mountains, and crawled a quarter mile just to get to the point to make that 500yd shot? Come on maaaan. You're reaching or need to word your argument better.

    I don't think it's the method of the kill that determines if it's hunting, but rather all of the work it took to get to that point. "Fair chase" is a subjective concept on the same level as "common sense gun control".
     

    Emperor

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    So the guy that successfully eludes an animal's senses and makes an ethical kill isn't hunting? What if the guy hiked for 4 days, stalked over two mountains, and crawled a quarter mile just to get to the point to make that 500yd shot? Come on maaaan. You're reaching or need to word your argument better.

    I don't think it's the method of the kill that determines if it's hunting, but rather all of the work it took to get to that point. "Fair chase" is a subjective concept on the same level as "common sense gun control".

    Also; If your land is on DMAP or other Mgt. Program, you are required (expected), to harvest certain amounts of animals and/or certain types/sexes. In those cases, a pile of corn or a food plot is the most efficient method of achieving that end. I never hunt/shoot/kill does where I hunt for bucks. But I damn sure kill them close enough to my ATV to drive right up to them to pick them up! Those are the box stands and the food plots. ;)

    Another issue; try to get a young kid interested in hunting in the rain, sloshing through the mud/swamp, in the cold, etc. We need more kids to want to hunt, not less.

    Hunting has evolved with technology. Your surroundings usually dictate how you hunt/shoot. Most people don't kill their prey with hand carved bows with horsehair and arrows made from trees, with flights made from feathers.

    If you as an individual want to harken back to a time where you wear a sheepskin over your head and use the equipment I mentioned above, by all means go do it! But to disparage people killing animals at 800 yrds as shooters versus hunters is foolish. I am both a hunter and a shooter. I employ both functions to encounter and then shoot the quarry I want to kill!
     
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