Choosing a gun for hunting is quite daunting until you know what you want to hunt. The answer will provide you with appropriate and limited options out of numbers of choices. Because type of game guides you to choose bullets and cartridges. And cartridges fix the type of guns.
How To Choose Cartridges
Cartridges are often called ‘bullets’ which is a misnomer. Actually a cartridge carries
- a bullet
- a primer
- gunpowder
Primer ignites gunpowder and gunpowder propels bullet. Cartridges come in a range of sizes, weights etc. An enormous collection of cartridges can easily confuse a new hunter and oblige him to ask – “How to choose a cartridge?” The question deserves a careful answer.
Because a hunter should ensure a ‘humane death’ of a game and simultaneously maximum preservation of flesh on its body. So optimization plays a very crucial role here.
Cartridges are generally classified by ‘Caliber’. It indicates the diameter of the bullet it carries. In general ‘Caliber’ is expressed in
- inches
- and millimeters.
‘A 9 mm Pistol’ indicates a pistol that fires bullets with diameter of 9 millimeters. Different types of bullets are used for hunting different animals. There is a famous old saying that teaches us to find out an appropriate cartridge to hunt. “.30 is a squirrel gun, .40 is a rabbit gun, .50 is a deer gun and .60 is bear gun.” Be careful of the specifications because they are too old to be perfect for modern weapons. But at least it gives an overview. Now a days you will need
- .17 or .22 caliber bullets for small games
- .24 to .45 caliber bullets for larger games.
Optimization Of Weight And Range Of Cartridges
Choosing cartridge is not all about choosing caliber of bullet. You have to consider weight and power depending on the range of hunting. Lighter bullets show greater accuracy in short range whereas heavier bullets are more impactful in long range. Power is also a crucial quantity to find out an appropriate cartridge.
Actually it is one that ensures a ‘humane death’ of a game and maximum preservation of flesh on its body. Generally long range cartridges are used for distances less than 100 yards and magnum cartridges are used for greater distances.
Type, Length And Weight
Once you choose a perfect cartridge, you can concentrate on rifles. Rifles belong to two different categories. Single shot and repeaters. A single shot rifle can hold only one cartridge at a time whereas repeaters can hold more than one cartridges at a time.
Single shot rifle is lighter and sleeker due to its simple structure. But it demands a killer accuracy from hunter leaving no second chance during hunting. Single shot rifles can be classified into different action categories (falling block rifles, rolling block rifles etc.). These different action categories indicate different mechanisms only and we should not be bothered about that.
Repeaters are in general not as light as single shot rifles. But it will provide you with more than one chances during hunting. That’s why experts usually prescribe repeaters for new hunters. Repeaters are also classified in various categories which are not so much important from the perspective of hunting.
Length and weight of a rifle are other crucial factors. They dictate the level of comfort which is important for higher accuracy. Certainly you have to choose a gun which you are comfortable with. Your patience may be affected otherwise.
Considering all these factors you will have just few options left in your hand to choose. Now concentrate on materials and models of the rifles and that’s it. But there is another factor to take into account which is probably the most important- and that is nothing but your budget.
Everything You Need To Know About Still Hunting
Still hunting is the process of hunting your game stealthily; it is also known as stalking. This type of hunting is one of the hardest kinds out there because the deer are so evolved with their sense of smell and their hearing as well as their eyes with just one wrong move you could lose your best buck yet.
However there are some great and well-experienced hunters out there that are able to just sneak throughout the woods being able to get at least one or two bucks all while perfectly still hunting. Below are the seven basic steps in order to still hunt properly:
The Seven Basic Steps for Properly Still Hunting:
Step One – You need to always remember that you should not ever be in their sight; whenever you have the chance you need to stick with shadows and be used to being covered by the land that is around you in order to blend in a lot better. You need to be as blended in as you can be, this means camo, dark colors, war paint and a hat everything dark and or camo unless otherwise permitted by law.
Step Two – With this step you need to better understand your surroundings; this means to learn the lay of the land. Aerial photos and topographical maps come in handy with this process. They show you places such as creeks, bodies of water, orchards and more; this helps with showing you better places of going first of all to get bucks.
Step Three – Always cover your scent as a human, this means that you need to always keep a close eye on the direction of the wind. Always travel downwind or crosswind of the deer.
Step Four –Only make sounds that are natural in the wilderness of your surroundings such as the noises that buck would make in order to attract a female and so on. With that being said you should also always remain motionless as much as possible.
Step Five – Your eyes are the most important aspect that you need to focus on when it comes to still hunting. You need to be able to master the ability of moving forward while keeping both of your eyes locked on to the cover that lies ahead. Always look for a pathway first and then quickly scan the horizon. After getting this down you will soon find yourself moving just as you should like a deer.
Step Six – With this step you must never forget that you need to be in the right place at exactly the right time when it comes to still hunting. This means that you need to not only know all about the terrain that surrounds you but as well as the actions of the type of deer you are hunting. For example, if you are following a white tail deer than when it is during the early season you need to go hunting alongside of the deer as well as downwind of the deer from a trail that goes from an area where their bedding is to an area where they feed at.
Step Seven – When it comes to still hunting the ideal rifle to use is one that is light enough so you can easily carry it around with you all day long and keep in mind it also needs to be short enough so you have the ability to quickly handle it in the terrain that is all bushy. The air rifle you use also needs to have enough power to be able to drop a deer that is three hundred pounds at one hundred yards minimum. And when it comes to the scope you use it is best to use one that is a low power scope such as 1.5x to 5x. Another kind that is popular to use is known as a pair of peep sights.
