Crow Shooting Tips

Crows, a member of the Corvid family are recognized as a pest species within the UK and are therefore legal quarry on pest control grounds. The act of taking Crows, or other pest bird species are covered by the General License. It is important, and a legal requirement that you are familiar with the General License and any specific conditions related to your particular quarry.

Mike Freeman has kindly given us his permission to reproduce his Crow Shooting Tips from the Pest Control UK Facebook group.

I was asked for some tips on shooting crows, I can only advise on the way that I shoot crows, some of you may benefit, some will have different methods and ideas on this topic.

1. Use a decent cartridge, I use mainly 5’s or 6’s if I have no 5’s. A crow can carry a bit of lead and its not fair to use too lighter load on them and send em off pricked.

2. Location, Find where the crows are feeding on the crop, normally on tram lines or laid areas, I will try to watch the feeding birds the evening before I shoot if its late in the day. Get there and set up before first light, the first visitors are the most confident.

3. Hides. Make a good hide, crows are very wary and will pick up on anything out of the ordinary, I put a partial cover on the top of the hide to give cover from birds looking in. keep movement down to a minimum and be aware of barrel glint on bright days. Look through your hide and not over it.

4.Decoys. I just use 4 plastic deeks, I wipe them with gun oil or WD40 before I use them, yea I know but look in a field of feeding crows, they shine!! I set these about 20-25 m out and slightly to one side of the hide, not a too open pattern. Replace deeks with dead birds as you shoot them, use cradles or props to make em look right. Add to your pattern as you shoot but don’t crowd it.

5. Shooting, Don’t be tempted by the rangey birds wait for em to come to the pattern, same for the high circlers that don’t feel safe, Let em come right in as they can veer off pretty quick if you shoot too early and you wont get the second barrel off if needed. Watch for the ‘stealth crows’ they come in with no sound when you ain’t looking , and enjoy the ones that are committed and come in like jets on an aircraft carrier.

6. Finishing up, clear up ya empties, spread out dead birds on their back wings spread on damaged crop, I spray with diesel to stop foxes buzzards etc from taking them. This will stop them returning. Go to next farm!

The above tips are based on a shotgun approach, for information on tackling crows with a rifle; Shooting Times has an article from April 2010 which covers this topic.

Review: Browning Maxus

I have always had a love of Browning firearms. I’m not sure where this interest has come from perhaps just from the ergonomics and aesthetics of the firearms or perhaps it is the fantastic reputation and innovation that has been shown by John M Browning and the company over the centuries. Unfortunately due to the sad state of affairs of UK firearms law I have thus far never been able to own or fire many of the firearms from this legendary name. It was with my interest in Browning firearms that  I was drawn towards choosing Browning Shotguns for my first purchase.I had shot clays for a few years but only fairly recently did I apply for my SGC.

I can remember being in the shop looking at all the guns when I picked up a Browning 525 O/U(which I will talk about in another article). The length and balance of the gun was perfect for me so I decided to purchase it. However I was also very keen to purchase a semi automatic shotgun and that is when the Maxus caught my eye. It stood apart from the others in the shop due to the eye catching finish and of course the “quick release” fore end.

I picked it up and again was amazed at how well it seemed to fit my frame as well as how light it was.  I left that day £2,500 lighter with 1 almost new 525 and a brand new Maxus  and I will never look back.

My particular model is the Maxus Sporting Carbon Fiber (pictured) which features a synthetic stock and forearms, aluminium receiver and coated steel barrel with a ventilated rib. It is chambered for 2 3/4″ -3″ magnum and is proofed for steel shot. In all it weighs in around 7lbs

Browning Maxus Sporting Carbon Fiber

This was a favourite when participating in my first rough shoot as I felt it would be more forgiving of the wet(although with good maintenance this shouldn’t be an issue). The Dura-Touch® coating on the stock and fore end is also designed to aid in stopping heat loss as well as improving grip in wet conditions. Very much appreciated I can tell you!

The Maxus has many excellent features such as the quick release fore end which I have already mentioned but also a speed loader and a magazine empty.

The quick release is quite an innovative feature that aids in stripping down the gun for cleaning and maintenance. It functions similarly to the fore end on a traditional over under. You simply push a small button in and flick a lever up and the fore end simply slides off. This allows the rest of the gun to be stripped down.

Quick Release Mechanism

To remove fore end press button

Pull lever out and slide fore end off

The speed loader is simple in operation and an excellent feature.  It allows you to leave the gun and magazine empty whilst walking but allows you to be ready to fire almost immediately if quarry presents itself unexpectedly. The principle of operation is simple. You leave the breech locked open and the magazine empty, when you load the first shot into the magazine it is immediately feed into the chamber and the breech block closes over ready to fire thus saving vital seconds fumbling to load directly into the breech.

The only down side to this feature is you cannot have 2 rounds in the magazine with the breech left open as they automatically feed into the chamber. Some models do feature a magazine disconnect which allows you to leave the breech open and have cartridges in the magazine.

The magazine discharge is another handy little feature on the Maxus which saves a bit of time and messing about. Just inside the magazine feed there is a little spring tab sticking out. If you wish to empty your gun you simply push this tab in and the cartridges will automatically feed  out of the magazine into your hand.

Magazine discharge (tab arrowed)

The Maxus also features Browning’s Power Drive Gas System. According to Browning this system ” has been designed to be more reliable in all conditions, fire a wider selection of loads, reduce recoil and cycle shells faster. The new Power Drive gas piston features large exhaust ports that effectively dump gases faster on heavy loads, while the piston has an approximately 20% longer stroke for superior reliability with light loads.”

Maintenance

Maintenance of the Maxus is very easy. The entire gun can be stripped down in less than 20 seconds(Faster with practice) after removing the quick release fore end the barrel, piston,spring and breech block to be removed.  I lubricate all moving parts with a light oil. Grease has been recommended to me for the breech block but I am going to monitor the effectiveness of this as I am wary of any grease getting turned into grinding paste.

Disassembled Maxus showing barrel, magazine tube, gas piston and forend. Breech block is still in receiver

Breech Block. To remove, cocking handle must be pulled out and breech closing button must be pressed to let breech slide out

After a lot of shooting you may also wish to clean the inside of the magazine tube out and lubricate it. This is fairly simple to do but if unsure you should always go to a professional gunsmith. To open up the magazine tube there is a little spring pin that must be pressed in whilst applying torque to the end cap. Once the pin is pressed in the cap should screw off as normal. Be careful when nearing the end of the thread as there is a very long spring inside under tension. When doing this I place a rag over the end cap and wear a pair of safety glasses.

Re-assembly is simply the reverse process. When putting the spring and end cap back on you may need assistance. Also the spring pin will need to be pressed in to allow it to screw in correctly.

Although I am a relatively new shooter I can say I am very happy with my choice(s) for my first shotguns and can see many years of happy reliable use ahead of me. The Maxus is ideal for new and experienced shooters alike. It is light, low recoil, accurate, reliable, easy to look after and most of all FUN!

Licensing fees, a victory for Northern Ireland

“The long awaited public consultation on proposed changes to firearms law in Northern Ireland took place between 28th June and 20th September 2012. Views were sought on a wide range of proposals including an increase in firearms licencing fees, an age reduction for young shooters, a new banded system for the exchange of firearms, and cutting some of the red tape faced by shooters wishing to visit the province.” (BASC Key Issue)

BASC’s response to the consultation can be found here. Firearms UK, as with BASC are strongly opposed to an increase in firearms licencing fee’s as such we are delighted that an update, published by BASC yesterday highlights that potential fee increases for Northern Ireland licence holders have now been rejected by the Justice Committee.

This update is particular significant since the Association of Chief Police Officers have now published their proposals for significantly raising the licensing fee for firearm and shotgun holders in England, Scotland and Wales. Firearms UK have already been in contact with the ACPO; We have submitted our own recommendations to address the needs for greater efficiency and have outlined our opposition to both the raising of fees and of “full cost recovery”. We encourage you all to follow our Facebook page, where you can discuss the issue of license fees and more.

The Negatives of Magazine Subscriptions?

I’ve been a fan of magazines for many years, and although that willingness to sink ever increasing amounts of money into a bound collection of shinny paper, with its ever increasing amounts of adverts has waned in recent years; I still derive a great deal of pleasure through there purchase.

I love an impulse purchase, and magazines are no exception. Searching for that one issue that really tickles your mood and interest, whether before a long journey or just to round off a shopping trip, was always something I would look forward to; still, the majority of my magazines arrived via way of a subscription.

There are some obvious benefits to magazine subscriptions; They are almost always cheaper, they may give you access to titles you would otherwise have to repeatedly request or order in and you get to enjoy them without leaving the house.

So the positives of magazine subscriptions are great, but are there any negatives?

Unfortunately I believe there are some negatives, which I would like to draw your attention to:

1. Perceived readership of your titles by store clerks, management and owners may be reduced.
2. Missing out on meeting like minded individuals in store.
3. Missing an opportunity to raise awareness by carrying or reading the magazine in public.
4. You may not be aware of subtle threats to your sport, such as the WHSmith policy on age restrictions.

Now, let me just make it clear that I’m not saying you have to give up those subscriptions, I like them just as much as you. I would just like the shooting/firearms community to be aware of any negatives and make the best choices they can in support and promotion of their sport and rights; that may mean making no changes, cancelling one subscription to pick it up locally, or just buying the odd extra issue locally and passing it on to a friend, colleague or relative.

If you can think of anymore negatives or positives please add them bellow as a comment or start a discussion about this topic on our Facebook page.

Perspective: Firearms vs Tobacco

Please keep signing and sharing our petitions.

It’s been an exciting 6 months. When I first started the airgun petition I never imagined it becoming as popular as it did, this is down to a lot of hard work and support from many shooting organisations,magazines and the shooters that do bother to take action.

The shooting community has always been it’s own worst enemy when it comes to taking action to defend itself. Whilst 14,000 is a great number to achieve it is a miniscule amount of what it should be when one looks at the millions(yes millions) of people in the UK with an interest in firearms. Division is rife and many people do not bother if it does not affect their own particular section of the sport and in some cases even if it does! This apathy will destroy our rights.

The Scottish petition has been sent in with 14,193 petitions however when I attend the meeting with the Public Petitions Committee it would put us in an excellent position if the number of signatures has grown even more since then. If nothing else it will send a strong message to the Scottish Government and perhaps even the UK Government that shooters are not going to take it any more and we will fight back.

Having been featured in a recent article in the Sunday Express and with an upcoming feature in the Shooting Times our petition may get a second wind and achieve the even greater numbers we sorely need.  With such publicity and popularity it puts us in a very good position to continue educating the public on the positives of gun ownership and shooting sports.

If we want to move on to greater things and win our rights back we must continue to support each other and keep up good communications. We must end the divide between us all. The anti gunners do not care what your reasons for owning a firearm are, they do not care about facts or logic they want rid of  them all and we are helping them by failing to unite or remaining in a state of listlessness.

As we continue to move forward and the Firearms UK following grows we will need everyone to stand with us and let their voices be heard. We need everyone to do their bit in helping our campaigns. Please continue to share our petitions and pages with family and friends. I realise that I may be preaching to the converted when people are reading this but we must continue to gather our friends on board and get those people on the fence or sitting with their heads down standing tall and on our side.

We are law abiding citizens and it is time to say we will not accept punishment or criminalization for the minority of people who do abuse airguns and firearms.

Sometimes you’ve got to fight for your rights.

An Audience with Wayne LaPierre

On Monday 17th June, the Kings College Library, London played host to Wayne LaPierre from the (US) NRA in an event organized by The Sportsman’s Association. The event focussed on our experiences of firearms licensing, with a view to raise awareness of the real impact licensing can have on lawful firearms owners. It was my honour and privilege to be in attendance, and although attending in a personal capacity, I would like to share the experience through Firearms UK with our supporters.

Upon arrival at the library the guest list was checked, and I was granted entry, only making a short stroll before being greeted by a security team and a metal detector, being the figure head of such a large and important organization I was naive not to expect such scenes, though I was a little surprised by the discretion that was apparent. Once cleared I was guided past the hall, the location of the event, to await in a room labelled ‘Audience’. The room gradually filled, and conversations could be heard on an array of topics including calibre choice, shooting locations and licensing issues. Everyone was very smartly turned out, and fit well within the grand splendour of such a magnificent building.

The time for refreshments and introductions was soon over and we were ushered upstairs to take our seats in the hall. There were enough seats for perhaps fifty people and I didn’t notice any remaining unoccupied. The bright lights and the cameras soon set the tone for a very well organized and professional event, that I will not be quick to forget.

The well-known shooting enthusiast, commentator, and founder of Positive Shooting, Mike Yardley was the first to speak and covered the historical context of British firearms laws, from the right to bear arms in the English Bill of Rights (1688) to the present day. Taking each development in turn, Mike highlights the false belief that the 1920’s Firearms Act was introduced as a means to combat crime, when in fact, it has been shown to have been introduced through fears of Communism.

He continues into 1996, describing the tragedy of Dunblane, which was the tipping point that lead to the “hand gun ban” by the Labour Government in 1997, as our Sandy Hook. A law, (1997 Firearms Amendment Act) that has had no impact on armed crime, yet has hurt many innocent citizens, through loss of jobs, business, hobbies and possessions spanning generations and is still being felt by sportsman and women in the UK today, who fuelled by persecution by the media and politicians may, as suggested during the event, struggle to get bank loans or be denied car insurance, solely because their line of work or interests involves firearms or the shooting sports.

In response Mr LaPierre would make a point he re-iterated throughout, that politicians lie and break their promises. They may very well assure you that any list of firearms owners may not be used in the confiscation of firearms, but as we’ve seen in the UK and elsewhere that is exactly what it comes down to. He also made the same distinction that UK shooters have been saying for years “Just because a criminal uses a firearm, that’s no reason to take them away from law abiding citizens”.

Next up was Mike Wells the general secretary for The Sportsman’s Association. He tells the story of the founding of the Sportsman’s Association during the fight against the “hand gun ban”, and of approaching the (UK) NRA who at that time were “not interested”, a view that is sadly all too common amongst shooting organizations within the UK, rather than uniting to protect all of our sports and associated rights, we are fragmented and have thus far suffered greatly because of it.

Mr Wells then went on to outline some of the major differences between the US and the UK with respect to firearms and the restrictions imposed upon lawful shooters by the licencing system. He highlighted that we no longer have a lawful authority to purchase and own firearms for the purpose of self-defence, and referenced examples of the authorities targeting him without founding to persecute him because of his status as a licenced firearms owner and his position has the head of the Sportsman’s Association. He summed up saying “the police don’t want private firearms ownership at all”.

Mr LaPierre responded jokingly that perhaps “the elites” should surrender their arms and to “put up a gun free sign on Buckingham Palace”. The room responded with soft laughter, he continued summarizing that “the elites” should surrender their arms, that is what they are trying to force upon the law abiding citizens.

The discussion between speakers and Mr LaPierre continued, covering as many angles of the issue as air time allowed. At this point a significant yet often unheard point was made by Mark Scoggins, Solicitor; “any law should be based on evidence, not public opinion, not what is trending on Twitter…” Sadly the opposite is true when it comes to gun control. The government and like -minded organizations are waiting in the wings to jump on any tragedy and use it to further their own agenda towards civilian disarmament; this is especially true with the 1997 Firearms Amendment Act. Mr LaPierre responded with “You can’t legislate morality… the problem is self -inflicted, we go after the good guys”. He’s right of course, laws only affect the law abiding, and criminals have both the capacity and the will to ignore any laws.

Next Mr LaPierre asked a very important question, and those involved in the shooting sports know the answer; “are there people who should have stepped up, but who sat down?” Within the UK, the answer in my opinion is a resounding yes, and that needs to change. The fear over losing yet more of our rights, more of our freedom, more of our possessions… more of our jobs and business was felt throughout this entire event and was brought into the discussion from a majority of the speakers. To address these fears and concerns we need to unite and support each other in the defence of the shooting sports and firearms ownership, only whilst united can we make a significant challenge to the constant attacks against the lawful firearms owners, sportsmen and women within the UK and beyond.

The remaining speakers reinforced the impact of licensing on law abiding citizens. Lucy King, 33 and an ex-lawyer added that she has had a good experience with her local police so far but has “great fears for the future”. Mike Shepherd an honest firearms dealer and collector spoke of his experiences with the police, during his arrest and subsequent imprisonment in the high security prison; Belmarsh. He had his historic gun collection seized by police and was vilified by the press only to be acquitted and is now seeking compensation. Lawful firearms owners and sports shooters have long been demonized in the UK, both by the political class and the media, which has built up a total lack of understanding and even fear of law abiding firearms owners by members of the public, an example of this was given by a lady speaker who was hesitant to pick up her children from school in hunting attire, having just been shooting.

The trend of overzealous police, imposing and battering for an increased amount of restrictions without lawful reason or authority was further stressed by Steve Jones, town and district councillor and director of London Shooting Club ; who commented on how the police tried to persuade him to surrender certain calibres from his firearms licence, without reason or precedent other than they just wanted him to ; to meet their own opinions of what was right. It was suggested that the process [of acquiring a license] is designed to prevent people from going through the process, rather than to focus on filtering out those who are not suitable to own firearms. Victoria Knowles, 29 added to the discussion “I am a women working within the shooting industry, we are bound by so many regulations now, and it only seems to get worse. We can’t bear arms for self-defence, if we have an intruder in our homes we can’t protect ourselves and risk going to prison if we do. It’s a crazy situation where criminals seems to have more rights than the law abiding and I really fear for the future.” Mr LaPierre agreed, addressing the audience, “does it sometimes seem that, it’s almost like the criminals have more rights?” The room responded with a clear “Yes”.

Young shots were also represented by Nathan Little, 21, who at the age of 18 became one of the youngest people in the country to setup and manage his own shoot. He spoke on his growing concerns about the vague licencing laws in the UK and the threat that this possess to legitimate sportsmen and women. He also noted, as did many speaker his fear for the future, and his abhorrence of the way shooting sport and gun crime have been confused in the media, and a general media bias against shooting.

Time was very short at this point, and unfortunately not everyone had time to speak, the speakers contributions were drawn to a close by the following quote “It’s not about the right to keep and bear arms, it’s about the right to have rights”.

It was both worrying and empowering listening to all of the speakers and being in an audience so supportive of the right to civilian firearms ownership and the shooting sports. Worrying because the majority shared my own fears of what’s to come in the future of the UK, what more threats will we face, and will our jobs and past times survive to pass on to future generations. Yet, it was also very empowering, everyone who spoke was clearly very passionate about their sport and their rights, and that passion was a breath of fresh air from the apathy and lack of interest I am normally exposed to. It is my hope, through Firearms UK I can help unite the various factions within the shooting sports of the UK and tap into this passion to not just prepare for the next threat but to start winning back lost ground.

Finally I would like to thank all of the organizers, everyone who was in attendance, and of course Mr LaPierre himself.

Thank you.

Erika Sykes
For and on behalf of Firearms UK

A .PDF version of this publication is also available

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(US) NRA Event in London

Tomorrow evening, a member of Firearms UK will be in attendance at a televised debate including Wayne LaPierre of the US NRA. Unfortunately the event will not be broadcast in the UK, although it is likely to be made available via YouTube. As soon as we can confirm which channel it is being broadcast on or distributed we will let you know. In addition we will try and secure a copy of any official footage and will also if practical take some stills shots via the trusty camera phone.

We aim to publish a report on the event within the following few days, until then we suggest you follow us on Twitter, all going well our representative will be Tweeting updates live from the venue.