How Many Shots?

[webbspinner]

Well put, my dad always said if your 1st or second shot didnt get it, the thirds just wastin bullets.

[Fish4Fun]

All of my shots on deer and elk have been one shot kills with a rare second shot once in a while. My brother on the other hand can punch holes in paper like you have never seen. Put a deer in front of him and all bets are off. In the last 3 years he has missed deer every year. his new name among all of us is now "2 Box Johhny"    we figure he has shot at least 2 boxes of .300 Win Mag shells in that time.

[ing]

Sounds like you are all expert marksmen (yeah right). I guess I'll be the first to say that I missed a buck 9 times.  Yeah I said it and I'll say it again, 9 times.  No excusses, no explanations and I'm not affraid to admit it.  So who else is gonna pony up? 

[Gobble]

I missed 5 legal bucks opening weekend 5 yrs ago. I had only missed once prior to that. Found out that my scope came loose (20 yr old locktite powdered over time) and one of the deer I shot at was about a 170 5 pt 

It happens 

[GoldTip]

I'll be the first to admit I've missed a single shot now and again, but I have never taken a second shot at any animal that didn't kill it.  I've never emptied a gun at an animal or a group of animals.  I have however heard it done several times.

[Fish4Fun]

As hunters we owe it to the animal to make clean fast kills. That means we should ALL be out there making sure our guns are hitting on the money BEFORE season ever starts. Too many times I hear hunters say they didn't have time to go and check the zero before season. BULL CRAP, you have time to play golf, watch a football game, what ever other lame excuse. Then you had an hour to spare to shoot a couple of rounds to make sure you are on target. The reason most guys miss is because the only time they pick up the rifle is opening day of season.

ALL of my guns are tack drivers, and are shot to make sure they are. I went as far as setting up a Weatherby Vangard in .223 Remington complete with a Leopold Vari X-II just like our hunting rifes as a practice gun. The balistics of the .223 are pretty close to most hunting rounds out to about 200 yards. just no big kick like the .300 Weatherby has, and cheap to shoot all Summer long. This is going to be my girlfriends first year to hunt with me. She is ready because of the .223 and the practice we have put in. I have no doubt when her .257 Roberts barks on opening morning we will have meat on the ground.

[Rick]

Sounds like you are all expert marksmen (yeah right). I guess I'll be the first to say that I missed a buck 9 times.  Yeah I said it and I'll say it again, 9 times.  No excusses, no explanations and I'm not affraid to admit it.  So who else is gonna pony up? 

No ponying up from me,I don't even carry 9 rounds into the woods. I have 3 in the magazine (actually holds 5) and I carry 3 more in my pocket.

I did shoot three times at a 130ish" blacktail (I was 14). I had a borrowed 30-06 that hadn't been shot in lord knows how long. I was aiming behind the shoulder and missed the first two times. I aimed behind the shoulder one last time and actually hit the deer in the neck.

Other than that,I don't remember having to shoot a deer more than once to drop it. I have shot a couple in the neck because they weren't quite dead when I walked up to them. I guess that counts as shooting them twice.

[Dmanmastertracker]

 I've only taken more than two shots on a deer once, the year my scope reticle blew out during the regular season and I had to get a whole new outfit for late buck and only had two weeks to learn it, never got comfortable with it. I ended up taking five at a buck that was on the run, hit him three times, two killing shots. Generally if I ever need to take a 2nd shot, it's a finishing shot. I'm nowhere near an expert shooter I just shoot within my ability level, I don't take 450 yard shots in the snow because I don't practice for that.

[let.it.fly]

every deer has been a one shot kill for me, even with my bow. i have only gotten two with my bow but they both only went 20 yards. my bear on the other hand . just kidding. it was four shots with my bear. first hit mid back and crippled it. the other three were finishing shots from less then 30 yards. oh yea initial shot was from over 500 yrds. i know an unethical shot but this particular bear had an arrow in its face. throug hthe top of its muzzle,through the mouth and out the bottom of its jaw. and anyone who wants to challenge ability to shoot. i welcome it. the military trained me good. 

[WDFW-SUX]

One is plenty.. hell I only put three in my rifle anyway.

On a side not Ive been out at Kenmore this week and its a pretty sad deal how awful your average shooter is....if I had a dollar for ever time I have herd "thats good enough to hit a deer"  Id be a rich man.  

[jeepasaurusrex]

My Dad used to work at the True Value Hardware store in Concrete. Every year, this one old guy would come in to buy his hunting license and tags. He would then buy one round of 30-06. According to him, that's all he ever needs. 

[fishunt247]

I wonder if anybody who has heard a barrage of shooting listened to my mom on opening day last year. She practiced all summer, but you can't practice for buck fever on your first hunt (or any hunt)...PERIOD. She shot 7 times, the last one found its mark. The buck kept coming toward her, she kept shooting. Oh well. It's silly not to carry plenty of shells with you. *censored* happens: scope gets knocked off, people steal your deer, a not so great shot (it happens), weather swells your wood stock. Chances are you aren't going to need all those shells, but if you have to walk away from a wounded buck because you have nothing left to shoot, you are going to feel pretty *censored*ty about it.

[boneaddict]

Idabooner has another old time story that I wish he'd tell here.  Its about an old man (might have been an Indian)  Let me see if I can fire up his fingers.

[Heavily Armed Hiker]

We camped next to this group of guys a couple of years ago that climb the hill near camp and wait for elk to walk through the opposite hill side.  Once the elk started walking through, they would unload.  They were taking 600+ yard shots, across a road, at a spike.  Just kept lobbing bullets until they finally connected.  A foot high and a foot to the left was their motto.  And we wonder how hunters get a bad name

[colockumelk]

Here's my take on the subject. (I posted something like this in the bowhunting forum but it's very relavant to this subject)

 Just because you can shoot well at the range doesn't mean you will be a good shot when it counts in the field.  When I was in the Marine Corps I considered myself to be an excellant shot.  With  peep sights I could hit a man sized target at 500 yards 9-10 out of 10 times.  I looked down upon the police officers we all saw on tv in those shoot outs who missed time after time with their pistols at close distances, alway saying I could have done better.  I knew in my heart that if I was ever in a gun fight I'd be calmly taking well aimed shots because that's what I did in training.

Then in 2003 I deployed to Kuwait and then Iraq for the invasion.  When I got in my first gunfight I pulled the trigger and nothing happened.  Nothing happened because before I knew it I had emptied my 30 round magazine as fast as I could shoot three round bursts and hadn't yet realized I had even fired a single round.  After a few encounters I calmed down enough to take carefull shots using the controlled pair method like I had been taught in training.  The reason people shoot as fast as they can when they're nervous is because this is a natural reaction.  When people are scared or nervous with a huge adrenaline rush with your heart beat in the 170bpm range, without training we fire just as fast as we can.  Normally without aiming.

The point is is that it has been found that when your adrenaline goes through the roof and your heart is beating at 170 bpm you lose all of your fine motor skills which is what you use for accurate shooting.  There is nothing you can do about it.  When you are that excited you WILL lose all of your fine motor skills.  The only thing you can do about it is to learn how to control your excitement and adrenaline so that you do not hit 170bpm so you maintain your fine motor skills.  

So next time on tv when you see a cop or soldier firing rapid fire at a guy 20yds away and he misses every time don't be like me and say "I could do better" because you wouldn't be able to do better.  Unless you've been in multiple gun fights.