SSAA NSW

Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (NSW) Inc. 13 Andy's Hunting Guide They turn a poor shooter into an acceptable shooter and a good shooter into an excellent shooter. Where animal welfare is concerned, accuracy under fi eld conditions is paramount. In a previous life with Game Council NSW, I conducted a number of deer culling programs where a shooting profi ciency was required. This involved an offhand shooting component. For those who don't know what this means, it involves shooting without the aid of a car door, a bipod or a concrete bench rest. The failure rate during these events was 85% and I am convinced that offhand shooting is a dying art. I had always thought that I was a fair offhand shot until I started preparing for my fi rst African hunt in 2012. I purchased shooting sticks, as the professional hunter told me that I had to shoot off sticks. He pointed out that Africa's dangerous game will kill you if you don't get the fi rst shot right. This was reinforced when my wife displayed an interest in hunting. She was very inexperienced so she was keen to try the sticks. After two successful deer hunts near home, we ventured to Namibia where she was able to confi dently despatch a number of medium to large game animals quickly and humanely. This was only possible because Margie had mastered shooting sticks. To demonstrate the advantage of using sticks, I tested my offhand ability against the use of sticks. The offhand group is twice as big as the group shot over sticks. There are many options when choosing sticks. I have two commercial sets and these are both adjustable for height. I also use a set that is homemade ($25) from Bunnings dowel and rubber bands (see photos). They need to be as tall as the shooter, and when setup, the rifl e rest is at chin height. I am impressed with the long range ability that sticks provide, as Margie and I were both able to take large game in Africa at extreme ranges. On the home front, any rabbit within 150m is in serious trouble. I have a shooting stick available at Silverdale Rifl e Range and I would be happy to demonstrate their usefulness to anyone who is interested. I look forward to catching up with you in the next issue or at Silverdale Range. Cheers, Andy Mallen Shooting Sticks? Shooting sticks greatly help any shooter Namibia trip Commercial shooting stick (left) and homeade (right) using dowels and rubber bands Target groupings: offhand (left) and sticks (right)

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