The gun that every one of us needs

After enjoying a productive day on the woodies above the maize, Mark Ripley considers the merits of using a semi-automatic shotgun

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With a smooth, fast swing I pulled ahead of the first bird and fired. It folded and fell to the ground but before it landed, I was on to the pigeon veering to the right in a panic. Again, with a puff of feathers, the tail end of a slightly enthusiastic shot string collided with the head and neck of the bird, sending it plummeting into the maize.

Almost popping a vertebrae in the process, I managed a snapshot at the third bird just as it was clearing the tops of the trees which, rather to my surprise and probably out of luck than good shooting, spiralled down into the field behind. This was one of those rare occasions in which I actually made use of all three shots to score a triple, something I’ve only achieved a handful of times.

Having that third shot is only one of several advantages of the semiauto; in fact, the extra cartridge doesn’t always do you many favours. Knowing you’re swinging a gun loaded with a holy trinity can in fact make you concentrate less; in the back of your mind you’re thinking, “Well if I miss with this one, I still have two more chances.”

As it happens, often you don’t get the time for more than two shots on a single bird, especially on a typically fast-moving pigeon. And, as any rough shooter will tell you, your first shot is usually your best chance. Once that shot is away, everything in the air tends to scatter as quickly as your shot pattern.

Ambush point