I talk a lot about hunting gear on here, because let’s face it: hunting requires at least some basic supplies. Of course, once you move beyond the basic, there’s always the tyranny of the latest, greatest, newest, best…a man could chase the perfect gear setup the rest of his life if time and money were no object. But, I’m a big believer in finding the best gear for you, and then spending so much time with it that it almost becomes an extension of your own body. Rifles, bows, optics, packs, boots, food…I’m always looking for the perfect collection of items that will give me the best possible chances for success.
But, I find the online research and shopping is the easy part…it’s fun for a gear-junky like me to spend hours on a laptop researching the minute details of every piece of hunting gear. The hard part is having the discipline to spend the time making sure you and your gear are as prepared as possible for the hunt. I’m talking range time, target practice, testing your gear before you’re out in the field trying to beat an incoming hailstorm…this is the stuff that’s harder to do. The temptation is to leave your rifle in the safe or bow in the closet, pull it out a couple weeks before season to check the zero, and then hit the hills. Honestly, I think that’s a recipe for disaster, and that’s because I’m smack-dab in the middle of that disaster right now…
Nothing flies farther than a shell ejected in frustration.
Two Weapons - Lots of Problems
In the span of 48 hours, I discovered issues with both my bow and my rifle. It’s a terrible feeling to think that I’ve been out there this Spring actively hunting, and my weapons were not nearly as dialed as I led myself to believe. First, I started to experiment with some new broadheads, which forced me to address some tuning issues I’ve just been dealing with for the past couple months. Weird arrow flight can straighten out by the time it hits the target with field points, but slap a giant razor-sharp kite to the front of it, and that dog just won’t hunt.
So, I went back to my trusty bow shop for a tune, and was horrified at the first tear I saw when I shot through the paper tuner. That arrow was fishtailing worse than I realized! After an hour with the bow technician adjusting virtually everything (including an impromptu technique lesson where he corrected the shooter and not just the bow), arrows are zipping downrange nice and straight. But, I’m not going to just load a quiver and head out to the woods…I’m essentially rebuilding my whole system with my grip, re-dialing in my pins, and then I can finally start to work with some broadheads and get things truly dialed. It’s going to be a ton of work, but I plan to hit the fall season more confident than I’ve ever been in my arrow placement!
Once that scope comes off, it’s time to get back to the range and re-check everything!
The rifle…an even worse story. I recently had to send my scope in for repairs, and of course had to re-mount and then re-zero the rifle. Unfortunately, at the same time, I had to switch ammo. It was the height of Corona-craziness, and the best I could find was a few boxes of a similar round. So, I zeroed the rifle with the old stuff, then dipped into the new stuff to confirm how “similar” it was…and it was not close at all. I did some quick adjustments to get it close at 100, took 3 shots to get it close-ish at 200, and then was out of time. As I write this, I’m embarrassed to say I went out and hunted a couple different times after that…the animals deserve better than that. (Fortunately, I didn’t find any, so no errant shots were taken)
Just the other day I went out again to try and push the distances further and confirm my zero with this new ammo and it was an absolute disaster. Like an idiot, I was by myself and only brought an 8” steel plate, so it was impossible to confirm which direction I was missing. After a full box of ammo and only 2 glancing hits off the target, I decided to call it a day and come back another time with a much bigger target to start to figure out where the bullets are missing. Could be the ammo and the rifle don’t like each other. Could be the zero got bumped or was never fully dialed in the first place. Could be the shooter and I need a lot more practice…either way, I cannot be running around the woods planning on taking shots at a few hundred yards with these kinds of results at the range!
A cloud of dust behind your target is NOT what you’re hoping to see through your scope.
The Lesson
The overall lesson for me is that I have not spent enough trigger time with either weapon to justify confidence. When you’re staring at an animal through your crosshairs or pins, your heart is pounding in your ears, and it’s all you can do to try and slow your breathing just a bit…you’re going to need confidence! I never want to release a bullet or arrow with the thought, “I hope this hits in the ballpark.” I want to be beyond confident that the projectile is going to bury itself exactly where I was aiming…I should be flabbergasted if I see it hit anywhere else.
Earlier this year, I committed to sending at least 5 boxes of ammo and 1,000 arrows downrange, and I’m sticking to that. (Actually, with my rifle shooting being as abhorrent as I saw the other day, I may wildly exceed that figure.) I’m saving my empty boxes, and have a giant label on my archery block where I mark every arrow I send into it just for some accountability. My plan in this summer off-season is to hit those goals before the fall seasons open. No more Hail Mary shots, no more wing-and-a-prayer stuff…just the quiet confidence that comes from knowing you’ve put in the work and you know you can make the shot!
Also, things change for any number of reasons. Bow strings break-in, scopes get bumped, weapons rattle around in the back of a truck…never assume that just because you haven’t intentionally adjusted anything since the last time you shot that everything will be right where you left it. We should all be shooting frequently enough that we notice and compensate for these changes and issues. The final trip to the range or couple arrows into the block at a trailhead should be just for final confirmation…not a last-minute, desperate attempt to get on target right before the hunt.
1,000+ arrows will be sent right here before fall…guaranteed!
Are You Confident?
I suppose the whole reason I’m writing this is not because I like confessing my own shortcomings. It’s to try and persuade you to ask yourself the tough questions about your confidence with your weapon. Have you put in the time? Do you know where a bullet or an arrow is going to hit before you even see the results downrange? If not, now’s the perfect time to get out there and get things dialed. I’m confident that when Fall rolls around, you’ll be so glad you did!