Christmas time again.

Well Christmas is here again and i cant believe that another year has almost passed. We at DVS have had a great year and have had some very productive shoots over the past 12 months, and i am really looking forward to next spring. I wish you are all a very merry Christmas and a very happy new year. Please keep coming back to see the new topics and pictures of our shoots. I must say that i am very grateful to you all for reading what i post and because of you ,the readers, that i continue to post on the blog and keep it going. Don't forget that if you want to comment on any of my topics just hit the comment button under the post and add your comments.

May you all have a fantastic Christmas and very happy new year.

All the best from me and all at DVS.

Another great airgun shop comes to dvs.

Airgunstate.co.uk is owned and operated by Merlin archery Ltd, who have been in the archery business for over 30 years. They have been manufacturing cutting edge compound bows and service thousands of customers through their mail order business, showroom and workshops in leicestershire.

So, why airguns....well we love shooting too! We shoot airguns as well as bows...so we now stock both bows and air rifles.

They have a fully stocked showroom, a shooting range to try out your new purchase and helpfull staff to advise you. Click on the link to visit the online shop.

New topics on the forum.

As some of you know the DVS forum hasnt had much use over the past few months, mainly because i havent had time to add new stuff to it. Well i am now going to be adding some new stuff to to the forum and i invite all the readers of this blog to join us on the forum.

If you wish to become a member of the DVS forum please email me with your username so i can check you into the system. This way we avoid the spamers and bulk advertising.

I hope to see some of you in there.

Click the link at the top of the page, under the hit counter, and come have a look around

Thanks

Richard.

Wildlife Officers....who are they!

As we all know finding somewhere to enjoy shooting is fast becoming impossible. Landowners and farmers have become very wary of anyone wanting to use their land for air rifle shooting, mainly because they dont know if the shooter can be trusted. Once you have gained permission to shoot from a farmer or landowner, you should do everything you can to maintain good relations between yourself and the landowner/farmer/gamekeeper. It would also be beneficial for you to contact your local police station, speak to their Wildlife Officer and introcduce yourself, explain who you are and what you intend to shoot and where. It will also help the police identify you if you are reported for being on the land.

I have only recently become aware of the existance of the Wildlife Officers, through one of our local farms who were experiencing problems with poachers. As a result of this, DVS have started to build foundations that should hopefully help put an end to the more negative aspects of air rifle shooting, i.e. poaching and trespassers. Whilst we are pursuing our sport we are a very effective part of a large team, we are extra eyes and ears for the farmer/landowner and know instantly if there is something different on the land we are on. Whilst it is habit for us to inform the farmer that we are on his land for the purpose of pest control, any passing member of the public does not have that information

It is best practice to ring your local Police Station and inform them what times you will be shooting between, where you will be shooting, how many people will be in your group and what vehicles you will be using. They will then give you an incident number which you should retain, that incident number will relate to a specific date. Each time you go out shooting a new incident number should be obtained. If our presence is reported to the police then the Wildlife Officer has prior knowledge of who has permission to be there and therefore saving time checking things out

Working together with the police, we can help stop illegal activity in our countryside, as the only way we will beat the poachers, illegal corses, deer hunters etc. is by working as one big team rather than individuals restricted by boundary hedges. The police are more than keen to catch the people committing these offences, but are restricted by numbers and will gladly accept any assistance they can get from people who use the countryside.

Our local Derbyshire Wildlife Officer; PC 2315 Adam Galley, is holding a meeting on Monday 7th December at 17.00. The meeting will be held at The Horse and Groom public house, Scarcliffe, Chesterfield, and all interested parties are invited to attend.

Lastly, if you do happen to see anything suspicious call your local police station , Derbyshire's none emergency number is 0345 123 3333, Nottinghamshire's is 01159 670999, South Yorkshire's is 01142 202020 and report your sightings to them. If however you feel you need an immediate response from the Police please call 999.

The British Shooting and Countryman Show

Its that time of year again, the cold, dark wet days and the forcast seems to be the same from one week to the next. Well heres something to look forward to...A bigger, Better British Shooting and Countryman Show. Click the pics to go to the website and get your tickets to the BIG air gun show

Out with Arron and our newest member Fabio

Firstly i would like to welcome Fabio to the DVS group and i hope you enjoy the shoots. I am sure that you will pick up some good tips and tricks from other D.V.S members.
Today was the first time out shooting for almost a month so I was eager to get out and see how things were on the farms. Our destination today is whitwell, to see how MIXY is effecting the rabbit population and i am pleased to say that all the rabbits we saw today were free from the dreadful virus.
The sun was out but the wind was blowing quite well, so we headed into the trees to look at the warrens, and to seek some shelter from the wind. Rabbits in this area were out having a warm in the morning sunshine after a very cold night so they were quite easy to spot. The pigeons were out in their hundreds too.

In this picture you can just about see me and as I am laying quite close to the rabbit warrens, with the wind blowing my scent towards them, they know i am there.

But in this picture I am invisible and with the added advantage of shootmore I am now totally hidden from the rabbits. All I have to do now is wait for them to come in to view and with a well placed shot its lights out. This just shows that with the new patterns of realtree you can really blend in to your surroundings, no matter what time of year it is.

More to come over the next few weeks including a shootmore video and how to keep your rifle free from rust during this wet and cold time of the year.

My benchrest.

After thinking how I could make a rest for shooting I came up with this. From the rest to the backstop it is exactly 25 mtr and as it is set between the kitchen and the utility room i am out of the cold. I set out 2 target sheets and tried it out for position and hight. It was spot on and i shot off 10 shots at a 25 mtr target.

Looking from the rest to the backstops at the top of our garden. Nice line of sight and i keep warm too.

Very stable and using my hunting cushion it was nice and soft on the elbows.

As you can see, it works. And when im finished i can slide it out and pack it away leaving the doorway free from obstruction.

OUT AND ABOUT IN BUNNY LAND

my night vision seems to be on its way out so went old school got
the lamp out an headed for the hills

on arrival had a good look round to find plenty of action ... Sime
had his new Yukon NV unit so needed to keep some distance so
i would not blow his image intensifier tube. So we split up i went
over four or five field while Sime stayed putt with the NV

i saw three in the first field but the distance was to make the shot
imposable so i needed to close down the range quite allot ,using
every thing i could as cover against the moonlight and crawling for
about thirty yards .I slid under the barbed wire witch separated
the fields to find i was well within range ,so i flicked on the lamp
but one had gone...never mind i can only get one shot off
anyhow..Both jump and run ,placing the beam in front of them
they both stopped and i could see one on the edge of the
scope,but when i moved the cross hair on to him because
the lamp is mounted on the gun the beam flooded him again
sending him running so i stopped him again moving the beam in
front of him this time when i passed the cross hair over him he
was not to move, so he went over with a click of the trigger....
great stuff one in the bag in no time.

although the bag was not empty the next rabbit was to come just
as quick in the next field lamp on and over he went, but with it
came the Grimm sight of the rabbits dangerous foe. with its eye's
puffed and pussy i was sad to see the disease,but at the same time
was happy I'd taken this bunny because it was obviously in some
real pain and discomfort as the picture below shows ...most of its
fur was rubbed off its face ,front legs and back legs ....and was
the skinniest I'd seen for some time...and i left him were he lay








this one is to match my friend Duncan....still eating





the next couple were text book opps................






bottoms up..........................................







.............................................................
CAUGHT UP WITH SIME




i headed back over to the N.V man..who had bagged up as
well with sneaky night vision shots he,d totted up three
,one of witch was a modest 50/55 yrd shot





Sime in the position i found him in when i got back....Yukon
unit in hand


Sime's pyramid off bunnies









Mike s410

HEADS UP.....NEW SITE COMING SOON.

In the next few weeks our new website will be filling up with loads of new stuff. I will be keeping this blog going but i will be also working on the new website too.

The new site can be found at http://www.triflewithrifles.com/ and will become a dedicated site based around all things air rifle. Come and have a look around and let me know what you think.

Richard Nash.

BREAKING NEWS.......

The all new AirGun Shooting website is now up and running. This is the new look website for the AIRGUNNER and AIRGUN WORLD magazines. Click the link to check out this fantastic website, packed full of infomation, helpfull hints and tricks and keep up to speed with everything in the airgun insustry.

Theres loads to look through, so what are you waiting for....click Here and have a look!






Get £2,000,000 Shooting insurance for less than 6p a day by joining the British Airgun Shooters' Association. Click the picture to get yours.
The BASA is the only association exclusive to airgun shooting and runs in partnership with Britain's largest shooting organisation - the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (B.A.S.C.) - to protect the future of airgun sport in the U.K.

Mondays shoot...bagged a bunny.

Went out for a few hours to show how i undertake my hunting trips to a newcomer to the shooting/hunting scene. Arron was impressed that he got to shoot his first rabbit using my rifle.
This was a poor rabbit that had succumb to the dreaded myxi virus so the shot was taken to end this poor rabbits suffering. This is the only one we have found so far, but I am sure more will start to appear over the coming weeks.

They are still finding time to did holes along the hedgerows and we foundaround 30 new warrens along the field edges.

I was watching the rabbits come and go from the sugar beet crop, but Iwas just too far to get a clean shot off....I feel a lamping session coming up real soon.

Nice shooting.....

Went out for a few hours and came home with a nice fat wood pigeon and 3 collered doves.

One shot from 40 yards. I didnt get a head shot but i hit it in the neck and it dropped down dead. Plucked and winged ready for crowning

One nice big pigeon crown ready for the freezer.

A welcome visit.

This weekend I dropped in on Tony at G&T hunting & outdoor in Skegness, as I was in the area.

As always I received a very warm welcome and was shown what new stock they had in and I must say I was very impressed indeed. The shop is packed with everything you could possibly need for shooting and fishing and was quite busy too. The "pop up" hides looked great and, the Autumn days are upon us, what better way to stay out of the wind and rain than this. This is big enough for 2 + rifles and kit and still have room to move around. If you want a smaller hide then this is for you. A 1 man hide with built in seat, still enough room to move around and you are out of the wind and rain. RRP is around £90 and for me that's value for money.

Now, this is a must for any angler or hunter....the new Shimano Tribal range. The "NO NOISE" fabric makes it ideal for hunting and fishing alike.

Go on...you know you want one, he he......

The shelves are full with kit from Jack Pyke...if you cant find what you want, ask Tony or Ginny and they will be more than happy to help you find what you are looking for.

They stock a fantastic range of air rifles, PCP-springer-Co2, from plinking to serious hunting, scopes, pellets etc and they also stock shotguns. Again, if you don't see what you want just ask.

If you are in the area why not pop in and see for yourself how good the shop is and indeed how helpful the staff can be.

The shop can be found in the Shops Listing. Click on the picture to visit the online shop.

"TOP SHOP" on the list...

Now i have had personal experience from this shop and i think they are one of the best hunting shops out there. Friendly service from dedicated staff and loads of stock to choose from. click on the picture to visit their online shop, or you will find them listed in the " TOP SHOPS" section of my website.

G & T Hunting and Outdoor was established in 2004, supplying quality products for outdoor activities including hunting, shooting and fishing.
We moved to our new 1800 sq foot showroom in Ingoldmells in 2008, obtaining our Certificate of registration as a firearms dealer (RFD 32/984) in 2009 to retail firearms, shot guns,air rifles, pistols and related ammunition.


Our products relate to all outdoor activities, specialising in hunting, fishing and camouflage clothing,
Accessories for all shooting activities are also stocked including weapon cleaning, telescopic sights, cartridges and the supply of rifles, shot guns and pistols.

The first new shop on the "top shops" list.....

Manchester Air Guns

Manchester Air Guns was established in 1977, the country's first 'all airgun' shop. Shops have come and gone, but MAG is still at the same address, under the same management, giving the same great service to many satisfied customers.

Manchester Air Guns - that says it all!It's where we are and what we do. Established in 1977 by two well known airgun collectors, it was the first actual airgun shop in the land. No shotguns or firearms - purely airguns. Early advertising claimed to have "all the world's airguns" - something hardly possible today with the vast choice. From the start a huge range of airguns was on offer in order to attract airgun enthusiasts from a wide area. MAG specialised in over-the-counter sales (rather than mail order) and this is still our preference, so that people can get the right product, first time. We carry the stock. Why not try before you buy? With our unrivalled experience and our good reputation to uphold we can help enthusiast or beginner.

Airguns from:AGS (Logun / Simmons) Air Arms, Brocock, BSA, Cometa, Crosman, Falcon, Gamo, Industry Brand, Hatsan, Umarex, Webley and Scott, Weirauch

Click the picture to visit there online shop.

NEW...shops listings.

Over the next few weeks new shops will be added to the retail list. This will enable you to find the best shops for all your shooting needs. Emails have been sent out and many phone calls have been made in a bid to bring you the best of the best in online shopping. So, no more searching through the Internet looking for places to buy your pellets or when you need to replace any items of kit...simply look at the list of shops, pick one and enter the online shop..its that easy.

As you can see B.A.R (Blackpool air rifles), Tony's camo and Steve price are already on the list and i am hopeful others will quickly take up my offer to be added to the list of "Top Shops" for kit and shooting supplies on my ever growing site.

WATCH THIS SPACE......

ED. Richard Nash.

Targets...what do you use!

I managed to get out today and make sure the rifle was on zero before my hunting sesion tomorrow. These are the targets i used and i am pleased to report that indeed my rifle is spot on .
Now, i find these pictures better to use than your standard targets as they help you place the shot exactly in the right place. Bulls eye targets are ok but nothing beats a real picture for shot placement in my opinion.
Remember...take your paper targets home with you and throw them away. Leave youe shoot as you found it and the landowner/farmer will not have any problems with you shooting on his land.

Shootmore.....yes it works! Field to fork.

Today was the first day of shooting for me after a 6 week break ( school holidays) and i was wanting to get out and try Steve Price`s "Shootmore".
I arrived at the farm and set off down the fields to where i knew i could find rabbits, out in the morning sun, having a warm. I spotted a adult sat at the edge of the field of rape stubble and as i watched 4 smaller ones hopping around the field, close to the adult. I got under the hedge and waited to see if i spooked them.

After just 5 Min's i decided to move up closer to the rabbits, I was about 60 yards from them, so out came the shootmore. With the wind behind me, blowing my scent towards the waiting rabbits, i sprayed the shootmore onto my trousers and jacket and started to move ever closer to get within a 30 yard range.

30 yards and closing....i managed to get within 20 yards and the rabbits never moved, i lay`ed in the grass and took the shot. Down it went, a clean shot to the head and the other 4 just sat there...not a flinch, so they went down 1-by-1. The 4 smaller rabbit s were left at the farm ( keeping in the farmers good graces) and i brought the big one home.
From field to fork took 2 hours. I didn't paunch the rabbit like i normally do because i was going to show a novice how its done, starting with the skinning...remove first as i find paunching easier to do without fir. This allows me to show how the paunching process is done.

The rabbit was then left to soak in a bucket of cold salted water for 1 hour and then put on the BBQ over a medium heat for 30 Min's and gradually removed the meat from the bone and put it into my pan. The meat was cooked for another 10 Min's with a Mediterranean sauce and was ready to eat.

After trying a small piece of rabbit my son went to fetch a bowl and asked for some more. 3 bowl later he was full and the rest (what little there was) was for me.

Caleb and his Oliver act...."Please dad, could i have some more coz it is so nice" How could i resist.

I did get to eat some and i really enjoyed it. I was very pleased that my son tried the rabbit on its own and with the sauce and he found he really liked the flavour. He wants more now so its off shooting again very soon.

Conclusion....Shootmore really does what it says it does. The proof is in the eating of the rabbit you have shot.

Go visit Steve price and find out for yourself how "SHOOTMORE" can help you shoot more rabbits.