kenbro
Well-Known Member
Deer stalkers managed fine for many years without telescopic sights and they’re not essential kit now, but that doesn’t mean you should manage without one.
KB.
Ps. Deer stalkers used to manage without rifles….
Am i daft??
- Thread starter Stephenbuck2489
- Start date
KB.
Ps. Deer stalkers used to manage without rifles….
I find fallow to be a pain in the backside in many cases...skittish, 40 or 50 pairs of eyes and seem to be able to tell the difference between a deer braking a twig and a human doing it 
Keeps it exciting.
John Gryphon
Well-Known Member
before bows and spears even...DOGS!
I think the spears (and possibly the bows) came before the dogs.
Found this lad with a thermal (pre shooting him) but marked the spot and walked across the rape field on a line to him as the rape was too tall, the new cl 55 shooters will be making crop circles when one runs
Ive definitely opred for a range finder. mainly because my perception of length /distance is fogged, As im sure many of us blokes are. ive been convinced for years that what i thought 6 or 7 inches was, is infact 3 or 4!!!
therefore im playing it safe over 100metres
I think it is very dependent on how much ground you have, how often you go out, if there are cull targets, and your availability of getting out.
If you can only stalk once in a blue moon, might not be worth the expense, but then again it will help you with success when you do go out. If you have cull targets you need to hit then it makes life a lot easier - ties in to if you have a lot of ground to manage then a thermal makes your job much more efficient and economical.
It will all come down to to what the landowner wants and how you view the stalking - is it an enjoyment hobby, or more of a management job.
We shoot a lot of MJ on our ground, 100% wouldn't see half of them minimum without a thermal, so definitely needed for us. But then again we have cull targets to hit so context is different!
See if you can borrow one and give it a go - doesn't need to be expensive if you are only using it to spot deer, not ID. It came just be a tool that you can decide to use or not, there is not requirement to use it when you have one....
Sandy
If you can only stalk once in a blue moon, might not be worth the expense, but then again it will help you with success when you do go out. If you have cull targets you need to hit then it makes life a lot easier - ties in to if you have a lot of ground to manage then a thermal makes your job much more efficient and economical.
It will all come down to to what the landowner wants and how you view the stalking - is it an enjoyment hobby, or more of a management job.
We shoot a lot of MJ on our ground, 100% wouldn't see half of them minimum without a thermal, so definitely needed for us. But then again we have cull targets to hit so context is different!
See if you can borrow one and give it a go - doesn't need to be expensive if you are only using it to spot deer, not ID. It came just be a tool that you can decide to use or not, there is not requirement to use it when you have one....
Sandy
Ive definitely opred for a range finder. mainly because my perception of length /distance is fogged, As im sure many of us blokes are. ive been convinced for years that what i thought 6 or 7 inches was, is infact 3 or 4!!!
therefore im playing it safe over 100metres
Good call. I know there are some who can estimate range really well but I am not one of them...if you are 30 or 40 yards out at range it will make a difference.
Found this lad with a thermal (pre shooting him) but marked the spot and walked across the rape field on a line to him as the rape was too tall, the new cl 55 shooters will be making crop circles when one runs
Nice buck and nice shot.
John Gryphon
Well-Known Member
I'd say that range finders and thermals are useful but should be ideally used as tools to hone your skill so you're better able to continue when they fail. I have an LRF in the ATN binos I won on here. Really love the binos and finding time to just sit somewhere measuring distances to random features against my estimates.
I don't think a range finder, or the ability estimate range, is really that important in ordinary stalking scenarios. There is only one distance that you need to be able to determine with any reasonable degree of confidence, and that's "too far".
Everything up to that point can be lumped together under the description "close enough", and the shot can be taken.
My dear friend Simon (rip) had back then new swro RF at over 2k! he was looking at pigeons around 2 field away, one came past and i asked him would he take it on, no Tim it was too far (my guess 80 yds) why do you need your rf binos when you know it is too far, he smiled and put them in the truck lol
A close range woodland roe deer offhand, unmoderated, with open sights is something I intend to do one day. Ive been practising.
If it looks too far it most likely is too far.
That's about as accurate as you need to be.
Oh yes, sorry, I was forgetting about your handicapI appreciate as a .270 owner everything you point it at will die...but us Creedmoor owners need a little extra help
Similar threads
