Wanted: Discussion - Duck flighting fee’s

[Cj1990]

Afternoon all. Hope everyone has had a good festive couple of days.

Wondering what peoples opinions are on this and hopefully we can have some sensible input and discussion without the thread going down the far to common route that we see when discussing money.

A friend has some evening flighting to sell and was discussing with me the other evening about how or what to charge. They’d basically come up with a minimum charge of £140 for the guide/picking up and then £35/bird thereafter. The £140 includes 4 birds collectively between the group of guns.

The £140 is a one off cost, split between upto a maximum of 4 guns.

I personally feel it a bit steep for an evening flight where you are paying per bird and did say that to them however when I mentioned a number of people charging between £80-£100 per flight their response was that they would be worried if they were charging a fixed fee and then a group of ‘hot shots’ turn up and shoot a large number of birds. £35/bird is driven duck day money on several shoots relatively locally and to be charging the same for an evening flight with much less input costs than a full day of shooting and hospitality just seems far too high.

What’s your thoughts lads and lasses?

 

[foxhunter]

I wouldnt pay £35 per bird , they are wild after all. Should just be a charge for the flight only in my opinion. You get good flights and blanks , you take your chance.

 

[JTO]

What about charging per shot?

 

[Tim.243]

Afternoon all. Hope everyone has had a good festive couple of days.

Wondering what peoples opinions are on this and hopefully we can have some sensible input and discussion without the thread going down the far to common route that we see when discussing money.

A friend has some evening flighting to sell and was discussing with me the other evening about how or what to charge. They’d basically come up with a minimum charge of £140 for the guide/picking up and then £35/bird thereafter. The £140 includes 4 birds collectively between the group of guns.

The £140 is a one off cost, split between upto a maximum of 4 guns.

I personally feel it a bit steep for an evening flight where you are paying per bird and did say that to them however when I mentioned a number of people charging between £80-£100 per flight their response was that they would be worried if they were charging a fixed fee and then a group of ‘hot shots’ turn up and shoot a large number of birds. £35/bird is driven duck day money on several shoots relatively locally and to be charging the same for an evening flight with much less input costs than a full day of shooting and hospitality just seems far too high.

What’s your thoughts lads and lasses?

If they have no other access to duck and want to shoot them also no way of picking runners etc then it is what it is...

Lots of shoots pad the bag out with ducks as they have a high return rate and pre AVI easy to keep but no one I know will entertain ducks as part of a driven day.

We had a chap selling teal flights of the back of a splash on our marsh quite funny when one gun said is this Tim's marsh?

TBH for guns who want it and will pay then let them pay, for people who have access to duck then it is expensive.

 

[Phil fox man]

I would say £50 per gun with a bag limited to 4 ducks each,after that £15 per duck to calm the hot shots down.
picking up £30 if they haven't got there own dogs.

 

[Cj1990]

If they have no other access to duck and want to shoot them also no way of picking runners etc then it is what it is...

Lots of shoots pad the bag out with ducks as they have a high return rate and pre AVI easy to keep but no one I know will entertain ducks as part of a driven day.

We had a chap selling teal flights of the back of a splash on our marsh quite funny when one gun said is this Tim's marsh?

TBH for guns who want it and will pay then let them pay, for people who have access to duck then it is expensive.

Yes I get that Tim. Can’t disagree with anything you’ve said. I guess I’m just looking to see if my thought trail was on the right lines. They discussed it with me for advice/assurance that they were pricing correctly and I felt they were not. At least here I can seek correction from a wider audience.

I would say £50 per gun with a bag limited to 4 ducks each,after that £15 per duck to calm the hot shots down.
picking up £30 if they haven't got there own dogs.

I would agree with you here. Much better pricing. I’ve no real issue with their charge of £140 but it’s the price per bird thereafter which I feel is over double the price of where it should be.

 

[Cj1990]

What about charging per shot?

Personally I wouldn’t. It can lead to disputes from the wrong type of people. Fixed fees with clear pricing leaves little room for any ‘fowl’ play

 

[Phil fox man]

also as a safety point 2 guns per pit depending on the size and all on the same side to avoid swinging through someone else.( not the first time I've seen guns on opposite sides)

 

[Cj1990]

also as a safety point 2 guns per pit depending on the size and all on the same side to avoid swinging through someone else.( not the first time I've seen guns on opposite sides)

Most definitely. There’s 3 ponds to split the guns over. It’s scary what you do see on certain shoots!

 

[Pedro]

Are these released birds or are they truly wild? In either case there's a cost to it, be it buying and feeding or simply feeding to attract, plus any costs incurred with the use of the pond(s) and provision of retrieving dogs. Simply put, whoever is selling the duck flights should do some maths. They need to know how much money is spent on providing the flights in total, divide it by the number of flights that can be done in a season and then factor in a reasonable profit. I'm not sure charging per bird is the way to go, but it's good to put a maximum number on that can be shot for obvious reasons. I'd think generally the guns will be happier knowing how much it's going to cost and the provider will get a guaranteed income.

It's not really something you can say specifically. There's so many variables, the travelling to feed and upkeep, the cost of barley (or whatever), what the landowner might be wanting and so on.

Of course safety is an issue, all guns should be pointing the same way and away from any roads/public paths (hard to see them as it gets dark). And of course, if there's any low shots there's always the chance of ricochets from water.

 

[Tim.243]

Yes I get that Tim. Can’t disagree with anything you’ve said. I guess I’m just looking to see if my thought trail was on the right lines. They discussed it with me for advice/assurance that they were pricing correctly and I felt they were not. At least here I can seek correction from a wider audience.

I would agree with you here. Much better pricing. I’ve no real issue with their charge of £140 but it’s the price per bird thereafter which I feel is over double the price of where it should be.

just spoken to a big ish shoot owner 35 is top top money..20-25 would be abt right.

 

[Cj1990]

just spoken to a big ish shoot owner 35 is top top money..20-25 would be abt right.

Thanks for that Tim. That would have been my thoughts too.

 

[enfieldspares]

When I sold evening flighting on my own pond back in the 1990s I used to charge an all in price of £60 for the flight up to a maximum of three "guns". That's not £60 per gun but £60 for the flight. Regardless of the number shot. There was no charge per bird. These were wild inland duck, mostly mallard with some teal and widgeon plus the odd shoveller. If we see that £100 in 1995 is worth £225 in 2022 then I'd say £135 for the flight and as I did in the 1990s allow the "guns" to keep two birds each.

 

[Cj1990]

When I sold evening flighting on my own pond back in the 1990s I used to charge an all in price of £60 for the flight up to a maximum of three "guns". That's not £60 per gun but £60 for the flight. Regardless of the number shot. There was no charge per bird. These were wild inland duck, mostly mallard with some teal and widgeon plus the odd shoveller. If we see that £100 in 1995 is worth £225 in 2022 then I'd say £135 for the flight and as I did in the 1990s allow the "guns" to keep two birds each.

That’s a good way to look at it.

 

[User00047]

Afternoon all. Hope everyone has had a good festive couple of days.

Wondering what peoples opinions are on this and hopefully we can have some sensible input and discussion without the thread going down the far to common route that we see when discussing money.

A friend has some evening flighting to sell and was discussing with me the other evening about how or what to charge. They’d basically come up with a minimum charge of £140 for the guide/picking up and then £35/bird thereafter. The £140 includes 4 birds collectively between the group of guns.

The £140 is a one off cost, split between upto a maximum of 4 guns.

I personally feel it a bit steep for an evening flight where you are paying per bird and did say that to them however when I mentioned a number of people charging between £80-£100 per flight their response was that they would be worried if they were charging a fixed fee and then a group of ‘hot shots’ turn up and shoot a large number of birds. £35/bird is driven duck day money on several shoots relatively locally and to be charging the same for an evening flight with much less input costs than a full day of shooting and hospitality just seems far too high.

What’s your thoughts lads and lasses?

Sounds fair to me.
It’s not 2019 any more. £100 is the new £50.

 

[Bowland blades]

My personal thoughts are Ducks habituate too easy to home ponds and simply keep coming back to where they have been raised and fed after being shot at . I wouldn't want to pay much for that type of shooting personally ( indeed a wouldn't want to repeat the experience) . Good Wild ducks coming in to a well managed and Wild area are 100% worthwhile and the cost should reflect the fact you cannot keep them comming back through a season if shot too regular ( prices should be higher to reflect that fact ) If birds contine to swim about as thier palls are being shot at the shooting is too poor to bother with .

 

[Wills]

Ha! no.

If someone will pay that then good for them. I wouldn't. As has been mentioned, these are wild birds.

Also, tips? If you are paying for the opportunity to shoot and its luck, then I wouldn't be paying more.

Call me tight, but there we are. We pay £320 for 10 flights. 2 persons per pond, 5 ponds and rotate per flight.

 

[User00047]

Ha! no.

If someone will pay that then good for them. I wouldn't. As has been mentioned, these are wild birds.

Also, tips? If you are paying for the opportunity to shoot and its luck, then I wouldn't be paying more.

Call me tight, but there we are. We pay £320 for 10 flights. 2 persons per pond, 5 ponds and rotate per flight.

That’s more like a syndicated job there.
Thing is, it’s worth what someone will pay.
That’s how business works.

 

[Brighty3006]

I certainly wouldn't pay that money to shoot Ducks. I also have been on shoots where ducks put in as an extra drive. Not for me

 

[jall55]

I certainly wouldn't pay that money to shoot Ducks. I also have been on shoots where ducks put in as an extra drive. Not for me

Totally agree - but wild flighted duck at dusk is awesome
We have built 20 ish ponds - from little splashes to actually fairly good stretches of water - i let the beaters shoot it as part of their "beaters day/week"