Decathlon bows to animal rights extremists
A sports retail chain has removed products from its UK website following pressure from animal rights extremists. French retailer Decathlon sells a wider range of hunting and shooting kit via its Decathlon.co.uk website than its chain of shops in the UK. After a Tweet by birds rights activist Ruth Peacey, it has withdrawn its nine-shot […]
Fieldsports Britain – Andy Crow’s Bubble on the Stubble
With crops cut and pigeons still piling in to neighbouring standing wheat, Andy Crow calls in help. He sets up for a big day’s shooting with bubbles/hides dotted everywhere and willing helpers in place with slabs of cartridges. We take a close look at those cartridges with the results of our survey. Find out […]
Best shotgun cartridges 2020
We surveyed you for shooting kit in March 2020 and 3,500 of you told us what you use. We had more than 1,800 responses to our surveys for clay, game and pigeon shotgun cartridges, and here are the results: We asked you to give us a star rating for your favourite cartridge’s killability, its […]
Green Party shame – Fieldsports News, 15 July 2020
Here are the links: Anti welcomes Charlton death – Fieldsports News RSPB plots largescale shooting sports ban – Infographic PDF – Summary PDF – Shooting community interviews PDF BASC budgets for future fights against antis – Fieldsports News Dog theft increasing in Ireland – Facebook and local newspaper Lammergeier sighting sparks persecution claims […]
On Test: Barnes Varmint Grenade
Andrew Venables has cooked up what he reckons is the perfect copper varminting cartridge, using the Barnes Varmint Grenade. He looks at how the Varmint Grenade works and how to get the best from it. Click here for Andrew’s film about the perfect copper deer bullet. For more from Andrew, visit WMSFirearmsTraining.com
Pigeon Harvest Festival
Andy Crow has cut a couple of crops, so it’s time to set up for a pigeon shooting day on the stubbles. He puts friends and family in hides all over the farm and they end up shooting more than 700 pigeons. Plus he explains why shooting over stubbles is essential pest control under […]
Jack Charlton death ‘good’ says anti
A councillor and former lord mayor of York caused outrage when he welcomed the death of Jack Charlton because of the World Cup winner’s involvement in shooting and angling. Animal rights activist and Green Party councillor Dave Taylor later apologised for causing offence after he posted controversial comments on Facebook. Leeds United and England […]
BASC moves against Wild Justice ‘legal warfare’
BASC is launching a new legal fighting fund. The account will hold ring-fenced reserves of £1 million+ that will enable the association to push forward with what it calls ‘proactive legal initiatives’ to help secure the future of shooting. In addition, it will enable BASC to launch defences to disruptive legal challenges that could, says […]
Western Australia breaks rules to maintain animal rights purity
Western Australia has sacked a civil servant because he goes hunting. Jewell Crossberg was appointed acting district manager at a WA wildlife agency. After pictures emerged of a hunting trip to Africa Crossberg went on in 2010, local politicians put pressure on the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attraction, which sacked him. Even though the […]
Fieldsports Britain – Cai’s thermal rabbit hunt
Rabbits are in trouble. Cai Ap Bryn has a thermal scope that he’s trying out on the range, and then on the bunnies. It’s the Pulsar Thermion, and it is devastatingly effective. Plus crows, rooks and jackdaws are piling in to an orchard in Somerset, and Matt Turley is there to shoot them. We […]
Shoots set to boom – Fieldsports News, 8 July 2020
Here are the links Loosened lockdown leads to surge in shoot interest – GunsOnPegs Pheasant poult prices hold, despite lockdown – Fieldsports News Gamekeepers enlisted in Cairngorms capercaillie project – Strathspey Herald Spitting sab victim donates compensation to hunt – Countryside Alliance Science sheds new light on heather burning – Moorland Association Prime minister’s […]
Crow shoot: big day over apples
Matt Turley is back – and this time he is shooting crows, rooks and jackdaws over an orchard. He is protecting the apple crop from the birds with decoys. Plus he and his mate Nigel test steel shot at range to see if it’s as good as lead. Since our last film with Matt […]
On test: Pulsar Thermion lights up the rabbits
Cai Ap Bryn has a rabbit problem. Happily, Thomas Jacks has a new thermal unit that’s refit for shooting rabbits. Cai gives it a go on the range and then takes it out on live rabbits. For the Pulsar Thermion, talk to ThomasJacks.co.uk Click here for all our films with Cai In this film, Cai […]
Best PCP airguns for 2021
It’s the results of our massive airgun questionnaire and thanks to all who took part in to. Our Fieldtester surveys prompted 3,500 reponses, which has given us some of the most comprehensive information about who owns what and what they think of out that the shooting industry has ever seen. 10% of the survey results […]
What’s the outlook for pheasant poult prices?
Demand for pheasant poults has gone down, supply has gone down, prices have gone up a little: coming out of coronavirus lockdown could be a lot worse, says a top game bird vet. Dr Kenny Nutting BVetMed MRCVS of St David’s Game Bird Services, which has practices across the Midlands and south of England, […]
Mirror starts hate campaign against one of hunting’s national treasures
Legendary British gunmaker Paul Roberts had more than 1,000 hate messages and death threats after the Mirror.co.uk whipped up its readers against him. The online newspaper ran a story about how the 78-year-old enjoys hunting big game overseas. Mirror writer Nada Fahoud has run a series of stories promoting a new ebook by the head […]
Shooting seagulls: how Natural England has got it wrong
Ben O’Rourke It’s a sunny Friday afternoon in the sleepy seaside town of Hunstanton, Norfolk. With the end of the coronavirus lockdown in sight, families are out on the beach, enjoying the loosening of government restrictions. But Gary Baxter is in no mood to celebrate. “Can somebody at Natural England please tell me what is […]
Best shotgun chokes for pigeon shooting, by Andy Crow
It’s a lovely afternoon’s pigeon shooting. Some birds are close – some are far away. So how does a pigeon shooting expert like Andy Crow choose his chokes? Here is his guide. Using a decent cartridge on decoys, Andy uses quarter chokes in both barrels. He is shooting long birds with that, out to […]
Best hunting binoculars
It’s our Fieldtester binoculars survey. We sent out the survey during coronavirus lockdown and got more than 3,500 responses. Of these, we had over 600 responses to our binoculars survey. And the results? You certainly spend money on optics. Around half of you own one of the three most expensive brands: Zeiss, Swarovski, or […]
Countryfile’s ‘race hate’ charge against country people – Fieldsports News, 1 July 2020
Here are the links: BBC Countryfile accuses countryside of racism – Fieldsports News British venison survey from the NGO – click here Media attacks on UK gamekeepers spread – Scottish Mail on Sunday RSPB under fire for Orkney traps practice – Facebook UK government accused of backtracking on badger culls – anti badger cull […]
Stock dove or woodpigeon? Andy Crow’s guide
Crow is shooting pigeons over a bean crop. His big problem today are the stock doves. Even though they outnumber the woodpigeons ten-to-one, they are protected. So how can you tell what’s a stock dove when it is flying towards you at over 30 miles per hour? Plus what does he do with the […]
Fieldsports Britain – a gentle afternoon shooting pigeons
It’s Crowman and Camoboy – two pigeon shooting superheroes out in a hide to protect a bean crop from the grey horde. Today, Crow tackles the problem that most of the birds coming in are stock doves, which are protected, so he has to take his shots carefully. Plus we have the results of […]
Chris Packham and the ‘hen harrier 300’
When Chris Packham criticises grouseshooting, the BBC reports what he says. In the absence of balance, we expose three fibs the anti grouseshooters like to trot out. There should be 300 hen harrier pairs in England This comes from a JNCC report (February 2011 PDF, 1.6mb) that says there should be 2,514–2,653 pairs in the […]
Best shotgun 2020
Got your shotgun licence? Want to buy a shotgun? Baffled by the choice? Here is what the viewers of Fieldsports Channel shoot. We put our Fieldtester survey in front of you in March 2020 while lots of people were twiddling their thumbs in coronavirus lockdown, and 3,500 people got back to us. Our shotguns survey […]
On test: Aimpoint Acro – see more, shoot more
Sometimes you shoot an animal at a good range and you are pleased with the result. Sometimes, the animal emerges from the bushes just in front of you. And occasionally, both can happen at the same time. Swedish gunsight manufacturer’s her Aimpoint reckons it has found the solution. We head to the the Fieldtester […]
Fieldsports Britain – Bouncing Tyre, Laughing Pilbeam
Tim Pilbeam is learning to shoot sideways. He has the new Acro red dot sight from Aimpoint to play with. It’s a sight you can clamp to your scope so you can still take long-range shots and, when the animals get up close, you can twist your rifle and shoot through your Acro. He shows […]
Wild Justice tries to close down pheasant shooting – Fieldsports News, 24 June 2020
Here are the links: Wild Justice granted judicial review into gamebird releases – Fieldsports News Shooting banned at Britain’s wildfowling ‘birthplace’ – Fieldsports News ‘Golf sabs’ spring up as anti-hunt groups diversify – Fieldsports News Gamekeepers mull political party amid anger about mountain hare protection – Fieldsports News Paul McCartney wants meat taken off school […]
How to make a crow decoy
Do you have old, out-of-shape pigeon decoys? Do you have anything even vaguely crow-shaped you can use instead? You can use it to make your own crow decoy, says our viewer Tim in Essex. You need a black bin liner and black insulation tape. That’s the hard part. Cover the decoy in the black plastic […]
Scotland’s hare ban madness – FieldsportsChannel Podcast, episode 37
The antis ambushed Scotland’s political process and, in under a week in June 2020, they pushed through a ban on catching or killing mountain hares, likely to come into force after the 2020 season (starts 1 August), which goes ahead as normal. The world of wildlife management has been left reeling. Scottish wildlife manager Niall […]
Scotland bans hare shooting
youtu.be/7MuTQFu37p0 This is also available as a podcast Animal rights activists have pushed a ban on mountain hare shooting through the Scottish parliament, even though the animal is in pest proportions in some areas. Green MSP Alison Johnstone lodged an amendment to the Animals and Wildlife Bill at Stage 3 requesting that mountain hares […]
Crow shoot: 180-bird day
Matt Turley and Nigel White know how to put on a good day. It’s 100-200 birds and it only costs £20 for the day. Matt looks after corvid control at a pig farm outside Taunton in Somerset. The pig nuts are popular with the birds, so you can shoot as often as you like […]
Hares on the edge in Scotland – Fieldsports News, 17 June 2020
Here are the links: Greens ban blue hare shooting in Scotland – Fieldsports News Are birdwatchers allowed to disturb nests? – Aberdeen Press & Journal Natural England toys with wildfowling ban – BASC press release Derbyshire police dismiss hunt sabs ‘exposé’ as nonsense – Facebook Natural England refuses individual gull licences Fieldsports News + Facebook […]
Best hunting boots for men
There are so many walking boots, so many makes and models. So which do you choose? Well, there is one clear winner among Fieldsports Channel’s viewers, with nearly a quarter of the market. And we will come to that at the end of this piece. Out of the 3,500 responses we had to our Fieldtester […]
Fieldsports Britain – Niall deals with Scotland’s sika swarm
Deer expert Niall Rowantree looks at Scottish red deer and how sika deer are affecting them. He stalks both in order to tell their stories. It’s the last in our Aliens & Natives mini series looking at Scotland’s four deer species. Plus we have a story about hen harriers on grouse moors. The birds […]
Natural England toys with wildfowling ban
Wildfowling in England in 2020 could be banned because of Natural England bureaucracy and Wild Justice’s legal threats against pigeonshooting. After Wild Justice’s lawyers threatened the government in spring 2019, Natural England ended the system of shooting birds under general licences on on what it terms ‘European protected sites’, or on land within 300 metres […]
CNN pushes anti-hunting agenda with Trump sheep
CNN is ‘faking news’ in its efforts to attack hunting sports, say conservationists. In an article about Donald Trump Jr’s argali sheep-hunting trip to Mongolia in 2019, broadcaster CNN claims that trophy hunting is driving the argali sheep towards extinction. However, the IUCN says that the argali’s conservation status has nothing to do with regulated […]
RSPB attacks pheasant shooting – Fieldsports News, 10 June 2020
Here are the links: RSPB ditches ‘rigorously neutral’ stance on pheasant shooting – Fieldsports News Springwatch slammed over owl – Fieldsports News Vegan vandal support site celebrates second coming – Fieldsports News Lockdown Britain overrun by pests – The Sun and our film here No deerstalking during lockdown could cost Scotland £9 million – Aberdeen […]
Fieldsports Britain – Crow hits the pigeons hitting the peas
Just because most of the UK has been stuck indoors doesn’t mean work has to stop on British farms. Andy Crow faces a threat from lockdown-busting pigeons, which are eating the peas on his farm in Kent. He heads out with grandson Reagan and faithful lab Rosa to settle into pigeon hides for an […]
Family day on the pigeons – it’s Crowhow
With the pigeons pouring into Andy Crow’s pea crop, it’s time to use local resources. That means members of the Crow family on lockdown are pressed into service, including young Regan the grandson. Crow sets up hides around the farm and lets fly at the birds. Andy is sponsored by: Blaser Blaser.de Jack Pyke […]
Yukon Photon XT – review
Jaf Jefferson talks about the Yukon Photon XT, its drawbacks and why he likes it, plus what he would like to see improved. Here is our film of the Photon XT in action Click here to go to the Fieldtester night vision and thermal front page
SIG Sauer closes in Germany
The German gunmaker SIG Sauer is closing in Germany. SIG Sauer managing director Tim Castagne told employees at the plant in Eckernförde that economic problems means it will close. Reported by Germany online newspaper All4Shooters.com, around 130 employees will ‘be affected’ by the closure. SIG Sauer released this statement: The locational disadvantages in Germany for […]
Kofs vs Yildiz shotgun – a boy’s first .410
by Charlie Jacoby A post on the Lamping Foxes Facebook group got me thinking. It read: ‘My son turned 11 today, and as a dad I made a promise that when he reaches 11 we will get a o/u .410. So if anyone has any tips on what to get or where let me know.’ […]
Norma Oryx
Used by Fieldsports Channel’s Scandinavian viewers, who hunt deer and moose, the Norma Oryx is designed to knock down animals that have a reputation for being ‘armour-plated’. It is called the Oryx for that reason. The gemsbok is not an easy antelope to kill. Fieldsports Channel surveyed its viewers about rifle ammunition in March 2020 […]
Hornady Precision Hunter
The Precision Hunter cartridge from Hornady is only the delivery vehicle for its ELD-X bullet range. Anything you read about Precision Hunter should dwell on the ELD-X and so that’s what we are going to do here. ELD-X stands for ‘Extremely Low Drag – eXpanding’. It’s Hornady’s all-range plastic-tipped hunting bullet design, and goes into […]
Best rifle ammunition of 2020
Fieldsports Channel’s viewers are loyal to their ammunition brands and we have the proof Once they find a rifle cartridge they like, they stick to it. During the coronavirus lockdown of 2020, we surveyed our viewers about the kit they use. We received more than 3,500 responses. Of these, 616 respondents expressed a preference for […]
Fieldsports Britain – lead-free bullet killability
How good is copper, tin and even bronze at shooting straight and killing animals? Firearms expert Andrew Venables tests out all kinds of lead-free rounds at Tim Pilbeam’s range in Sussex and gives his verdict. Meanwhile, Jaf Jefferson from the South Somerset Ferreters has a nighttime date with a fox – and gets more than […]
On Test: best copper bullets for deer
Firearms expert Andrew Venables has a guilty secret (innocent secret?). He prefers copper bullets to lead bullets. In this film, he puts copper bullets through their paces on a range, showing how they win on both accuracy and fillability. Thanks to Tim Pilbeam for letting us use his range. Have a look at these […]
Copper bullets and meat damage
Meat damage is one of Andrew Venables’ primary reasons to move away from lead bullets. For him, the argument revolves around weight retention. “You’ve seen the x-rays, you’ve seen the ballistic media, the different pictures going around on social media. 40% of that bullet is left in the animal. Copper retain literally 99% of their […]
Copper bullets and clean kills
Like every ethical hunter in the Western World, Andrew Venables wants a clean kill. The firearms expert reckons the bullet that does that best is not made of lead. It’s made of copper – because it’s such a fast bullet. “Having spent a lot of time shooting lead bullets, particularly with boat tails, you […]
What non lead bullets can you buy
In the 1990s, Andrew Venables was at a US gun show where a mini revolution was taking place. He had no idea at the time that the non-lead bullet Barnes was launching there would change his deer stalking. He says it took about two years for the Barnes bullet to be exported to the […]
