Best rifle moderators for 2021
Moderators, suppressors, silencers – they are becoming more and more popular worldwide as countries relax their restrictions on them. So which ones are the Fieldsports Channel viewers buying? A massive 3,500 of you responded to our March 2020 survey about kit and 10% of those answered the section on rifle moderators. We asked you to […]
TV News grouseshooting contempt – Fieldsports News, 23 September 2020
Here are the links: Channel 4 News targets moor managers in rule-breaking report – YouTube Channel 4 complaints: Ofcom and Channel 4 – we want to complain that (1) Channel 4 News is prejudging the goshawk case before it comes to court (contempt of court?) and (2) it is ‘jumping’ the shoot, similar to this […]
Giant London fox shot
Vermin controllers have shot an unusually large fox on a south London golf course. Ross Vanner sends in this picture of the 27lb animal next to a smaller fox. He was lamping for his friend Graeme. Meanwhile, BBC TV presenter Chris Packham has accused the fieldsports community of spreading fear with giant fox stories. […]
Northern Irish council signs off red squirrel death warrant
Councillors at Ards North Down Borough Council are to let grey squirrels breed, even though that will lead to the extinction of local red squirrels. They turned down a cull and, instead, are looking at ‘alternatives to enhancing numbers of red squirrels,’ reports Belfast Live. Squeamish councillor Nick Mathison tells the newspaper: “We are being […]
Packham and sabs step up action as badger culls begin
BBC TV host Chris Packham is criticising the government for extending its badger culling. The celebrity describes the decision as “devastating”, insisting it “makes very little sense”. DEFRA has added 11 areas to the badger cull zones around England, and up to 60,000 animals will be killed. Packham, who is vice-president of RSPCA and RSPB, […]
Torches on test
As tech hits the lamping market, the fox and rabbitshooters who prefer lamping to night vision and thermal now attach torches to their scopes. You find your animal with a handheld torch, and you quickly acquire it in your scope with your rifle-mounted torch. While handheld lamps are still narrow in beam compared to ordinary […]
Foxshooter protects sheep and pheasants
Dorset foxshooter David Pomeroy has two jobs tonight. There’s a farm on the Dorset downs that milks sheep, and he is out token the foxes down there, and there is another landowner nearby with pheasant pens to protect from foxes. He takes his Blaser R8 Professional Success and Thermion XM38 riflescope out to find […]
On test: Pulsar Digex N450 night vision scope on foxes
In a world of thermal, Roy Lupton tries out a night vision scope. He takes the Pulsar Digex N450 night vision scope out after foxes. Find out how he gets on. Click here for more about the Digex night vision
What does ‘ballistic tip’ mean?
Ballistic is a much over-used word. You may associate it with nuclear weapons. The word is pointlessly used to describe long-range missiles with nuclear warheads. It has nothing to do with the power of the payload. When you use it with the word ‘missile’, ‘ballistic’ means there is a guidance system on board. Otherwise […]
Fieldsports Britain – Foxshooting like a Minion
We’re all about fox shooting this week. Roy Lupton is out to test new night vision on foxes in Kent, filmed by David. Meanwhile, Charlie joins one of our supporters, David Pomeroy, to go fox shooting in Dorset with a thermal scope. Plus news editor Ben O’Rourke brings us the story of how Natural […]
Why are target bullets longer than hunting bullets?
What’s the difference between target and hunting rounds? Sako Cartridges’ Aki Suvilahti says the biggest difference is in the manufacturing process. The hollowpoint boat-tail bullets that Sako makes for its hunting cartidges have to be manufactured more precisely than solid target ammunition. “Production consistency is all about accuracy,” he says. Sako makes boat-tail match […]
A simple guide to rifle calibres
To a non-shooter, all bullets seem the same, but there are hundreds of different calibres out there. ‘Calibre’ is based on (but not always the same as) the diameter of the bullet in millimetres. Are you choosing the right calibre for your shooting? You’ll probably get different answers from everyone you ask. Sako Cartridges’ […]
What happens when a rifle cartridge goes bang?
You pull the trigger – and a lot of chemistry and physics takes place in a split second. Aki Suvilahti from cartridge manufacturer Sako says there are, generally, three different types of primer. For calibres such as .222 and .223, there is ‘small rifle’ primer, which has low energy. Next up is what Aki […]
Do you choose slow bullets or ‘hot rounds’?
Hot or not? That’s the question Paul Childerley puts to Aki Suvilahti of Sako Cartridges. Paul likes hot rounds in his chosen calibres of .22-50, 70-grain .243 – but like all shooters, he has doubts. “So,” he asks: “lighter bullets, faster charge, is it good or is it bad?” Aki says that the carcase […]
What is bullet head space?
If you’re still finding your way around your rifle, you may want to know what ‘head space’ is. Aki Suvilahti from Sako Cartridges explains. “Head space is a measure, in the rifle, from bolt face to chamber. It is in the part of the chamber that stops the cartridge’s forward movement,” he says. […]
Best shooting jackets 2020
In March 2020, more than 500 of you filled out our shooting and hunting clothing survey, telling us which jackets and trousers you wear and why you like them. The big prizes are your favourite jackets and trousers. And here are the winners. Top manufacturer for jackets is Deerhunter but its Montana, Muflon and Ram […]
Bream wars in the Norfolk Broads
Ben O’Rourke “The whole project about Hoveton Great Broad is about restoring clear water, using things like biomanipulation,” says Duncan Holmes, who has lived on the Norfolk Broads all his life. “There’s some debate about whether this is actually a clear water habitat in the first instance. Where the issue comes from is taking […]
What are bonded bullets?
Deer manager Paul Childerley describes what a bonded bullet is good for: “More weight behind it, more stopping power.” Sako’s Aki Suvilahti perfers a more technical definition. “Bonding means that as there is lead core in the bullet, it is chemically fixed to this copper jacket,” he says, referring to his company’s Super Hammerhead […]
Newspapers give shooting a kicking – Fieldsports News, 16 September 2020
Here are the links: Media targets grouse shooters – Mirror Packham promotes fieldsports magazine – Facebook ‘Experts’ call on Westminster to protect nature Saboteur accused of lying about attack – Leicester Mercury Cumbria cops criticised over time-wasting tweet – Facebook Highland keepers join national call for muirburn promotion – Strathspey Herald Dogs nabbed across […]
Exmoor pigeons
UK gun licence medical-check scandal
Ben O’Rourke Five years ago, Tim Newcombe was working for three farmers and a school, clearing their land of pests. Now he has no licence to shoot. Things turned sour when Tim was paid a visit by the local firearms officer. “She was in a bad mood,” he says. “She tried to rip the [gun] […]
Deer photographer at work
Cameraman Carlos Carubia is out in the New Forest after deer. He enlists the help of local deer hunter Elliot Pidgley who calls in the animals and, together, they capture images of roe, fallow and muntjac deer. Find New Forest Stalking on Facebook Carlos’s camera kit Canon 7D MkII, costs around £800 on Amazon […]
High flying crow shoot on Exmoor
It’s Exmoor high-bird shooting but without the expense. Matt Turley and Nigel White are decoying corvids and pigeons on the edge off one of the country’s most famous shoots – and their birds are just as high as the birds that people travel from all over the world to shoot. Plus they cover the […]
New anglers flock to UK fishing festivals
Fishing events in the UK report great turnouts as the sport welcomes 100,000 new anglers (government figures). Organisers of two fishing events in September say they were packed out with both new and experienced anglers. Thames Tidefest hosted 40 top anglers competing in the annual Tidefest Championship in London. Now in its seventh year, supported […]
Fieldsports Britain – long, tall pest control
Enjoy spectacular crow and pigeon shooting on Exmoor on the same ground that the world’s greatest guns come to shoot pheasants. Matt Turley and Nigel White are out decoying on Exmoor. You can win a day’s pheasant and partridge shooting in Bedfordshire in company with Andy Crow thanks to Jack Pyke’s new competition. News editor […]
Best semi-autos 2020
Which semi-autos do the Fieldsports Channel audience prefer? We sent out surveys in March 2020 and more than 3,500 of you filled out the questionnaires (it’s as if you had nothing better to do). Of those nearly 500 semi-auto owners responded. The most popular semi-auto among our viewers is, from Turkey, the Hatsan Escort, […]
Sab says hunt uses horses ‘as weapons’ – Fieldsports News, 9 September 2020
Here are the links: Sab says hunt horse put him in hospital – Facebook Anti-badger cull group’s website shut down BBC bias backlash sparks social media warning – Daily Mail Endangered birds thrive on Scotland’s grouse moors – Press & Journal Hen harriers have ‘fantastic year’, with record-breaking fledglings – Fieldsports News Fieldsports exempt from […]
Charlie’s dad – FieldsportsChannel Podcast, episode 38
Charlie Jacoby talks to his father, Martin Jacoby about Martin’s life as a natural historian, his views on how natural history and species work, the history of humankind, and why shooting butterflies is a good idea. He puts forward his ideas about DNA, why we hunt, and why hunting is an essential part of humanity. […]
Hen harriers having ‘fantastic year’, with record-breaking fledglings
In the north of England, 60 hen harrier chicks fledged this year – the most since 2002. Natural England say the chicks came from 19 nests in Northumberland, the Yorkshire Dales, Cumbria and Lancashire, in early summer 2020. The government agency puts the success down to good weather and cooperation from Moorland Association, RSPB, Forestry […]
Rimfire rifles and ammunition: the Ultimate Guide
From Fieldsports Channel’s Fieldtester Scroll down to watch our video reviews of top rimfire rifles The humble rimfire has long been a favourite of farmers, gamekeepers and pest controllers. It’s cheap to shoot, accurate and deadly on pests like rabbits and squirrels. Rimfires are versatile too. Shoot subsonic hollowpoint .22 ammo through a moderator, and […]
How the RSPB persecutes gamekeepers
Ben O’Rourke A few years ago, two gamekeepers, a policeman and a man from a wildlife charity went to a vet’s surgery for a bird’s post mortem. The carcase was ‘found’ on a grousemoor, said the charity representative. He accused gamekeepers of killing it. For a bird, it smelled fishy, says one of the […]
Shooting rats on the ratberg
Rat after rat appears for Roy Lupton to shoot. He calls his trash heap ‘the ratberg’ and it produces the rats tonight. He is having a post-lockdown crackdown on the pesky rodents, shooting them with new night vision from Pulsar. Click here for more from Roy Click here for the Pulsar Digex N450
Fieldsports Britain – Roy’s ratberg, dead ahead
It’s a rat hunting challenge. Roy attempts to take down the ratberg that is his rat-infested lockdown dump/bonfire/trash-heap. Usually he uses thermal on his airgun but this week he has new night vision from Pulsar to try out. Meanwhile, Charlie is in the Lake District with a kayak and a tenkara rod so that […]
Antis terrorise badger cull couple – Fieldsports News, 2 September 2020
Here are the links: Sabs step up harassment of couple linked to badger culls – Fieldsports News Green politician eagle publicity picture row – Fieldsports News White-tailed eagle injured by wind turbine – Bird Guides Last call for Virtual Hound Show auctions – website Irish country show goes online – TheVirtualGameFair.com Show your backing […]
‘Flyakara’ – kayak tenkara on an English tarn
Charlie Jacoby If kayak flyfishers are calling their sport flyaking – which is a hideous word IMHO that will be the first against the wall when the revolution comes – I can call tenkara flyfishing from a kayak ‘flyakara’. What’s tenkara? It’s a bit of a craze, but it suits the catching of the small […]
The evolution of the St James’s Place Foxhunters Chase
The connection between National Hunt racing, which originated as steeplechasing, and foxhunting stemmed from the early 16th century when changes in the agricultural landscape meant landowners and farmers enclosed more and more land, creating obstacles for the hunters. Hunters tested their skills over the fences to see who had the fastest horse. Because there was […]
Switzerland tightens hunting tourism for ibex
The only canton where foreigners can stalk ibex has bowed to pressure from animal rights activists. The Valais, a canton in South-West Switzerland, is to make it harder for foreigners to hunt ibex from 2021. Every hunter who wants to hunt for ibex, whether foreigner or Swiss, must pass the cantonal hunting examination. In addition, […]
Sabs step up harassment of couple linked to badger culls
The pavement outside the home of a couple linked to the government’s badger culls has been vandalised by animal rights extremists. South Coast Hunt Sabs posted photos of garish pink graffiti outside the house in Guilford, which is also the office of the husband-and-wife-run company that makes tracking devices used by badger cullers. Animal rights […]
Bird ringing: bad for birds?
Bird ringer Wilf Norman and ornithologist John Cavana present their cases for differing conservation techniques. Does ringing have a future or is it time for tech to take over? Ben O’Rourke investigates. “Every bird looked brown and blobby,” says John Cavana of his early ornithology experiences growing up in Middlesbrough, the heart of […]
Pigeonshooting: how BASC shouts about our sport
Curtis Mossop’s job is to get people into shooting. We join him pigeon shooting in Cheshire as BASC’s head of pathways to shooting explains how he does it, and his passion for the sport. Watch the full film with Curtis on YouTube Visit the BASC films channel on YouTube For BASC, go to BASC.org.uk
Stalking elusive bucks
Tim Pilbeam has a fallow problem – a new piece of ground where he and friends have to cull more than 100 animals. Tonight’s the night to get off to a great start – or is it? Click here for more from Tim
Fieldsports Britain – Tim’s fallow fist
Tim is on ground where 100 fallow need to be shot. He goes all Grand Old Duke of York in his efforts to get on to them, marching David up and down the hill in East Sussex, and debating whether or not to use the high seat. In Lancashire, Curtis Mossop, who works for […]
Best 4×4 vehicles 2020
We tackle vehicles in this survey: the big vehicles you go shooting in, and the little UTVs and quad bikes you use to get around your ground. We carried out this survey in March 2020 when everyone was trapped in lockdown, and 3,500 of you responded. Nearly 400 of you answered the 4×4 survey. More […]
New Scottish deer season – Fieldsports News, 26 August 2020
Here are the links: Hind season to open on 1 September for some RSPB says raptor persecution not as big a problem as it makes out – BASC Government pheasant report gives gamekeepers thumbs up – Fieldsports News Anti-badger cull campaign hits new low Cocker spaniel theft. If you have seen these dogs, contact Simon […]
Daily Telegraph puts negative spin on positive pheasant report
Gameshooting is good for the environment, but could do better. That’s the conclusion of a review by the English government. The newly-launched review Ecological Consequences of Gamebird Releasing and Management on Lowland Shoots in England concludes that banning shooting would result in a ‘decrease in beneficial effects’. In a swipe at the big, commercial shoots, […]
Badger cull data leak: what’s next and what victims should do
The anti-badger cull brigade are not happy. After the English government apparently promised to reduce the number of culls, it’s instead added 11 more. So it’s possible the huge leak of data at the weekend identifying hundreds of people involved in badger culls may be traced to a sympathiser within DEFRA, the English […]
Go spearfishing in the UK
Ollie Williams goes spearfishing in Cornwall with harpoon master Mat Coombe. Mat calls it ‘underwater deerstalking’ (and he loves his deerstalking, too). They are after bass and mullet. Plus Mat explains how they dodge the UK water companies’ sewage pollution. For Mat’s favourite spearfishing shop, go to Spearfishing.co.uk For more from Cai, visit GameandFlames.com Click […]
Sabs hit shoots – Fieldsports News, 19 August 2020
Here are the links Sabs target Glorious Twelfth – Fieldsports News Animal rights extremists try to sway Scottish government – SGA press release and Scottish government press release SGA dismisses antis’ trap report as ‘propaganda’ – Scottish parliament PDF British Deer Society venison webinar – YouTube Game fair to open up ‘for the whole […]
Best hearing protection for shooters 2020
www.dailymotion.com/video/x7vo4kz What do you wear on or in your ears when you go shooting? Listen up: out of the 3,500 of you who responded to our lockdown kit survey in the spring, 435 completed the survey on hearing protection. It’s something we have been pushing on Fieldsports Channel, especially with Roy Lupton going so deaf. […]
Fieldsports Britain – The Undersea World of Cai Ap Bryn
We’re hunting under the warm waters of the English south coast. Game chef Cai Ap Bryn loads up his speargun to search the sea for bass, pollock, wrasse and lobster, and then to cook up a super seafood barbecue for some of the top names in spearfishing. It’s a growing sport – and the […]
