Ratting

Airguns FX Airguns Pulsar Ratting Roy Lupton Thomas Jacks

Thermal squirrel hunt

January 30, 2019

Roy is after a variety of pests with FX airgun mounted with Pulsar Trail LRF thermal…

Airguns FX Airguns Pulsar Ratting Roy Lupton Thomas Jacks

Industrial rat shoot

January 30, 2019

Roy’s out at the dump controlling rats. He is putting new FX airguns and Pulsar optics…

Airguns Darren Rogers Ratting Roy Lupton

Airgun Rat Action

August 16, 2018

Roy Lupton and Darren Rogers get together to sort out Roy’s rat problem. Roy provides the…

Airguns Darren Rogers Lamping and night vision Ratting

Pheasant Feeder Ratting

August 8, 2018

This week Darren is out to show a gamekeeper just how effective air rifles are for…

Airguns Darren Rogers Lamping and night vision Ratting

Night Vision Rat Hunt

August 8, 2018

To turn night into day and see the rats that infest the duck pond to shoot…

Airguns Darren Rogers Lamping and night vision On Test Ratting

Night Master ATOM night vision – On Test

July 24, 2018

Night Vision guru Darren Rogers has got his hands on one of the first ATOM compact…

Airguns Charlie Jacoby Ratting

Lasers for Rats

July 24, 2018

On test, we have the Laserware ND-100 Glacier, a piece of kit best used for rabbiting…

Airguns James Marchington Ratting

Close range ratting with a springer

May 18, 2018

We are spring-loaded and after rats at a local aviary. James Marchington doesn’t have to be…

Airguns Darren Rogers Ratting

The most expensive rat shot in the world!

May 18, 2018

Bringing together top-end Infra red illuminators, an FX Verminator air rifle plus Hawke scope with a…

Airguns BSA Ratting

Rat shoot

April 13, 2018

We’re hunting rats on a farm in the West Country. We have a BSA R10 and…

Air Arms Airguns Paul Hodson Ratting

Pest control with Paul Hodson

October 15, 2016

Out with the night vision: Paul Hodson runs a clay ground, is a keen foxshooter and,…

Air Arms Airguns Cai Ap Bryn Lamping and night vision Ratting

How to Shoot 100 Rats

June 29, 2016

Here’s how to have a massive pest control outing. Cai Ap Bryn hefts his trusty Air…

Airguns Lamping and night vision On Test Ratting

On test: Minox trailcams

April 1, 2016

Who has been nicking the chickens’ eggs? Charlie Jacoby uses the Minox trailcam series – DTC…

Airguns Ratting

Texas Beaver Control

February 18, 2016

We are out with the Texans sorting out one of their toughest vermin: beavers. It’s a…

Airguns Ratting

Ratting on the Pig Farm

November 20, 2015

Darren Rogers goes down to the pig farm with the guys from night vision company NiteSite.…

Airguns Ratting

Barnyard Rats with an Airgun

September 23, 2015

Gloucestershire pest controller Mark Lewis is out after rats in a barn. He shows how to…

Home Ratting

July 8, 2013

Andy Crow Ratting

Fast action ratting with terriers

April 26, 2013

Andy Crow is clearing the barn of straw which has become home to lots and lots…

Andy Crow Lamping and night vision Ratting

Budget night vision ratting

March 22, 2013

Andy Crow and friends build a night-vision rifle scope out of parts they find lying around…

Ratting Roy Lupton

Shooting rats with the help of a digger

December 18, 2011

It is the final straw. Roy Lupton has tried to get rid of his rats by…

New launch: Merkel K5 break-barrel rifle

December 5, 2019 1:00 am

by Charlie Jacoby Generally, I like the sleek, new single-shot break-barrel rifle from Merkel. The company lent it to me for a week of red hind stalking in Argyllshire (my film is at the bottom of this review). It is designed as a ‘mountain’ rifle: lightweight and with the break-barrel rifle’s reputation for greater accuracy than the bolt-action. It is Merkel’s go at matching the Blaser K95. I prefer the K95 (disclosure: Blaser sponsors films on Fieldsports Channel, Merkel does not). The K5 grew out of the K120, the rifle Merkel produced for its 120th anniversary. Compared the the K3 and the K4, the stock shape makes it look prettier. Here is Sebastian von Stauffenberg from Merkel to talk through the rifle: It is a hogback stock with a Bavarian cheek piece. The stock has a double fold. This is both goodlooking (as Sebastian says in his film) and an important consideration. You are probably going to put a scope on it. Check this stock shape works for you and your chosen scope. The stock on this rifle is in wood and has ebony finishes, which gives it a sense of contrast. Merkel has now changed the ebony to palisander wood for the finishes on the fore-end, pistol grip and the release. The trigger system is adjustable longways and sideways. It is also wider than usual Merkel triggers, which I like. Merkel has developed a silent new handcocking system for this rifle. Decocking is simple and easy and is more secure than a simple safety-catch. The gun simply can’t fired with cocking it. It has a jaeger tilted block breech which locks steel on steel. One feature is that the block is removable. You simply take off the fore-end, take out the barrel, you push back the breech, click a …
Swarovski Z8i

November 23, 2019 6:00 pm

by Charlie Jacoby This is one of the big three: the Z8i is the scope to have if you don’t want the Zeiss V8 or the Leica Magnus. With an 8x magnification, this scope takes your target from 1.7x to 13.3x. It is aimed at both short range driven hunting scope and for long ranges around 400m. Lightweight, it has a ballistic turret with a personalised ring. You take the ballistics of your bullet – the calibre, muzzle velocity and ballistic coefficient (all of these available on your box of ammo plus you can check them yourself on a range) – feed this info into the Swarovski website, pay your money, and a week later a special ring turns up for your ballistic turret in yards or metres that you can click to match the range of your target. So your zero is spot on at 100m, you rangefind your deer at 300m, you click the turret round to 300m, and the scope will hold the zero. The luminous dot is pre-set in two positions for day and night. You can dim it or increased in brightness via pushbuttons on the scope. Here is Michael Ott from manufacturer Swarovski to explain the scope: Want to see the Swarovski Z8i in action? We take it on a hind cull in Scotland: Thinking of buying a £2000+ riflescope? Have a look at our price and capability comparison here:
Swarovski EL and ELO Range binoculars

November 23, 2019 5:58 pm

by Charlie Jacoby Swarovski EL and ELO Range binoculars are designed to combine Swarovski quality with a range finding capability. They come in the standard deerstalking sizes of 8×42 and 10×42 and include an easy-to-use rangefinder. Simply point them at your target, click the button on top of the binos, release, after a couple of seconds, you get the range in metres. The ELO – the ‘O’ stands for ‘orange’ – are that colour so if you put them down on the hill you will easily be able to find them again. Here is Michael Ott from manufacturer Swarovski to explain them: Buy it on Amazon: Want to see these Swarovski binos in action? We take them on a hind cull in Scotland:
Swarovski modular ATX spotting scope

November 23, 2019 5:53 pm

by Charlie Jacoby For the big game hunter who likes to see their distant game up close, this is the Swarovski spotting scope to choose. Zoom is from 30x to 70x. This one has the 95mm objective lens. Modular means you can take the headpiece off and replace it. As you would expect from Swaro, the light transmission is outstanding. The resolution you get out of it is terrific, not only for spotting when I go hunting but also to take pictures. Swarovski sells a special adaptor for your phone that attaches it to the scope. Here is Michael Ott from manufacturer Swarovski to explain them: Buy it on Amazon:
Merkel HLX suppressor

November 23, 2019 3:04 pm

Merkel has gone into partnership with military moderator manufacturer B&T to make a moderator for the hunting market. 200mm long, it has steel baffles, which allows up to 30 consecutive shots without waiting for it to cool. It fits on every barrel with a M15x1 muzzle thread. Merkel claims its moderators reduce sound by more than 30dB. For cleaning, just soak the moderator in soapy water, rinse it out and dry it with a compressor (if you have one) or leave for 24 hours on a warm radiator. Here’s what Merkel says. Want to see the Merkel HLX in action? We take it on a hind cull in Scotland: