GUNS Magazine March 1958

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facilities result from a general public accept-
Mice of pigeon shooting and from the sup-
port that is given it by the various casinos
ind resorts. Among Europeans generally
there is a feeling that this is an attraction
in the same way that golf, tennis or horse
racing draw crowds to a city or community,
and they are therefore willing and eager to
defray expense in every possible way-by
putting up money for cups, trophies, and
even for cash prizes in addition to the money
is available by the payment of entry
from the shooters themselves.
here is no more charming sight in the I: T world than a late afternoon at one of
these flyer shoots, when the contestants have
been narrowed down and about 20 are left.
The other competitors are still there, cheer-
ing their favorite, and family, friends, and
spectators have gathered on the club house
lawn to watch the event. There is an aura
excitement about it comparable to our
nnis or golf tournaments and, once savored,
is easy to prefer it to the flyer shooting
have in the Western Hemisphere. Much
the excitement comes from the betting.
this respect, it resembles horse racing or
i alai, except that here many of the bettors
e also competitors.
, Each country has a very strict handicap
stem, which is based on winnings. In
ost countries, adjustment of the handicap
made each day, either downward in ratio
the amount of the entry paid out, or up-
ard in the event the shooter has won. The
rdage handicap also is increased by an
ount in direct ratio with each win. There
very little question ever raised as to the
andicap. All the shooters know that this is
the hands of the people who run the
ots, that they are fair, and that the meth-
s by which the handicaps are computed
time-tested and equitable to all shooters.
ile the technical difference of handicap
rles from the minimum of twenty meters
a maximum of thirty-five meters, in nearly
ery instance the actual shooting handicap
a spread between twenty-two and thirty
eters. The exact handicap difference, of
urse, applies only in handicap events. In
andicaps, some shooters are placed twenty-
o meters from the traps; others who have
on consistently are set back to thirty me-
rs; and other shooters are placed according
their individual handicaps between the
second type of competition is called a
eries," where two or three distances are
ot. Here the lower handicap shooters all
oot from twenty-two or twenty-four me-
rs. The next handicap group shoot from
enty-six or twenty-seven meters, and those
ith the highest handicaps go to twenty-
ight or twenty-nine meters.
The last type of competition is a. fixed
istance. It is usually twenty-seven meters
r such events as the world championships,
hampionships of Europe, and all the most
As a result of this type of handicapping,
nd because pigeon shooting in Europe has
een done on a large scale and has been
opularly accepted over a very long period
f time without interruption, there is a great
eal of highly technical information to be
arned by the American who comes to
urope for the first time. Every good Euro-
, 1-. t ,-
Cl *WJ&
GUNNING EUROPE'S LIVE-BIRD "RACES"
(Continued from page 19)
pean shooter firmly believes that he must
use a different gun, or one gun with two and
very often three different sets of barrels, for
distances varying by as little as two to three
meters. And the guns used, of course, vary
widely. The side-by-side is the most popular,
although the over-and-under is also used a
great deal and an increasing number of
shooters are now using the automatics. The
citizens of each country, of course, tend to
the gun or guns produced in their own coun-
try both because of expense of import and
because of national feeling, or because they
know the aptitude of the national weapon
better. So the Italians usually shoot Italian
guns, the Spaniards shoot theirs, and the
Frenchmen shoot theirs; but there are a
great many British Purdy and Boss guns in
evidence. Also, a large group of shooters
like the German Merkel, particularly be-
fore it went back of the Iron Curtain. The
Browning also has its many admirers. But
here, just as everywhere else in the world,
there is a strong difference of opinion as to
which is the proper gun to shoot at the
proper time.
As a result of the study that has been
made of flyer shooting in Europe by some of
the experts and supposed experts, the ques-
tions of the proper gun and the proper barrel
at each distance are not the only factors get-
ting the attention of the shooter. Ammuni-
tion is a matter of equal importance. Theo-
ries in this, as in other matters, are carried
to extremes. . It is the generally held
belief that one should never fire at a pigeon
until after the gun has been discharged in
the air, and that the same shells should be
used in this preliminary firing that are going
to be used when the pigeon is actually shot
at. The reasoning is that the pattern will
change from a clean gun to a barrel which
has had a residue left in it. Many also be-
lieve that there is a difference in barometric
pressure at various shoots which affects re-
sults when various types of shells are fired.
The consequence is that some shooters use
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one shell at one club and another shell at
another place.
Everyone, of course, believes in a shell
with a maximum spread and penetration and
smaller shot size at twenty-two meters, as
the pattern is more widely open and the
pigeon is closer; while the further back, the
tighter the pattern should be. Some of the
shooters believe in lead shot, others in copper,
still others in nickel-and there is only
a limit on the amount of shot that can be
used, not on type. There is little limit, if
any, enforced on the amount of powder, and
you often hear howitzer-like roarings from
the field when some shooters are on the line.
The ballistic studies that have been conducted
have resulted in European shellmakers
catering to the whims of the various
shooters. There are many dealers here who
are not primary shell-makers but really custom
loaders, as we have them in the United
States, who will mix any load of powder and
shot desired by any shooter. The magnum,
of course, is not allowed, and there are certain
limits that are placed; but they are not
too evident to the American visitor. The
12 gauge gun is always shot and the few
ladies who use 16 or 20 gauges (and they
are the exceptions) are allowed to advance
one meter or even two meters ahead of their
handicap distance, to compensate for this
lack of power.
he one thing that is usually a little dis-
T tressing to the American is the system of
"miss and out" which is used in every European
country. If there are a hundred competitors
at a shoot, number one steps up to
the platform when his name is called and
fires at his bird. If he kills, he then sits
down and waits until the next ninety-nine
shooters have shot. If he misses, he can go
home or sit with the bettors, play cards, go
to the restaurant, or do whatever he chooses.
For Americans who are accustomed to get
up on the line and shoot five birds and, regardless
of results, always be allowed to
shoot to at least twenty or twenty-five birds,
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