Sandbagged

Here is one I ran across years ago in a hunting magazine and I know everyone can not only use but do themselves.

I was chucking things out when I found some old jeans so torn up they had to go. When I was about to throw them out I remembered reading an article about making sandbags for the range from the legs. I had a few minutes, some old jeans and some sand outside so I decided to make a couple. This is all it takes.

Cut the legs off of your jeans a little below the knee. You can make them a bit longer if you want but any shorter makes them hard to sew. Next turn them inside out and sew one end closed. I didn’t have a sewing machine so I just ran two rows of stitches across by hand, be sure to use at least 2-3 rows. Next step, sew the other end about ¾ of the way closed, leaving a section to add your sand. Turn the pouch you made right side out and you are ready to add sand.

It is best to use play sand rather than contractor’s sand since it has all the small stones removed or you can run the contractor sand through a screen to get most of them out.
Add sand until it is close to full but leave yourself enough material to finish sewing it closed. Stitch the opening closed with at least two rows of stitches and there you have it a sandbag for almost nothing. If you have a sewing machine these take just a couple of minutes to do but even by hand they don’t take long. The technique is exactly like making a pillow for those of you that know how to sew, well except for the sand which would make a rough pillow.

There you go, another on the cheap useful item to add to your goodies. These work great on the range, out chasing yotes or ground pigs.

P.S. Just for fun I made one full of bubble wrap to see how it worked. Hoping it does since it is super light weight and easy to carry in my pack.

Breaking Bored

Summer has gotten here far too soon with record heat for weeks now. The fish have gone on bed finally, weeks late, they have lock jaw now. With highs near 100 and heat indexes well past it is tough to make myself get out to do outdoorsy stuff. I still need to go clear out pigeons from the barn and would love a quick fishing trip but the weather has to break first.

The pigeon hide out.

My view while stalking the barn birds.

  What to do when you just get so bored you can’t stand looking at walls anymore? I shoot. This is when I practice with my bows and air rifle to keep tuned up or so I tell myself, really it is just to have fun. I’m lucky, I can shoot in my backyard with whatever I want but I keep it to things that don’t go boom since I don’t like it when someone shoots real guns near my house. This time of year begs for you to be outside and shooting lets me get out with minimal setup or tear down when I just want a few minutes to relax.

Pile of fun about to begin.

  Recently I got a traditional long bow to go with my compound and crossbow. This is a treat since it is really back to basics shooting, stick and string plus a target. I traded for a Bama Bow done in bocote and maple with horn. Not only is it beautiful, it is a dream to shoot, light, easy to draw, fun. For an air rifle I still shoot my Gamo 440 springer I bought years ago. It is nothing fancy but gets the job done whether punching paper or popping small game and pests even with Gamo’s terrible trigger, more on that in a bit. Just these two things can mean getting out for a bit when most people are hiding under the A/C.
  For my long bow I use an old deer target that has literally been shot to pieces. I use it like you would stump shooting, simply putting the pieces on the ground and fling away. Yes I chase a lot of arrows that go snake on me (hiding in the grass after I miss) but this is so much fun. My groups are huge compared to my compound but that is fine it is a different form of shooting which I am just starting to relearn. One thing I like is shooting with both eyes open which I can’t do with my sights. This allows me to get involved with technique instead of technology. Concentrate on the spot, envision the impact, draw, anchor, release, follow through. It also shows off my habit of shooting high and left. Yes I know why I do it but I still have to fight it every time I shoot despite muscle memory.

My backyard version of stump shooting. This was my first group at 11 yards with the long bow.

This is a typical 20 yard group with my compound. 4 arrows in a bottle cap and 2 close by.

 My hope is to get good enough to hunt with it this fall to take my first traditional bow deer. It is odd watching arrows take what can only be called a leisurely flight to the target when matched against my Bear. At close to 300 fps with hunting weight arrows my compound is screaming compared to a traditional. So why go back? Because I learned on a recurve, a Ben Pearson, I can’t remember the model, I had before compounds existed. I never got to take a deer with it before technology moved me away from stick and string. Now as I get older I want to correct that while I still can.
  Many people take shooting long guns they will use for hunting for granted. How many do you know who go out the night before opening day to throw a rifle across the hood of the truck, fire two rounds and call it good? Be honest, we all know those folks. To be fair many don’t have the luxury of shooting their real guns year round. My solution is to shoot my air rifle every chance I get. This keeps me in practice for when season rolls around and is fun watching holes form in the targets.
  To make it easier I keep my Gamo sitting by the backdoor for when I need to thump a rabbit or groundhog raiding my garden. Some shoot and see targets are close by along with a tin of pellets. This way when I get a minute for trigger time I can be out the door and set up in a couple of minutes. I don’t shoot from a bench but try to take shots the way I do in the field, offhand or using a rest from a standing position. The only bad part is again the absolutely miserable fake two stage trigger Gamo puts on their guns. This makes it almost impossible to get consistent shots since it is not a true two stage and the fact that I hate those types of triggers. I want one with zero creep or backlash but air rifle companies are obsessed with using two stage. Even with this I can still get sub ½” groups from a bench at 15 yards. Under more realistic conditions the groups are no where near this good but I know what to expect when I get to the woods.

Headed to chase pigeons on an earlier outing.

  I shoot Crosman pellets, these are inexpensive but work well. I can shoot for less than a penny a shot plus they double as a good hunting pellet, too. I haven’t shot these through a chronograph so have no data for speed or energy but they work as many a blackbird and rabbit can attest. I did weigh several to see how consistent they are and was surprised to see they are extremely close to the same weight.
  If you don’t have an air rifle and don’t want to spend a ton of money on one of the higher dollar adult versions here is a tip. Crosman makes one you can pick up at most box or super stores or order online from Pyramydair or Crosman for around $60.00. This is the model 2100 that has been around for many years and holds up even with tons of use. It is a fairly inexpensive way to shoot during the off season. It will shoot either pellets or BB s both of which are cheap. Check out the full reviews on one of my favorite youtube channels, EdGunUSA
  I hope most of you live in an area where you can do this in your yard. It doesn’t take much room, is quiet for the most part and you can invite a neighbor over to play along. I help some of the kids living close to me learn to shoot with their inexpensive air rifles which is another reason to get out. You can download free targets online then print whatever you need for a range session.
This time of year for me is about relaxing, having fun just getting outside for a short time despite the heat. I will get down to serious practice as the season draws closer and the time I spend now will make it easier when late summer rolls around.
Disclaimer: I was not compensated by any companies mentioned in any way. These are just the products that I buy and use.

Airborne

Once upon a time summer was dragging. It had been a good year, rainfall was plentiful but the heat had been rough. The result was a great mast crop. All the trees were loaded, this promised a good deer season. Like many folks I didn’t have huge budgets to maintain massive food plots (still don’t by the way) and was glad to see acorns bending the limbs for a change.

September took it’s sweet time getting here but opening day was within sight. I got my bow and finished tuning up for that 4th Saturday in September, our permanent opening day. Then the weather forecast came in, clear, humid and hot, not just hot, 100+ degrees hot, but I don’t miss opening day.

20 yard group with my Bear, yes that is 4 arrows inside a coke bottle top.

Early morning Saturday, I headed over to my little corner of the woods and set up in my ground blind. Just walking to the stand left me soaked. It was so still, humid and hot that you just sat and dripped. No self respecting deer was going to come near me even if they did move. I sat muttering bad things about weathermen, deer, bugs, the stupidity of people that do this, Al Gore with his global warming, finally gave up and went home. All I saw was a herd of tree rats feeding in a tree 5 yards from my blind. They came from every direction and fed there all day showering me with their nut leavins. That night I sat reading online how no one was seeing deer and tried to figure a way to salvage the next day. I knew I wasn’t deer hunting again until something changed in the weather. I kept thinking about the squirrels, I do love me some fried squirrel or squirrel and dumplings. I got out my small game vest, air rifle and pellets. I had my plan. I love hunting small game but don’t go enough. This was a good excuse to fill the freezer.

The next morning it’s pushing 80 degrees at daylight. I slipped into my blind, this was just something I threw together using whatever brush I could find, so with no top, I can be comfortable and watch for squirrels. I had my folding chair, some water, Little Debbie snack cakes, my Gamo .177, a can of Gamo Hunter pellets and a fresh can of Off with Deet. Yesterday had proved the ferocity of local skeeters and tenacity of our ticks and chiggers. Now I needed a squirrel or ten.

The first squirrels started showing up just after sunrise. I waited to see if they were going to the same tree. Like yesterday each one made his way to the corner of the field where the feeding tree, a big white oak, grew. I let a couple get started cutting then picked one that was coming my way. I had to remind myself to be patient, this was an air rifle not a regular .22. The squirrel kept coming as I eased up from my chair to hide behind a tree. This gave me a good rest and when he got to about 15 yards I got a good look through the scope waiting for him to stop. He finally did before jumping to the next tree.

 The shot hit just under the chin and he spins, takes a couple of steps up the tree then comes down in a tail twirling freefall after a sweet back flip. A nice thud announces his contact with the ground. The other squirrels stop eating but an air rifle doesn’t make much noise. I stand still for a couple of minutes, they start cutting again. The scraping of teeth on shell, pieces of hulls falling through leaves making ticking sounds as they pile up on the ground mark each one. I ease over to retrieve my first of the morning. A .17 caliber pellet moving at over 1000 fps does a fine job stopping a charging rodent.

Slipping back to my chair I wait on the next one. It doesn’t take long. Leaves are thick making it hard to find them, I can see hulls fall and limbs shake but can’t get a shot I feel good about. No hurry since there are several using the same tree. A couple of minutes later one is coming down headfirst almost directly above me. I get braced, take up the slack on the trigger and hit this one behind the shoulder as he turns to go along a limb. Not even a twitch, just falls. That’s two.

 I watch as skeeters bash away at the barrier I set up with half a can of Off. Sprayed on me and all the bushes around me I am trying to confound them. So far it’s working but the heat is getting bad fast, I know I won‘t last long. It takes a little while for the woods to settle but before very long here comes #3. This one takes almost the same track as the last one. I line up, get my sight picture and drop another one. After gathering up those two with heat and bugs getting worse, I decide one more is enough.

My moving around plus the shooting has run off the few that were here. It takes some looking for me to pick up more movement. Limbs are moving in the distance in several places, a couple of them headed my way. I wish he would hurry up, my water is hot and my Little Debbie‘s are melting. The heat is bad, the skeeters are massing along the border, I’m ready to go home. It must have heard and starts my way.

I slip out of my chair and hide as it moves high in the trees. I watch limbs bending and shaking showing his path near the top of the mature trees. These are big oaks and maples, he is using the tops where the others had come in lower. I have to pay attention or lose him in the canopy. Staying hidden as he takes his time stopping to check a hole before coming in, I have a spot picked, if he comes through I will have my shot. Lucky for me he is following the same path as others did once he gets close. That unseen highway through the trees. At 20 yards he sits at the base of a limb, curled up, looking over the area. It is another easy shot and he hits the ground with a satisfying thump. I gather him up, take a few pictures and head home.

Rather than spend a day sitting at home my air rifle provided me with a morning of fun. An adult air rifle can run into some money, mine wasn’t cheap, but they provide a good challenge along with inexpensive ammo. Many places can turn into a range where you could never shoot regular guns. I hope to add a precharged pneumatic .22 and eventually a .45 or .50 caliber. The air gun challenge bit my long ago when I was a kid sitting on the porch with my Mom as she taught me to shoot with my lever action Daisy. Later I got a 760 Crosman which lasted for years, still one of my favorites. The guns available now are hard to believe, from the ones we had as kids to high dollar, high tech machines worthy of the target bench. If you are looking for a new facet to add to your outdoor experience this might be for you.

Disclaimer: All products mentioned were purchased by me. I am not affiliated with nor was I compensated by them.