varminter said:
Why in gods world, would you want to shoot at a moose at 1000yds?It's my belief, that there should be a difference in hunting and long range target-shooting.Shooting at such a distance at game is not only unethical,but also provides ammo for the anti-gunners and anti-hunters.Why not prove that you can shoot at the range and not use live-animals as an experiment.There should be some respect for the hunted.
Why , you ask? Simple , because I have the skill and the equipment to kill things at un-Godly long ranges. Read my signature, to me 1000 yards IS close range. I have spent the bulk of my life more than 40 years shooting long range, on average 20000 rounds per year at the range.
Every animal I have shot at long range has folded up dead on the spot, I think this is FAR less ammo for the aniti's than the fact that many animals are lost by bow hunters, road hunters, and shoot them through the trees hunters, who claim to be more ethical, because the animals have a chance. Yes a chance to slowly die from blood loss and wander around for an hour or more and be potentially lost, permanently.
Same goes for the bulk of the rifle hunters, that are not firearms addicts. Most hunters do not respect the game enough to "waste" a bunch of ammo practising the craft of shooting.
How many hunters do you know that spend at least 1 box per month at the range ,year round??
Damn few I would wager.
Any serous long range hunter will shoot several boxes of ammo a month just to keep the skill level up.
There are also the locational differences to consider. I defy anyone to sneak up on a moose (as dumb as they are) in the middle of a 2 section alfalfa field, like the 1 in central Alberta, the 1 I shot my moose in last year was mowed to 4" and a sheet of plywood has more character to creep on, a flatter piece of land I have never seen.
Don't get me wrong , I am probably the 1st to hammer someone for trying to pull off shots they are not equipped to make, that is unethical, but those of us who practice extreme long range shooting seriously would not try something beyond the means of our skill or equipment. Typically long range hunters spend FAR more time , not only at the range, but developing loads for optimum use, not just accuracy, but bullet performance. Typically spend HUGE amounts of money on specialty rifles dedicated for the task,optics, range finders etc, so tend to take the sport much more seriously than any other group of hunters known.
Hope that answers your questions
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