What do you do to make shooting your hunting rifles enjoyable while not hunting

heronfish

CGN frequent flyer
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I love guns
Enjoy loading for them
And cannot think of anything worse or more frustrating than shooting paper targets. Heck, I'd rather be at work.

So I ask, what do you do to make off season recreational shooting more enjoyable?
 
Setup barricades, shoot a mix of SR and IPSC/IDPA "like" stages against steel gongs, either by yourself or with a friend or two.
 
I like the sound steel gongs make , not much different than paper but try for consistency with different shooting positions. I was the same about paper shooting but once I got into reloading I find it quite enjoyable and interesting what difference powder and bullet variation can make . Patience is a valuable tool in shooting sports and hunting . Take up coyote calling their everywhere and if you want a more frustrating challenge try magpies
 
I don't find paper shooting boring, even with "hunting" rifles... I enjoy tweaking, loads and scopes and trajectory charting and shooting form... "rather be at work???" That is twisted.
 
I made up some coreplast 1/2 size silhouettes(ram,turkey,pig,chicken)painted them black, and shoot them standing 60-200m with cast .308.
You find out how steady you are offhand. (can be a humbling experience)
Since they don't fall over you can shoot them repeatedly.(and also see if your shot placement would have been a "kill")
You can patch them with a piece of electrical tape.
 
Other than a check for zero or testing new ammo/loads I prefer to shoot items other than paper.

Balloons, Cheap 2 liters of pink Soda, Steel gongs and even Tannerite keep things interesting.

Some plentiful challenging targets are old Christmas light bulbs. Drill some holes in a piece of plywood insert bulbs, prop it up on a stand and place the stand on a big tarp (makes for easy cleanup).
 
Paper shooting is mind numbing. Get metal plates and set them up all at unknown distances :)

I also set up golf balls ;)
 
I don't mind shooting targets...... especially from field positions.... when I look around at the range, I notice not enough people do this.......

I have a stretch of lawn off the front deck at camp that stretches out 300 yards...... I bought one of those orange rubber target things that fly off when you hit them...... really enjoy knocking it around the yard with the 223 and cheap reloads....
 
I don't find paper shooting boring, even with "hunting" rifles... I enjoy tweaking, loads and scopes and trajectory charting and shooting form... "rather be at work???" That is twisted.

Ya. I admit I'm a touch off.
I'd gladly reload everything and have someone else shoot the darn things.
 
Once the rifle is sighted in then I'm off the bench shooting off-hand, prone, kneeling, practising timed follow-up shots, snap shooting, getting used to taking the safety off, etc. and shooting steel up to the range limits.
 
Shoot steel. Paper is for working up loads, zeroing and verifying trajectory.

And of course there are plenty of other guns to shoot.AR15's, Tavor, semi handguns, revolvers, precision rifles, shotguns...the list goes on.

I'm at the range far more than most people -CGN members or not-and I manage to keep myself entertained. ;)
 
I like shooting paper targets.

Unlike gongs and targets that are destroyed with one shot, paper targets tell you how you really shot, not how you think that you shot.

Instead of wishful thinking, you get cold hard facts.

You should absolutely practice shooting standing, sitting, and kneeling.

Most hunters simply sight in from the bench and never bother to actually learn real-life conditions.

A 100 yard shot grows in the telling and becomes 400 yards, when most could not hit anything that far away on their best day.
 
I like to shoot gongs from various positions as well as stretching my rifle and load way further than you would ever shoot in a hunting situation. 30 30 at 400yards? Why not!
 
Forgot to mention for winter months, if your area allows it, try:
(1) make coloured ice blocks with the centre hollowed, put glow sticks in them, shoot low light and see them blow up.
(2) tape glow sticks around the outline of your steel targets, shoot low light.
Super fun.
 
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When there's snow on the ground charcoal briquettes scattered around. They explode when you hit them and you can also shoot at the left overs. then there is nothing to clean up.
Just bring some gloves asking for when you spread them around.
Also, orange clay targets at various distances work well with the sks
 
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