Why so much emphasis on super fast prone shots?

[cal30_sniper]

Was a fair question

Not in the least.

That’s a number each can only answer for themselves, if anyone even keeps track of such worthless statistics.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Dunno about being lathered up.

How many shots have been practiced prone/bipod/tripod whatnot vs offhand? I bet it isnt even close

I’ve shot with @cal30_sniper just one time and he shot off hand more than anyone else that day. So… You have zero clue that what you accuse people of, is complete bullshit.

 

[cal30_sniper]

I’ve shot with @cal30_sniper just one time and he shot off hand more than anyone else that day. So… You have zero clue that what you accuse people of, is complete bullshit.

Yeah, but next year we’re on for the prone archery session. Don’t forget!

 

[HuntHarder]

This thread has officially gone into dumpster fire status.. TF? Are we really talking about shooting bows prone? Im thinking this is too much sauce on a friday night.

 

[7RemMag]

I dont know a single person packing shooting sticks. Never met a guy that shot off a tripod either. Where I hunt, inside 200ish yrds. It is going to be an offhand shot if there isnt a tree to lean against. Amazing how many animals hit the ground....

Dad hunted that way for decades. About ten years ago, a neighbor showed us his bog pod. No death grip. Just a tripod with a cradle. Dad immediately went home and ordered himself one. Soon after I got my own. It most definitely tipped the odds further in our favor. It’s quick to deploy if needed and you can always take the offhand shot if needed. For youth and inexperienced hunters it’s a lifesaver. I wouldn’t say neither of us head into the field without it, but if we’re hunting together it’s rare that one of the two of us doesn’t have a set.

 

[The Guide]

How many shots have been practiced prone/bipod/tripod whatnot vs offhand? I bet it isnt even close

I've shot over 1k rounds of 22LR in the last 2 months from prone, prone with bipod, seated, kneeling, standing, and off a tripod while shooting steel at 50 to 95 yards. Of that 1k less than 50 have been prone. Around 400 rounds have been open sights, 400 scoped, and 200 from a green dot. I like to shoot. It calms my mind after a long day. I even got a rimfire suppressor to make my practice just like the real thing. In the last 2 weeks I also shot around 200 rounds combined of 223, 22 ARC, 6 ARC, and 6CM between new guns, new scopes, and new ammo. Most of that was prone to get speeds and check for accuracy or shooting at 500 yards. With centerfire cartridges I don't even get excited about shooting prone with a centerfire until 500 yards. 300 yards is pretty easy for seated, kneeling, or tripod. 200 is doable on demand when offhand both supported and freestanding but not my preferred way to shoot game so I don't practice it a whole lot with centerfire rifles.

How often do you shoot and what positions are you preparing for your seasons?

Jay

 

[Andrew12gauge]

Not too much of the sauce. Just making a comparison... Always cracked me up. How many folks on here will not shoot a rifle from anything but a rock solid rest....But pick up a bow? Free hand that shit and even if you loose the animal, take a pic of the notched tag and it's e-hugs for days

Very interesting how defensive folks got when asked about shooting offhand though...Very interesting

That comparison is so far afield it may as well be apples and hand grenades


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[cal30_sniper]

That comparison is so far afield it may as well be apples and hand grenades


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Curious, are you throwing your hand grenades from offhand or prone?

Any trajectory difference when throwing the apples vs the hand grenades? How are your groups with each?

 

[snowtoy83]

Seems like it’s a 50/50 to me. Had plenty of off hand close range shots off hand and then hurry up and get prone to shoot. Mostly bears and blacktails where shots are between trees.

 

[roadrunner]

It’s the general “gun folks” way unfortunately. Rather than trying something new, or use a known schooling method to become more effective, they’d rather dismiss it and call it a “cult”. That’s sort of the “mantra” of so many folks who can’t wrap their head around certain “controversial” topics that get posted here.

Wanna know how I know? Look at my posts on Rokslide from 4-6 years ago. You’ll see a lot of similarities in what I wrote, specifically regarding dropping scopes. Once my slow brain realized it wasn’t about “dropping scopes” all along, and tried things for myself, the immense helpings of humble pie started to actually taste decent, and then starting tasting really good. Because I got better. And I was somebody who got paid to shoot guns. I was somebody who “knew shit” and shot 10s of thousands of rounds a year. And taught other shooters how to shoot and hunt. I was a competition winner and “already had all the answers.”

It’s easy to be like the old me and take cheap shots on the internet and already be “good”, and dismiss ideas because they are different from what “I know works.”

I think @Marshfly came into this with general curiosity with maybe a splash of “you guys are idiots” haha. It’s a good topic to discuss.

It turns into a cult when the dumb ass word "Fudd" or stupid ass phrase "Fudd lore" is thrown around by the guys trying something new toward the guys that know what works for them...

 

[2-Stix]

I have shot; off hand, bipod prone, bipod standing, tri pod sitting, tri pod standing, off a down tree, squeed my rifle to a small tree. I have used every way out side of off a pack. All had the need to make fast shots inside of 4-12 seconds but 2 of the last 8 big game I took. I want to be good and fast at all positions. The lower I can get the steadier I am.

I am the worst at off hand and need to practice it more. I do 3-4 range trips a year working 400-600 yards and I know the "feel" it takes to take and make a good shot in good conditions. I shoot about 250-300 shots a year I would say. Not enough. I don't reload yet and will start in a few years.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

It does amaze me, how with all the practicing and "training" yall do. How little, if any offhand shooting is done. Seems like that would be one of the more important ones to be freshed up on..?

Absolutely it’s something to train up on.

But there is no arguing that more stable positions are going to have a tighter aim so unless it’s a chip shot (which archery distances are) I’m gonna take the more stable position when shooting an animal if it’s available. It’s just the highest probability of hitting where I want and lowest probability of wounding something. It feels the most ethical to me, for me.

Would you ignore a tree next to you to brace your 200yd shot off in favor of purely offhand? Ignore the rock you can kneel behind? I presume no, so why ignore the ground?

Should one who has belly crawled into muzzleloader range of a pronghorn jump up to shoot offhand?

AND to reiterate, YES more positions including offhand should be regularly practiced.

 

[roosiebull]

First common sense would say it’s pretty hard to draw a bow laying on your belly so there’s that.

Sounds like you’re over bowed bro

You should be able to draw your bow from prone, or at least on all fours

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

It turns into a cult when the dumb ass word "Fudd" or stupid ass phrase "Fudd lore" is thrown around by the guys trying something new toward the guys that know what works for them...

I’m with you there.

 

[mtnwrunner]

Let's watch the the totally unnecessary comments. I won't even say please.

Shoot however you want........and the more you practice, the better shooter you will be, in all positions and all scenarios.

I've had to shoot fast many times and the VERY first thing I do is look for a prone shot.
If thats not possible, it's the next most stable position available.

This thread also runs parallel to another recent thread on RS about rear bags. Use whatever you need to......and this also may require you to be fast.

Randy

 

[KurtR]

Exactly. Also why is that the norm and also very successful ,,,yet with a rifle, omg no dont do that.... Dare I toss out the not ethical line




How much offhand rifle shooting have you actually done? I bet it isnt even close to shots off of a bag/sticks/whatnot

I dont know a single person packing shooting sticks. Never met a guy that shot off a tripod either. Where I hunt, inside 200ish yrds. It is going to be an offhand shot if there isnt a tree to lean against. Amazing how many animals hit the ground....

If there was a way for a person to get more stable shooting a bow I would bet they would use it to their advantage. I never said anything about off hand shot being unethical. I don’t care if you Annie Oakley it using a mirror and shoot it looking backwards if your good at it.

Uncle Sam had me do a fair amount of practice off hand. I don’t know how many rabbits and other shit I have killed from a young age off hand when the adults gave us a 4 wheeler and a 22 with a brick of bullets.

I shoot a lot of birds with the shotgun off hand then my dog delivers them to my hand. Never shot the shotgun prone.

 

[butcherboy]

I use whatever is handy at the moment I shoot. Off hand, standing tripod, kneeling tripod, prone, branches, fence posts, rocks, kneeling off hand, sitting. Anything available. My luckiest shot was 300 yds standing off hand at a nice mule deer. Walking rim rock in NM throwing rocks off to get something to move. Saw a buck running in a wash at the bottom coming in from behind me at roughly 800 yds away. Something else spooked him. I threw my rifle up when he got close enough to shoot and shot him through the top of the heart. It was one of those 10% skill and 90% lucky shots.

 

[longrangelead]

I hunt specific terrain planning on going prone as quick as possible. I've found areas of "shallow" broken terrain nobody hunts because at first glance, it looks empty of life.
Antelope and especially mule deer go there to hide once pressured. Because they are on alert, they get up at longer distances, usually having seen me. This is perfect because as soon as I see animals, I quickly go prone and make ready.
This has the effect of keeping the animal(s) stationary longer because they're looking for a walking person no longer there. It's enough time to make a good shot, but not minutes by any means.

Shots ive taken have been 200-550 so going prone is the best way to get as stable as possible in this terrain.

I grew up hunting Blacktail deer in timber and still do. You see a mature buck in the timber, you better act quick or you may never see him again. I've killed a bunch of Blacktails and other critters offhand because the window was seconds.

I've also killed deer and antelope seated supported elbows on knees in tall grass or a hillside where any other position won't get the rifle high enough.

There is no downside to being ready for any position quickly.

Keeping an open mind keeps you creative when the situation arises and you are forced to modify what has previously worked for you.

To take this idea further, what if ever hunter from now on was such an efficient killer when the hunting culminated in a shot, there was only a 1% wound/loss percentage and there were no more shit show hail marys for non hunters to talk about?

 

[Fatcamp]

Our first mule deer hunt my wife missed an opportunity on a really nice buck due to being hesitant getting prone.

Since then I've shot almost all of my animals prone. Never had to be super quick, but urgent for sure on a couple.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Proficient and efficient are not synonymous.

A shooter could very well be proficient (consistently hits what he's trying to hit) if he takes a full minute to set-up, range, dial, adjust, etc. An efficient shooter does all of that faster.

Spot on.

I'm honestly blown away that guys aren't experiencing this stuff first hand in the field. As I shared earlier...timing has very much made a difference on my hunts.

This is the crux of it all for me…. They’d actually have to go in the field, and then try it, but it’s much easier to “argue” about it on the internet and not go actually do it.