rifle

Know Your Rifle:

Think you are a good shot? Think you are good enough? Good for you. If you want to up your odds at foxes and coyotes, up your practice time.

The photo above is Dave Otto, my hunting partner from Mankato. I like hunting with him for a variety of reasons including his good nature, love for hunting and the good sport that he is. But, one of my favorite reasons is that when I am calling and hear his gun go off, I pretty much just assume there is a fox or coyote laying dead somewhere in front of him. He's a hell of a shot.

One nice winter day I was calling on an Oklahoma fenceline and Dave was hiked out downwind from me almost two hundred yards. A coyote responded from straight down the fenceline. He was a long ways out there and I kept calling while watching him through my scope. He was out about 275 yards and getting bucky like he wasn't going to come in. He was out nearly four hundred yards from Dave and I pretty much ruled out Dave shooting if he even saw the coyote. I was working that call trying to get the coyote in closer but he just kept hanging up. Suddenly, through the scope I saw the coyote buckle and shortly behind the scene, heard the shot from Dave and then heard the report from the bullet hitting the coyote. That was a long shot!

Dave has a lot of experience shooting his rifle. He has spent many days on prairie dog towns sharpening his shooting eye and estimating distances. While having fun he was learning what his rifle will and will not do. But, after the years and many rounds, Dave has it down pat. Like I said, if I hear his rifle go off, I count on a dead critter.

Calling predators is generally a close range deal. Here in Minnesota, 150 to 200 yards is a long shot. In North Dakota, you'd better be able to shoot three hundred yards and if you can hit them at 400, well, that's all the better.

Each rifle shoots a bit differently from others and each load will hit in a different spot. I'm a fan of using the same rifle for all my predator hunting. That way I know where it's going to hit at any given range. I know the hold over and I know where my cross hairs have to be at 100, 200, 300 and 400 yards. Give me a standing shot out to these ranges and the critter is in serious danger. Pick a rifle, load, scope setting and stick with it. When I'm in open country expecting long shots, my scope stays on 9 power. In close cover where shots are 50 to 100 yards, it stays on 5 power. Not up and down and making me keep guessing.