When i purchaced the Air Arms Shamal for £300 last year it came with a 4-12x40 Nikko Sterling scope and a sling, now being a heavy old sporter the leather sling was a godsend. Just to top it off for now i mounted a 120 lumens SMK spot lamp on the scope with a switch taped to the forestock, but being a .177 PCP a bipod would be ideal for those long shots, but that will have to wait. I just love the flatter trajectory of a .177 over the .22, but nothing beats the knockdown power of the .22 except .25 of course.
A lot of hunters prefer multi shots on their air rifles but for me the Shamal is superbly accurate and one shot one kill always does it, though i would certainly appreciate a bipod for those 50 yard shots but until then i will make do with a shooting stick made from some old straight branch with a fork in the t. The shooting stick certainly helps when trying to get a bunny in the longer grass, as they are hard to target in a kneeling position and impossible when lying prone. Air Arms diabolo's and H and N field trophies both work best in the Shamal and both have the same POI without any adjustment to the scope, which i got to admit is a bonus.
Clothing wise i find black Dunlop steel toecap work boots, dark jeans, and an army DMP lightweight jacket over a green T shirt does me fine for general easy going hunting. But a German full length paratrooper coat with hood which was £26 off E bay, combat trousers of which i have various as i like that style, lightweight black gloves, a large camo bandana to tie around my lower face and cover my neck, and a black rucksack for odds and sods. I also have some 80's British army webbing and pouches i got for a fiver from a carboot sale which i could find a good use for (this also came with an 80's army helmet but that would be a bit overkill for hunting, but pretty handy if i took up airsoft or paintballing.), but for now i have done fine with what i'm using to date.With the German camo pattern being quite dark and mottled i have found this works well in woodlands, and the DMP of the British army works well in almost any where.
I like the DMP Kit as a traditionalist so i went and bought a pair of River Rock combat trousers for £14, and a River Rock temperate combat smock for £22 from my local Stove Centre. You have to understand that this is the Cotswolds so they sell all sorts of stuff, including gardening stuff, fencing, animal foods, sheds, large garden ornaments, stone, tough quality outdoor clothes and boots, and i think stoves as well. The smock jacket is what you would expect from a decent army jacket, its loaded with deep pockets and is very tough, i slipped and grazed my elbow last week but there wasn't a mark on the jacket at all. What i discovered was most impressive was that i could fold my gun slip up and fit it into the button up poacher's pocket at the back, this both keeps it tidily stored and makes a really comfy seat as well.
For gloves i have a pair of very tin Thinsulate gloves, a pair of fingerless gloves, and a pair or thick woolen gloves in black, also a pair of fingerless mittens in different shades of autumn brown. I can choose to wear these in any combination to suit the weather, such as a black woolen glove on my left hand and a black Thinsulate glove on my right giving me the ability to handle pellets. If it's even colder i can put the brown fingerless mittens over the top.
Mind you getting realtree leafy gloves and baraclava for my birthday could sort of count as hunting kit on the cheap, but that's only because my wife paid and presented them to me. In fact the gloves were a prezzie off Rosie my three year old, and the good thing about them is that they can fit over other gloves.
The best move i have made recently is to trade smoking roll-ups for electronic cigarettes, animals have a keen sense of smell and roll-ups just make you stink. I would also say there is a marked improvement in my fitness and stamina, but then i do cycle 11 miles to work and back up and down some iffy hills so that's helped. I just have to remember that the ends of electronic cigarettes light up, so i cup it in my hand when doing a spot of lamping.
That's it for now, i'm just glad i remembered to refer to cigarettes in the correct term and not the British slang word of 'fags' so not to confuse any American readers of this blog.
TTFN
Best wishes, Wing Commander Sir Nigel Tetlington-Smythe
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