Originally Posted by CaptainHook

If you're finding that it's too easy to pick up a real gun, I'd suggest that you change your circle of friends to people who are either responsible gun owners who lock their weapons away (as required by law) or to people who aren't in the drug/gang culture.

I suggest the majority of people in the UK couldn't tell the difference between a real gun, toy gun or a paintball gun unless it was close up or explained to them. We've been conditioned in the UK to think all guns are bad, which is incorrect. GUNS DO NOT SHOOT BY THEMSELVES! It may have been the weapon of choice for a number of crimes, but look at the increase in stabbings. I could walk into Tesco and buy a large bladed kitchen knife, then go and stab someone. What are the government going to do then? Ban kitchen knives. I don't think so.

Originally Posted by sarahandshaun

Load chamber, aim, squeeze trigger and the animal drops with hopefully a good clean kill. Butcher as required and put it in your freezer. For many on the forum this will be seen as barbaric and medieval, I however, have no problems with it at all. You know where it came from and how it died. If you wish to mount it on your wall then so be it, perhaps it's better than rotting on the forest floor. Going back to an earlier comment on the excess number of horses. If they're a problem/nuisance, can they be culled and put into the food chain? Sorry Mandy, I know you're a horse lover but farmers globally are struggling to cope with the demand for food. As far as the hunting goes, I'm with you all the way. Just remeber kids-alcohol and weapons don't mix.

Shaun

Originally Posted by fledermaus

I thought they did ban the sale of kitchen knives, well to under 18s at least. The thing with a knife is that you really need to be up close and personal to use it. A gun you don't.

Originally Posted by sarahandshaun

Going back to an earlier comment on the excess number of horses. If they're a problem/nuisance, can they be culled and put into the food chain?

Originally Posted by mandymoochops

Mmmm absolutely agree with your points really I do. I suppose though you could equate that reasoning to any sport that involves an animal - there are always 'alternatives'. Take horseracing - if its something fast between your legs you are after - then try motorbikes.

FWIW most grizzly hunts are not done from up a tree and some are done with bows and you have to be quite close to them to use that, its the black bears that tend to be hunted from stands.

Originally Posted by fledermaus

I thought they did ban the sale of kitchen knives, well to under 18s at least. The thing with a knife is that you really need to be up close and personal to use it. A gun you don't.

Originally Posted by Almost Canadian

Ah the Hollywood effect! Most people on this forum would be very unlikely to be able to hit a human at a distance of 30 feet with a handgun. At a distance of 100 metres, very few in the world would be able to hit a human with another's rifle as the sights would not have been set for them.

However, John Wayne could, of course, hit an apple off someone's head, riding at full gallop on the back of a horse after picking up an Indian's rifle that he had just killed from a distance of 100 metres will a revolver

Originally Posted by fledermaus

It depends on how close is close. Unless you throw the knife you have to be close enough to make contact, close enough for it to become risky for you, let alone the squeamish factor.

Five feet is distance enough and easy enough to hit.

I could hit a human at 30 feet using a long bow and an arrow, I imagine using a gun with no sights would be similar.

Originally Posted by fledermaus

It depends on how close is close. Unless you throw the knife you have to be close enough to make contact, close enough for it to become risky for you, let alone the squeamish factor.

Five feet is distance enough and easy enough to hit.

I could hit a human at 30 feet using a long bow and an arrow, I imagine using a gun with no sights would be similar.

Originally Posted by Almost Canadian

You may be able to hit a human at 30 feet with a long bow and an arrow, how many others on this forum could?

I would be prepared to bet that, if you have never handled a handgun before (but if the weapon was loaded, one in the chamber, with the safety off), you would not be able to hit a human target stood 30 feet in front of you if you were using a handgun (not a target shooter's type of handgun, but a regular 9mm type).

Due to the length of the barrel, you would be likely to hit such a target with a rifle.

Originally Posted by Almost Canadian

Most people on this forum would be very unlikely to be able to hit a human at a distance of 30 feet with a handgun. At a distance of 100 metres, very few in the world would be able to hit a human with another's rifle as the sights would not have been set for them.

Originally Posted by Almost Canadian

You may be able to hit a human at 30 feet with a long bow and an arrow, how many others on this forum could?

I would be prepared to bet that, if you have never handled a handgun before (but if the weapon was loaded, one in the chamber, with the safety off), you would not be able to hit a human target stood 30 feet in front of you if you were using a handgun (not a target shooter's type of handgun, but a regular 9mm type).

Due to the length of the barrel, you would be likely to hit such a target with a rifle.

Originally Posted by CaptainHook

I can appreciate the skill involved, but I bet you needed much more practice to achieve that than the average gang member would spend practicing his aim.

Originally Posted by triumphguy

Join a gun club and pretty soon you will be getting nice close groups at 10- yards. 9mm is a pretty easy shooting round, and there's some pretty accurate pistols out there. The head on a human shaped target would be one ragged hole after 100 rounds have been through it.

Originally Posted by dbd33

We threw the rifle back and forth between us yesterday and consistently hit beer cans at 50 yds so I would think something the size of a person at twice that distance would be simple enough.

Originally Posted by dbd33

I don't know why you'd be using a handgun on people though, shotguns are more readily available and require less skill.

Originally Posted by mandymoochops

As its a huge sport in North America and I haven't seen any discussion about it here I thought I would venture into the world of hunting.

It wasn't something that I was in the slightest bit interested in or tbh educated about in the UK so was in the - oh its cruel to just hunt for sport camp.

Now being here in Canada in the boonies, hunting is quite possibly the biggest thing that guys (and girls) partake in between August and April (various seasons for differing types of animal and weapon.

I can see the attraction, and tbh all the guys I know that hunt are very respectful of their surroundings and the limitations on their tags and don't go (too far) beyond the boundries (ok so making your own gate through a hedge with an old farm truck whilst chasing a big whitetail may be something I may have - ahem - seen on an occasion!)

You apply to shoot your animals, you don't just grab a gun and randomly blast away, you do not get 'drawn' for everything you apply for - sometimes it takes years to get drawn for something like a big horn sheep.

So this limits what is shot and keeps the population down which in turn makes for healthy herds in the future.

What are your thoughts on the subject, have any of you ever hunted proper as opposed to taking pot shots at gophers and suchlike, and would it be something that you would consider having a go at.

My personal stance is its exciting, takes a lot of skill and next year will be applying for my own tags if I am practised enough to take a deer with one shot - am currently practising with a bow too.