Brown Recluse in Barn

[Peter Drouin]

But he shoots from the hip, not a rest.

[YellowHammer]

Oh, you ain't seen me shoot.  I could shoot before I could walk.  Chuck Connors wouldn't have a chance. 

I grew up shooting squirrels, ducks, rabbits, deer, coyotes, anything that moved, jumped, ran hopped, flied or bled, have been called a "professional hunter" more than once, and I once bet a guy I could hit more clay pigeons than he could, and me using a BB gun, like Jed Clampett.  I won.   

I LOVE trick shooting, and practice free hand all the time speed and accuracy shooting with my rifles, pistols and shotguns.  Lots of them.  Martha and I won the skeet shooting competition off the fan tail of the cruise ship, shooting doubles, on our honeymoon.  She can shoot too. Our kids can shoot.  Chip can shoot.  Martha gave me a Remington Lt20 for my engagement present, I gave her a diamond ring.   My groom's cake at our weeding had camo green icing and a guy shooting a duck on top.  She knew what she was getting into.  It was and is the only time I've ever missed opening day of dove season, my honeymoon.
       
We had a shooting session with my brother's new suppressed 300 blackout for Christmas, and everyone, including my Mom, was shooting at the man silhouette target at 25 yards, center mass, full mags.  I bet them I could do better with my Ruger 10/22 (not that I would bet or brag), and put 29 rounds out of 30, (I missed once) in the head at 25 yards, rapid fire.  I don't have a picture, but it was epic, lots of noise, lots of fun, lots of dust.

I like sawmilling, but I was born to shoot.  Kentucky genetics had a lot to do with it, here is my 84 year old mom shooting the 300 suppressed blackout during the Christmas Shoot and Shout and having a ball.  My Dad willed me his bolt action, magazine fed, full choke 410 that he routinely took on dove hunts.  We were at a nearby farmer's dove hunt one day, the birds were flying fast, and the host and guests stopped shooting and started side betting, just watching him limit out on birds, with a full choke 410.  He could routinely double on doves with that $10 bolt action clip fed shotgun that someone sold him when he got out of the Army.  THAT was impressive, my old man could shoot better than me.

I have a tendency to go overboard on stuff, and I go WAY overboard when it comes to shooting. 

[Peter Drouin]

Well, I guess your family likes to shoot. I'm not into it that much but, I do hit what I'm aiming at off-hand. 
I have friends into it too making their own loads and custom guns. Hitting 2 doves with a bolt action is impressive.

[hardtailjohn]

And as good as you are, I'm the polar opposite! My Dad was an outfitter for over 40 years and pulled off some fantastic shots, and here comes his son...... who LOVES to shoot, LOVES guns, but can't hit the barn if I'm standing inside, usually. Once in a while, things feel sorry for me and jump in front of a bullet to make me look good, but I always admire those who seem to be able to do it naturally!!

[YellowHammer]

I have a feeling you are better than you are saying, sandbagging a little!   Come on by, and let's shoot a spell!  Having an outfitter in the family is pretty cool, the Old Folks came by shooting as a way of life and sounds like you have the heritage!
 
I remember, even when I was a young boy, and the family went to see my Grandad and kinfolk in Kentucky, even as a kid, I only had two jobs when we drove up: split firewood or bring home dinner with the single shot 22, and as I got older, the 16 ga or then the 30-06.  All my relatives could hunt.  My uncle could walk through the woods, drunk off moonshine, and see the black dot of a rabbit's eye sitting motionless in an impenetrable briar thicket from a hundred feet away, and I could never do that, it always amazed me.  He would tell me, "Hey boy, go shoot that rabbit, while I take a drink."  Or as a kid, being told by my Dad to shoot the chimney sweeps as they were flying around and pooping on the roof, (but don't hit the roof) and it didn't take a genius to see the that the rain water running off the roof was going into the cistern, where the drinking water was dipped with a bucket.  Or my dad teaching me to stick a split stick up hollow trees and spin it, so as to entangle the odd unlucky squirrel nesting in the hollow, and pull it out and shoot it.  That works, but is pretty scary, as squirrels get real mean when they get jerked out a tree by their tail! 

Also, woe to the person who shot and missed, my aunt would listen and count shots back at the house and if anybody shot three times, they had better bring back three squirrels, rabbits or quail!  They complained if I used anything other than 22 shorts, (remember them?) and gave me grief if I took anything other head shots to save meat.  Unless I had the shotgun, but then I had to "bark" the squirrels, which means to put most of the pellets of the shotgun pattern into the tree and catch the squirrel on the very edge of thin pattern to save meat by rationing the number of pellets that could hit the meat.

I remember when my now son in law came to his first Milton family dove hunt, many years ago.  He thought he was a good shot, started doing a little bragging, and I asked him where he was going to shoot? He said he was just going to stand next to my daughter, they were both in college at the time, and shoot the doves she missed.  HOOO BOY that caused some laughs!  I told him if he stood next to my daughter, he wouldn't get a bird, she would kill every dove that comes into their airspace before he would even get a shot off.  He looked at me like I was crazy, he 100% didn't believe it and put his dove stool right next to my daughter, I guess trying to be romantic or something.   Of course, my daughter put on a shooting exhibition to make her old man proud!  Singles, doubles, I don't remember exactly ho. It was hilarious!  A little later, I saw him pick up his stuff and gingerly move to a tree about a hundred yards away, to get out of her defensible airspace, he had not shot a single bird yet, and she was well on to her limit.  The problem is he unwittingly moved into my brother's outer field of fire, and that's never a good idea, my brother can shoot.  So I decided to have a little fun, texted my brother across the field with a prank, and he put the full choke tube in his beautiful Franchi, and he just put up a wall of lead death, and as soon as my SIL raised his shotgun on a bird, my brother would hammer it, and it would puff up dust as it hit the ground.  So my daughter had him cut off in one direction, and my brother in the other.  WELCOME to the Family!

Anyway, he still talks about that even though it was years ago, and he even gave her a new Super Black Eagle 3 (I'm jealous) for Christmas this year. 

How many others had or have kinfolk like that on this Forum?  I bet there is a lot of them. 

 

[TreefarmerNN]

Fortunately, I have zero experience with brown recluse spiders.  We get black widows but those are usually in firewood and under things.

These folks might have some solutions for you:  https://www.domyown.com/spiders-c-22.html

I've used bifen around the house and it's cut way down on other critters.

[barbender]

Robert, I mostly learned to shoot on my own. I was always was drawn towards it. Like a lot of self taught shooters, I'm so-so. I look great around novices and quickly go to the middle of the pack when pros show up😊

My patenal Grandpa grew up real hard scrabble. They didn't take extra shots because while they didn't have an aunt listening for shots, there was a game warden😊 And they didn't have money for extra ammo, either. 

That's what led to my Dad not being much of a hunter, I think. When he was a kid, he saw a couple of instances of Grandpa finishing a deer off with a knife, which is never pretty and turned him off to it. 

That lead to me not having anyone teach me to shoot. But what I lacked in instruction and talent, I made up for with enthusiasm😊 

Most all of my early hunting was ruffed grouse, and deer. Hunting grouse, without a dog, is a real challenge. The way grouse flush and the cover they hold in makes them a really, really tough target. It's not unusual for them to hold until you almost step on them, and then they explode in a thunder of wings, zigzagging through the cover. 3/4 of the time you don't even get your gun up far enough to take a shot before they are out of sight. 

I used to get a lot of birds, though. Not because I was a good shot, but because I spent my every waking moment out in the woods😊

I had a Remington 870 Express. My parents went in on it for me, bought it at the K.art gun department. I still have it. I want to love other shotguns more, but I can hit with that dang thing better than any other scatter gun I've ever had🤷 

I'm almost 6'6" and most guns don't fit me well. I must be long necked, guns with more drop fit me better. Nice $4000 Berettas always seem to fit fine, why is that🤔😊

I remember shooting a sporting clays league with a couple buddies when we were 19-20. I could usually hit 30 or so out of 50 birds. Guys always thought I was shooting a semi-auto with the ol 870, so I guess the controls and pump action must've suited me fine. I actually had to demonstrate the pump action for them, they didn't believe that it was a pump. 

Years later I got into an IDPA pistol league. With a pistol (I shot a Springfield 1911 45 ACP) I was once again firmly upper middle pack in skill😁 But I really enjoyed it, you got to send a lot of rounds downrange. 

Often, there would be a "side match" for carbines, or as in this case, shotguns with slugs. We were shooting silhouettes. I didn't know anything about the side match, so I was shooting a friend's vintage Browning A-5. It was having some issues, short cycling and often not picking up the second round which you wouldn't realize until you heard the "click" of an empty chamber. One of the other guys sae me struggling with it, and offered, "you want to use my gun?" I looked and he had an 870 with a slug barrel and rifle sights. "Sure!" I said😁

Darn it, I took that 870 and everything just fit. "Tink, tink, tink!" The steel targets were falling and I couldn't miss😂 Now to drive home the point of how mediocre of a shot I am, I won that shotgun match. And I still haven't forgotten nearly 20 years later.

The guy with the 870 said he wished he wouldn't have offered me his gun😁

[YellowHammer]

That's cool!  The old Remington's are the king of good shooting, point and hit firearms.  You and the 870 sound like my dad and the 410!  I had an old 1100, when they were still well made, and I used to tell people, when I pointed it at something, it died.  My dad had a 30-06 pump rifle based on the 870, and it was a monster.  He once hit a running deer, 175 yards, in the neck.  Dropped it like a brick.  He said he shot for the neck to either hit or clean miss.  He hit.   

[Old Greenhorn]

Good story BB, nice read. I expect we will see a few others too.
 I grew up in suburbia. There was no walking out my back door and hunting. But my Pop was a country kid and always hunted no matter where he lived up until I was about 12. Pop was also a pretty good Gunsmith and did work on the side for several shops. I learned my gun safety at about age 6 in the basement where we set up a (short) range shooting .22 gallery rounds at targets backed by a stack of phone books on the cellar stairs at the far end of the basement. Pop had rebuilt a pair on Winchester Gallery guns (I forget the models, but I still have them here) and we had a lot of fun and went through a pile of bricks of ammo. I learned a bunch and managed (to my everlasting amazement) to never do something stupid.
 Later in life, one Christmas my Pop (maybe nostalgia, I dunno) bought matching Stevens .22's for both my BIL and I . I was engaged at the time. The day after we decided to make a trip to one of the few reaming sporting goods store that still ran an underground range for pistols and small caliber.. I brought my impending bride along who had never held a gun, there were none in her family. My intention was to teach her how to shoot. We also brought along a beautiful Winchester .22 pump that my Pop lovingly restored and had fully nickel plater for her to use. I still have and cherish that one, it's a story unto itself. Anyway, after running my 'girl' through the basics and reviewing range rules I let her shoot. Bottom line was she had the best targets of the day, all of them. I still think women are better at this than men. After that, there wasn't much time for messing with guns for years.

Then I got my Pistol permit after about 6 years of marriage. The county had an indoor range that was pretty nice and was halfway between my work and home.  I was working up handloads for two of my pistols (a .380 and a .38 mag) and would stop at the range about every other day on the way home to test rounds and make note. I got to know the County PD weapons instructor who was there all the time doing requal sessions or training for various officers and detectives. We hit up a friendship and he gave me some pointers that helped and he enjoyed watching me improve, he said. I was working on my self defense skills, so timed and rapid fire mostly and working on reloads, etc. He was a big help. One of the things that really peeved him was getting detectives and officers in for requal that just could not properly handle their weapons or accurately discharge them. He found it alarming and he would do a lot of yelling. I could hear him berating these people over on the next point (separated by triple glass.
 One day he got really mad at these two detectives shotting for requalification, he was ticked and screaming. I was over on the next point and he saw me stop shooting to listen in. What I could make of was this ( basically): "If either of you two had to draw and use your weapons on a suspect you would be DEAD! You shoot so bad and handle your weapons so poorly that you don't stand a chance. In fact I could grab ANY random civilian on this range right now and he OR she could outshot you! You wanna make a little bet on that?! OK", and he storms out of their point and comes in the door to mine and with his back to the others he says "wanna have some fun? grab your ammo and a couple of speed loaders". So we parde around and he sets me up a target while he asks if I am ex military or LEO or anything. "Nope, I'm just a regular guy". " "OK" he says "10 rounds rapid fire, best score and time". Now I'm not sure I can do this, I was still working on it, but I do my best. He was right that guy and gal sucked. I blew their doors off and I didn't shoot as well as I could trying to get the time down. After that we had fun with that routine from time to time and it actually made me better.

 But then we moved and the kids took all of the spare time I had and I haven't gotten back to it. I did, and do enjoy it though.

[WV Sawmiller]

   My dad bought me a used Remington 870 20 gauge pump when I was 7 years old which would have been around 1960. It came with a ventilated rib and a poly choke. My only regret about it is I I had it disassembled and in the area behind the seat on Christmas Day around 1965 and older brother was driving our Chevy II and blew a tire and we ran off into a canal off the Suwannee River in Dixie County Fla and the barrel went out the window and we could never find it. Dad bout a 28" modified barrel which I have on it till today. I love it. 

   Around 1983 I bought a Remington 7600 30-06 pump rifle which is my go-to rifle for deer hunting. I suspect that is the one Robert is talking about his dad using only he probably had the earlier 760 model.

[barbender]

IDPA stands for International Defensive Pistol Association if memory serves. As so often happens, one time I came home and put my gun away not intending for it to be my last match. And as it goes in life, things got busy and I never got back. I don't even know if that organization still exists.

There are still some "Action Pistol" competitions and 3 Gun etc locally. Those would be in a similar vein. I need to get back out there. Now that the boy is 14 and I think he can shoot some of them with me, that's more impetus to do it. 

Anyways, I brought up the IDPA competitions because of how much I feel it improved my pistol handling and shooting. The courses were simulated close range defensive situations. Scores were based on time and hits/misses. There was enough pressure with trying to remember the sequence of the course and such, that it quickly revealed any inadequacy in gun handling and familiarity.  The upside is that really caused you to improve in those areas quickly. 

I always advise people that are getting a concealed carry permit to go find and shoot in someone these competitions. You don't want the first time you are drawing your pistol under pressure to be an actual defensive situation.

[YellowHammer]

I ought to try one of those courses one day, they sound like fun.  I was even considering getting into the old Western Six Gun fast draw thing, but maybe next year...I do go squirrel hunting with my Browning Buckmark 22 pistol occasionally, and it whacks and stacks them.  A couple years ago I got a Smith and Wesson Performance Center 22, but I have only shot targets with it.   

You are exactly right, my Dad had the 760, and my brother has it now.  Beautiful rifle that handles like a shotgun.  My first deer rifle was the 1100 version, the 7400 rifle.  My Dad never much cared for the auto version, he said it would let me down someday, but it never has.  I remember one time I was in the snowy woods of Kentucky, in a tree stand, and a big old buck came trotting by and I leaned the gun against the tree, ejection port facing the bark, pulled the trigger and I'll never forget seeing, out of he corner of my eye, the empty case being ejected, bouncing off the tree the rifle was braced on, and rebounding right back into the action as the bolt cycled and it "stovepiped" half sticking out.  The good news was my first shot was a hit, and the deer was down.  I when back to the house, I told Dad the story and we both agreed, the good old Remington didn't let me down, after all.  I still have this gun, I can't tell you how many deer it has killed, but it is a lot.  There was just something about those old Remingtons that just worked.  I still have my old Light 20 and also, a pretty rare Remington 1100 Anniversary Edition, in .410 or 67 gauge.  I used to shoot 500 shells a day on the skeet range with it, and I needed a low recoil shotgun to keep from getting "the headache." 

[Old Greenhorn]

I never had the access to those competitions, nor the funds or time. I compensated by reading a lot and studying and trying to internalize the mental skills involved as well as range shooting with that in mind and sandpit shooting with a variety of targets and ranges. I studied the laws and actual case studies which I feel is just as important. How do the courts routinely interpret such actions and things like that.
 It always amazed me the number of people I know who had gotten full carry permits but never went through any training other than what was required and an occasional trip to the range, I tried to explain to them that although you have earned the permit, you have also taken on a huge responsibility and you'd better understand what that means. Having to even consider reaching for that weapon puts you in a frame of mind that (should) instantly put a lot of pressure on you. I had to do it once and very fortunately, it turned out well and nothing further happened and there was no discharge required. But I can tell you that my brain ran a hundred miles during that minute or two. You make a commitment when you draw that weapon, if you are not prepared to understand that commitment and execute it properly the cost can be very high. It's not a game.

[customsawyer]

I've never been what I would call a great shot. (Don't tell Robert, we like to pick on each other to much). I did do well enough at hunting to put some meat on the table, with my trusty ole 300 Savage. I have a terrible addiction to those guns, and now own a few of them. Never had much experience with a shotgun until the last few years. My shotgun training consisted of clearing a room with pump shotgun, that they used in the military. That entire training might have consisted of a couple of days, just so they could say they trained me. A few years ago I won a sweet 16 Browning shotgun and started getting into dove hunting. Lots of fun. Last year I sponsored a young neighbor at the local skeet range. He is one of team members and is doing really well. By sponsoring him I got to go down and shoot some with him a couple of days. That got me hooked, so I went and got me a Benelli 12g. I recently won a Browning A5. I will try them both and see which I like better. Matter of fact I just sponsored him again for this coming year, and we are going to be at the range this Sunday afternoon.

[SawyerTed]

Music is my dad's side of the family's passion. They sing and play multiple instruments.  One uncle is a deer hunter and some cousins are rabbit hunters.  But mostly non-hunters including my dad.  My brother and sister followed this side. 

Mom's family on the other hand were and are shooters.  This gene settled with me and my children. My daughters particularly got the shooting talent from their grandmother.  

Mom and dad were only married a few years and dad, a Methodist minister, was assigned to a group of churches in the mountains.  I was a newborn and my brother was 5 years old back in 1962. 

Some local ruffians decided the preacher's family would be easy to pick on.  So it started with spinning car tires in the wee hours of the night, smashed mailboxes and escalated to car and parsonage widows being shot out.  There were dozens of harassing acts over the course of a few months. 

They usually rode by the parsonage in the afternoon and did donuts in the road or fired guns in the air or otherwise caused a disturbance. 

One afternoon mom went across the road, floated  half a dozen milk bottles in the creek and waited until the boys came by for their usual afternoon activities. 

Mom pulled her .38 revolver and sunk all six milk bottles as the ruffians look on.  She turned around and started reloading.   Her audience couldn't leave fast enough.  

They never bothered us again.

Our concealed carry class instructor commented on my daughters' unusual ability with their pistols.  They told him their grand mommy taught them.  I still don't think he believed them.  

[doc henderson]

I was a good shot as a younger man.  Lost much of it due to lack of time to shoot (12 year of college and living in NY for 4 years).  Eyesite isn't what it used to be, (real close and real far).  Not as much to prove.  I got my NRA pro-marksman when I was 12 at scout camp.  My dad was a military policeman in the Army and was a member of the "Colonel's rifle team".  He had awards/certificates for M1 Garand and carbine on his DD 214.  No pressure.  I could shoot cans and just keep them hopping as soon as they touched the ground until the old 22 ran out of ammo.  the tube held I think 18 rounds. We were sitting up on a hill over a pond in a pasture plinking down by a pond.  I saw just the head of a bullfrog pop up.  I do not want to guess the distance, but if I remember right, it was far enough away, we could not throw a rock in the water.  Maybe 200 feet.  all I could see were eyes breaking the surface.  I shot and got him.  I think my dad was impressed and proud.  I was 14.

[aigheadish]

We only had a BB gun once my stepdad came into the family when I was about 8. That was the only thing I'd shot until I got a .22 that was meant for critter control, if needed, once I owned a little land. I never really got into shooting but as times changed as much as I didn't really want guns in the house it felt like having a few may be good, for self defense should the s ever hit the fan. I have not shot much but feel like I need to go out and practice, I can do so in the back yard, but I find ammo expensive enough that I rarely want to spend any. I've never tried any target practice other than the random pumpkin, so I have no idea what kind of shot I am. I don't have much desire to hunt, though I would if I were hungry. You guys are making me want to go out this weekend and make some noise.

[YellowHammer]

Don't let Jake fool you, he can shoot.  He stopped by one day, and we were playing around with my neat little Performance Center 22 pistol, with a few extra aftermarket bits I'd put on it like better trigger, better hammer, better stuff and we were ringing metal pistol targets at short range, and then I told him how well the gun shot at longer range, and I pointed the 22 pistol at my 100 yard target (an old hay ring with 12" tall sheet metal steel band on it to hang rifle targets, and pulled the trigger and pow...wait for it...wait for it and...bing! as the little bullet hit the steel.  Then I did it again, pow....bing!  I looked over and Jake had this big old grin on his face and I said here, it ain't that hard.  So I handed him the pistol, he launched a couple  and then, pow....bing, pow....bing, pow...bing...yepo, a hundred yards with a 22 pistol...yeah, THAT's fun!

Here is a video of the legend Jerry Miculek, world record holder, shooting the same pistol minus upgrades, I use him as what I "should" able to do, a half dozen rounds on target in a second or so.  It's a lot harder than it looks and why try to do it, it's just plain fun!  And no, I can't even get close to what he can do, but it doesn't mean I can't try!

[NE Woodburner]

Hunting grouse, without a dog, is a real challenge.

When I was a teenager I used to hunt grouse. I was not that good. As barbender said, they sometimes won't fly until you about step on them then they would take off before I could even get my gun up. I had a used Ithaca 12 ga. pump that I still have and love. I learned to watch where they flew (it was never too far) and the second time I was ready for them. I'd still miss alot but I got a few. I had a friend I used to hunt with. His father had died when he was young and he ended up with his dads 20 ga double barrel that used to be his grandfathers. I don't remember the model, but it was nice and boy could my friend shoot grouse with that thing! He had a knack for it and most times I'd hear a shot and see the bird drop before I even realized there was a bird.

I have a crude range in my back woods. I have marked off 100 meters in 25 meter increments. I enjoy shooting and I'm OK but I doubt I could hang with most here. My son is a Marine and qualifies expert on rifle and pistol. We love to shoot together whenever he is home and boy, can he outshoot me.

[WV Sawmiller]

   I was a fair shot till I joined the USMC and they made me a much better shot. I used to focus on the target and not the front sight post. That was the first time I'd ever used a peep and post type sight and I liked them. Focusing on the target I'd hit tight 4s but focusing on the front sight converted them to 5s/bullseyes.

   I confess I was never a very good pistol shot. I had a mental block. I figured if I'd let the enemy get that close to have to use a pistol when I could make head shots at 500 yards that I had done something seriously wrong.

[barbender]

"Get some!" I try not to watch too many of Jerry's videos. He has the kind of skills that make you not even want to get your gun out😊

[barbender]

Also, the people that get worked up about topic drift should stay away from this thread😁

[barbender]

My son in law has a hard time walking by a gun for sale without buying it. He brought a S&W 500 out, he was afraid to shoot it😂 That thing is ridiculous, but it's what you'd want in a chest holster in Grizzly country I think!

https://youtube.com/shorts/C3Ts6fdDaD4?si=eNtl9-8Yr2TqXqaD

[SawyerTed]

A friend was paring down his gun collection for some retirement funds.   He had a .454 Casull revolver.  It was wicked and mean to shoot.  

He let me keep it for a couple of months to decide if I wanted it.  I shot 3 rounds and a couple buddies shot a couple.  IIRC the max psi is 60,000 plus.  

It's not fun to shoot.  It was fun to talk about though. 

Accuracy after the first round was difficult because you knew what was coming if you squeezed the trigger.  

I didn't buy it...

[TreefarmerNN]

A friend was paring down his gun collection for some retirement funds.   He had a .454 Casull revolver.  It was wicked and mean to shoot. 

He let me keep it for a couple of months to decide if I wanted it.  I shot 3 rounds and a couple buddies shot a couple.  IIRC the max psi is 60,000 plus. 

It's not fun to shoot.  It was fun to talk about though.

Accuracy after the first round was difficult because you knew what was coming if you squeezed the trigger. 

I didn't buy it...

I've also shot a friends .454.  It's a handful, to be sure.  I noticed the rotational torque more than the recoil or muzzle flip.