Transcript
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welcome to the air gun show we’ve got a
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gas RAM pistol and long eye relief scope
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for review this week but before that I’m
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using hide and decoy tactics to target
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weary Magpies
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[Applause]
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[Music]
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[Applause]
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[Music]
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[Music]
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I wrote this morning on a woodland
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permission that’s managed exclusively
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for wildlife conservation now one big
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problem that they have here is grey
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squirrels now apart from raiding the
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nests of songbirds they’re also causing
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a lot of damage to trees including
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poplars willows and field maple so it’s
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actually damaging the habitat as a
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consequence the owner here sets up
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feeding stations a couple of times a
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year to draw in those grey squirrels to
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areas where I can target them over a
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couple of campaigns and hammer down
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their numbers now I’ve already been here
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a few times during this latest in and
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I’ve shot a lot of squirrels but one
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thing I’ve also been noticing is quite
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an abundance of Magpies now these are
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crafty Birds but what I’m going to try
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to do today is use decoy tactics and see
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if we can’t account for one or two of
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them
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although I’m setting my sights on
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Magpies I’m not actually going to use a
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magpie decoy rather than trying to draw
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the birds in with one of their own kind
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I’m planning to stir them up with an
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unwelcome intruder I’m using a little
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owl decoy now these tactics tend to work
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very well at this time of year during
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the early spring when Magpies are
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thinking about nesting they’re very very
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territorial Birds and when they see a
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raptor in this case a little owl on
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their patch the hope is that those
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territorial instincts will kick in and
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it’ll make them want to mob this decoy
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or at least get a very good close look
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at it and give it a bearing
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now hopefully during that time they’ll
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be too distracted by the decoy to see me
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in the hide and I’ll be able to get a
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shot in that’s the plan anyway quite one
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point worth mentioning when you’re
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choosing a decoy like this go for one
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with very piercing black and yellow eyes
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because that seems to really signify
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that that bird of prey that really
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triggers that territorial instinct in
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those Magpies all right let’s get back
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to the hide
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fortunately I don’t need to go to the
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trouble of building a hide I set this
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one up for squirrel shooting some time
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ago so the local wildlife has had plenty
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of time to get used to it
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apart from being well positioned to
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cover the feeding station it should also
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put me in the right place if the Magpies
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show up what the hide I’m using was
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actually set up with the squirrel feeder
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in mind it puts me about 25 metres away
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from that incorporated it into a bank
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which gives it quite a decent backdrop
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I’ve also got a high seat that was
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already here and I just thought I try to
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incorporate that just to try and hide
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any straight and natural-looking edges
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to my hide there straight edges that are
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already been taken for granted here and
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behind me I’ve just stuffed in a few
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Hazel offcuts from some recent coppicing
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works here just to break up my outline a
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little bit to anything that’s looking in
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through the front of the hide now apart
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from putting me within range of the
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squirrel feeder this hide also puts me
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within range of what I hope will be some
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city trees that will prove useful if my
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decoy tactics work I’ve got two looming
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oaks and ashes here they’re quite nice
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open trees and my hope is that if any
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corvids are attracted by that owl decoy
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they’ll flight into those trees before
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they have the confidence to drop down to
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the ground and that’s when I’ll get
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chances at them now this is quite a
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spice hide for targeting sharp-eyed
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corvids but it’s been in position for
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several weeks now so my hope is that
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they’re just taking it for granted
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however effective the hide is there’s no
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getting away from the fact that Magpies
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are very suspicious and twitchy Birds so
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with that in mind I’ve put the short
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track camera on the scope today now my
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thinking is that if Nikki’s trying to
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get the big camera trained on to them if
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they come in
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that’s extra movement that’s probably
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going to catch their eye blow our cover
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before I get a chance to take a shot but
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if I’ve got this scope mounted camera
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and I can flick that on hopefully that
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will give us a chance of capturing those
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kills without spooking the birds so I
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just need to get my face covered up now
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and hopefully that decoy will work its
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magic
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it’s easy to get lulled into a false
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sense of security when you’re shooting
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from a hide but sharp eye corvids don’t
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miss a trick even though I’m hidden
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behind a screen it’s still important to
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wear a head net to keep my face and eyes
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out of sight there are already crows
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calling in the distance
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these corvids are even more of a menace
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than Magpies so I’ll be taking them if
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they fall for the lure of the little owl
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there’s nothing more I can do now I just
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need to sit tight and hope that the
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decoy works and there’s still grain in
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the feeding station so I’m not ruling
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out the chance of a squirrel nothing yet
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but we are starting to get a few
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songbirds visiting the feeder and to me
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that’s a good sign it just suggests that
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peace is returning to the woods after
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that disturbance of our arrival some
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words now I’ve got the confidence to
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venture back out and hopefully the
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fluttering from them will catch the eye
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of squirrels maybe Magpies – and just
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help to convince them that it is safe to
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come out and feed this sort of ambush
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does take patience but as long as you
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get your tactics and timing right
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persistence is usually rewarded with
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shots
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well hurt when kicked up a hell of a
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spray of grain as that pellet hit home
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and it actually looked like it was going
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to expire in the feed tray thankfully it
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flopped off and it’s actually splashed
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down into the stream that’s just in
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front of the feeder nay it wasn’t a
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magpie but I’ll take that for a start I
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sit it out confident that more
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opportunities will come the only thing I
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hadn’t factored in was a certain turn
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for the worse with the weather I’ve just
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had a really chaotic hour we sat here
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weather was looking fine almighty rain
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storm kicked in now we dashed out of it
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as quickly as we could just to safe the
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camera gear from getting wrecked we’ve
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taken advantage of the time we’ve had a
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quick brew in the car let the weather
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pass over it’s looking great again now
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so fingers crossed we’ll get some more
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action
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at last we get some interest from the
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Magpies trouble is this one’s not
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hanging around that was a typical
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skittish magpie even with the short
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track it wasn’t hanging around there now
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it’s flown onto another cops just just
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behind me I don’t think it had clocked
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us I think it was just moving on
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hopefully he’ll come back again later on
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for another look at that decoy it’s not
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long before I get another chance at a
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magpie and this one looks more settled
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I thought that one was going to be well
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and truly hung up for a moment then it
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was really cradled in those branches but
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it’s dropped down I’m really chuffed
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about that we don’t get a lot of Magpies
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on camera I’ve got a feeling that’s only
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our second one it came in pretty quickly
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came in very quietly there any quite
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slight birds so even with a legal limit
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airgun I took it with a shot to the
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upper chest
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absolutely wall up dick it’s brought it
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down nice and cleanly hopefully there’ll
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be more along although I’d really wanted
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to set up my stool for Magpies today it
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turns out to be the squirrels that are
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most obliging
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I didn’t even see that one come in look
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train it’s just on the side of the
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feeder there I was going to wait for it
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to come down and have a proper feed but
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it looked pretty settled smacked it off
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the tray the good saw didn’t whack to
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the head that takes us up to a pair of
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squirrels and it also sounds like it’s
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really stirred at the Magpies I can hear
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them calling again that last shot might
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have got the Magpies chattering but they
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refused to venture back within range and
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time has beaten us before I could add
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any more corvids to the tally right
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we’re gonna have to wrap this session up
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now well quite a limited time scale
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today because they’ve got some digger
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works about to happen just behind where
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the feeder is they’re clearing out a
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pond and it won’t really be safe for us
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to shoot with that going on now although
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that rainstorm did hit a hole into the
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session I’m pleased with how it’s gone
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always glad to get a magpie for the
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cameras and we’ve also taken out two
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more squirrels so it’s lest nest robbers
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here and less tree damage to what it’s
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going to pick up what we’ve had
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a partial success with the Magpies there
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plus a couple more gray squirrels
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brought to book now it’s the airgun
11:54
shown use this is the egg and Chinese
11:58
[Music]
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air can video czar back to normal after
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falling victim to an apparent each you
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perch two weeks ago in the situation
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being dubbed as Armageddon several major
12:10
tunnels received strikes against their
12:12
content for apparently breaching
12:14
Community Guidelines
12:15
some even got taken down all together
12:18
YouTube restored most of the channels a
12:20
few days later but it’s not given any
12:22
reasons why they were taken down in the
12:24
first place
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Vasc has asked youtube to explain itself
12:28
new basque chief executive Ian Bell has
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used his first day on the job to call
12:32
the shooting to broaden its appeal he
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said we need to educate people what it
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is we do and why we do it and highlight
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the benefits we bring to the economy and
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the countryside and he said we should
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also help people who might not
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traditionally think about shooting get
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involved in the sport and more we do
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this he said the more our voice will be
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heard shootings going to be even more
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important to the environment after
12:55
breakfast that’s what Bosque has told
12:57
the government in response to its
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25-year environmental plan sheeting
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including air gunning is involved in the
13:04
management of two-thirds of the UK’s
13:05
rural and Basque said the 25-year plan
13:08
was a clear message that the government
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wants to give the environment voice and
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that sheeting can help the government
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deliver on that ambition and finally if
13:17
you want to check out all the hottest
13:19
air getting gear don’t miss the latest
13:21
issue of egg and shooter magazine
13:23
it’s got 31 pages of new gear from the
13:26
daystate broke up Barack and more
13:28
plus a four-way review of top and hft
13:31
sites plus as a guide to hunting in the
13:34
rain managing recoil and perfecting your
13:36
target technique pick up a gun shooter
13:39
from good news agents or visit my
13:41
favorite magazines dr. dot uk’ that was
13:44
the egg and show news
13:51
[Music]
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we’ve got a couple of review items on
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the test bench this week and they go
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together to make a brilliant plinking
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combo it’s the Air Force one tornado n
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Ram pistol and the PA oh topaz long eye
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relief pistol scope starting with the
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pistol it retails for a hundred and
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nineteen pounds ninety-nine that’s not
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cheap but I still think it’s fair to
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class it as an affordable pistol
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it feels very solidly built and the
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finish of the metal work is good for a
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pistol at this price point unscoped it
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weighs just under 1.5 kilos and it’s 45
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centimeters long that makes it a
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relatively large pistol but thanks to
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its sculpted hardwood grips which
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feature checkering on either side it
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feels good in the hand and it’s nice and
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steady or name available in 177 and to
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two calibers the tornado kick SATA
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muzzle energy have around five and a
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half foot pains certainly close enough
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to the legal limit for my liking being a
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relatively powerful pistol the cocking
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stroke does take a bit of effort however
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the cocking aid at the front of the
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barrel which also serves as a sound
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suppressor really helps by providing a
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good solid grip the N ramen this pistols
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name refers to its nitrogen Ram gas Ram
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powerplant its firing cycle feels fast
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but it’s still not as snappy as a lot of
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gas Rams that I’ve used loading is
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direct to the breech and you can quickly
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get into a shoot cocked load shoot
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routine which makes for a great phone on
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the plinking range
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the tornadoes trigger is a two-stage
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unit while I would have preferred a
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metal blade to the plastic one I will
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concede that it’s more than adequate for
15:57
a plinking pistol on the test gun the
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first stage is short and light and the
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second stage is pretty heavy that said
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it is about right because the last thing
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you want on a plinking pistol is a hair
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trigger there is a bit of creep in its
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operation but it’s still very
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predictable a button type safety catch
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sits just above and behind the trigger
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blade perfectly positioned for easy
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operation with the Thurman index finger
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it’s a manual setup and you push it in
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from the left to make the gun safe and
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then push it back from the right when
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you’re ready to shoot the tornado comes
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fitted with fiber optic open sights the
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red front element is shielded by this
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barrel shroud to prevent it from getting
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knocked the green rear element is
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adjustable for windage and elevation
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you’ll need a small screwdriver to make
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elevation adjustments but you can
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quickly shift the windage by means of
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the small dial on the right hand side
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the open sights give sufficient accuracy
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for plinking though it did take me a
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while to find a pellet that really
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suited the rifled barrel of the 177
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calibre test gun iws super points
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eventually emerged as one of its
17:19
favourites producing decent groups at 15
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meters the review gun also came supplied
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with a PA oh topaz long eye relief
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pistol scope which retails for 89 pounds
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99 that long eye relief makes this scope
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absolutely perfect for pistol use
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because it’s designed to be used at
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arm’s length at 244 millimeters long and
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weighing just 335 grams this scope is a
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good size match for this pistol
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unfortunately the supplied low mates
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aren’t quite high enough to keep the
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rear bail clear of the rear sight so
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I’ve had to use a higher
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set PA Oh slimmer two by twenty law my
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relief pistol scope should be a better
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choice for this pistol once you’ve got
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it mounted though this is a great little
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scope nitrogen purged it’s waterproof
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fog proof and shockproof this is the two
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to eight times thirty-two model and that
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zoom range is just about perfect for
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plinking the mil dot reticle doesn’t
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really come into play when you’re
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shooting at arm’s length but the finger
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adjustable windage and elevation turrets
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are great making for quick and easy tool
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free adjustment this is no match pistol
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and it’s not supposed to be but it is
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accurate enough to justify the addition
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of this bright little scope with the
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topaz fitted I was able to achieve some
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very handy groups at fifteen meters
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while shooting rested if you’re looking
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for a plinking pistol to enjoy some fun
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gunning in the backyard as the evening
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start getting longer the Air Force 1n
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Ram tornado from the shooting party
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won’t disappoint
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it’s a solidly built pistol that should
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last for years on top of that it packs a
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real punch without making too much noise
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so it shouldn’t get on your neighbors
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nerves
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that’s all for this week but we’ll be
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back again in a fortnight thank you for
19:37
watching and please don’t forget to Like
19:39
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19:41
and if you aren’t already a member of
19:43
the BAS C have a look at their website
19:45
and check out the benefits you could be
19:47
taking advantage of through airgun
19:49
membership
19:57
[Applause]
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you