Average number of Shells shot from one gun/year

[CNP]

Rifles...............I have a rifle I haven't shot in 15 years? This rifle is 20+ years old and has had maybe 60 - 80 rounds through it (Win 94 307).

The most used rifle I have hasn't been shot in three years. It is 15+ years old and has had maybe 80-100 rounds through it (Win mod 70 "Lightweight" 30.06.....lightweight model is not the featherweight model).

Taking away the spikes of sighting in a rifle every 3 - 5 years, my annual average is 0 rounds down range with my rifles.

5.56 and 9mm different story..............not for hunting and not my guns.

I hunt 60+ days a year. Just not with a rifle.......so no need to pratice.

Originally Posted by bonedogg

Just curious on what members think is the average number of shells shot through one rifle of one gun per hunter/year. I have friends who shoot tons and others that maybe shoot 5 shells a year. That being said, would a gun that's being advertised too have only been shot 100 times still be considered new? I have a problem with that personally and think guns are like vehicles, you buy them new and once utilized they are worth significantly less. My guess for the average would be 20 shells= 1 box/yr./hunter/gun. I am not a bench shooter and think I probably shot around 20 shells this year( 1 antelope, 1 elk, 1 deer in Sasky) and some pre-hunt sight-in sessions. It would take me 5 -7 yrs to shoot 100 shells, and in my opinion that is a well used firearm!!!!!

Humm 100 shot's i would think the gun is still new but for me the looks better be good also.The number of shots through a given gun 100 rounds 30-30 cal.
303cal scoped 75 rounds . 308 cal 100-300 rounds

[nekred]

In the last 5 years i have put a box rounds through my .270

2002: 3 rounds.. two for sight verification and a whitetail buck
2003 4 rounds ... 4 coyotes
2004 0 rounds
2005 0 rounds
2006 8 rounds 4 shots at the range to verify sights and 2 does and a buck (hit twice)
2007 4 rounds 3 coyotes... missed one coyote... long shot
2008 to date 3 rounds 3 coyotes

this rifle shoots very well so i shoot sparingly to save the life!....

However have 50 or 60 thousand rounds through the .22 at gophers
and about 200 rounds through my .17 HMR

Some people get very hard on those who shoot a few shots a year with their rifles and shoot game evry year. A rifle is a very simple tool to master. It shoots where it points. I have many friends who are master shooters that very rarely shoot except for hunting season.

The difference is in attitude. I have seen the range junkies that can punch a cloverleaf all day long at paper come completley unglued when shooting at fur, and i have seen the people who can hit fur have a hard time making a 3" group in paper at 100 yards. The range junkies also like to ridicule the 2 or 3 shot a year hunter for not practicing but at the end of the day whose freezer is full?

Now I know a person has to practice in order to hunt and shoot but a sighted in rifle will shoot where you point it......

have also seen range junkies criticise military shooters..... but i always ask how well they can shoot when they have to make a split second decision, don't have a good rest, have to shoot from concealment, and minimise exposure.... maintain situational awareness, be looking all around for other enemy and having to anticipate where the moving thinking target will be!.... while you are under fire!....

Shooting for practice,
Shooting for hunting
Shooting for warfare and survival

Three completely different things!....

let's look at old school firearm training for most of the good old boys.... they started with a single shot 22 andiron sights and in a box of 50 shells they were expected to have 50 animals for those 50 shots. they were shown the rudimentary basics and they shot knowing they could not afford a miss. Then they got a .303 and were expected to put food on the table. the years with a .22 helped out and they then put food on the table,,,,

the difference!... they knew their limitations, they could not waste ammo, so they gt close and made sure of their shot.... usually under 100 yards....

Then today we have scoped custom rifles capable of taking game at 500 yards+...... and in order to do that practice is required because tolerances are tighter!....

Those 2-3 shot a year guys... are great hunters... they can get close... stay calm... and make the shot.....

I have seen the range junkies all hopped up on hunting videos, caffeine and red bull, try to make a shot they can do on paper under less controlled circumstances and because of excitemenbt etc. they get a bad case of CHS........

So as always there has to be a balance.....

While i do not shoot as much today as i used to.... i wore out a .243 by shooting and once you have it you don't lose it very fast... maybe not as keen as i once was... but still good enough to get the job done!....


So don't judge wheteher or not a person is a good shooter by how much time he spends at the range....

One more story.... they fella who taught me to shoot was a veteran and that is what he did in WW 2 he was a sniper (not a sharpshooter, or designated marksman) but a true recon sniper. He had been able to shoot from the time he was in his teens. he was a littkle tiny, totally unflappable charactar. He was jawing with the barber who was an awesome shot. The barber challenged Old Bill to a match for $100 and bill took him up on it. Bill came in and got another frind of mine to load him some 30-06 shells for his old girl. Bill wnet out there with a 30-06 Springfield with a 4x scope and put 5 shells into an 1" at 100 yards.... then he shot at 200 and put 5 in an inch the barber did not even shoot and came over and took out a $100 and gave it to Bill.

Bill reached into his wallet and pulled out an old beat up qualification target and was marked and signed by a master gunnery sargeant that was 1" at 100 yards.... with an open sight rifle. I saw that target with my own eyes a few times when Bill was teaching me....

In 18 years I saw Bill pull out his rifle and shoot less than 20 times including the above mentioned event.

If I or someone else ever had a doubt about a rifle we would get Old Bill to shoot it and he would and it would tell us instantly what was going on!...

Old Bill is gone now but I learned a valuable lesson... never judge a person by assumptions....

hey i came up with a new term.... for this forum....

There are Ethics Nazi's, and Range Junkies, I guess i am just a plain old SOB!.

[bagwan]

For an old SOB, you're bang on the money. I still remember those packs of 50 shorts and woe to me if I didn't come home with a good number of muskrats all shot in the head. The 303 was a Ross and deadly and accounted for a lot of food in hard times. I still bang a lot of gophers and just had to get a .17 from reading about how they shoot. Practice last year consisted of two three shot groups with two rifles to verify accuracy. One Elk, 3 mulies and a whitetail later with the 270 accounted for six more bullets. Shot the Elk In the head as a follow up. Oops two one shot coyotes in Dec. I do agree, though, that for those who don't start with a BB gun and work their way up range shooting should be mandatory.