Härkila Pro Hunter Move hunting jacket – review
Setting your sights on a hunting jacket? Härkila got high marks in our apparel surveys. Most mentioned was the Pro Hunter Move jacket. James from the UK says in our survey that the Pro Hunter is a “pricey jacket but you get what you pay for”. Härkila could still make improvements. Another James from the […]
Härkila‘s Pro Hunter trousers – review
Pants, breeks, breeches, waterproofs – call them what you want but they’re all trousers. The standout brands in our survey are Deerhunter and Härkila. Deerhunter was the choice of most people, beating Härkila by one vote. But the single most popular design by far was Härkila‘s Pro Hunter. Ian from UK says they are “the […]
Vorn’s Lynx rucksack – review
Our Fieldtester surveys have produced some surprising results. In this case, if you want the best rucksack then you need to join the army. It’s army suruplus rucksacks that win the prize for most popular hunting rucksacks among Fieldsports Channel viewers. If that’s not an option then don’t worry, we have another. Vorn’s Lynx […]
Deerhunter Ram vs Musto Highland Gore-Tex shooting jackets
Deerhunter scored high in our clothing survey, with its products vying for the top spot in several categories. Top manufacturer for jackets is Deerhunter, according to Fieldsports Channel viewers. For shooting, its Ram jackets are in first place, fitting the company’s description as “one of the most well known shooting jackets”. In our survey, Mark […]
Antis fake Attenborough Facebook page to push propaganda
Veteran BBC nature programme host Sir David Attenborough appears to have lashed out at hunting tourists, calling them ‘psychopaths’ who want to show-off how much money they have. He apparently posted the rant to his 90,000+ followers on Facebook. However, this David Attenborough Facebook account is a fake, set up by antis from Bahrain. Fake: […]
RSPB ‘self-isolates’ from shooting community with demanding gamebird review
Ben O’Rourke The RSPB is threatening to call for a ban on gamebird shooting if moorland managers don’t do what it wants. That’s the takeaway from the charity’s ‘virtual’ annual general meeting on Saturday 10 October 2020, at which it released a year-long review on gamebird shooting and the moorland management that comes with […]
Will Boris’s biodiversity boost work?
Ben O’Rourke The UK’s wildlife is in danger and needs protecting, says Prime Minister Boris Johnson. He doesn’t say from what, but says the government will designate another 4,000 square kilometres of land as protected, taking the total up to 30% of the devolved kingdoms’ land. Some wildlife groups have welcomed the move, […]
Channel 4 News attacks grousemoors
If you watched Channel 4 News on the evening of Monday 21 September 2020, you may have been outraged by coverage of the apparent killing in May of a goshawk on a grousemoor in North Yorkshire. If not, you can watch the video embedded below. If you feel like complaining about it, there are details […]
Councils pay to get rid of ‘rare’ seagulls
Ben O’Rourke In the ancient ballad Scarborough Fair, a man tells his ex-girlfriend, who lives in the North Yorkshire town, to complete some impossible tasks if she wants to win him back. A contemporary version of the song might include ridding the town of herring gulls, something people have been trying to do […]
Packham and sabs step up action as badger culls begin
BBC TV host Chris Packham is criticising the government for extending its badger culling. The celebrity describes the decision as “devastating”, insisting it “makes very little sense”. DEFRA has added 11 areas to the badger cull zones around England, and up to 60,000 animals will be killed. Packham, who is vice-president of RSPCA and RSPB, […]
What does ‘ballistic tip’ mean?
Ballistic is a much over-used word. You may associate it with nuclear weapons. The word is pointlessly used to describe long-range missiles with nuclear warheads. It has nothing to do with the power of the payload. When you use it with the word ‘missile’, ‘ballistic’ means there is a guidance system on board. Otherwise […]
Why are target bullets longer than hunting bullets?
What’s the difference between target and hunting rounds? Sako Cartridges’ Aki Suvilahti says the biggest difference is in the manufacturing process. The hollowpoint boat-tail bullets that Sako makes for its hunting cartidges have to be manufactured more precisely than solid target ammunition. “Production consistency is all about accuracy,” he says. Sako makes boat-tail match […]
A simple guide to rifle calibres
To a non-shooter, all bullets seem the same, but there are hundreds of different calibres out there. ‘Calibre’ is based on (but not always the same as) the diameter of the bullet in millimetres. Are you choosing the right calibre for your shooting? You’ll probably get different answers from everyone you ask. Sako Cartridges’ […]
What happens when a rifle cartridge goes bang?
You pull the trigger – and a lot of chemistry and physics takes place in a split second. Aki Suvilahti from cartridge manufacturer Sako says there are, generally, three different types of primer. For calibres such as .222 and .223, there is ‘small rifle’ primer, which has low energy. Next up is what Aki […]
Do you choose slow bullets or ‘hot rounds’?
Hot or not? That’s the question Paul Childerley puts to Aki Suvilahti of Sako Cartridges. Paul likes hot rounds in his chosen calibres of .22-50, 70-grain .243 – but like all shooters, he has doubts. “So,” he asks: “lighter bullets, faster charge, is it good or is it bad?” Aki says that the carcase […]
What is bullet head space?
If you’re still finding your way around your rifle, you may want to know what ‘head space’ is. Aki Suvilahti from Sako Cartridges explains. “Head space is a measure, in the rifle, from bolt face to chamber. It is in the part of the chamber that stops the cartridge’s forward movement,” he says. […]
What are bonded bullets?
Deer manager Paul Childerley describes what a bonded bullet is good for: “More weight behind it, more stopping power.” Sako’s Aki Suvilahti perfers a more technical definition. “Bonding means that as there is lead core in the bullet, it is chemically fixed to this copper jacket,” he says, referring to his company’s Super Hammerhead […]
Hen harriers having ‘fantastic year’, with record-breaking fledglings
In the north of England, 60 hen harrier chicks fledged this year – the most since 2002. Natural England say the chicks came from 19 nests in Northumberland, the Yorkshire Dales, Cumbria and Lancashire, in early summer 2020. The government agency puts the success down to good weather and cooperation from Moorland Association, RSPB, Forestry […]
Sabs step up harassment of couple linked to badger culls
The pavement outside the home of a couple linked to the government’s badger culls has been vandalised by animal rights extremists. South Coast Hunt Sabs posted photos of garish pink graffiti outside the house in Guilford, which is also the office of the husband-and-wife-run company that makes tracking devices used by badger cullers. Animal rights […]
Daily Telegraph puts negative spin on positive pheasant report
Gameshooting is good for the environment, but could do better. That’s the conclusion of a review by the English government. The newly-launched review Ecological Consequences of Gamebird Releasing and Management on Lowland Shoots in England concludes that banning shooting would result in a ‘decrease in beneficial effects’. In a swipe at the big, commercial shoots, […]
Badger cull data leak: what’s next and what victims should do
The anti-badger cull brigade are not happy. After the English government apparently promised to reduce the number of culls, it’s instead added 11 more. So it’s possible the huge leak of data at the weekend identifying hundreds of people involved in badger culls may be traced to a sympathiser within DEFRA, the English […]
Sabs target Glorious Twelfth shoot
The Hunt Saboteurs Association claims it successfully disrupted a shoot on the first day of this year’s grouse season creating what it calls a ‘not so Glorious Twelfth’. “Over 100 sabs descended on the Northern Peak District,” it claims. But it admits that after a few hours, the sabs couldn’t find any shoots to shut […]
‘You’re next’: extremist sabs issue threats to badger cullers, offer cash for info
“Let’s see how they like being hunted,” said Stop The Cull on its Facebook page, the day after a post was removed for revealing personal information about people supposedly involved in badger culls. Exactly how the people will be ‘hunted’ it does not explain, but the post echoes fanatical rhetoric that triggers alarm bells at […]
‘Catastrophically stupid’: how a ban on grouse shooting could destroy the countryside
People in Britain’s uplands are nervous. On the Glorious 12th, the date that launches weeks of the grouse shooting they enjoy, the annual glory is giving way to fears that the sport’s days may be numbered. The people are nervous because they are the ones most at risk from restrictions on grouseshooting. That’s the conclusion […]
How grousemoors prevent flooding
News editor Ben O’Rourke talks to grouse moor owners about how they are reversing the post-war drainage of the UK’s moorland. He shows that Wild Justice’s claims grouse shooting causes floods is fake news. You can read more about James Mawle and his moorland management in the GWCT’s publication, Moorland Conservationists. Download it for […]
Assault on legal gun ownership by fear-mongering UK media
This weekend saw local newspapers across the country take aim at the shooting community. Dramatic headlines declare: ‘Hundreds of the “most dangerous” firearms owned legally in (insert county here)’, in a coordinated exercise in fear-mongering. The articles appeared mainly in the north and online news sites run by JPIMedia. In the Halifax Courier‘s chilling […]
Red or dead: how killing invasive grey squirrels boosts threatened reds
Ben O’Rourke “Most military strategists will tell you that if an army seeks to simply hold a fortress and only has its control in the fortress area, eventually that fortress will be overrun by the enemy.” Standing in his garden in the Preston area, David Alan is answering a question about squirrels. The fortress […]
Actor Peter Egan compares trophy hunters to paedophiles
Actor and Downton Abbey cast member Peter Egan has launched personal attacks on a conservationist and compared trophy hunting to paedophilia in angry Twitter posts. In a long online argument with Amy Dickman, who has about two decades of hands-on conservation experience, the actor turned activist attacked Dickman and questioned her credibility. “You clearly are […]
RSPCA backs law-breaking antis in gamekeeper smear campaign
The RSPCA has voiced support for claims by antis that gamekeepers in the Peak District broke the law. That’s despite police saying the gamekeepers did nothing wrong. At the same time, the charity says it’s not going to try to prosecute the gamekeepers. For weeks, animal rights extremist group ‘Hunt Investigation Team’ has been persecuting […]
Nesting season clearfell shock
Ben O’Rourke On the main street in Harthill is a welcome sign with a picture of a man wearing a helmet, a nod to its history as a coal mining town. About half a mile north there’s a line of wind turbines, which some see as a sign of cleaner, greener times. Shooter and […]
Traps, tricks and terror: how animal rights extremists try to take down gamekeepers
Ben O’Rourke All Darcy Smith wanted was to be a good gamekeeper. After years of dedication and hard work, he ended up at Moscar Estate in northern England’s Peak District. But in early June, 2020, he quit his ‘dream job’. He is one of the latest casualties in the escalating war between the fieldsports […]
BBC Countryfile accuses countryside of racism
The BBC has come under fire for suggesting non-whites are not welcome in the countryside. A report on its flagship TV show Countryfile says that blacks, Asians and other minorities don’t feel welcome in rural areas, with some claiming they have experienced open racism. In Sunday night’s programme, explorer-turned reporter Dwayne Fields reacted to recent […]
Animal rights vandals smash Brighton butchers ‘in memory’ of dead Canadian activist
Canadian activist Regan Russell was killed by a truck full of pigs on its way to Fearmans Pork slaughterhouse in Burlington, Ontario on June 19. The 65-year-old was an animal activist for more than 40 years and arrested several times for civil disobedience. She frequently gave the pigs water while the trucks stopped at the […]
Gun dancing: it’s now a thing, judging by videos from Russia and Australia
Warning: this may offend people with good taste. Russian Instagramer Ekaterina Subbotina has posted video of her ‘dancing’ with her shotgun at a shooting range in Kazan in the Republic of Tatarstan. View this post on Instagram If you don’t wanna see me dancing with @glotov_94 don’t show up! 😂 #perazzihightech A post […]
Meet the ‘golf sabs’: antis hit soft targets during donation drought
Hunt saboteurs are trying to reinvent themselves and widen their support base by going after golf courses. The move coincides with a slump in donations to worthy causes – and sabs – due to coronavirus lockdowns. North Dorset Hunt Sabs issued a call to action on Facebook on 17 June 2020 telling people to spam […]
Wild Justice wins judicial review into gamebird releases on protected sites
Chris Packham’s anti-shooting group Wild Justice is celebrating approval of its request for a judicial review into the release of gamebirds on nature conservation sites. According to a post by Mark Avery on the group’s blog, the court hearing will be held before the end of October. “If we were to be successful then this […]
How hen harriers benefit from grouse moors
Followers of BBC celebrity Chris Packham are probably used to hearing stories of doom and gloom on Britain’s moors. This is not one of them. Packham is a fierce critic of grousemoor management, waging what most gamekeepers describe as a ‘relentless campaign of misinformation’. In return, he accuses gamekeepers of killing birds of prey. […]
Swans shot dead in Leeds, suspects caught on camera
West Yorkshire Police are appealing for help after two swans were shot dead in Leeds. The swans, a male and a female, were shot on marshland near Knostrop Sludge Treatment Facility on Pontefract Lane on Monday June 8 between 9pm and 9.30pm. A man was seen with a rifle in the area around that time […]
Zoo plans to destroy its animals
by Ben O’Rourke “I’d rather starve than watch these die,” Tracy Tweedy tells me inside the Snake House, one of the exhibits at Borth Wild Animal Kingdom. She calls herself an animal-lover, and now she is facing her worst nightmare. A lack of funds, a debt to HMRC, escaped animals, at least one animal […]
How vegan ‘terrorists’ wage war on British butchers
Terrorism is the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims. In this case, extremist vegans are smashing butchers’ shop windows, spray-painting their properties with foul language and gluing locks shut. Their goal is to spread fear in the meat industry. These terrorists are organised into local […]
RSPB forgets its ‘rigorously neutral’ stance on pheasant shooting, says GWCT
The Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust has criticised RSPB after a sustained attack on pheasant shooting on BBC’s Radio 4. Writing on the trust’s blog, chairman of trustees Jim Paice slammed the charity for ‘focusing almost entirely on the negative views of pheasant releasing’. This comes after RSPB senior policy editor Pat Thompson was speaking […]
Lockdown Britain goes on pet-buying spree, dog thefts increase
Demand for dogs during the UK lockdown hit new heights.Prices for mongrels soared, and some working pups have sold for more than £2,000 each. Facebook users have been fuming at the extortionate prices, some claiming breeders are selling Dachshunds for £6,000. Meanwhile, lockdown has not stopped dog thefts. These two male cocker spaniels […]
BBC’s Springwatch slammed over ‘incomplete’ owl report
A moorland group has criticised Chris Packham’s ‘Springwatch’ show over a report about an owl that ignores the role of grousemoor managers. The programme broadcast on 29 May featured a short-eared owl it called ‘Dumyat’ which was tagged in Scotland and flew around Europe. The Tayside and Central Scotland Moorland Group says the BBC’s report […]
No backing down in Baildon battle, says BASC
BASC is fighting an attempt by Bradford City Council to silence criticism of its moorland management. The organisation received a letter from the council’s legal department demanding the removal of a blog which questioned why Baildon Moor was being mown by a tractor at a critical time of the year for ground-nesting birds. In addition, […]
How I got my confiscated gun back
What do you do when your gun has been confiscated on a stopover in a foreign country while you’re on your way back to the UK? Will Thompson (@waathompson on Instagram) was hunting in New Zealand when the coronavirus lockdown was enforced. He and his girlfriend decided to cut short their trip and head […]
Lawbreaking sabs beg for cash to break the law
High-profile sab network Hunt Investigation Team has issued an ‘urgent appeal’ for money. The group recently trespassed on an estate in Derbyshire. Police are investigating allegations that its members tampered with traps and hid trailcams on private land. HIT then organised an online persecution campaign targeting a young gamekeeper it wrongly accused of crimes after […]
Vegan vandals hit butchers and anglers
Angry vegan vandals are at it again. Last week an angling club in Derbyshire was daubed with paint telling the fishermen to stick hooks in their in own mouths, with some colourful language included for emphasis. Now they’ve done a paint job on a butchers in Nottingham. As well as offensive graffiti, Meat 4 U’s […]
Antis persecute Peak District gamekeeper
Antis are wrongly accusing a gamekeeper of wildlife crimes, when he was carrying out his normal duties. Online persecution of Darcy Smith, who works on the Moscar Estate in Derbyshire, began after a snare on land he managed accidentally caught a badger on 11 May 2020. Instead of releasing it, the antis posted the picture […]
Antis attack democracy: Lithuania bows to pressure, scraps bowhunting law after it’s in effect
Antis have interfered in the Lithuanian legal system by forcing the reversal of a law allowing bowhunting. Authorities ditched legalisation allowing bowhunting just days after it was enforced, in a shocking attack on the country’s democratic process. Deputy environment minister Rasa Vaitkevičiūtė, who supported the new law, resigned over the revision. The U-turn came after […]
Deerhunter Moor Padded Jacket with Knit Timber
It’s been a long day shooting clay or game, you probably want to slip into something more comfortable than your all-weather gear. In our survey, Ryan from the UK calls it a, “nice lightweight jacket easy to move in”. Deerhunter says it is “the perfect after-shoot jacket” and our survey seems to back up that […]
