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Missed shots

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jason

Guest
I'm lucky enough to have never missed a turkey (knock on wood) I'm 2 for 2, but I can't say that for my dad, who hit one, but didn't kill it two years ago. The only time i've seen a true miss is on some turkey hunting tapes I have When a bird is 20 to 30 yards away, I have a hard time understanding how you can miss with a shot gun. I have a lot of seasons left, so I'll probably see it for myself at least once. But i was just wondering for the peopole how have missed, what went wrong, and the scenerio that lead up to the moment before you made that faulty shot. Don't be shy to admit you've missed, we've all missed plenty of game, over and over and over..... and over again. Plus sharing your exsperience may help me and others be a crack shot and hit 100% of my turkeys!

Good hunting

jason
 
...I think some turkeys are missed because they are too close for today's extra-ultra-super full choked shotguns...my wife missed her first shot at a tom that fell in love with the decoy...he was less than 10 steps away!...I'm sure her pattern was about the size of a tennis ball when it went over his head...

...also the thrill of being eyeball to eyeball with a turkey is almost unbearable...my wife missed her second shot at a tom when three long-beards came in and tore my jake decoy a new cloaca...that was the most awesome hunt I have been on!...

...as for me - I never miss...at least not twice...
 
I'll be honest....I have missed 3 different turkeys since I started hunting.
My biggest problem that I had on the first two misses (which were made very early in my turkey hunting career) was that I shot high.....simple as that. It didn't matter what kind of awesome patterns I made on paper when I was practicing....when those big toms start strutting up....I almost fell apart and couldn't help but lift my head (unknowingly) a little off my gun. At the time I was using the double bead on my gun....which I found out was pretty easy to miss a bird if you lift your head slightly to gawk at a big, awesome bird. Ever since I put my red dot on my turkey gun, I havn't had a problem. There is alot less to mess up when all you have to do is put that dot on his head....even when you are shaking so bad the leaves around you are moving!

However!.......I did miss my 4th season bird last year (which made my 3rd miss overall). He was well within 15 yards and I was shaking so bad and combine that with an extremely tight pattern.....he took off running! I quickly stood up, chucked another round in and plastered his head and neck with the second one.

If you are a diehard turkey hunter it is not a matter of "if" you will miss a turkey.....but "when"
 
I had one run right past me when 2 other hunters came into the field I was setting up on. I saw them point - thought they were pointing at my decoy's. Then I see a Tom running full speed right down the field edge. He was about 10 feet away. I blasted twice at him and missed. He took off in flight and I dropped him. My cousin was with me and thought I was shooting at a coyote. He never did see the tom it happened so fast. He was only about 15 yards from me. With that tight of a pattern at that range I imagine I didn't lead him quite enough. Got him though. Most shells I ever used in a season.
 
When I was living in Missouri I hunted a buddies place just east of Columbia, at daybreak I had 5 gobbler and countless hens 60-70 yards to my left on the ground. I had to wait them out for about 45 min then they made a bee-line across the field (still out of range) when they hit the small hill about 150 yards away I bellycrawled for 15 or so yards in to the field to get behind a fallen log. Propped up my decoy next to me and gave um all I had. 3 of the tom's turned around and came in on a string but from all different directions. 1st one in range got a load of #5's over the top of his head as I was lying in a depression and he was on a little higher ground. (Where's your clineometer when you need it)
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So then all 3 birds take to the air, it was just like busting a covey of quail. I picked the nearest one (he was actually about 15 yards but never saw him as he came in on my right) and it took me the last 2 shells to drop him.
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Perhaps my favorite turkey hunt of all time was last spring when I called in a beautiful tom for my 11 year old daughter. He gave us the whole show...gobbling, spitting, drumming, etc. I was going to whisper for her to take the shot at about 25-30 yards. Unfortunately, when he got to that distance he made a fast beeline for my decoy, which was 15 yards away. I only had a regular full choke in, but was still afraid of the pattern size. The tom stopped and strutted around the decoy while my daughter lined up a perfect miss. Yes...she peeked and shot over his head.

I'm a firm believer in "1 shot only" when teaching a youngster to shoot game, so I'd only let her put 1 shell in the youth model BPS. We nearly got time to reload while the tom slowly walked away.

Great hunts don't always end in a full game bag
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NWBuck
 
I've shot four turkeys so far, haven't missed one yet, but on the second one I shot I purposly aimed a little low because I had read how most misses were high. All the shot went into the body and he kind of did a few somersaults down a hill. As soon as I saw it wasn't fatal I took off running after him (without the gun) and tackled him and pinned his wings to his body. He was far from dead so I had to hold his feet and step on his neck for a minute or so.

The last few seasons I've left the scope on my shotgun and just switched the barrels. Works great, don't have to make any adjustments at all, it's dead on perfect.
 
If you hunt turkies long enough, you WILL miss, sooner or later. The reasons will vary, from one end of the spectrum to the other, but rest assured, sooner or later it will happen, and you will shake your head back and forth trying to figure out why.
 
I have harvested around 15 toms in my 9 yr.s of hunting them. I missed three total, ironically all in the same season. Two of those misses were the same bird but on different mornings. Both times the bird was practically on my lap and like others have mentioned my pattern was still very tight and my slightest movement of the barrel caused me to miss. The third miss was not a complete miss. I had the tom at 35 yds, and when I shot I failed to notice the brush between us which deflected some BB's. The bird dropped but got right back up and headed away on an angle. I then fired again but he kept on running. When he arrived at the field edge he took flight and headed back in my direction. Now 15 yds away in flight I went to fire a third time, but all I heard was click. I had forgot that I only put 2 shells in the gun. I then went to where I rolled him on the first shot and found a half dozen feathers and 5 drops of blood. Now realizing that I had indeed hit him with some pellets, and being the last day of the season I searched high and low for that tom and never found another trace. It seems to me these birds just didnt want to fill my freezer. That was my third turkey season, and my worst one too.
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With the two birds i've shot, I aim for the neck, right where the feathers and the skin meet. It's a good place to aim because you can't really miss high.
I've never had a 10 or 15 yard shot, so I'm not sure how that would go. I've pattern my gun at 15 yards. After shooting there were just two big holes in the paper! If I had a tom that close, I think I would just aim high on his chest, right below his neck. Heck that close your shot would be just like a slug.

jason
 
I've shot 5 turkeys so far in my first five years, hunting on some prime ground in southern Iowa. Last year i missed on opening day when i was watching hard to my right. Then a tom came to the calling but from the left. I didn't see him till my dad told me he was there. By the time i had him zeroed in he was already running. I took a shot at about 40 yards running but i missed. I guess it happens!
I did bag a tom later that season though!
 
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