Sticky situations and lessons learned

[JustinC]

Hello fellow hunting enthusiasts,

I would like to ask the following questions - have you ever found yourself in a serious safety situation as a result of faulty equipment/miss fire etc? If so, what happened and how did you manage the situation?

This discussion might not be the most interesting or adrenalin packed topic but I'm confident that with your input and experiences, lessons learned by others could prevent this happening again or be of assistance to somebody in a similar situation one day.

Thanks for taking time to read this thread and I hope you share your experiences.

 

[JustinC]

I had an experience with a client this year regarding a crossbow. He experienced a miss fire whilst inside a hide, nothing worse than hearing that CLICK inside of a confined space...

Fortunately not to panic (too much), kept the weapon pointed towards the open window. The arrow discharged against the corner of the window and exited without causing any injuries or wounding any animals. There were a few Sable (not the target species) in the area so that also added an extra dimension to the situation.

Moral of the story, practice and make sure that you are familiar with your weapon.

 

[James.Grage]

Equipment failures, I can not say i have had any, that i could not repair.

In the wilds of Alaska, i had to weather a wind storm that did break 2 tent poles, that i was able to repair. I had about 200 pounds of rocks tied to the 4 corners and another 150 pounds of rocks in the tent to keep it from blowing away, not counting my brother and me in the tent. Used our back packs and rifles to help support the tent that day. To the north of our camp, about 1 mile 3 hunters died during this same wind/ rain/ snow storm. From the mountain top that we were camped by our camp was the only one that was still standing the following day. And I could see 6 camps the day before the storm.

On another trip into the wilds of Alaska, i have had friends who were sucked out to sea by the out going tide, another friend who stranded by floods while floating a river and there rafts were destroyed. all were rescued by either village people or coast guard.

 

[JustinC]

Hi

Equipment failures, I can not say i have had any, that i could not repair.

In the wilds of Alaska, i had to weather a wind storm that did break 2 tent poles, that i was able to repair. I had about 200 pounds of rocks tied to the 4 corners and another 150 pounds of rocks in the tent to keep it from blowing away, not counting my brother and me in the tent. Used our back packs and rifles to help support the tent that day. To the north of our camp, about 1 mile 3 hunters died during this same wind/ rain/ snow storm. From the mountain top that we were camped by our camp was the only one that was still standing the following day. And I could see 6 camps the day before the storm.

On another trip into the wilds of Alaska, i have had friends who were sucked out to sea by the out going tide, another friend who stranded by floods while floating a river and there rafts were destroyed. all were rescued by either village people or coast guard.

Thanks for sharing. I'm sorry to hear about the other group of hunters but I'm glad you and your brother were able to make a plan. I can only imagine what you guys were going through that night!

Maybe weather is another good topic that should be added to the question above.

 

[JustinC]

I know of somebody who got stuck on of their farm roads after a good rain storm and the resident Buff Bull had his way with the vehicle. Unfortunately they didn't have any weapons to persuade him to leave.

 

[peras]

During June of this year we were hunting buffalo cows with clients in the Hoedspruit area. Late one afternoon a cow presented a frontal shot at about forty yards, the client perfectly placed the shot, the buff hunched , stumbled and took off. We followed the track, but it became to dark. We again picked the track up the next morning, the buff went into thick riverine forest where we bumped her a few times. At one point we entered a small clearing

about 20 yards wide, where the buffalo turned on us and came in full charge, at about 12 yards I fired, the 458 bullet struck the buff underneath the eye and luckily put the brakes on, as on my reload the next round was totally stuck in the magazine(up to now I could not find a reason), luckily my partner and friend John was next to me and put the final shot in. On inspection we found total bullet failure from the clients first shot, only small pieces of schrapnell entered the chest cavity. So two incidents on one hunt, bullet failure and a reload failure. All ends good though, as this was the perfect excuse to buy a double. I attach pics of the buff and one of where I hit her on the charge.

 

[JustinC]

Hi Pieter, thanks for contributing. These things happen to anybody and definitely a good reason to invest in a double. Just proves that an extra backup is always useful. Did your client approach the manufacturer?

Regards

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

During June of this year we were hunting buffalo cows with clients in the Hoedspruit area. Late one afternoon a cow presented a frontal shot at about forty yards, the client perfectly placed the shot, the buff hunched , stumbled and took off. We followed the track, but it became to dark. We again picked the track up the next morning, the buff went into thick riverine forest where we bumped her a few times. At one point we entered a small clearingView attachment 33831 View attachment 33832 about 20 yards wide, where the buffalo turned on us and came in full charge, at about 12 yards I fired, the 458 bullet struck the buff underneath the eye and luckily put the brakes on, as on my reload the next round was totally stuck in the magazine(up to now I could not find a reason), luckily my partner and friend John was next to me and put the final shot in. On inspection we found total bullet failure from the clients first shot, only small pieces of schrapnell entered the chest cavity. So two incidents on one hunt, bullet failure and a reload failure. All ends good though, as this was the perfect excuse to buy a double. I attach pics of the buff and one of where I hit her on the charge.

Well I for one would like to know what type of bullet your client was using?!

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Hello fellow hunting enthusiasts,

I would like to ask the following questions - have you ever found yourself in a serious safety situation as a result of faulty equipment/miss fire etc? If so, what happened and how did you manage the situation?

This discussion might not be the most interesting or adrenalin packed topic but I'm confident that with your input and experiences, lessons learned by others could prevent this happening again or be of assistance to somebody in a similar situation one day.

Thanks for taking time to read this thread and I hope you share your experiences.

The better part of 10 years ago I was out quail hunting with a friend and a friend of his. We were back at the truck for lunch and my friend's buddy made a "joke" about putting my friend safety into the "On" position when he wasn't looking. Yes, "On" as in my friend and his friend made it a habit of hunting quail with their shotguns safety's being in the "Fire" position. I found nothing humorous about the joke and I can find humor in just about anything.

I knew I should call it a day, but I had got a ride from this clown......so on we went hunting again after lunch. A quail broke out and was flying to me from clown boy. I waited to shoot to ensure I wasn't even close to shooting in clown boy's direction. About the time the bird was directly and about 10 feet in front of me, clown boy who is directly to my right at about 60 feet fires a shot and drops the bird.

I turned to my left and just glared at my friend who was white as a ghost. I immediately unloaded and turned and headed for the truck.

To this day the only time I've ever come home from a day of hunting in a bad mood.

 

[JustinC]

Hello Philip, I think that you are probably a better man than me to have just walked away like that. I'm presuming that that was the last outing with that particular party?!

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Hello Philip, I think that you are probably a better man than me to have just walked away like that. I'm presuming that that was the last outing with that particular party?!

The scary part was this fellow exhibiting the worst example of gun safety was a cop! So being a better man or not may not have come into play so much as not wanting to go to jail for assaulting a police officer.

Yep it was the last time I hunted with him and my friend. The friend that invited me along never mentioned ever going hunting together again. I think he knew I would decline. At lunch time on that hunt, I asked why it is they were hunting with there safety's off? The answer was there was no way possible to raise your shotgun and put it to fire in time to kill a quail. Apparently for them quail fly at something approaching the speed of light. Funny how I was able to do it.

 

[JustinC]

Hats off for keeping it together! Anger and deadly weapons don't make a good combo, never mind any other foolishness.

General question: What is the certified safe distance for shotguns in the US? I stand corrected but in SA I think its 300m.

 

[BRICKBURN]

…………... At lunch time on that hunt, I asked why it is they were hunting with there safety's off? The answer was there was no way possible to raise your shotgun and put it to fire in time to kill a quail. Apparently for them quail fly at something approaching the speed of light. Funny how I was able to do it.

Phil, when upland bird hunting I don't use a safety either.
That's because the O/U shotgun is broken over my shoulder.
Funny I can find enough time to take the shotgun off my shoulder, close the shotgun, mount it and get the bird.


You have just brought back a memory.
1. The perpetrator was a Total stranger! Both the dog and I were in grass that would not cover my ankles.
No reason not to see me or the dog.
With the dog quartering in front of me I heard a shot go off. I watched the shot pellets hit the ground between me and the dog.
Apparently there was a Pheasants was running back toward me from the dog.
I was too stunned and shocked.
When I looked over the guy was totally clueless and just continued on his way.

I turned and left the area as fast as I could.
Never to return to that Public land again in my life time.

2 .I had another guy shoot at a bird on the ground between me and my dog. Someone I knew and he should have known better. I grabbed him by the neck and explained the dog was worth more than the damn pheasant. I'd buy him one if really needed one that badly.
Never to hunt over my dogs again.

I'll quit now. My head is starting to shake back and forth as I write this.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Phil, when upland bird hunting I don't use a safety either.
That's because the O/U shotgun is broken over my shoulder.
Funny I can find enough time to take the shotgun off my shoulder, close the shotgun, mount it and get the bird.


You have just brought back a memory.
1. The perpetrator was a Total stranger! Both the dog and I were in grass that would not cover my ankles.
No reason not to see me or the dog.
With the dog quartering in front of me I heard a shot go off. I watched the shot pellets hit the ground between me and the dog.
Apparently there was a Pheasants was running back toward me from the dog.
I was too stunned and shocked.
When I looked over the guy was totally clueless and just continued on his way.

I turned and left the area as fast as I could.
Never to return to that Public land again in my life time.

2 .I had another guy shoot at a bird on the ground between me and my dog. Someone I knew and he should have known better. I grabbed him by the neck and explained the dog was worth more than the damn pheasant. I'd buy him one if really needed one that badly.
Never to hunt over my dogs again.

I'll quit now. My head is starting to shake back and forth as I write this.

Yeah in retrospect, I wish I had walked up to the quail, proclaimed him to still be alive and unloaded my shotgun into the poor little bugger making him unedible. But that would've been wasting game meat intentionally.

I'm not one who buys into karma and I would not have wished harm on this guy. But this police officer sometime later was at the scene of an auto accident just a few minutes from here. He apparently was standing between the wrecked car and the traffic continuing to pass by. A woman drunk out of her skull came weaving into the accident scene and creamed the guy, running over him and just continued on. Beyond the doctors belief he survived, but he will never hunt again. When I heard about it, I couldn't help but wonder if his cavalier attitude about safety came into play. And if you're wondering, his fellow officers caught up to the lady who stopped at a convenience store to buy more booze.

 

[Velo Dog]

I was a cop for 28 years and I am sad to report that there's always a few reckless narcissists in every medium to larger Law Enforcement agency.
Sometimes they're found in smaller agencies as well, but it's more difficult for them to survive a career in smaller departments because they tend to not have any or at least not as many "groupies" and they get run off.
When I was in that crazy line of work, I preferred to go on any call, even a "hot" call alone, than to have to also keep one eye on the "Rambo" type fellow coppers, right along with my other eye on the moron/s who inspired a Police call in the first place.
Such clowns are living, breathing proof that all of the psych screening, polygraphs and background investigation put into the hiring of Police applicants is far from fool proof.
Quail hunting with one of these surely would be torture.



.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I was a cop for 28 years and I am sad to report that there's always a few reckless narcissists in every medium to larger Law Enforcement agency.
Sometimes they're found in smaller agencies as well, but it's more difficult for them to survive a career in smaller departments because they tend to not have any or at least not as many "groupies" and they get run off.
When I was in that crazy line of work, I preferred to go on any call, even a "hot" call alone, than to have to also keep one eye on the "Rambo" type fellow coppers, right along with my other eye on the moron/s who inspired a Police call in the first place.
Such clowns are living, breathing proof that all of the psych screening, polygraphs and background investigation put into the hiring of Police applicants is far from fool proof.
Quail hunting with one of these surely would be torture.

Wow Velo, you nailed this guy to a tee based on my brief description of the events. Make it to Vegas for SCI or to Dallas and I can bore you with the rest of the story.

I had hunted with my friend and this guy the previous weekend with a larger group of guys. When it came to the end of that hunt, plans were being made to go again the next week. I knew then I didn't care for this guy, but I got along well with our mutual friend. So not wanting to be rude or come across wrong I reluctantly agreed. This guy was what I like to refer to as competitive hunter. His best day possible hunting would be to go home with a limit of birds while watching you miss at every opportunity and then of course let you know about for the rest of your life. And this is exactly what I had to listen to on the way that morning. This clown just digging and digging at my ridiculously patient friend.

So this thread was about sticky situations and lessons learned. So lesson learned, if you're out with an idiot who is dangerous, screw politeness and get out of there!

By the way the only reason I mentioned this guy being a LEO was how shocked I at his horrible handling of guns when he of all people being a copy you'd think was well versed on the matter. My apology Velo or to any others who may have thought the comment was intended beyond this.

 

[Wheels]

My father had two hangfires with 458wm. Pretty positive it was Winchester Super X. This was in the 1960's. I was there when the second one took place. It went off about 4-5 seconds after he had pulled the trigger. It nearly broke his finger on the trigger guard. The earlier hangfire didn't take as long to go off so he was careful when the second one didn't fire. Glad he didn't have the bolt half open or no telling what would have happened.

He also had a hangfire with a 12g. It went off a couple of seconds after the trigger was pulled. The butt hit him in the face and busted his lip and bloodied his nose. Not sure what ammo it was but am pretty sure it was British. Again in the 60's.

On a hunting trip to SA a few years ago I decided to hunt some birds. I bought a couple boxes of shells and borrowed the PH's shotgun. I was hunting by myself at a pond. About 25% were misfires. I had never had a misfire before and was worried about a hangfire. I would dig a hole about 6" deep in the mud and after a couple of minutes, hurriedly eject the round into the hole and bury it. I thought I had lousy ammo and was pretty mad. When I got back to the PH's house I told him what had happened. He said oh yea. That shotgun needs cleaned. He said we could reuse the shells that hadn't fired. I told him I had buried them. Not sure if he was to excited about that. Not sure if I handled the situation right by burying the shells but with my fathers experience with hangfires I wasn't comfortable with those shells. I certainly wasn't going to put them in the box and take them back to the house. We cleaned the shotgun and it worked fine. The firing pin wasn't hitting the primer hard enough to ignite.

 

[Velo Dog]

Hi again Phil,

No worries about any of that my friend.

I was intending my above reply / post to reflect that I was confirming such buffoons really are not rare within many Police Depts, Sheriff's Depts and pretty much any type of Law Enforcement agency we'd care to name.

I did not think for a moment that you meant anything other than: Because of this chump's profession, he of all people should have definitely behaved better with his firearm.

It's something like how it seems as if every Sailor would be a fairly good swimmer.

Before I became one, I presumed all Police Officers would be excellent pistol shots/uber competent with firearms in general ... silly me.

Cheers,
Velo Dog.

PS:
Not sure if/when I'd be going to any SCI events but perhaps one day we can get together and trade some stories.
If you ever find yourself in Anchorage, please look me up.
And, if I ever get down to your neck of the woods, I will let you know as well.