Thread: Hares in the Garden

I have some friends who have a property in a rural area. Something was damaging plants in their garden and I said I thought it might be a hare. So I set up my game camera near the garden.

A couple of days later, I grabbed my fathers old Brno #1 .22 and walked around the farm. Climbing through a fence in a cunning way to avoid the electric wire, I got the worst electric shock I've ever experienced (and I've had a few). It was like someone big hit me between the shoulder blades with a sledgehammer. But I composed myself and carried on, and eventually shot one hare not long before dark.



I went up again a few nights later. Because of the wide paddocks and lack of cover I thought I'd be smart and take my Howa .223. But I saw nothing. I saw nothing on my next trip either (apart from a big ginger cat).... but I did bring the camera home. And yes, I got several pictures of a hare, but well after dark.



I realised that I probably should get prepared to shoot after dark. I prefer hunting in daylight, but the hares don't seem to be out then. I've spotlighted before.... using heavy batteries and big lights, but I've kept up with the times and I am well aware of how good LED torches are. I looked around to see what torches and mounts were available. But I figured that the torch I already had was fine.... and surely I could find some way of fitting it to my rifle.

I thought that my Anschutz might be the best choice for night work. It has a slimmer suppressor (thus should reflect less light back into my scope)... plus I didn't mind subjecting it to rougher treatment (whereas the Brno is a family heirloom). So I fitted a Nikko Mount Master to it and sighted it in. I sat on a low stool and rested my front hand in the vee of a pair of shooting sticks for this process. I was satisfied with how it performed (despite the gritty trigger):



Next I had to fit a torch. I wrapped a bit of black plastic tape around the front part of the stock to protect it.... then I fitted the torch with a couple of Waugh rubber tree-training bands (these make great slingshots incidentally). I was delighted to find that the beam pretty much lined up with the sights. Ha, I thought, I'm glad I didn't spend bazillions on a special rig.



I had a niggle in the back of my mind about how the torch might affect accuracy. When I was enquiring about commercial mounts, someone suggested that a magnetic mount on the barrel could be a good thing. I asked... might that affect accuracy? Nah... not much on a .22. I thought I'd better test the new rig. For the first group I fired I used some Kilwell Whisper that I'd taken on a few hunts. I thought I should use it up. The group I got was not so good:



Hmmm, I thought... I better try some new ammo. So I shot a group of four Norinco rounds (which performs very well most of the time). But the group was still disappointing:



So I took the torch off the rifle, but left the wrapping of plastic tape around the forestock and barrel. But the group was still not good:



So I took off the tape and shot a four-cartridge group.... much better this time:



So I'm thinking that a small flashlight mounted above the scope might be better. Meanwhile I thought I could hold the torch loosely in my left hand while supporting the rifle. I tried shooting a group like that. The results weren't wonderful, but the method might be good enough for close ranges:



So now I'm working on other ways to spotlight on my own. Maybe I will buy a scope mount and a thin-barreled torch.