Clay Pigeon Trap - A Great Way to Spend Quality Time With Your Family!
By Jack Griffith
My teenage son decided he wanted to get a clay pigeon trap.
He has been target shooting for some time, and the handheld model we had was getting tiresome. Now I'm as open minded as the next guy, but I didn't know much about clay pigeon throwers, so I decided to do a little research.
Clay Pigeon Traps Developed Out of a Need to Launch Birds
A clay pigeon trap is a spring-loaded machine that throws clay "pigeons" into the air as targets for recreational or competition shooting. The firearm of choice for clay pigeon trap shooting is typically a shotgun loaded with shot.
When skeet, or pigeon shooting, began in the late 1800s, live pigeons were used as targets. This was hard on the birds, especially if the pigeon was just "winged," or hit a glancing blow. (After all, who could perform medical care for a pigeon in 1880?)
Britain actually made using live pigeons as targets illegal in 1921, and a new target was developed. The new target was a clay pigeon, which is still in use today. Interestingly, the target is still referred to as a "bird."
The clay target is made of limestone crumbs and pitch, and is a little more than 4 inches in diameter. It looks much like a small inverted frisbee. Some skeet shooting disciplines use pigeons that are smaller or larger than the standard 108 mm size.
Clay pigeons typically come in a bright orange color, but they can also be black, white or yellow so that the target can easily be seen.
When You're New to the Sport, Your Clay Pigeon Trap Is Usually Your Arm!
When someone is new to the sport of trap shooting, his clay pigeon trap is usually his arm. In other words, either the shooter or a partner will throw the pigeon into the air at an angle.
The idea is to shoot the moving target before it hits the ground. Because of the somewhat brittle composition of the target, even a glancing blow will break the clay, resulting in a "hit."
Generally one or two clay targets are thrown at one time, although some competitions involve throwing multiple pigeons.
Once a newbie becomes proficient at clay pigeon shooting, he may opt to get a clay pigeon trap or thrower. This allows him to work on refining his craft, since he doesn't have to wear out his arm throwing targets.
Clay Pigeon Traps Come in Various Configurations
Clay pigeon traps come in several different sizes and configurations. For example, there are handheld models that throw a single or double target, there are ? cock trap and full-cock trap, or you can graduate to the sophisticated models like foot traps and automatic traps.
Handheld Clay Pigeon Traps
A handheld clay pigeon trap can be the simplest to start with. It looks like a sideways slingshot. You simply place the bird in the thrower's "fingers" and wing it out with a sideways action. The handheld trap can throw one, two or three targets simultaneously. Allen and MTM are two companies who manufacture a handheld thrower, and prices range from about $7 to about $16.
With this type of handheld clay pigeon trap, though, you'll most likely want to have a partner do the throwing for you while you stand ready with your shotgun.
? Cock and Full-Cock Clay Pigeon Throwers
The ? cock clay pigeon trap, when tripped, is designed to release the bird and stop at about 8 o'clock (having released from the 12 o'clock or noon position). Both ? and full-cock throwers allow you to fling targets as much as 70 to 100 yards out, and will send out single or double targets.
You can also vary the angles of throw with a ? cock and full-cock model, so that you can practice hitting high targets or near-the-ground targets.
Most of these traps sit off the ground. This allows someone to sit on a chair next to it to re-cock the machine for the next throw.
You can get an additional add-on seat that allows someone to sit with the trap and hit the lever to throw, and many people have suggested getting this because it is so comfortable. Prices range from $60 to $200 for a ? or full-cock model, without the seat.
Fully Automatic Clay Pigeon Traps
Fully automatic clay pigeon traps are the next step up. These come with several rotating stacks of pigeons, which means that you can be shooting a long time before you need to refill them.
Automatic throwers are quite sophisticated, and many can be operated by foot or by voice. Many can be programmed to throw targets at different angles and different elevations.
Some traps are operated electrically and others operate on battery power. Some can even be stocked with different size targets in case you want to vary your discipline.
With a foot-operated model, you simply stand just behind the thrower and tap your foot on the release.
Some automatic traps are actually voice-activated when you call "Pull!"
Prices for an automatic clay pigeon trap are quite a bit higher, but the reviews indicated that these throwers were worth the money. Expect to pay about $350 to $500 for a fully automatic trap, with some competition-style models approaching as much as $1300.
My son and I opted for a ? cock model and we couldn't be happier. He gets to practice his target shooting and I get to spend quality time with him.
What could be better?
Maybe you want to think about getting a clay pigeon trap and enjoy quality time with your family, too!
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