Why we miss?

Tennessee Deer Sporting & Deer Hunting Community Forum

Help Support TNDeer | Tennessee Deer:

fairchaser

fairchaser

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 13, 2011
Messages
9,794
City & State/Province
TN, USA
After reading a number of threads about missing or miss hitting deer, it got me thinking that we can help one another by offering suggestions.

If the ultimate high is seeing that target buck hit the ground or making a great shot on a whitetail, the lowest of lows is to miss or wound a deer for us deer hunters. I've known of hunters who quit hunting as the result.

We all have missed or will miss if we haven't so let's be kind. It happens.

I'll start with this. Know your weapon and check everything to make sure it's functioning properly. Don't trust it from year to year without testing it. Take nothing for granted!
 
Buy quality equipment. From the rifle, to the mounts, to the scope, ammo. If you have to twist on your scope year after year, it's junk and it's time to upgrade. If you have a 10 pound trigger, it's time to get that down. If your weaver rings keep coming loose, throw them in the trash and buy quality rings. Number one thing most people do, or don't, is actually practice. Get your rifle out and shoot it. And not 3 times at paper and put it up. Actually shoot it. Get a good group. I've started doing 5-10 shot groups. You get a much better representation of what you, and your rifle are capable of. I couldn't tell you how many rifles I've sighted for various people thru the years. People buy beautiful rifles and have trashco scopes on them that don't hold zero and you can't half see out of them. Why?!? You and your rifle deserve to have quality components that reduce the likelihood of failure! People miss because they don't put the time in. And sometimes, buck fever is real! No one to blame but yourself.
 
Follow through with a rifle is just as important as with a bow. Stay down on the rifle and through the scope through recoil. Don't try to watch the deer, put it where it's supposed to go.


Learn anatomy of animals. I see it often, guys "right behind the shoulder" is actually liver/guts because they have no idea where a deer shoulder actually is.


Learn angles and shoot for the exit, quarter to, quarter away or broadside, shoot for the exit.
 
Controlling the shot process. Getting in a consistent step by step rhythm of executing the shot after getting the nerves temporarily under control, even if you have to talk yourself through it. Following through with your weapon after the shot is crucial. For me, that means keeping my head behind my bow, and arm pointed toward the target well after the shot, or keeping my head down on the rifle stock and crosshairs or sight in place for a few seconds after firing. It can't be over emphasized.

One thing an older cousin pointed out to me years ago about his brother as we were talking about hunting really stood out. It was that he simply knew when to shoot. Sounds easy enough, but it's one of the most important things a hunter has to learn.
 
The Army has been training soldiers with varied backgrounds for some time, and the basic fundamentals have been honed to near perfection for most people. This will serve many hunters as well, specially the coin trick to check your trigger squeeze. Have someone balance a coin on your barrel, practice dry-fire until the coin stays on the barrel.

https://www.armystudyguide.com/cont..._topics/m16a2/four-fundamentals-of-mark.shtml
And yes, I defiantly agree with @Remi , learn where your bullet should go at varying angles.
 
Wounding an animal has made me disgusted before I did it back in 2018. And not hunting anymore did cross my mind. Till my uncle convinced me that it happens and to shoot my gun more often to make sure I everything is on. I think the problem is especially in my case was not checking it every season.
 
I have anxiety. Not in the casual, socially jokey way people say in casual conversations. I have the "talk to professional counselor" level anxiety. I go to therapy and do things to cope and all. I live a mostly normal life (except for my whitetail fanaticism lol), self employed small biz owner, great wife, healthy kids. I just say this so no one is worried. But I developed a twitch with firearms over the summer. I even have it with my crossbow. Everything shoots high and to the right in my hands. But don't have the first problem with my compound bow! Any recommendations for overcoming the twitch I got going on? I miss my muzzleloader right now and generally like hunting with it during rifle season. I'll normally have it riding around in my back floorboard for those random midday hunts when work is slow. Also I have a rifle quota hunt in December. Its bonus buck and everything. Would love to use my BAR to capitalize on that. Any suggestions are welcome and I've enjoyed the previous posts. Thanks!
 
tanasirivertea said:
I have anxiety. Not in the casual, socially jokey way people say in casual conversations. I have the "talk to professional counselor" level anxiety. I go to therapy and do things to cope and all. I live a mostly normal life (except for my whitetail fanaticism lol), self employed small biz owner, great wife, healthy kids. I just say this so no one is worried. But I developed a twitch with firearms over the summer. I even have it with my crossbow. Everything shoots high and to the right in my hands. But don't have the first problem with my compound bow! Any recommendations for overcoming the twitch I got going on? I miss my muzzleloader right now and generally like hunting with it during rifle season. I'll normally have it riding around in my back floorboard for those random midday hunts when work is slow. Also I have a rifle quota hunt in December. Its bonus buck and everything. Would love to use my BAR to capitalize on that. Any suggestions are welcome and I've enjoyed the previous posts. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Cardio, Prozac and practice.
 
tanasirivertea said:
I have anxiety. Not in the casual, socially jokey way people say in casual conversations. I have the "talk to professional counselor" level anxiety. I go to therapy and do things to cope and all. I live a mostly normal life (except for my whitetail fanaticism lol), self employed small biz owner, great wife, healthy kids. I just say this so no one is worried. But I developed a twitch with firearms over the summer. I even have it with my crossbow. Everything shoots high and to the right in my hands. But don't have the first problem with my compound bow! Any recommendations for overcoming the twitch I got going on? I miss my muzzleloader right now and generally like hunting with it during rifle season. I'll normally have it riding around in my back floorboard for those random midday hunts when work is slow. Also I have a rifle quota hunt in December. Its bonus buck and everything. Would love to use my BAR to capitalize on that. Any suggestions are welcome and I've enjoyed the previous posts. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Rim fire, shoot a lot of 22 and 22 mag if you have them, set targets at different distances and burn plenty of ammo trying to hold on the same spot for 10 rounds without bringing your head up, don't try to move your shots just aim at same spot and see what you and the gun are doing. Take breaks and let your rifle cool down while you review your targets and think of what you can do on holding or supporting your weapon, then practice free handing, not as many shots as it wont take long for muscle fatigue to affect your groups. I haven't shot much since the ammo craze and work/life gets in the way. I use shooting sticks when I can but am comfortable free handing to 100y without a problem, you want to think of all your weapons as easy to shoot, if recoil affects you down size caliber, no shame in it and I would trade accuracy over horsepower any day, try ear muffs, you would be surprised at the reaction folks have to noise, lot of things affect us differently and most can be corrected but you need to figure out what it is before you start changing anything imo. good luck
 
Lost Lake said:
Controlling the shot process. Getting in a consistent step by step rhythm of executing the shot after getting the nerves temporarily under control, even if you have to talk yourself through it. Following through with your weapon after the shot is crucial. For me, that means keeping my head behind my bow, and arm pointed toward the target well after the shot, or keeping my head down on the rifle stock and crosshairs or sight in place for a few seconds after firing. It can't be over emphasized.

One thing an older cousin pointed out to me years ago about his brother as we were talking about hunting really stood out. It was that he simply knew when to shoot. Sounds easy enough, but it's one of the most important things a hunter has to learn.
Click to expand...
This is good. One of my challenges is to shoot in the woods the same way I do in the back yard ... same process, patience, discipline, attention to detail. Seeing that deer can sometimes distract from the fundamentals if you let it.
 
HenryCohunter said:
It means pick a spot and only a spot to shoot.. biggest mistake a lot of new or even unpracticed older shooters make is looking at the whole target. Not just where the bullet should go.
Click to expand...
Thanks. That what I thought it meant but wasn't sure. I like your explanation better…

It is good advice too. I first deer hunted when I was a teenager and was a very good shot. I still gut shot my first deer. I understood where I needed to aim on the deer but lost my confidence at that moment. I put the sights on the right spot but then moved the sights back a little to make sure I didn't miss the deer. I should have stuck to the correct spot all along because the bullet hit where my sights were lined up. The deer dropped where it was at but that was the first and last time I didn't focus on the "small" spot.
 
Jcalder said:
Buy quality equipment. From the rifle, to the mounts, to the scope, ammo. If you have to twist on your scope year after year, it's junk and it's time to upgrade. If you have a 10 pound trigger, it's time to get that down. If your weaver rings keep coming loose, throw them in the trash and buy quality rings. Number one thing most people do, or don't, is actually practice. Get your rifle out and shoot it. And not 3 times at paper and put it up. Actually shoot it. Get a good group. I've started doing 5-10 shot groups. You get a much better representation of what you, and your rifle are capable of. I couldn't tell you how many rifles I've sighted for various people thru the years. People buy beautiful rifles and have trashco scopes on them that don't hold zero and you can't half see out of them. Why?!? You and your rifle deserve to have quality components that reduce the likelihood of failure! People miss because they don't put the time in. And sometimes, buck fever is real! No one to blame but yourself.
Click to expand...
I agree...and disagree...in a way.
Man has been killing critters for thousands of years with sticks and rocks...it doesn't take a 2k $ rig to kill a deer. I've done it with nice setups...and just as easily with some budget stuff.
A thousand dollar fishing rod won't catch me anymore fish than a 5 dollar rod if I don't know how to use it. At least in my neck of the woods...I don't need 1k worth of glass to shoot 100 yards. It hasn't been all that many years ago that a 20 dollar tasco from k-mart was on a bunch of 336s and 94 30/30s. They killed deer just fine. You can't buy skill...and experience!!
But I do get your point...make sure what you have is setup correctly...and stays in place.
 
All good and valid reasons to help but I'll add that we sometimes don't look through the shot from barrel to our target especially in the wooded scene. We don't think our bullet will miss if it hits a small limb or even a twig but it will ! If the deer is not clear and about to be out of your life at times we will take a chance at a bad shot . I've caught myself looking at the deer in the scope not realizing that I hadn't aligned up the crosshairs to my intended target .
 
Tenntrapper said:
I agree...and disagree...in a way.
Man has been killing critters for thousands of years with sticks and rocks...it doesn't take a 2k $ rig to kill a deer. I've done it with nice setups...and just as easily with some budget stuff.
A thousand dollar fishing rod won't catch me anymore fish than a 5 dollar rod if I don't know how to use it. At least in my neck of the woods...I don't need 1k worth of glass to shoot 100 yards. It hasn't been all that many years ago that a 20 dollar tasco from k-mart was on a bunch of 336s and 94 30/30s. They killed deer just fine. You can't buy skill...and experience!!
But I do get your point...make sure what you have is setup correctly...and stays in place.
Click to expand...
At one time I had a few trashcos. They worked fine, until they didn't. I won't ever advocate for not checking your stuff, but think in this. You have a rifle and scope combo. You sight it in when you purchase it. You hunt with it and it's fine. Next year you get it out and have to crank on dials cause it's off. Why is it off? You mean it lost zero sitting in the closet? A 2" zero shift probably isn't gonna matter to most. It wasn't that long ago and pie plate accuracy was acceptable. But when you start compounding errors it adds up. Another point. I can remember the days of sighting in a rifle. You turn your knob and it takes it a shot or two to get the darn thing to move. How many have ever turned a knob and tapped the turret afterward. Or bumped the stock to make sure it moved lol. And no, you don't need $1000 optics. But you need to buy quality optics that do exactly as they're supposed. They're a sighting device. And any shift not caused by an adjustment is a failure somewhere down the line.

I will agree tho, skill and experience are keys to success.
 
Snake said:
All good and valid reasons to help but I'll add that we sometimes don't look through the shot from barrel to our target especially in the wooded scene. We don't think our bullet will miss if it hits a small limb or even a twig but it will ! If the deer is not clear and about to be out of your life at times we will take a chance at a bad shot . I've caught myself looking at the deer in the scope not realizing that I hadn't aligned up the crosshairs to my intended target .
Click to expand...
People don't realize how much a twig can change the course of a bullet. Even big heavy bullets like a 45/70
 
Jcalder said:
At one time I had a few trashcos. They worked fine, until they didn't. I won't ever advocate for not checking your stuff, but think in this. You have a rifle and scope combo. You sight it in when you purchase it. You hunt with it and it's fine. Next year you get it out and have to crank on dials cause it's off. Why is it off? You mean it lost zero sitting in the closet? A 2" zero shift probably isn't gonna matter to most. It wasn't that long ago and pie plate accuracy was acceptable. But when you start compounding errors it adds up. Another point. I can remember the days of sighting in a rifle. You turn your knob and it takes it a shot or two to get the darn thing to move. How many have ever turned a knob and tapped the turret afterward. Or bumped the stock to make sure it moved lol. And no, you don't need $1000 optics. But you need to buy quality optics that do exactly as they're supposed. They're a sighting device. And any shift not caused by an adjustment is a failure somewhere down the line.

I will agree tho, skill and experience are keys to success.
Click to expand...
I get what you're saying...and agree, but it wasn't till just a few years ago that I could afford anything more than a 100 dollar scope... sometimes less. And I've NEVER had a scope malfunction. I did have a ring malfunction that caused a few missed deer...and they were Leupold rings... actually failed several times. I just couldn't wrap my mind around how such a big name brand could be failing in about 4 rounds...but they were. Switched to a different/cheaper brand and never had another failure. @mike243 has mentioned several times on here about premium bullet failures....and although I don't think I've had a failure per se, I do think most are over rated. Honest to God....I've had more inconsistencies with nosler than any other company....and how many people swear by them? A .25 cent Speer cup and core will kill deer just as dead as a 1.25 partition, just put it where it goes and it's game over. I guess my point is...you don't need the most expensive stuff to be good at this hobby. I hate to use this example....but just look at Catman. I truly hate to think about the money I've needlessly pissed away on high dollar junk.
 
Jcalder said:
Buy quality equipment. From the rifle, to the mounts, to the scope, ammo. If you have to twist on your scope year after year, it's junk and it's time to upgrade. If you have a 10 pound trigger, it's time to get that down. If your weaver rings keep coming loose, throw them in the trash and buy quality rings. Number one thing most people do, or don't, is actually practice. Get your rifle out and shoot it. And not 3 times at paper and put it up. Actually shoot it. Get a good group. I've started doing 5-10 shot groups. You get a much better representation of what you, and your rifle are capable of. I couldn't tell you how many rifles I've sighted for various people thru the years. People buy beautiful rifles and have trashco scopes on them that don't hold zero and you can't half see out of them. Why?!? You and your rifle deserve to have quality components that reduce the likelihood of failure! People miss because they don't put the time in. And sometimes, buck fever is real! No one to blame but yourself.
Click to expand...
Agree 100% with this! And this goes hand in hand with having some decent quality stuff (note it doesn't have to be top quality). When I first started I had hand me down rifles with cheapo scopes and I killed deer with them for sure! But over a long enough time line the misses came into play. I still don't have $1000's of dollars invested into my weapons and scopes, but having a decent gun with a good trigger and a nice clear scope has made me enjoy shooting so much more than I used to! Practicing is enjoyable at that point. And I know my weapon so much better than I used to.

Another thing that's helped me get better is teaching other shooters how to get better. When you have to explain/teach something, you are forced to know exactly what youre talking about and it really benefitted my shooting as well. And watching someone making all the mistakes that you are likely still liable to make helps too.
 
Tenntrapper said:
I get what you're saying...and agree, but it wasn't till just a few years ago that I could afford anything more than a 100 dollar scope... sometimes less. And I've NEVER had a scope malfunction. I did have a ring malfunction that caused a few missed deer...and they were Leupold rings... actually failed several times. I just couldn't wrap my mind around how such a big name brand could be failing in about 4 rounds...but they were. Switched to a different/cheaper brand and never had another failure. @mike243 has mentioned several times on here about premium bullet failures....and although I don't think I've had a failure per se, I do think most are over rated. Honest to God....I've had more inconsistencies with nosler than any other company....and how many people swear by them? A .25 cent Speer cup and core will kill deer just as dead as a 1.25 partition, just put it where it goes and it's game over. I guess my point is...you don't need the most expensive stuff to be good at this hobby. I hate to use this example....but just look at Catman. I truly hate to think about the money I've needlessly pissed away on high dollar junk.
Click to expand...
I'm slowly learning with leupold, you're buying a name, not the best product.
 
I've seen the word patient listed above. To me that is most helpful. I got on a bad run a few years ago--like 3 bad shots that fall. Finally, I had a very nice buck come in to field and I had a shot but made myself wait for a minute or so. I made a good shot after that. I need to remember that thought pattern every time and lose the wing shooter (instinctive) tendencies.
 
Jcalder said:
People don't realize how much a twig can change the course of a bullet. Even big heavy bullets like a 45/70
Click to expand...



You mean "brush busters" is actually a myth? lol


I've seen it first hand. The only 2 bullets Ive ever had turned were a 200gr RN .35 and a 300gr .45. One off a small pine limb I didn't see and one off a briar.
 
Malo1ke said:
I've seen the word patient listed above. To me that is most helpful. I got on a bad run a few years ago--like 3 bad shots that fall. Finally, I had a very nice buck come in to field and I had a shot but made myself wait for a minute or so. I made a good shot after that. I need to remember that thought pattern every time and lose the wing shooter (instinctive) tendencies.
Click to expand...
Agreed...at least try to wait till that initial adrenaline dump has calmed down. It's much easier said than done though... 😂. I grew up hunting rabbits...got to be quick.. 😂.
 
Tenntrapper said:
I get what you're saying...and agree, but it wasn't till just a few years ago that I could afford anything more than a 100 dollar scope... sometimes less. And I've NEVER had a scope malfunction. I did have a ring malfunction that caused a few missed deer...and they were Leupold rings... actually failed several times. I just couldn't wrap my mind around how such a big name brand could be failing in about 4 rounds...but they were. Switched to a different/cheaper brand and never had another failure. @mike243 has mentioned several times on here about premium bullet failures....and although I don't think I've had a failure per se, I do think most are over rated. Honest to God....I've had more inconsistencies with nosler than any other company....and how many people swear by them? A .25 cent Speer cup and core will kill deer just as dead as a 1.25 partition, just put it where it goes and it's game over. I guess my point is...you don't need the most expensive stuff to be good at this hobby. I hate to use this example....but just look at Catman. I truly hate to think about the money I've needlessly pissed away on high dollar junk.
Click to expand...



The problem guys see with premium bullets "failing" is people shoot a harder premium bullets into soft tissue and you don't get the same bullet upset. Hard bullets require a hard target like bones or heavier animals than a 130lb whitetail. If you're a rib shooter then better results typically come from softer bullets.


A friend was using 180gr Barnes from his .308 Win. A whitetail buck just wasn't much resistance for heavy, slow premium and just wasn't expanding much. I could not get him to understand just because it may be a good elk or moose bullet doesn't mean it's a good whitetail bullet.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top