Miracle Shots?

[Gryffydd]

I was thinking it would be fun to read about people's experiences with shots they never thought they'd make, and could probably never do again.

I'll start with mine. I was out shooting next to a large barren hillside (backstop). About 80 yards away, flying through the air 90 degrees to the firing lane, was a crow. Without thinking much of it, I quickly lifted my iron-sighted 10/22 to my shoulder and fired a single shot without really looking at the sights. The crow dropped like a rock. I just stood there with my mouth hanging open for a minute I KNOW I couldn't do that a second time!

 

[brendenb]

I was 13 years old and armed with my trusty pump BB gun. On a full 10-pump load, I shot the beak off a crow in flight about 50ft in the air at a 60 degree angle.

 

[CWL]

Back before Ft. Ord was closed, we used to go shooting at the short range. My friend picked up a poker chip and flipped it downrange saying something like "hit this!" I grabbed his 1911 that was sitting on the bench and made a snap shot that blew the poker chip apart 10-15 yards in the air.

I just put the pistol back down like it wasn't anything special. My friends had a better respect for my shooting skills after that. -Good thing there weren't any more poker chips lying around.

 

[ole farmerbuck]

I was just a kid,shot a dove out of the air with my Dads old 22. I dont think he ever believed me though. About 15 years ago, i was telling someone about it as we were driving around and a duck took off flying and guess what? yep....i got it with a 22. Just like the poker chip, i was glad there was only one duck!

 

[ezenbrowntown]

I wish it was my shot, but it was my buddy's. We were out at his house back in high school, just goofing off shooting at stuff with his .22. There was a sparrow that landed on the line just shy of a telephone pole. I remember there were 4 telephone poles between us and it. He shot at the telephone pole, hoping to just scare it. Needless to say when the bird dropped, we were a tad bit excited!

After sprinting down to where the sparrow fell, we found, with a .22 bullet wound right through the side of its head. I doubt he could have made that shot again at 50 yards, much less at the original distance.

 

[NC-Mike]

The "miracle shot" that comes to mind for me happened when I was maybe 9 or ten years old. We used to visit my family in PA and they would let me loose in the woods with my BB gun, looking for crows.

I still remember watching that big crow come in and land on a branch about 15 feet in the air and about 50-60 feet away. I took careful aim, shot and watched the crow rotate backwards 180 degrees on the branch, hang there for a brief second, the drop to the ground. It was spectacular and hooked me on shooting for life. I still remember the puff of feathers behind him and how they seemed to hang in the air where the crow used to be.

I was the master of all I surveyed that day.

 

[Old Guy]

Two years ago, IPSC State Match Jacksonville FL, ran 4 yds, fired 4 shots from a Glock 17, then moved on.

Two rounds touching, one an inch away, one 3" away. Target was only the center 6" all the way down, the rest was blacked out, hard cover. We all fired 4shots, I was one of the only ones who hit at the 50 yds distance! Center A zone hits. The target patcher called us all over to look, my buddy said "I couldn't do that with a rifle off hand" (Me neither!)

 

[Lightninstrike]

Wasn't mine but my younger brother shot a bat on the wing with a BB gun !! One of those Daisy models. The bat was swooping around the eaves of the house when he took the shot. He was like 5 years old. Personally, I think the bat's sonar detected the BB, mistook it for a flying insect and it tried to swallow it. No way he could have made the shot otherwise. Maybe there is a bat expert around here who can verify.

 

[Ian]

I was at an outdoor range with my Daewoo K2 years ago, and there were some other folks there shooting thrown clays. They ran out of ammo and offered to throw one for me, and I took them up on it just for kicks. Well, whaddaya know, I nailed the clay midair with my first shot. I politely declined to try another one.

 

[Carl]

This happened a few years ago. It was the first time I ever shot a handgun. It was my friend's Walther P22 and about 45 or so yards away was a Gatorade bottle. One shot and I nailed it. Of course afterwards I couldn't do much as hit the sand around it.

 

[thorazine]

Kahr PM9

150 yards

All 10 ring (entire magazine plus a reload).


While riding a motorcycle.

Doing a twelve o'clock wheelie.

-and-

Eating a sandwich.

 

[bottom shelf]

Prolly was just a small sammich though, right?

 

[blakeci]

I was trying to sell a buddy of mine my old Enfield No. 1 MK 111 about 5 years ago, we were shooting on his land and he had an old lawnmower motor sitting on a stump 80 yards away that we were going to shoot at. The gun was made in 1917 and the ammo was from the early sixties, but I threw it up into my shoulder and fired off one quick round with iron sights without really aiming at that motor. Ding, right in the oil resevoir and it fell off the stump in a impressive cloud of burnt oil. Looked at him as said "yup its a good rifle" needless to say he bought it.

 

[rondog]

A buddy and I were on a motorcycle trip, and had stopped for a smoke/beer break under a bridge over a river. Sitting on a high riverbank in the shade, we watched this huge water moccasin swim across the river and crawl up on the beach, where it laid there in the sun to warm up.

I went and fetched my S&W Model 19 .357, 6" barrel, and crept up to where I could peek over the bank and see him. I have no idea of the distance, but it was a respectable shot. Hit it right behind the head, right through the "neck".

When we were kids, another buddy had a big field behind his house. We were out there with our BB guns, and he saw a turtle dove on the ground about 25 yards away. He lobbed a BB in its direction, and hit it square in the head. Same guy also killed four (!) quail one day with one shot from his .410.

 

[geronimo509]

in early 2007, I bought a 44mag DE and with my squad leader, somewhere in the boondocks of Texas while on leave, we were shooting it into this little pond. Well I was able to ricochet a round off the water and hit a pretty big tree that was on the other side of the pond about 50 yards away.

Same time, I shot an empty soda can that was on the ground, point blank without aiming and it went flying about 20 feet in the air and I took aim and hit it while it was on it's way down.

There was this outdoor range on base and had a little steel plate at 100 yards on the pistol range. there was also a pop up target with 5 steel plates at about 15 yards. I took my buddies 9mm(forget what it was, maybe a taurus) and my XD45. I shot both at same time and knocked down all five plates with 6 shots total. The 100 yard plate was next, and i hit it with the 9mm off hand and while it was still swinging back and forth, I hit it with my XD strong hand.

 

[Foofles]

The best shot I ever took was when my friend set up a cigarette on a can and from about 20 yards away I split the cigarette in half without hitting the can with a Crosman .177 airgun

 

[Justin]

At an IPSC match last year we had an array of steel poppers one right in front of the other. I somehow managed to drop the backmost popper first, followed by the one in front of it.

When asked how I did this, I simply told the truth:

"I curved the bullet."

 

[230RN]

Incoming double on ducks. Thirty-five yards? Bam! Bam! Got 'em both.

Surprised the heck out of me.

Surprised my yellow Lab Inge, too.

She was mad at me 'cause they fell almost at my feet and she couldn't take her usual swim after them.

And she was the only witness.

'Cept G-d, and He ain't talkin' either.

Terry, 230RN

 

[CWL]

and-

Eating a sandwich.

Good think you weren't eating a bagel, otherwise nobody would believe you!

 

[mm1ut1]

sort off....

I had just landed my Brewster Buffalo and was taxiing down the runway when a Russian I-16 flew across that airfield at low level. I managed to get a quick burst in and it flew right into the bullets and exploded. Of course it was a computer game (IL-2 Sturmovik), but still the best shot I ever made.

When I was a kid my buddy and I were "Hunting" with our bb guns. A blackbird flew by and my buddy shot from the hip and nailed it. That was the best shot I ever saw.

In bullseye practice I hit seven 10s in a row in slowfire. That's the best I ever shot. Mediocre to poor for many but dang good for me!

 

[waterhouse]

When I was about 12 years old I shot a flying dragonfly with a .22 pistol. It wasn't far away at all, maybe 8 yards, and it was probably easier to do than it seemed, since they basically hover pretty still, but everyone who saw it was pretty impressed.

 

[Old Guy]

Palm Bay Police range, a few years ago.

They had a 2 feet square of steel on a couple of chains at a 100 yds, so beat up it was the same color as the sand back stop.

I said to my Son, spot the shot for me, I am going after that gong.

A Federal Agent standing behind us started laughing, I went prone with my Glock 17, 147g WW Hollow Points, first shot Michael said "hit Dad" I heard the ring of the gong, seemed like a two second pause. on the third hit I stood up, and holstered my Glock.

I could see every filling in the Fed's teeth, his mouth was that wide open.

Felt kind of good about myself.

 

[WVMountainBoy]

Deer season of 2001 at a favorite spot of mine, hadn't seen a deer all day, much less a buck. As my buddy and I were walking back to the truck to call it a day a 6 point popped up on the ridge. I was carrying my Marlin 44 and my friend his Marlin 30/30 I couldn't bring myself to take the shot as it was a hair over 100 yds into the sun. The deer took a few steps down the hill and then turned away from us and back up the hill. My buddy shoulders his rifle and since the hill was a backstop let a round go. The deer took a single step and fell. When we got to it, he had put the round dead in the back of the animal's head. He still brags about his 100 yd head shot into the sun.

 

[jbkebert]

A couple years ago i was outside with my two boys shooting red ryder bb guns. I had them plinking pop cans for awhile. The both decided to plink instead. We started shooting the heads off of dandelions at 5 to 10 yards. My son ask me if I could hit that one around 20-25 yards out. Yeah right I thought I told him to try. He took one shot and missed then the next shot. We looked and watched the dandelion tip over. He cut the stem with the second shot. No way in heck I could have made that shot. The boy earned bragging rights for awhile.

 

[30mag]

I saw my buddy put a *hole* through an iron chicken from 200 yards away with a .357 magnum. I don't remember if it was a 4" or 6" (barrel, not chicken)... but I was impressed by the marksmanship and the power of the cartridge. It was some sort of hot handload.