Rixton and Astley Shooting Club.

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cartridge94

New member
Joined
Feb 9, 2016
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3
My Experience at Rixton and Astley Shooting Club

When I first applied for my Shotgun Certificate, I was researching into everything I needed to be a safe and responsible clay pigeon shooter. 

I understood that the safe handling of a gun is paramount when it comes to shooting, I looked around online at a few clubs in the local area to myself and came across Rixton and Astley Shooting Club.

I read on the website that the club cater in lessons for safe shooting and gun handling, so I contacted the club and spoke to John Webster who owns and manages the club, He is also a BASC Safe Shot Assessor and Shotgun Coach, and he kindly took me through the process of applying for my certificate and explained that the lessons that they undertake are for people that are new to shooting and current shotgun certificate owners that want to improve in their shooting, I was offered a twenty five & fifty bird shooting lesson all under the instruction of John with cartridges included at a great price, I eagerly booked a fifty bird lesson with him there and then.

When I went to the ground for my lesson I was offered a cup of tea and instantly got chatting to all of the lads that where there having a brew, I explained that I was a complete greenhorn to shotgun shooting and they where all very encouraging and wished me the best of luck with my lesson, I was then called by John to start my lesson, He started the lesson by giving me an interesting and extensive talk on gun safety and questions regarding gun car, safety during transport and clay pigeon shooting.

We then moved onto the gun itself. I was fitted to use a gun that John had provided for the lesson and he made sure that the gun fitted my eye on the rib and comfortably in the shoulder. we then moved onto the shooting, John explained the workings of the clay pigeon traps and the different types of traps and cartridges that are used for clay pigeon shooting and the techniques used to successfully shoot clay pigeons. I was shown and practiced the correct stance positions for clay pigeon shooting and allowed to shoot at a number of differently positioned clay targets. I was also complimented on my shooting by John and other guys around the ground that had watched me shoot.


After we had finished the shooting lesson I felt completely comfortable in regards to safety and the atmosphere of the ground itself. 
 

John then explained that he owns Norgas Cartridge Company in St Helens and that he specialises in Shotguns and Cartridges and that he would advise me on which Shotgun to purchase when my certificate was granted. 

December 19th 2015. My certificate landed on the mat, talk about an early christmas present!

I called John and asked if I could come and be fitted for a gun. I walked into the shop to an array of guns that were picked out by John himself from a vast selection that he had on sale, I was fitted for two guns that felt right in my shoulder. and I eventually opted for the Baikal 27 O/U in 12 Bore.

I shook John by the hand and wished him all the best for Christmas and left with a big smile.

I then went to the annual shoot the club holds every year on Boxing Day. I was welcomed back with open arms by all the lads that I had chatted to on the day of my lesson and we chatted about guns and the events of the christmas day before. There was a selection of seasonal and game soups and foods on offer in the cafe at the club that were all homemade.

I then signed on to shoot, then chose and bought my cartridges from the large selection on offer at the site office, I was advised by the young lady and gentleman behind the counter to try the Clever brand of cartridges. I got to trying my gun for the first time using Clever Mirage 7 1/2 28G cartridges. I decided to start off small and signed to shoot a round of fifty birds on one of the two practice stands. I hit 29/50 on my first shoot day and I was very pleased with my first day of shooting.

The traps change positions every week, so no shoot day is ever the same!

I now attend every two weeks on the selected shoot day and would not shoot anywhere else in regards to atmosphere or the shooting.

A totally cracking club all in all! 
 

 
Very pleased to see a satisfied customer sing our praises, and deeply humbled.

We are continuing to improve the ground facilities and shall soon move to a 60 bird shoot over 7 stands.

webber

 
Very pleased to see a satisfied customer sing our praises, and deeply humbled.

We are continuing to improve the ground facilities and shall soon move to a 60 bird shoot over 7 stands.

webber
Cheers matey! see you soon! 

 
Just wanted to add my own experiences with John Webster and the Rixton & Astley club. 

I've recently returned to shooting after a 20 year break and it has been made all the more pleasurable due to John Webster and his first rate coaching together with no nonsense advice. I first met John at his business, Norgas Cartridges in St Helens as he had a Beretta that I was interested in. This first meeting lasted 3 hours during which John basically coached me for free ! Luckily for me his club had a meeting on the following day,Sunday, and he was available for a proper live coaching session. He also suggested that he bring the Beretta along for me to have a go with. The following day I arrived at Rixton and my immediate feeling was one of welcome form everyone there. The time with John flew by and as well as firing the Beretta I tried a Bernadelli semi that he brought along. To cut a long story short I'm now the proud owner of a 682 Sporting from 1986, vintage like me ! I'm really looking forward to returning to Rixton as a member and taking an active role in a great club. Thanks to John and all at the club for such a positive experience. 

 
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Once again I am humbled yet pleased to learn that satisfied customers appreciate all the effort that goes into putting the shoot on.

The weather forecast for tomorrows shoot (Sunday) is very good.

It's now 60 birds over 7 stands with two practice stands available.

www.astleygunclub.co.uk

webber

 
must pop over some time. Are you planning a dtl layout in the future?

 
must pop over some time. Are you planning a dtl layout in the future?
We have many plans for the ground moving into the future.

DTL is on the list, but not at the top of it.

Over time we will progress towards a 100 bird shoot, the next move will be to 70 birds, but we need some more traps and somewhere to store them.

Mark and I took over the club in June 2015; to say that we've transformed the place is probably an understatement.

We have a number of projects planned to improve our customers experience and enjoyment.  We also have a project in hand to improve the battery charging and reduce the handling of batteries.  It all takes time and all costs money.  We've been distracted to a large degree due to the mud that was generated by the exceptionally wet winter.  We are now on top of the problem although work is continuing to improve the underfoot experience when wet.  A couple of shoots ago it rained throughout the shoot; there was not a muddy welly or boot in sight.  We've laid several tons of woodchip and planted a few hundred willow.  I've just started to proporgate a few hundred Box to use as hedges in the future.  We've come a long way, but still have a long way to go.

webber

 

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