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Cold! Still Shoot?

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I'm going to go to the range to shoot the postal contest target today. It's going to be around 32° F today. I'm going to be working up a load and sighting in an Investarms Plains rifle. The range has overhead gas heaters that I usually find annoying but I think I'll turn one on today. Once I catch a chill I'm useless.
 
I'm going to go to the range to shoot the postal contest target today. It's going to be around 32° F today. I'm going to be working up a load and sighting in an Investarms Plains rifle. The range has overhead gas heaters that I usually find annoying but I think I'll turn one on today. Once I catch a chill I'm useless.
If we Canadians let a little cold get in the way of our shooting our guns would live in the safe for half the year.
 
Cold is a relative term.

For some heck, 50's & 60's is cold.

Where I live in Central Oregon the winter weather can vary quite a bit but upper 30s to low 40s is a typical winter average and if it's sunny with no wind I'll be out shooting, or doing any one of a number of things.

I may not shoot as long as in the summer but I'll get out for a while anyway. Heck, sometime we will start a fire at one of our shooting spots.

Typically I find wearing a pair of tight woven, cotton disposable gloves really helps, does not inhibit loading or shooting and extends the shooting session a bit!
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I went out today and it ended up milder than I expected. I got my .50 Safari Arms rifle dialed in. I did have the heater on over my shooting position though.🌡
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Colt done saved my life once. It were in the Absaroka near the head waters of the Green and the Musselshell. Got colt in the night, stars so bright and and close ya could almost touch em.
I woke in the false dawn and see my fire glowing likes a blacksmith fire. But it were so Colt that fire had froze solid. Ya could hold them coals in yer hand likes river stone.
Wal says I twere time I hit fur warmer lands. Spect I would heads to the Wind.
I twere a traveling when Three Ney Purse cut my trail. And twere riding hard to lift my har. I do every trick I knew ta throws em of but you know how Flatheads are when they smell easy pickens. I knew I would had to turn a fight em. But twe knew how’s it were going to end Ain’t no feller could fight like a Ute and there twere three of em, my hair will be hanging on a lodge pole fer supper.
Well I comes to a hill near the Big Horn where I cans hide at the top. Them Sioux would top a hill about forty rod away. I figured I coulds take a shot at one, reload fer the other two were close and take out a second then only have to fight one of them Gros Vantre hand ta hand.
Wal them three tops that ridge and I throws Ol Bull Thrower on the middle one and shoots.
Clatch
She never miss fired on me when I needed her. But it were so cold them sparks were just a laying thar in the pan a glowing like stars. Them Apatch jest kept comin’.
Quick likes I grab them sparks and tosses them in my mouth ta warm up.
As them Crow was a gitin closer I grabs me hawk and throws it at the middle one. Then I throws my rifle up and spits them sparks in to the pan. They was warmed up and boom goes my rifle. I shoots that hawk blade and splits the ball. Them half ball drops them two Blackfoots on the sides and the hawk takes down the middle one.
I left that cold front range three horses richer.
 
I did get out to hunt today, first day of ML season here. Just over freezing but a pretty steady 10-15 mph wind out of the north right in my face, so yeah it was a bit nippy. Not the kind of day I would go to the range for fun but tolerable out in the open.
 
Cold is a relative term.

For some heck, 50's & 60's is cold.

Where I live in Central Oregon the winter weather can vary quite a bit but upper 30s to low 40s is a typical winter average and if it's sunny with no wind I'll be out shooting, or doing any one of a number of things.

I may not shoot as long as in the summer but I'll get out for a while anyway. Heck, sometime we will start a fire at one of our shooting spots.

Typically I find wearing a pair of tight woven, cotton disposable gloves really helps, does not inhibit loading or shooting and extends the shooting session a bit!
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In the fall when the temperature drops to 40 degrees you put a jacket on because it’s cold. In the spring when it warms up to 40 degrees off comes the jacket and a heavy long sleeve shirt is all you need because it’s so warm. Funny how that works.
 
I prefer the cold myself. Grew up in Western NY, we got Lake Effect snow/wind, very cold. Live in the South now and not a fan of the humidity . Like it better when it is below 50 degrees, especially below freezing.

-20 degrees might not be fun though.... :ghostly:

Don
Nazgul58, what part of WNY are you from? I grew up in Town of Tonawanda. Live in Amherst now.
 
OK, ya gotta put this into perspective. Summer and winter can require a mind set. In summer ya sweat and drip and get salt in yer eyes and overheat. Damn its hot ya say and start on in a rant and ..... POOF! Ya recall, its summer, its sposed to be hot! Then its OK.

Winters the same. Yer spilling powder and cut yerself with yer patch knife and drop 13 caps trying to load (or spill 48 grns trying to prime) and then POOF! Ya shoot. Ya see/smell sulpher smoke and it dawns on ya....its winter its sposed to be cold! Then yer OK, you shoot as planned and head home to yer period correct thera-flu and a nice nip of whiskey!

Spring in fall er for old folks, its not too hot or too cold, just too short.

I will admit I no longer anticipate getting up at 3:30 AM to blow up my raft, load my decoys, drive to the lake, set my decoys and paddle around and make a blind like I once did. Damn that was fun in the late teens and early twenties! The mostest fun was picking the decoys up one night at sunset in a canoe and me and the boss each grabbed our guns and fired leaning hard right at a few mallards. Its exciting when ya get in the drink with two pair of pants, two wool shirt's and a coat with 4 boxes of 20 GA in yer pockets! Then ya know about cold, and Jesus, and not ever hunting in a canoe again. Its quite clear then.
 
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I call it "cold" when the chill sets in, starts you shaken, and can't be shaken.
Couldn't hold the gun steady at all. I don't shoot in that type of cold any longer.
❄ Brrr ❄
 
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