What exactly do "Trap" and "Skeet" mean?

Clead · February 24, 2000, 02:45 AM

Sorry for the newbie question, but all I've ever done is blast away in gravel pits. I was wondering just what exactly these shotgun sports consist of. I want to shoot regularly, and there's a S/G club 5 mins away from work! Lucky me
Thanks.

Dave McC · February 24, 2000, 08:26 AM

To oversimplify, trap's going away shots and skeet(From the Norwegian word for shoot) is crossing shots. Trap guns are choked tight for a dense pattern farther out,and stocked to shoot a little high. Skeet guns tend to very open chokes, and shooting to POA.

Both are fun.So's Sporting Clays, which some folks liken to loud golf. That presents a number of different clay targets thrown in diverse ways and speeds.

Hueco · February 24, 2000, 10:27 AM

Good descriptions! But I would like to add that in both sports (trap and skeet), you have the opportunity to have too birds in the air at the same time. In trap, the both always travel away from you. In skeet, they cross paths. And if you are thinking of getting into either -- do yourself a favor and bring a 12 ga. I still can't understand why people bring .410s and 20 gauges to the range. I know these people need no more challenge as they are certianly not hitting 100%! I dunno....

Hueco

Forgot to add, in skeet there are two houses where birds fly from. There is a high house on the left, and a low house on the right. In trap, there is a single house dead center of the field. In trap, the birds can fly anywhere from about 60 degrees left to 60 degrees right. And you never know which direction they are going to head after you speak the pull. In skeet, the birds generally (depending on wind) fly the same direction every time from their houses. The high house always shoots right, the low always shoots left. One game that looks like a blast (wow...there I go again with the puns). It's called running rabbit. You set the trap house to shoot the birds extremely low. Then you hop up on top of the house, and when that bird flies, it shoots about a foot above the ground. I do hear it is excellent practice for rabbit hunting and is not just a silly game.

[This message has been edited by Hueco (edited February 24, 2000).]

K80Geoff · February 24, 2000, 05:52 PM

Hueco cmon'. Skeet with a 28 gauge is FUN! With a 410 it takes skill. I sometimes take my 20 to shoot trap, but the other shooters dont seem to like it when I do.

Clead, I would suggest going to the range and watching a couple of rounds of Trap and Skeet. You can learn a lot by just watching.
Trap is very simple, a single bird going away from you. Skeet is more complicated with singles and doubles and crossing birds.

Trap is easy to learn but hard to master, Skeet is more difficult to learn but easier to master. Skeet tends to be more social, as everybody stands around while one shooter shoots. Trap is more intense, with five shooters either shooting or preparing to shoot. There is litle or no talk during a round of trap, skeet Shooters never shut up and will comment about everything from the color of your socks to the trappers lovelife.

The two disciplines are very different, and then we have Sporting Clays which is unlike either. Sporting clays is for Gentlemen.

Have fun and ask questions (Except from those grumpy trapshooters)

Geoff Ross (Sporting Clays shooter)

DorGunR · February 24, 2000, 06:16 PM

There's nothing I can add to what Dave McC,
Hueco and K80Geoff have said, they have covered everything quite well.
Except if you shoot International Skeet you have to shoot 12, 20, 28 and .410.
I normally shoot sheet with a 20 ga. and I used to shoot with a guy that would shoot only .410, and most of the time he shot better than I did. practice, practice, practice.

------------------
"Lead, follow or get the HELL out of the way."

Lavan · February 24, 2000, 06:52 PM

Trap is also a drug. At least it should be controlled because it will become addicting and lead to the hard stuff like changing guns, buying release triggers, altering chokes and stocks, and all the other sad things that happen to those not strong enough to control their urges.

Hueco · February 24, 2000, 07:05 PM

Geoff...you callin' me grumpy? Ah well...my opinion of skeet shooters is even lower.

Rude and abnoxious! Anyway...my idea of fun is success, so I wouldn't ever have fun MISSING every one with a 20.

Hueco

Clead · February 25, 2000, 12:41 AM

Unfortunately, as I stated in an earlier post, all I have to use is an cyl. choked Riot Model 12 in 12g I bought as a riot/HD gun. I like the gun, and it flows to my shoulder, but should I even bother bringing it to the range? I thought it would be good training to get to an instinctive level of shooting in general. Are combat shotguns shunned at SG ranges? It's still wood/blued, just short.

Dave McC · February 25, 2000, 06:29 AM

Clead, nobody will point and snicker at you with your riot gun,after all you're armed(G).

Shooters tend to be a friendly lot. I doubt many of us will cast aspersions on your and your choice of shotgun.Friends might tease you,but it's all in fun.

I shoot clays on occasion at a ritzy range on the Shore called Pintail Point,and I do it with an 870 that started out its working life at the Md Pen. Nobody gives a darn, including the guys with shotguns that cost more than my Dodge.

K80Geoff · February 25, 2000, 10:41 AM

Clead...Cyl choke is OK for skeet. Many shooters use chokes that are even more open than Cylinder. Give it a try, it will make you more proficient with you Model 12.

To become more proficient, after you have learned the routine of skeet, try shooting with the gun dismounted before you call for the bird. This is how the game was originally shot and how it is shot in Olympic competition. Great practice and it will teach you instinctive shooting.

Hueco, I don't miss every one, but I do take two shots if needed

The hardcore trapshooters get really grumpy when I do! Trap and skeet are practice for Sporting clays for me and I like a challenge. Try shooting trap with a 28 starting with a low gun sometime.

Geoff Ross

Snow Man · February 27, 2000, 07:43 AM

Shot trap once at a place that had rules that said "unloaded till your turn." Something like that. To me it meant, "don't accidently discharge firearm and 1 shot per clay." If the other shooters are expecting 1 shot only, they might be surprised/grumpy when the guy before them shoots twice.

Looking forward to "trapping" again this spring with my short barrel installed on my 870. I'll have to hit them when they are closer to get a good hit (clay disappears in cloud of dust

).

February 24, 2000, 02:45 AM	#1
Clead Senior Member Join Date: January 10, 2000 Location: British Columbia, Canada Posts: 110	Sorry for the newbie question, but all I've ever done is blast away in gravel pits. I was wondering just what exactly these shotgun sports consist of. I want to shoot regularly, and there's a S/G club 5 mins away from work! Lucky me Thanks.

February 24, 2000, 08:26 AM	#2
Dave McC Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 13, 1999 Location: Columbia, Md, USA Posts: 8,811	To oversimplify, trap's going away shots and skeet(From the Norwegian word for shoot) is crossing shots. Trap guns are choked tight for a dense pattern farther out,and stocked to shoot a little high. Skeet guns tend to very open chokes, and shooting to POA. Both are fun.So's Sporting Clays, which some folks liken to loud golf. That presents a number of different clay targets thrown in diverse ways and speeds.

February 24, 2000, 10:27 AM	#3
Hueco Senior Member Join Date: December 7, 1999 Posts: 561	Good descriptions! But I would like to add that in both sports (trap and skeet), you have the opportunity to have too birds in the air at the same time. In trap, the both always travel away from you. In skeet, they cross paths. And if you are thinking of getting into either -- do yourself a favor and bring a 12 ga. I still can't understand why people bring .410s and 20 gauges to the range. I know these people need no more challenge as they are certianly not hitting 100%! I dunno.... Hueco Forgot to add, in skeet there are two houses where birds fly from. There is a high house on the left, and a low house on the right. In trap, there is a single house dead center of the field. In trap, the birds can fly anywhere from about 60 degrees left to 60 degrees right. And you never know which direction they are going to head after you speak the pull. In skeet, the birds generally (depending on wind) fly the same direction every time from their houses. The high house always shoots right, the low always shoots left. One game that looks like a blast (wow...there I go again with the puns). It's called running rabbit. You set the trap house to shoot the birds extremely low. Then you hop up on top of the house, and when that bird flies, it shoots about a foot above the ground. I do hear it is excellent practice for rabbit hunting and is not just a silly game. [This message has been edited by Hueco (edited February 24, 2000).]

February 24, 2000, 05:52 PM	#4
K80Geoff Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 1998 Location: NE Pennsylvania Posts: 3,639	Hueco cmon'. Skeet with a 28 gauge is FUN! With a 410 it takes skill. I sometimes take my 20 to shoot trap, but the other shooters dont seem to like it when I do. Clead, I would suggest going to the range and watching a couple of rounds of Trap and Skeet. You can learn a lot by just watching. Trap is very simple, a single bird going away from you. Skeet is more complicated with singles and doubles and crossing birds. Trap is easy to learn but hard to master, Skeet is more difficult to learn but easier to master. Skeet tends to be more social, as everybody stands around while one shooter shoots. Trap is more intense, with five shooters either shooting or preparing to shoot. There is litle or no talk during a round of trap, skeet Shooters never shut up and will comment about everything from the color of your socks to the trappers lovelife. The two disciplines are very different, and then we have Sporting Clays which is unlike either. Sporting clays is for Gentlemen. Have fun and ask questions (Except from those grumpy trapshooters) Geoff Ross (Sporting Clays shooter)

February 24, 2000, 06:16 PM	#5
DorGunR Senior Member Join Date: January 13, 2000 Location: Maryland Posts: 1,125	There's nothing I can add to what Dave McC, Hueco and K80Geoff have said, they have covered everything quite well. Except if you shoot International Skeet you have to shoot 12, 20, 28 and .410. I normally shoot sheet with a 20 ga. and I used to shoot with a guy that would shoot only .410, and most of the time he shot better than I did. practice, practice, practice. ------------------ "Lead, follow or get the HELL out of the way."

February 24, 2000, 06:52 PM	#6
Lavan Senior Member Join Date: December 10, 1999 Location: California Posts: 2,716	Trap is also a drug. At least it should be controlled because it will become addicting and lead to the hard stuff like changing guns, buying release triggers, altering chokes and stocks, and all the other sad things that happen to those not strong enough to control their urges.

February 24, 2000, 07:05 PM	#7
Hueco Senior Member Join Date: December 7, 1999 Posts: 561	Geoff...you callin' me grumpy? Ah well...my opinion of skeet shooters is even lower. Rude and abnoxious! Anyway...my idea of fun is success, so I wouldn't ever have fun MISSING every one with a 20. Hueco

February 25, 2000, 12:41 AM	#8
Clead Senior Member Join Date: January 10, 2000 Location: British Columbia, Canada Posts: 110	Unfortunately, as I stated in an earlier post, all I have to use is an cyl. choked Riot Model 12 in 12g I bought as a riot/HD gun. I like the gun, and it flows to my shoulder, but should I even bother bringing it to the range? I thought it would be good training to get to an instinctive level of shooting in general. Are combat shotguns shunned at SG ranges? It's still wood/blued, just short.

February 25, 2000, 06:29 AM	#9
Dave McC Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 13, 1999 Location: Columbia, Md, USA Posts: 8,811	Clead, nobody will point and snicker at you with your riot gun,after all you're armed(G). Shooters tend to be a friendly lot. I doubt many of us will cast aspersions on your and your choice of shotgun.Friends might tease you,but it's all in fun. I shoot clays on occasion at a ritzy range on the Shore called Pintail Point,and I do it with an 870 that started out its working life at the Md Pen. Nobody gives a darn, including the guys with shotguns that cost more than my Dodge.

February 25, 2000, 10:41 AM	#10
K80Geoff Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 1998 Location: NE Pennsylvania Posts: 3,639	Clead...Cyl choke is OK for skeet. Many shooters use chokes that are even more open than Cylinder. Give it a try, it will make you more proficient with you Model 12. To become more proficient, after you have learned the routine of skeet, try shooting with the gun dismounted before you call for the bird. This is how the game was originally shot and how it is shot in Olympic competition. Great practice and it will teach you instinctive shooting. Hueco, I don't miss every one, but I do take two shots if needed The hardcore trapshooters get really grumpy when I do! Trap and skeet are practice for Sporting clays for me and I like a challenge. Try shooting trap with a 28 starting with a low gun sometime. Geoff Ross

February 27, 2000, 07:43 AM	#11
Snow Man Member Join Date: February 26, 2000 Posts: 66	Shot trap once at a place that had rules that said "unloaded till your turn." Something like that. To me it meant, "don't accidently discharge firearm and 1 shot per clay." If the other shooters are expecting 1 shot only, they might be surprised/grumpy when the guy before them shoots twice. Looking forward to "trapping" again this spring with my short barrel installed on my 870. I'll have to hit them when they are closer to get a good hit (clay disappears in cloud of dust ).