Terrible weather for opening day

kahunter

Eight Pointer
Could not have written a worst weather day for saturday. Warm, no wind and heavy fog. Needless to say we did not kill much on the sound. Wind picked up and the fog lifted and the birds still didn't fly. Did not hear of anyone doing much. Worst day of the year by far.
Middle of this week looking decent. We will see. Hope we get slammed with some weather at some point. Bad duck hunting weather is good for work I guess so there is that. Might as well make money if the hunting is gonna be slow.
Anyone get out and hopefully did better than us?
 
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JJWise

Twelve Pointer
About the same conditions we were hunting in. Lots of big high flying groups but not much that was interested in the decoys. We had a drake bluebill and a hen surf scoter really commit, but my gun misfired on the bluebill and I just straight up missed the scoter.

Went out this morning to one of my woodie spots and the gun is still misfiring but much worse now. Been doing this for a few weeks no matter how much I clean it, getting light primer strikes. Some days it’s about 1-in-25 or less, some days (especially the cold ones) it’s about 1-to-1. Not what I was hoping to be dealing with in the 3rd split…
 

gone_huntin

Four Pointer
The weather was not ideal but we actually saw around 15 ducks throughout the morning on a private pond in the piedmont region. Had a group of 8 mallards land just outside shooting range, we saw a few other pairs here and there, and finally got one hen pintail which we ended up bagging, which we thought was pretty rare for that part of the state. Did not see any geese although I had seen 4 dozen a week earlier while working on my blind. Hoping for better weather and some geese on Christmas Eve.
 

Fatkid

Eight Pointer
About the same conditions we were hunting in. Lots of big high flying groups but not much that was interested in the decoys. We had a drake bluebill and a hen surf scoter really commit, but my gun misfired on the bluebill and I just straight up missed the scoter.

Went out this morning to one of my woodie spots and the gun is still misfiring but much worse now. Been doing this for a few weeks no matter how much I clean it, getting light primer strikes. Some days it’s about 1-in-25 or less, some days (especially the cold ones) it’s about 1-to-1. Not what I was hoping to be dealing with in the 3rd split…
What kind of gun is it? How old?
 

TH80

Eight Pointer
Tried a woodie spot for the opener. Very slow for us. Sweating walking in and sweating worse walking out. Killed one drake woodie and a few mosquitoes. Did see a few but overall slow. The rains have filled the swamp some. Need some cold weather and more rain.
 

ncsporksman

Button Buck
Woodies flew high even w the fog go figure, not another bird spotted here in the Piedmont, good weather to top your waders, about it lol
 

ncsporksman

Button Buck
About the same conditions we were hunting in. Lots of big high flying groups but not much that was interested in the decoys. We had a drake bluebill and a hen surf scoter really commit, but my gun misfired on the bluebill and I just straight up missed the scoter.

Went out this morning to one of my woodie spots and the gun is still misfiring but much worse now. Been doing this for a few weeks no matter how much I clean it, getting light primer strikes. Some days it’s about 1-in-25 or less, some days (especially the cold ones) it’s about 1-to-1. Not what I was hoping to be dealing with in the 3rd split…
Replace firing pin?
 

JONOV

Twelve Pointer
About the same conditions we were hunting in. Lots of big high flying groups but not much that was interested in the decoys. We had a drake bluebill and a hen surf scoter really commit, but my gun misfired on the bluebill and I just straight up missed the scoter.

Went out this morning to one of my woodie spots and the gun is still misfiring but much worse now. Been doing this for a few weeks no matter how much I clean it, getting light primer strikes. Some days it’s about 1-in-25 or less, some days (especially the cold ones) it’s about 1-to-1. Not what I was hoping to be dealing with in the 3rd split…
Probably need a new spring and/or firing pin, but most likely spring.
 

grim reaper

Ten Pointer
@JJWise What kind of gun? Are you sure the chamber is closing all the way? My nelli is bad about that last little twist that shuts chamber completely...just a thought. Ton of woodies around my area and a few big ducks but wised up quick and didn't fly much after first light on Saturday. Had plenty mosquitos buzzing us tho
 

grim reaper

Ten Pointer
I’ve never had that problem. Maybe yours isn’t getting wet enough? 😂

try rinsing it more often!
Nah it's the way the chamber is designed to function. It's twists shut and locks in...I've got in the habit of checking to make sure it's shut properly. My gun usually stays too hot for it to be "wet enough" 🙂 although I did see a guy take apart an 870 and clean it in a lake one morning
 
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valetroutfisherman

Ten Pointer
I missed out on all the fun Saturday, had to work. But plan on taking advantage on a couole of my days off, Wed & Thurs, hopefully see some ducks and geese in shooting range. The foothills can be tough.
 

TomstoSwans486

Four Pointer
I've had some really good woodie shots on warm days with no wind. Saturday was not one of those, did get a goose, fully committed and did it right. Christmas roast time!!
 

agsnchunt

Old Mossy Horns
Nah it's the way the chamber is designed to function. It's twists shut and locks in...I've got in the habit of checking to make sure it's shut properly. My gun usually stays too hot for it to be "wet enough" 🙂 although I did see a guy take apart an 870 and clean it in a lake one morning

wouldve loved to have seen that.

I knocked my benelli into some soupy mud once. Just dipped it in the water about 6-7 times and it was like new. That was one of the few times I cleaned it well after hunting.
 

ScottyB

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I pay 50-100 bucks for those ol worn out guns…. Just shoot me a pm….. I will come to you
 

JJWise

Twelve Pointer
What kind of gun is it? How old?
Beretta A400 Xtreme Plus, just bought it in February. Shot skeet and doves all year with it and it ran flawless, probably 6,000 rounds or so before duck season. This morning though it ran perfectly, only thing I did different was add a small amount of lube to the trigger group then let it sit upside down until it had all run out. Hoping we’re good from here on.
 

DuckyDave

Eight Pointer
Contributor
Obviously you shot skeet and doves with shells different than those you use for waterfowl. Are you sure it isn't a gun/ammo incompatability problem? I have a gun that fails to fire Super-X frequently but shoots all other brands just fine. And the Super-X shells shoot fine in 3 other guns.
 

JJWise

Twelve Pointer
Obviously you shot skeet and doves with shells different than those you use for waterfowl. Are you sure it isn't a gun/ammo incompatability problem? I have a gun that fails to fire Super-X frequently but shoots all other brands just fine. And the Super-X shells shoot fine in 3 other guns.
I don’t think so, I didn’t have any issues shooting Kent or Rios during the first 2 splits. This started right at the end of the 2nd split/ beginning of sea duck season. Seems to be fixed now though, going to shoot skeet tomorrow to confirm before I take it hunting Friday.
 

bigdrumnc

Ten Pointer
Our opener was slow slow slow. Fog was thick as pea soup. Had four pintails give us the slip in and out of the fog. We couldn’t see the decoys from the box. We could have had every duck in Nc 5 feet from us and wouldn’t know it. Hunted yesterday , more wind , cooler, low water and saw 8 good birds. Hmmmmmm
 

Fatkid

Eight Pointer
Beretta A400 Xtreme Plus, just bought it in February. Shot skeet and doves all year with it and it ran flawless, probably 6,000 rounds or so before duck season. This morning though it ran perfectly, only thing I did different was add a small amount of lube to the trigger group then let it sit upside down until it had all run out. Hoping we’re good from here on.
Holy moly! 6000 rounds! You’ve done wore that gun out!!!
 

JJWise

Twelve Pointer
Holy moly! 6000 rounds! You’ve done wore that gun out!!!
I shoot 100-200 rounds a week at the skeet range, plus whatever I’ve shot at doves and ducks this year. That’s part of the reason I bit the bullet and bought a beretta, they’re commonly used by competition shooters (who burn through a lot more ammo than I do) and are built to hold up.
 

shurshot

Ten Pointer
Well it seems we have two topics so I’ll reply to both ..

I also shoot an A400 and have had no FTF issues in 4 seasons. As mentioned, I’d be working on the firing pin linkage/assembly. The fact that the problem is exacerbated by the cold suggest a dirty build up of oil/gunk on you hammer spring causing a light strike. Grime causes sluggishness in cold environments. I’d also completely breakdown the fp mechanism and throughly inspect/ clean it. Replace the parts if necessary. Do all this and your gun should run flawlessly again.

Well, my partner and I seemed to have had a little better luck Saturday by taking a fairly quick limit. Saw a fair amount of birds albeit pretty foggy. We’ve had a super season so far ….
969FAB34-5F31-4616-A7BF-8086A652F098.jpeg
 

likemy16

Button Buck
We had the same weather -warm, wet and foggy. Turned our attention to the Canadas. No action until 09:30. Could hear 'em coming, but couldn't see them until the last second. Made for fun shooting. Should have enough goose jerky to last the rest of the season with some to share.
Geese.jpg
 

kahunter

Eight Pointer
Much better weather today and had a pretty good day. Killed gadwall, teal, mallards and a blackhead but still did not see the ducks like I thought we would. We may be in for some slow hunting with the weather reports I have seen.
On a positive note I did scout a spot for friday and it is loaded up. Should be fun.
 

kahunter

Eight Pointer
It was so bad on opening day the Coastal Corn Guides (CCG's :D ) couldn't even draw them in.
Haha
Yeah I heard alot of people didnt kill em today and it was a day most would consider a good impoundment day with the rain
 
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Fatkid

Eight Pointer
I haven’t had chance to go this split but all I’ve been hearing are nothing but dismal reports as well.
 
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