Clay Target Q&A
With Russell Mark, Olympic gold and silver medallist
Questions: russell@corporateshootingstars.com.au
Q I have set up a gun to shoot DTL over the past couple of years that I am very happy with and I have now reached AA Grade. This gun shoots reasonably high (60 per cent). I have now taken up shooting Olympic Trap and have bought another gun of exactly the same brand and barrel length, which is 75cm. After speaking with some of the more experienced shooters at my range, I have set the second gun up, so it shoots flatter and only shoots 50 per cent high. The barrels are a fair bit lighter, which makes me shoot faster and I have made the stock longer, so I stay glued to it for the wider swinging targets. I have this specialised Olympic Trap gun now, but I can’t hit a thing with it. I actually hit far more targets when I use my DTL gun. Have I been given good advice and what would you suggest to improve my Olympic Trap scores?
A The first thing I would do is to find someone I hate and sell them your second gun for as much as I could get for it. See if some of the guys that gave you all the advice are in the market. It sounds like you already have a perfectly fine gun and it also sounds like it would be more than adequate to shoot Olympic Trap with. A barrel length of 75cm is perfect and generally any barrel weighing about 1.45kg all the way to 1.7kg has been used over the years to win all of the world’s major events. The stock on your first gun must be suitable and there is no logical argument that Olympic Trap requires a lengthier stock. There is, however, some merit in having a slightly higher shooting gun for DTL. Maybe all you needed was a few millimetres taken off your original comb, then an adjustable stock added, so you could shoot both disciplines comfortably.