I would agree a semi in a military action/rifle is very effective, especially with reduced recoil and rapid site picture recovery. I've never cared for the reliability of civilian/hunting semi autos, for whatever reason, just stuck with something of proven reliability on that end, a springfield armory product.
Sure I firmly believe in one shot, one kill, but over time, a person can and will miss, I can think of more than one in over 30 years of whitetail hunting. I've hunted with a semi for 20+ years, have effectively reloaded ammunition for it. I know the value, the feel and the results of a tack driving bolt action, makes you think, who needs a semi LOL ! However, having used a semi for a very long time, I get the same effect, but with one advantage, tolerable recoil, immediate second shot with rapid site picture recovery. A few years back on thanksgiving morning, I plainly missed on the first shot, 2nd was dead on vitals, it dropped without running, they usually run 100 feet. Time was limited as the target was walking slowly out of sight, 200 yds, extreme angle from my stand, without the semi, I'd have lost the opportunity. Most times it is one shot, but there is confidence knowing that if you do miss, you can recover very quickly. I often practice shooting etiquette, breathing and holding steady, on live targets from the stand, so when the time comes, I've got that down, and with the ammo situation, as much as I would rather practice by shooting live ammo at targets, it serves me well. Last season a carefully placed shot hit dead center of the heart, friends dad while field dressing, ah, well.... probably luck, but over the years its been repeated many times by that same rifle. I remember so carefully resting and squeezing off that particular shot, I do like the 2 stage trigger, though its not been modified, I know the feel and know what to expect every time. I believe in using what works best for you, which is really only known through actual experience.
If you think your age, condition and ability given the previous, are better served with a semi, I would not hesitate. You can certainly practice a little, see how it feels, see what you can do, then know when the season comes, compared to what you have been using, hopefully the change improves things. I think a semi is fine, sure its not so you can dial in on the target during the season, it just gives you that confidence in quick back up, if by chance you do happen to miss.
Every year I sit in my stand and count the shots, opening day, and throughout the season, off in the distance, I hear bolt action misses frequently, in stark contrast, the 3 of us that hunt here, most times you will hear that one solitary shot, with good result, a humane kill. It seems a lot of people around here take multiple shots, and it sounds like many of them miss, and I have found many unclaimed deer that were shot or wounded by these fools over the years. One was a nice buck, that I had observed all summer, it was hit between the back legs, as if you cut the hide, and exposed the thigh muscle, the hide was loosely hanging off the insides, for awhile after close examination. That poor deer suffered immensely I am sure, it dropped or broke its horns off, being wounded. It matched the buck I watched nearby, for that entire summer and was returning to its domain when my father shot it with a '94 .32 special, iron sights, thinking he was filling a doe tag, in reality it was one that needed to be put down because of some idiot who made the decision to shoot the deer in the butt, in that case the rifle was smarter than the hunter !
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