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Barely made it out after work hunt tonight. Right at the end of legal shooting time the deer just piled into the cut beans. Thought I was going to be shooting a doe and all of a sudden this guy popped out. Everything happened so quickly...I ended up having to shoot him about 75 yards frontal shot in the neck. Dropped him in his tracks.

Decided to use my little Thompson Center 45 cal Cherokee sidelock this week for the muzzleloader extension, it is a very nice light weight rifle, I shoot the TC Maxi Balls which are a conical style lead bullet over loose Pyrodex. This is a very finicky rifle, after all kinds of powder-bullet combinations the TC Maxi Balls are the only thing I can get to shoot accurately, which is OK because they will work if I do my part. Power is about the same as a 44 mag. Al

Morris and his wife Esther went to the state fair every year, and every year Morris would say, 'Esther, I'd like to ride in that helicopter.' Esther always replied, 'I know Morris, but that Helicopter ride is fifty dollars, and fifty dollars is fifty dollars.' One year Esther and Morris went to the fair, and Morris said, 'Esther, I'm 85 Years old. If I don't ride that helicopter, I might never get another chance.' To this, Esther replied, 'Morris that helicopter ride is fifty dollars, and fifty dollars is fifty dollars.' The pilot overheard the couple and said, 'Folks I'll make you a deal. I'll take both of you for a ride, and if you can stay quiet for the entire ride and not say a word, I won't charge you. But if you say one word, it's fifty dollars.' Morris and Esther agreed and up they went. The pilot did all kinds of fancy maneuvers, but not a word was heard. He did his daredevil tricks over and over again, but still not a word. When they landed, the pilot turned to Morris and said, 'By golly, I did everything I could to get you to yell out, but you didn't. I'm impressed!' Morris replied, 'Well, to tell you the truth, I almost said something when Esther fell out, but you know, fifty dollars is fifty dollars.’

Two came in and one left. The first one winded me and left. The second one came from the right side and took the wrong way back.

Look at this beast. Sadly killed by a car.

Nothing like a true 6x6 main frame 12-point... it is extremely rare

Another vote for an entry-level Barnett here. I paid about $ 250 for my 300 fps Recruit, back in the spring of 2014, after they were first legalized in NY for deer hunting. It has held up very well for the last 8 years. It certainly is not the fastest, but there is something to be said for “not pushing the envelope” when it comes to durability, longevity, and ease of use. Other than the ends of the serving loosening up a little on the string (I was able to repair that in under 5 minutes, with a little loop of fishing line, used to pull the ends back under), it has been completely trouble free. I bought it for hunting, and it’s performance has been nearly flawless. All but one of the (5) whitetail bucks, that I shot it at, died within hearing or seeing distance of taking the bolt. The (5th) one probably would have also, had I not used the same mechanical broadhead on a second deer without resharpening the blades. I found that one about an hour after the shot, after a somewhat lousy 100 yard blood trail. While it has got the job done every time on deer (and this coyote a few weeks ago), it did let me down on it’s first shot at wild game, in October of 2014. I missed a grouse, on an overhead shot at close range, during the 3-day northern zone crossbow deer season that year. I thought about having it restrung a few years ago, but opted to purchase a second entry-level crossbow instead (Centerpoint sniper 370). That one is ok also, but I prefer the light-weight and easy-handling Barnett Recruit most of the time. When it comes to hunting, I definitely prefer having two decent entry-level crossbows over one expensive high-performance model. I lost the rope-pulley device for the Recruit, in the excitement after killing my largest-ever bodied antlered buck with it, back in 2017. On my next few dmp hunts that year, I was able to draw it by hand, but it was tough on the fingers. I made up a couple hooks, using small pieces of chain, and they work great for a fast draw, maybe even enabling a quick second shot, if it was ever needed.

Oh come on, nobody can guess that from a picture. Let’s say on the hoof…..150-250

Have long been an archery buff and while I do very little bow hunting these days I still get my equipment out and sling arrows frequently. I have seven different bows that I have accumulated down through the years and picked up my first long bow this past summer and it has been a lot of fun shooting it. What I do not have is a crossbow, I do not know a darn thing about them and have only shot one once that is owned by a friend, but I was sure impressed on how well I could hit targets with that thing. So my main criteria has to be simplicity and reliability, no cluster-puck contraptions with a zillion parts that have to be kept in tune and need constant fixing. Also it will be used mostly for just shooting as I do not see myself hunting with one at this point in time. So some investigation has led me to seriously consider an Excalibur, it is it's simplistic design that attracts me to it, the micro models are the ones that interest me the most for what I am wanting to do. Any cross bow leads and education from the knowing are more than welcome to help me go in the right direction and I do not have a problem paying for quality. Al

Got this big bruiser on trail cam. My son has been hunting for him. What would you guess his weight to be? I told my son "you're gonna need a bigger freezer." LOL. valoroutdoors.com

Nothing seen tonight. I could still make out the crosshairs on my 2-7x Redfield Revolution scope at 25 minutes past sunset on this cloudy night, with no snow. The next time I hit that clover plot will probably be 1/2 hour before sunrise on Saturday morning.

I wish we had the late ML season where I am at (east of Lake Ontario Tug Hill.). I love hunting the late season, but the deer yard up to consistently and they would be slaughtered there that late. I cant complain though, I made meat with my Lyman GPR during the early northern tier ML season, and bucked out during regular season.

I don’t consider it to be “work” if you get something, just part of the process. If I set the alarm to get up and hunt I go. If I know the weather is going to be shitty I don’t set an alarm. I may be more selective on shooting something if I have plans that night and I am hunting an afternoon. With that said though I have missed or showed up late to birthday parties for nieces and nephews, friends kids etc. I even showed up late to my wife’s cousins wedding a few years ago because I shot a deer. (Cousins father is a hunter, he understood, but why you would let your daughter get married during hunting season is beyond my comprehension). My wife is more than understanding as she knew I was a hunter looonnng before we started dating and got married.

Congrats..so happy for you

I have a Barnett doa, with a carbon fiber front. It is longer then most but well balanced, and lighter then most other cross bows. I like the longer length of the crossbow, but finding 22 in bolts can be hard at times. I have had it for 6 years, and replaced the string once.

Just looked at the Wyvern Creations site. He has the Excal micro mag 340 package for a great price $600. You can probably add a crank device and get an adjustment rope device for a few hundred more and you'll be set for a long time. Good luck in whatever you decide

O.K. So your goal is to target shoot a trouble free crossbow. I have both an Excalibur, which as you know from your research is the #1 recurve type of crossbow, and a compound that is a lower end Barnett - the Recruit. I love the Recruit for hunting. Although it was low cost -$200, it is not low value. I have taken 6 deer with it, taking 6 shots. I sighted it in with 8 shots when I got it and shoot it 3 times before each season to make sure it's still on. I then shoot it about 10 times during the season to unload it. So, over the course of six years, I have shot it about 120 times. I don't want to shoot it too much as I want to preserve the string. I would recommend this type of xbow for hunting, not for heavy usage target shooting. My Excalibur Matrix on the other hand is not only great for hunting, I took 4 deer with that bow; but it's even better if you want to practice by shooting a lot. You can easily change or put extra twists in the string to adjust it and you can leave it loaded for hours longer than a compound and even uncock it without shooting it. My Excalibur has a hawk scope with illuminated crosshairs, which also works just fine without the illumination if I need a fast shot at a deer and don't turn it on or in the event the battery runs out (which it never did). You can pm me if you need more information. It seems you are on the right track for what your goal is by looking at the Excalibur. I would recommend Wyvern Creations, an online shop in New Hampshire. You can call there and talk to the owner about various options. His prices are excellent and he will be straightforward with giving you information. He has many of the top compound manufacturer brands as well as the Excalibur line, of which I believe he is now featuring the 380 micro model, to which you can add options to get what you want. Hope this helps you.

How to fix Congress Winds of Change.... Warren Buffet is asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise. In three days, most people in The United States of America will have this message. This is one idea that really should be passed around. *Congressional Reform Act of 2013 1. No Tenure / No Pension. A Congressman/woman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they're out of office. 2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose. 3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do. 4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise.Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%. 5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people. 6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people. 7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen/women are void effective 12/31/22. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen/women. Congressmen/women made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work. If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S. ) to receive the message. Don't you think it's time? THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!

Walking out tonight same thing happened. They came right into my corn. Took a shot at a doe think I hit her but we looked for an hour three of us. I will go back in the morning and walk the hill. She did a mule kick as I play it out.

“Quick draw” handles made from chain links, hinge pins, hooks, and duct tape:

Fixed it, this slob of a doe got the pass tonight.

2nd rut ? chasing

I dont think he cares for that , plus thats a good amount of antlers to lose

I joined the crossbow ranks this year, I had no plan to ever do so, but my neighbor got a little pushy about hunting with him using one and actually gave me a crossbow. Not a complaint, I just never would have bought one myself, as I'm just starting to not enjoy archery as much as I used to over all. If you want simple and affordable, look at the Barnett Blackcat and/or Wildcat (same item, just different colors). I have the Wildcat, and it about as straight forward as you can get, being a recurve limb style.

I'm not a crossbow hunter myself but I do have a Mission Sub-1 Lite that my kids and I shoot in the back yard. It is a heck of a nice crossbow, has been very reliable, and, with proper rail lubrication, the string and cables have been very durable. Note that it is likely not legal for hunting purposes but it appears that is not an issue for either of us. The downside is that the mission crossbows are rather expensive. Good luck!

Biden's Team ....

Went shopping with the wife the day after thanksgiving and picked up two turkeys on sale, when we got the groceries home we had all we could do to fit those turkeys in the freezer as it is packed. The wife laid the law down and said no more frozen food to be purchased until we get what we already have eaten down some. So yesterday I get my hunting clothes on and tell the wife I am going hunting but I ain't going to kill anything because we have no place to put it. Bwahahaha. Shit I just like being in the woods and I will do the same today. Al

If you are looking for a starter, nothing beats the Centerpoint.. Really worth it. https://www.walmart.com/ip/CenterPoint-Patriot-425-Crossbow-Package-425-FPS-Camo-Cranking-Device-Included-2021-Model/315178707?athbdg=L1600

11 deer in the beans again tonight with 4 being legal bucks but nothing showed from the hit list and nothing as big as this girl. End of the Northern Zone Rifle. On to the week of Muzzy here and then spend the last two weeks down at Letchworth to close out the season.

YES.... EXCALIBER IS WHAT YOU WANT. SIMPLE LIKE A RECURVE BOW....I HAVE HAD ONE FOR 15 YEARS...GO TO THEIR WEB SITE A LOT OF VIDEOS ON SET-UP, MAINTANCE ECT. THEIR IS A COUPLE OF LOCAL EXCALIBER SHOPS THAT WILL HELP YOU OUT........ONE IS IN WEEDSPORT........THE OTHER IS IN AUBURN....GOOD LUCK

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This brute was hit by a car in Nassau county 3 years ago.