Jump to content

Doc

Members
  • Posts

    14622
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    158

 Content Type 

Profiles

Forums

Hunting New York - NY Hunting, Deer, Bow Hunting, Fishing, Trapping, Predator News and Forums

Media Demo

Links

Calendar

Store

Everything posted by Doc

  1. Doc

    Long shot's

    But you can and should put a number on your own shot distance and it should be based on all of the variables that deer and bowhunting involves. And that number is not established only by the results at the archery range. I know that some people have a problem assessing the variables when they come up with a personal hunting proficiency range that begins to sound like something that you might consider appropriate for a shotgun ..... lol. Perhaps some are more willing to let "luck" play a bigger part in the results than others are. That's a personal decision too because whether we like to admit it or not, no matter what the distance, there is still some level of luck involved. I guess it's our job to minimize the impact of luck as much as we are able to. I suppose that experience helps add a little realism into those shooting distance assessments. When you have personally encountered deflections and finally recognize just how small an obstruction it takes to send an arrow off target, you begin to examine just what distances you can really see something that tiny. I suppose once you see just how good those relexes of a deer are, it dawns on you that you are not shooting at a stationary bale of hay. Once you have had a down-range wind grab ahold of an arrow, you start to realize that conditions where you are standing doesn't necessarily relate to those between you and the deer. And if you ever have the occasion to work out the math of shot distance versus how far and how fast a deer can move with just a casual step, all these things combine to convince you that bowhunting is indeed a very short range hunting activity.
  2. All of my pics are numbered so that I can easily find them. And I also maintain a database that uses those picture numbers as a reference and notes locations, what is pictured, time of day, direction of where they were heading and a comments column. I'm not sure how all this info will ever be used, but I figured I should capture all the info in case I come up with a practical use for any of it in the future. Otherwise, it just serves as a fancy index....lol.
  3. Doc

    Long shot's

    For me (and I stress for me) the traditional range of a bow back in 1965 when I first started was 20 yards and under. That seemed to be the distance where I felt that it would take something extraordinary to make me miss. That was the distance where I could clearly see all obstructions and where I spent most of my time practicing. It was also close enough to negate a lot of what the deer could do to evade the arrow (including casual incidental movement). Not guaranteed, because nothing in any kind of hunting is guaranteed), but a shot where the odds were put very heavily in my favor. Over the years, with the advent of the compound, that range for me increased to around 25 and I feel pretty darned confident out to 30 yards. To this day, I absolutely will not take a shot over 30 yards, and almost always, I will wait until I can get back down to my old favorite ..... 20 yards or less. That distance is very clear to me as being a very high percentage shot which is exactly what I am after. Yes, I can do a pretty respectable job of shooting out to 40 yards, but that applies on the archery range. I guess I was brought into bowhunting at a time when archery was considered a close range sport and that was exactly what drew me to it. That was before all the hype about super fast bows got people believing that their latest $1000 purchase performed almost as good as a gun.....lol. Yes equipment has changed radically but it is still a close range hunting activity and most of the things that would foil a shot 40 years ago still exist today. Deer still move. unseen twigs and limbs still exist. unplanned shooting hick-ups still occur. And the farther the shooting distance the more likely one or more of these things will occur. Considering all of that, even with my super fast, low trajectory, miracle-bow (a bit of sarcasm there), I still feel better about a very short shot that emphasizes the hunting part of bowhunting rather than seeing how far I can shoot which is emphasizing the marksmanship (I put in plenty of time on the archery range to satisfy that itch on my archery range). So, considering all that has been talked about in this thread, that magical distance really wasn't that hard for me to arrive at. I think anyone can easily figure out what's a good max distance for themselves as long as they honestly assess all of the real limitations of bowhunting as we have been discussing in this thread. What really bothers me is when people make that decision based only or mainly on what they can do on the archery range. That is one of the least reliable critera.
  4. I think you're probably right. The politics of outdoor activities is actually a pain in the neck. Not only that but do we really want to get involved in that part of the stuff. You're right .... it is the hunting that we are interested in. It's not the wrestling match that all the political hassle involves that we want to get involved with. It's a lot harder for us to get motivated on that end of things. Not only that, but we look around us and realize that hunting won't be changing much for the remainder of our hunting days, and the next generation will have to live with whatever we leave them. Also, we know that there are some people still politically active and trying to keep the organizations afloat, and so there is no reason for us to spend the money or effort as long as we have other people carrying on the fight for us. When you sit down and think about all of that, it's pretty easy to shoot holes in all of that faulty reasoning and excuse-making, but few of us ever do. And that's why we find ourselves in a fight with nitwits and find the nitwits winning. I don't think it is a situation that will ever change because it is all based on common human nature. I do my little bit in supporting our advocacy organizations, but I have to admit that there is probably a lot more that I should do. Unfortunately, I get a bit discouraged when I see the attitudes of some of the other hunters and I get the feeling that it really is a losing fight in the long-run. It's that feeling that makes me not one bit surprised that there still are states with these kinds of blue-laws regarding hunting. It really is actually what I have come to expect. frankly, I am amazed that we don't still have them.
  5. Doc

    Trapper wanted.

    Skillet- This is a rather strange request. I have heard of trappers asking for places to trap but have never seen that reversed where the landowner was looking for trappers. Do you have some kind of animal control problem that you are trying to get fixed? Do you trap the land yourself? Looking for a trapping partner?
  6. Doc

    Preperation

    You're welcome. I may not be involved in trapping anymore, but I still have an interest in helping others to get into it. It is an activity that I have always been proud to have participated in, and I would love to see it all prosper with new people.
  7. I think that more and more of the decisions are being taken out of the hands of the DEC and being placed into the hands of legislators. Look at who was pushing for the closing of the pheasant rearing farms. It wasn't the DEC, but rather the Governor (Patterson). The operating budget for the DEC is controlled (and pilfered) by the legislature. Even the Commissioner of the DEC is a political appointment by the Governor. The whole damn organization is purely politically motivated and controlled and really has very little that happens because of science anymore. Even some of the AR WMUs have been mandated by legislators. These encroachments by politicians will never get any better, and in fact I expect that they will get more and more blatant. And the worse the economy gets, the more leverage the politicians get.
  8. They certainly are not. The biggest blame lies with hunters themselves in that we have never really learned how to organize and assert ourselves. And that is not something that is improving as time goes on. The liberals have learned the value of organization. Hunters and other outdoorsmen are still delighting in trying to destroy their organizations with their sniping and constant encouraging of non-participation over nearly irrelevant single issue items. I keep thinking how much differently this thread would look if the animal rights folks treated their advocacy organizations the way we hunters treat ours. The animal rights people would be an irrelevant non-entity that would have no ability to try to block anything. Well, that's kind of the other way around now isn't it? And hunters have only themselves to blame for that.
  9. Doc

    IS THIS BAITING

    So, I guess pawle76 answered your request to "Show me where I said that stand hunters are not hunters at all...". So my comment above still stands ....lol.
  10. If I wasn't absolutely perfect with the shot, it makes me cringe to think of one of those nice roasts having hair and stuff shoved through all that clot-filled meat. As far as hitting a femoral, they really don't offer that much of a target either. You probably have a better chance at getting it into the poop-chute. Geez this whole discussion along with that picture is really quite unpleasant ..... lol.
  11. Let's face it ...... they are nothing but goats. They'll eat anything.
  12. Doc

    DMP ???

    I don't think the DEC can afford to man these check stations anyways. Most likely that is why finding any kind of check station today is pretty darn rare. I think if they made that part of the mandatoy reporting system, nobody would comply with that either because they would be so few and far between.
  13. I wonder why the DEC doesn't re-implement the party concept in some of these areas where they have totally cut off the permits. Remember the days when some places had to have 4 or 5 guys to a permit. Yes it was a pain in the butt, but I would think that in these few WMUs where permits have been eliminated it would be better to share a permit with others than to simply have year after year of no chance at all. Yeah I know, who could afford the software changes to the DECALS computers for just those few WMUs ......
  14. growalot- Why don't you do a super-test for us of some of these scent-killer products on that billy-goat of yours. If it works there, it would work anywhere. .....Good idea ....eh?
  15. Doc

    Long shot's

    And yet another good point. I have noticed how a branch or a twig that shows up good in full daylight starts losing definition as the light fades toward sunset. Sometimes we think we have a good clear shooting lane. But lower the light a bit and try to spot every little twig and branch at 50 or 60 yards or more.
  16. I've had only one time when rattling almost worked for me. I was in a bit of a thick area and just caught sight of the rear end of a buck exiting the area after he snuck in within 40 yards of me and got my wind (or saw me, I'm not sure which). After a whole lot of other attempts, I decided that my time in the woods would be better spent just being quiet rather than making a whole bunch of noise with rattling horns. I'm probably due to try it again just to see if I can get lucky. I do still hear some occasional stories of where the tactic has worked for some. And of course it is a regular theme of a lot of deer hunting shows on TV.
  17. By golly, this forum seems to attract some super talented photo artists. I just love looking at some of the pictures that you guys are posting here. Congratulations on being so damned good at what you do!
  18. Doc

    Long shot's

    Actually, I have made a lot of long shots. I used to shoot NFAA field archery and one of the targets was at 80 yards. There were also shots past 50 yards and they were great fun. I still like to shoot long distances at targets on an archery range. So I do understand what capabilities people can have at long distances with a bow on an archery range at a stationery target. That really has nothing to do with hunting conditions and live animals that have the capability of moving at any minute. But, you are right. The distance that a person wishes to shoot is completely up to them. And the consequences that may or may not result are completely on them. And I am assuming that bad results will actually bother them so they are supposedly motivated to make good choices. But every time this discussion comes up, all I hear is what people can do at the archery range like that's the only consideration. Frankly that's not the only consideration and its not even the most important consideration (in my opinion). But all I can do is to bring up the points against super long shots as I see them and after that, as you say, the final decision is really up to them.
  19. Doc

    Preperation

    Here is a DEC webpage that lists phone numbers for information on all kinds of required classes. http://www.dec.ny.go...tdoor/9188.html Also, there is a page that gives county reps from the NYS trappers association. They may be able to supply answers to any other kinds of questions you may have. Perhaps you may even want to join. I did notice that there are some counties that don't have any reps yet, so you may have to use which ever one is available and close. http://www.nystrappers.org/county_reps.html
  20. Doc

    Preperation

    I would try to pressure the DEC a bit more for assistance in locating a class. It's probably just a case of locating someone there that is willing to be helpful. They have to be able to tell you where and when the next available class is someplace that's not too far away......... I would hope.
  21. Doc

    Human Scent

    Eventually those Madison Avenue types will have us talked into buying some kind of "pod" that seals in our scent and has a remote controlled bow or gun mounted outside of it.... . I've got to say that I don't believe there is any limit as to what the hunting public will buy and some shyster will sell. We may be the most gullible consumers going, second only to fishermen.
  22. It would be interesting to put a few drops of deer urine next to the trail strategically located to see if that might cause them to pause in an ideal spot. In fact I have wondered about using the same technique while hunting a trail to get the deer to pause for the shot. I keep saying I've got to try that, but never seem to remember to do it. I never did like that bleat imitation that some guys use to stop deer, and have been looking for an alternative way of doing that.
  23. Yeah, SD cards are relatively cheap, and there is nothing faster than simply swapping cards. But don't do like I did once, and lose track of which one you took out vs. the empty one that is to be put in. There's nothing worse than standing there looking at one card in your right hand and the other in your left hand and not knowing which one was the empty one. I think it's an age thing. I took a chance figuring the worst that could happen is more pictures would be added onto the old card. Fortunately I had a 50-50 chance and took home the right one.
  24. Doc

    Which Sight?

    I have two home-made sights that use 3 "ring" - pins on each one. It was made from a pair of old Cobra sights. The last picture below shows the cobra pin modifications. The theory is that concentricity is the easiest thing for the eye to establish. So the ring (about 5/32" dia.) is centered in the peep sight aperture, and the target is centered in the ring. It all becomes second nature. In fact those of us that use a peep sight are already using the theory of "centering". What I have found is that there is a real advantage to not having some ball on the end of the pin that covers up the center of the target that I am shooting at. Advantage #2 is the fact that the ring and whatever is in the center of it are very easy to see in diminished light, so there is no concerns about fiber optics or other lighting systems. I have used this sight since the early 80's, and it works well for me. Unfortunately, it is nowhere on the market or is it likely to be in the near future. So anyone interested in a good winter project might try coming up with something like this. The bad news is that a winter project will not be helping you out with your immediate need for this year. I'm sure that others will have some good recommendations.
×
×
  • Create New...