airedale

As I get my feet wet more and more with the 264 calibers I find it is amazing how 6.5 cal cartridges were obscure and an after thought not many years ago to the seemingly dominate mid-power chamberings of the day. All firearms manufacturers chamber for them, ammo is available everywhere as are reloading components. I was checking out bullet selection and I found thirty different weights and styles from 90grs to 160grs and everything in between. Got my hands on some nickel plated Starline Creedmoor brass and will be loading them up with the new Winchester 6.5 StaBall powder along with the German Ruag large rifle primers that Powder Valley had on sale, large rifle primers have been as scarce as Hen's teeth. I am liking what I have seen with the Creedmoor cartridge so far. Al

Have a good one.

Watching those African Safari videos I often wondered what kind of eating those animals would provide. Al

I did a lot of bowfishing for Carp when I was younger, there was a Jewish fellow that worked with my brother that took every single one I arrowed, he ate them all and thought we were crazy for burying them in the gardens. I have heard many times that Europeans and Asians love to eat Carp, as the old saying goes it is all in how they are prepared. The video below is kind of long but the end product these gals from somewhere in Europe end up with looks impressive and tasty, I would eat it. Al

I will tell you what, Carp may not be my favorite fish to eat but they are one of my favorites to fish for. I have some pretty fancy dedicated Rods and reels just for Carp fishing, I have caught some whoppers. I have fooled around eating some, what I have found most annoying is that the fillets are full of small bones. Brining them and putting them in a smoker yielded the best results, they were actually good. Most of what I caught went to a buddy of mine and he would put them in his garden soil, the biggest Pumpkin I ever saw was one he grew on the carcass of a big Carp. Youtube has many videos on how to prepare Carp for eating Al

Walleyes and Perch, cold water Bass are pretty good. Al

For birds it would be Grouse hands down, I think Moose is my favorite when it comes to big game.. Al

I would say you had a banner year for sure, congratulations. Al

Doc is right about domestic rabbits, they are very tasty and their meat is not as dry and as tough as wild rabbits. I do wild rabbits like wolc, low and slow in a crockpot, cream of mushroom soup is great for flavoring so is alfredo sauce. Slow cooking the meat off the bone and making vegetable soup or stews, slow cooking them in a good tomato sauce is pretty good also. I used to be a fanatical rabbit hunter and if I had a dollar for everyone I ate I could buy a pretty nice side by side double. Al

That little gal looks like a pro waterfowler, congrats to her, had to be a thrill, and congrats to you Charlie for getting her started in the right direction. Al

Happy New Year and looking forward to another great year here on "Hunting NY.Com" Al

Pretty cool ain't it, I once saw a photo of a woman with a nice Buck she took that was totally black. Having raised all kinds of livestock for many years every now and then I will have some sort of genetic mutation pop up with an odd color or look, it is interesting stuff. Hunting I have shot a couple of Jet Black Woodchucks and may get a crack at a Jet Black Squirrel this season as I have seen at least three different ones while Deer hunting Al

I have some lighted reticle scopes and red dot sights but I am not crazy about using them on any of my serious hunting firearms, always have the fear-phobia of a dead battery or electrical failure at the moment of truth. I have to say they have been totally reliable up to now. My red dot sights are used mostly for target shooting. The one exception is my dedicated coon hunting rifle, it has a Japanese Thompson Center scope with a lighted reticle mounted on it, works great when trying to get a bead on a Coon up in the top of a tree in total darkness, have used it for many years and it has never let me down. Al

When I got started with shooting and hunting rifle scopes were starting to come into their own as reliable sighting options over open sights. The reticles of the day for the most part were just plain crosshairs, either fine or heavy and as time went on the scope companies came up with new and innovative reticle designs and styles. Through the years I owned scopes with many of the new reticles, some pictured below and for the most part they all do their job. For me my favorite remains the duplex style, it is tough to beat for hunting. I also like a dot reticle sized to match what the rifle is being used for. All and all I like to keep things simple with not a lot of clutter in my sight picture for hunting guns. Al

I heard the party of banning is now looking to ban Gortex fabric in NY, it does not biodegrade over time so it is a hazard. Al

Someone is always looking to build a better mouse trap, Beretta is making another attempt to market a straight pull bolt action rifle, one can be yours for around $1600.00. Savage brought one out a few years ago and it seems to have fallen by the wayside, if they were smart they should have reintroduced the Model 99 lever action instead in some modern cartridges like 6.5 Creedmoor and 7mm-08. Will have to see how Beretta's move pans out over the long haul, to each their own, but for me it lacks appeal. Al

Looks like you had a great day Charlie. you are making me jealous. Al

The rubber finger cots do a good job, have never had a problem myself in damp or snowy weather but to be perfectly honest I have never hunted with any of my muzzleloaders in a downpour. Al

I have used both a revolver (Colt Python)and rifles (Marlin 94 & Henry single shot)chambered in 357 mag to hunt and take Deer, my ranges have been around 50 to 100 yards. All ammo was handloaded and my favorite 357 bullet weight is 140 grain either a Speer HP or Hornady XTP. There is a substantial gain in performance when firing a 357 cartridge out of a rifle, a well placed shot out of either revolver or rifle gives good results and a clean kill. Al

It is that time of year for me, "tinker time". Around twenty years ago I purchased a CZ 527 223 at the Syracuse gun show. It is a beautiful rifle that has a great trigger and drives tacks but the one thing that bugged me was it's bolt handle. The design made it impossible to mount a scope low, the handle when lifted and pulled back would hit the rear of the scope, the scope had to be mounted with high rings which worked but had my head off the stock. So I came across an outfit called Glades Armory and they produced an aftermarket handle for the 527 of the tactical design with the length and bend to clear low mounted scopes. I sent for one and changed out the stock handle with their tactical handle and "bingo" problem solved and the 4.5x14 Burris Timberline sits where it belongs. The handle works great but I was up in the air on the look, as time went by I came to really like this tactical style a lot. So much so that I changed out the handles on my two rimfire CZs, a 455 and a 452 even though their bolts cleared the scopes. They are a great option for a CZ owner, I like them better. Al

Back when I worked in the gun buying and selling business one could buy a black powder handgun without a permit. It could be done because of museums and gun collectors that owned these guns never have any intention of loading and firing them, also there was no records of any such weapons being used for holdups or shootings. Actually firing and using one was a whole different matter, if there was any intention of firing the gun or using it for hunting it had to be on a permit, you could not possess the firearm along with caps, balls-bullets and powder. That was then, what we have today I do not know for sure, especially with this Governor we have now. Al

You can field dress a Dinosaur with that knife, I have two of those Woolrich coats and they are my all time favorite pieces of clothing for cold weather. Spent many a day from sun up until sun down in my PA Tux suits hunting snowshoe Hare with Beagles on snow and temps in the teens and always stayed warm and dry. Good luck on your hunt. Al

The fowl are pretty much grown up now with the exception of the Belgian Giant Fighters which take almost 18 months to attain their full size. Took a couple of photos of the morning feeding with the Soay Sheep. Also a photo of "Kevin" my Varmint-Hawk guard, he has done a good around the clock job keeping them away with no problems with aerial or ground varmints. Weather is starting to get pretty cold I will have to put a coat on him.

Have a good one young feller!!

The Red Ryder is a classic for sure, and that Bino harness really work and wears well, I love mine. Al