airedale

There has been volumes written about so called brush guns and their ability to plow a bullet through thick cover, hit and kill their target. Years ago there was plenty of factory ammo produced mainly with some type of round nose bullet for the purpose of hunting in heavy cover. Then the gun writers came up with experiment after experiment testing ammo to see how it performed shooting through man made brush duplicating shields at targets. Time and time again it was pretty much proven that no matter what kind of caliber or bullet type shot through brush chances were it would be deflected off target almost 100% or the bullet would be knocked off it's flight axis and tumble. I actually had exactly that experience moose hunting in Newfoundland. I had a nice Bull coming down a hill quartering at about 100 yards, he was plowing through some high brush and I took a at shot at just behind the shoulder. At the shot he immediately turned back and started running back up the hill, this time I put the crosshairs on his lower neck and he went down like a ton of bricks. The rifle was a 7MM Remington mag firing 175 gr Nosler Partitions. When the hide was removed we found the first shot's bullet must have hit some of that brush and started tumbling and hit just behind the front shoulder going sideways, it was only under the hide an inch or so. So after all the experiments and actual performance in the field it was pretty much settled in the gun rags, do not take a shot through thick brush and I personally went along with that assumption. So as I have mentioned a few days ago I have been watching youtube African Safari hunts and have seen literally hundreds of different game animals large and small taken with various rifles and the one thing that surprised me is many times the hunter would not hesitate shooting through thick cover at an animal and that most of the time a kill was made. Kind of turned the brush shooting theories upside down. I am still a big proponent of taking a good clear shot but I have to admit I am scratching my head after watching those African hunts. Al

Make sure to saturate and I mean a good permethrin soaking the cuffs of your pants, the waist-belt area of your pants, the ends of your shirt sleeves and the collar along with your hat, those are the entry points. That is my first line of defense, I still readily use good old bug repellent with a high percentage of Deet on my hands-wrist, ankles, and neck for the final touch. I don't care how much it smells, after going through a bad bout of Lyme disease there is no Deer worth not taking extra precaution from my perspective. Al

Some of the Pro Hunter's Africa Blood Tracking dogs, they do a nice job from what I have seen. Al

Making me drool, nothing finer eating than good moose meat as far as I am concerned. I was lucky enough to go on several Moose hunts when I was a young feller and have eaten a lot of it. ENJOY!! Al

One of my favorite firearms was a Remington 1100 20 ga bought new back in the late sixties for $146.00, I killed a pile of small game with that shotgun along with several Deer. Traded it for a new model 51 Ithaca Deerslayer autoloader in 12 ga. One of the best firearms ever made I think and I would say the selling price these days for a used 1100 20 ga would be in the one thousand dollar range give or take a few bucks depending on condition. A 12 ga would bring in substantially less. Special editions can bring in a few more bucks. Al

About 15 years ago I had my little Savage model 24 22/410 OU Barrels done with a black Duracoat finish by Gander Mountain. The Savage is one of my favorite small game guns and I take it for a stroll frequently. I have become very appreciative of that Duracoat finish it now wears, no chipping, peeling or fading so far, it still looks brand new. These new Cerakote-Duracoat Hi-Tech type finishes have it all over the traditional blue finish. They actually protect the metal making it pretty much weather and corrosion resistant unlike a blue finish that can and will rust. They can come in just about any color and look one can want from the traditional black which looks like high polish or matt blue to camo and some pretty crazy colors if that is what one prefers. I have since purchased some other firearms with that type of finish and am totally sold on it, very good stuff. Al

Have a good one Bugs

Hunting with that double side by side he was more than likely using Buckshot. I remember old timers speaking of using Buckshot and shooting the Deer at fairly close range like you would a rabbit, I bet a lot of deer were wounded back then. Al

I still hunt for the most part and yesterday the leaves were like walking on potato chips, wearing the GS Extreme hearing aids amplified the sound of my steps to a whole different level probably what a Deer would actually hear, still hunting was out of the question. A drizzling rain this morning should make the going a lot better this afternoon. Al

Insurance companies will be using the books above or anything similar if they have to cover a loss. Selling privately to individuals or dealers is a whole different ball game. What they are actually worth and what you can get somebody to pay is the name of the game. Al

Love the temperature but the leaves seemed to be extra crunchy and noisy, no still hunting, had a couple of sits and saw two Squirrels and a Chipmunk, that was it. Al

There are several books published that will give a good idea of a Gun's value. Blue Book Of Gun Value Modern Gun Values Gun Traders Guide. You can find these books on Amazon and can save money buying one a year or two old, the values do not change much year to year. When I worked in the business buying and selling used guns I used all the above but like Modern Gun Values best. Al

Got my feet wet last night doing up a couple of batches of 6.5 Creedmoor ammo. I have the Superlite Howa sighted in with Hornady 143 gr precision Hunter ammo that I picked up when I got the rifle, the Howa groups it good enough for now and that is what I will use for hunting this season. So what I decide to go with for handloads was the Sierra Game King 140gr SPBT bullet, have used Sierra bullets for over 50 years and when it comes to accuracy they are at the top of my list, they have always worked well on game also. The second bullet I used was the same 123 gr Hornady SSTs that I loaded in the 6.5 PRC. For cases I went a little different from the norm for me, I purchased a couple of hundred Peterson match grade cases. These cases use small rifle primers, the long range target shooters make great claims for them with them having a bit more accuracy and consistency. Whether that is true or not I can't say but the reason I went with them is it is almost impossible to find large rifle primers and when you do they ask an arm and leg for them. Small rifle primers are found everywhere and are priced reasonable. I have to say these are the nicest made new cases I have ever seen. Varget powder was my choice mainly because it has been giving real good overall results in the Creedmoor. So when I get a chance I will see how my loads perform. Al

Could be one of those catch22 deals, as soon as you move to a new spot the Buck will be in the previous spot. Three nights in a row would have me thinking about a move, if he comes out in the same place again I would try a move I think. I don't know much about Deer calls but one of the members here thought highly of the can call. Al

From what I have read there are two sub species of extra large Canada Geese, the Moffit and the so called Giant. The two will interbreed. The Moffit was found mostly on the Pacific flyway and the Giant in the midwest. They can turn up anywhere these days because both were raised in captivity and released all over the US. I raised regular Canada Geese years ago and they will be as tame as any domestic type. Al ======================================= The Moffitt's Canada goose is the second largest subspecies of Canada goose. It possesses a long neck and bill; similar to that of the slightly larger giant Canada goose (B. c. maxima). It can also have small, white patches found over its eyes or forehead, a trait more commonly found on maxima. Their coloration is paler than that of most other subspecies but slightly darker than maxima, sporting a pale gray-brown body and whiteish breast. Many individuals also have a white collar at the base of the neck. They also have large, broad wings The giant Canada goose is often mistaken for the Moffitt's Canada goose. However, giant geese have both a lower call and a larger bill to body size ratio. Another good identifier includes the black on the neck, which starts much farther up the neck than any other subspecies. The giant goose's white cheek patch is very large, reaching the lower bill. Unlike other variants, the underbelly is very pale. A less reliable identifier is the white forehead and eyebrows, which don't always occur and Moffitt's geese less commonly have. The wings measure between 480 mm (19 in) to 550 mm (22 in). The tail is between 147 mm (5.8 in) to 170 mm (6.7 in).[1]

Nice! Al

Nice, Those are a couple of big ones, I believe there is a sub species of Canadian Geese that are extra large size, that may be what you have there. Congrats. Al

I like to only endorse with stuff I have experience with, a 1x4 or 5 Leupold will suffice for most hunting, if you want a little more power the 2X7 Leupold is a winner. Life time guarantee so do not be afraid to buy a nice used model and save a few bucks. EBAY can be your friend. Al

A couple of things, first off is the theme of the rifle which is light weight and fast handling. I want to match the scope to the rifle's theme and keep the total package as light as possible within reason. For the way I will be using this rifle the 1X5 Leupold fits the bill perfectly as the outfit weighs 5.83 lbs on my scale. Second, I am for the most part a woods hunter, I do not believe I have killed a Deer much over 100 yds in the last 40 years or so and the longest shot I ever made on a deer was about 250 yds. That 1X5 Leupold will handle any of those type shots easily including the 250 yarder. Also the field of view is huge and what I want in a woods rifle to get on target in close quarters fast. I will most likely have the scope set on 2X power when hunting. Many of my Deer rifles have 2.5 and 1X4 scopes, my slug gun has a 3X Leupold mounted on it and has accounted for probably half the Deer I have ever taken. I just do not see the need for a big mambo high powered scope for Deer where I hunt. One last thing, there is a misconception that a high powered scope is required for longer range shooting, for best results for target and dedicated varmint hunting that is true. For Deer here in NY for the most part a hunter that knows his gun will get along perfectly fine with a scope with a lower range in power and make the longer shot if need be. That is my take, if someone wants to use a high powered scope as long as it suits them I have no problem with it, just not my cup of tea. Al

When I fall in love it does not take me long to act. Went to Davidsons Gun Gallery and put my order in for their version with the muzzle brake and cerakote finish. Guzzled more 6.5 cal Koolaid and got it chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor. Picked her up at "Gunworks" in Verona this morning, mounted a 1X5 Leupold in Leupold rings and bore sighted. She is SWEEEEEET!!!, I like everything about this rifle, all the online hype was spot on. Will give her a go hunting on my buddy's farm later this week. Al

The libtards, the non citizens, the democrats and closet democrats, the so called independents and libertarians (if you vote democrat you are a democrat) all migrated to the other board or just left. Wonder if they are shooting their big trolling mouths off over there or are they laying low. Many were only here to troll the politics forum on this board and did little to no posting about anything else. Pretty darn hard to argue for the shit show government mess and regulations they voted for as the country continues to go down the toilet. The best part of this politics forum was to expose those who are against us, sorry but they are not our friends, the democrat party is stronghold to every and all organized groups against every activity on this board and a whole lot more! Al

Same rifle in a blue version tested out by Ron Spomer.

One of the advantages of a 27inch computer screen instead of dicking around squinting at a photo on a phone, I blew the photo up and not only do I think I see balls I also believe that Deer has antlers. Al