Enigma

You're an outcast. But I agree with you. Ty for the observation. My gut feeling and history on that farm tells me 4.5. I killed quite a few bucks on that farm of all different shapes and sizes but none had the "old buck" features that he did. The 2019 NYS deer harvest report has a couple points in it that support at least 3.5 as well. The deciding factor for me was just the mass of his antlers. I always believed a buck wouldn't waste resources on a heavy or large rack until his skeletal structure was fully developed. He had 17"+ and 18"+ of mass, respectively, per side. Pretty sure he was at his prime.

Southern zone. 6S. Corn, soybeans and alfalfa all over. The deer are hunted hard bow through MZ. Heavy pressure.

Agreed. This deer was killed on 11.17, 2nd day of rifle. Chasing a doe. He could have been goin hard for a month already. Killed one on the same farm years ago on 11.2 while bowhunting that went the same weight of 176#. Pics of that deer, he just looks younger.

I stand correct on the weight. I checked notes and a pic and I'll revise to 176#. The scale was legit. Or older but been drinking alfalfa smoothies all his life haha.

Interesting comments. Thank you. Keep them coming if you wish! I was gathering up some stuff the other day and ran across this deer's jaw and the euro I did on the skull. I always wondered about his age because he was a big deer from that particular farm. I had planned on sending in the front teeth to get an age but alas, some schmuck (me) lost his front teeth during the euro boil. I was distracted while cleaning up the skull lol. Anyway, back in the day when NYS had the check stations I would skip school on opening day and hang out there watching the deer come in. I was fascinated by the DEC biologists aging and weighing the bucks that showed up. I just got to wondering what he might have been aged at if I'd of showed up with him in person at a check station like old times.

Agree on your observation. I'm a novice at reading the tooth wear but thought easy 2.5yo maybe 3.5. I thought 4.5 at first based on body size, the rack and previous bucks I've killed on that farm. But his teeth say younger to me. Idk lol.

I should've given more information, sorry. 10pt CNY buck, dressed 180#.

Thank you lol. It should be noted I did boil that jaw bone.

Ok experts! Age this buck from the pics provided. Curious as to what others here thought as to the possible age of this buck. I know its not an exact science and no, I don't have the front teeth to send in for cementum analysis. All pics are of the same left side of the jaw at slightly different angles. This is for entertainment purposes only lol. Post up your best guess and questions if you think you need more info. Thanks!

I'm sorry that people were injured and thankful no one was killed. But just have to say that was the funniest f up I've seen in years. I think that's what kids call a "fail" these days. EPIC fail lol.

See 7:30 of that vid.

Couple days ago in the news . . https://romesentinel.com/stories/bear-likely-looking-for-love-or-land-of-its-own,117147?

I don't run cams but I know some were hanging around 315N outta Waterville the past couple years. Stopped 2x in a week for a sow n 2 cubs in northern Otsego county outside of Plainfield a couple years ago while driving. They're moving north slowly. Have a friend in 3M Orange Cty and they're a menace. A stone's throw from NJ inside NY and they get big there. He see's them all the time and has to lock his trash lol.

Powder post beetles perhaps. My parents had them in a beam in there garage. Similar staining of the painted wood and no large bore holes like carpenter bees. Very fine and very small amounts of sawdust expelled at the damage site. You can drill holes in the wood, inject insecticide, plug holes, fill and repaint. Call a pest management company to confirm.

"Blue's a healin', all over the world"

"My baby she know's me, she cuts me down to size"

You have a great attitude. You got hunting rule #1 right but hunting rule #1a states "You can't kill em if they ain't there." Go find some turkeys! Preferrably see a tom and make a plan to kill em. You have 2 weeks left. I'd also be scouting for next year if I was going to hunt the same place. Put the walkin shoes on and hunt around your place. They can be killed anytime in May if you find em.

Cooperstown should be hopping that weekend. It would be very easy to spend a great day there with the family. It's not however, car friendly during the summer and it's also 60min from Bowman. Also, if I'm not mistaken, the Fly Creek Cider Mill outside of Cooperstown closed last year with no plans to reopen. That area of CNY is the stomping grounds of a member here. I'm sure he'll chime in soon with good advice. I grew up in Chenango county so FWIW . . . Roger's Environmental Conservation Center just west of Sherburne. Trails and nature center. Easy hiking, near the Chenango river and plenty of places to picnic. Crazy big trout in the holding ponds. Awesome place. Grab a slice or calzone in Sherburne at Joe and Vinny's pizzeria. The real deal for 35 years. Gilligan's Drive-in is very solid for kid food and ice cream too. Norwich is low key. On a side street in Norwich is The Northeast Classic Car Museum. Kid friendly and bitchin cool if anyone's into cars. Nina's Pizzeria downtown has been there forever and serves quality food. Pretty sure the small downtown movie theater there is still open. Mayhood's on Rte 12 between Norwich and Oxford is worth a quick stop for possible ammo. Oxford has Hoppie's ice cream. There also used to be an all you can eat breakfast at the Oxford American Legion, Sunday mornings starting at 7:30AM. Nothing says CNY better than pancakes and sausage cooked for breakfast at the local legion. Have a great time. Beautiful country down there.

I usually don't post in the political forum here and am rarely at a loss for words but this morning, after watching this video, I was dumbfounded. My only thought was she should have been detained for not having her driver's license on her person and tossed in a holding cell with some MS13 gangbangers. https://www.foxnews.com/media/video-shows-driver-calling-officer-a-murderer-in-racist-attack-during-traffic-stop-youll-never-be-white

Didn't want to hijack @Water Rat's thread so a question for those that run 835 turkey guns. What barrel length do you use? I have a 935 semi and am in need of a shorter barrel for turkeys. Mossberg lists both a 22" and a 24". Pro's and cons to either? Thanks.

Choose your ambush spot wisely. Learn to recognize physical obstacles between yourself and an incoming tom and use them to your advantage. Position yourself so the first time you see a tom (and he can see you) he's inside your kill zone. Your gun should be shouldered while you wait as you will have an immediate shot opportunity when he becomes visible from behind the obstacle. When possible, setup to force a turkey entering the kill zone to do so from the side, perpendicular to the shooter (or even from behind). Preferable to having a tom come in directly in front of you and being in his forward line of site. Place decoys on the point of a well screened corner and position yourself down one side to be at least 90 degrees outside the bird's direct line of sight to the decoy. Kill them on a corner and shoot them in the back of the head.

My 935 kills them ALL-DAY-LONG with 3 1/2" 2 1/8z #6. I'd shoot 4" if someone made it. 835's are a beast.

The #1 gateway drug to using other substances is alcohol. Period. Ask anyone who's tried a blunt or a bump or smoked a rock and they'll tell you they had been drinking before they tried the new thing. There are exceptions of course, but they're rare.

Visited the Munson-Williams-Proctor Art Institute in downtown Utica yesterday. I had not been there in years but there was a floral exhibit this weekend the girlfriend wanted to see. I highly encourage everyone to make a trip to your local museum or historical society and check it out. Always something interesting to see and usually an eclectic mix of people to chat with! My son n his gf seeing something new . . . My gf, aka the activities director, next to the sculpture "Oil fire." "Bird dome" circa 1850. How did the glass survive 170 years?! An exhibit by a local student that caught my attention. The gun is hand sewn. Interesting . . .

https://www.insider.com/france-man-killed-jewish-woman-avoids-trial-because-smoked-pot-2021-4 A link to the "original" article. A copy and paste job for yahoo. They omitted one important paragraph when they reposted it. Try and find it. I can't imagine a reason for the edit other than to pump outrage. It worked I guess.