Daveboone

Trapping or calling? I have them on my game camera regularly Few things in the world more beautiful than a fox...any fox.

Nah, cant hold a candle to a red....sunlit on snow, they glow, with the black tips and edge of the hair afire....amazing....but close

ps...I bought two different 94s, both pre 64, both well under 400.oo from there.

Give a call to Tims guns over in Elbridge, not too far away. When I was in there a month or so ago he had a couple. I didnt check the tags, but they arent going cheap anywhere. A number of years ago, I found very good prices on them at Kittery Trading Post, just across the Maine, NH border. They are a large and very reputable sporting goods shop, about 5 hrs away though... We had made a couple day trips out there, combining it with the Cabelas not far away, and a good seafood dinner for a busy but long day. Kittery has a very good website listing thier used guns (There is no problem legality wise buying a rifle in Maine from a dealer and bringing it back). They have a large assortment (probably seasonally) and better prices on guns than we are used to seeing, generally.

i have three VX 3s and love them. Never a problem, My oldest is over 30 years old without a hitch.

Overall, good. I love being in the woods early on, but wasn't, esp. during muzzleloading season, as much as I prefer. I took a fair bit of time later, and for productivity I like hunting the slop, which come mid November was around aplenty. I saw enough deer to keep my attention, and ended up with a doe and a spike, which filled the freezer nicely. I usually don't fill my tag until the last week end of the season, just so I can be out there, and I finished up about a week early, so I was only bumming for not having a reason to go out (but I was butchering instead).

If I need snow shoes to hunt deer, I probably am not going....I wouldn't be able to get the deer back. It is tough to say when you need them though...a foot of light fluffy is different than a foot of lake effect, which is much more tiring to walk through. a foot with a crusty ice on top...horrible going, and if you have snowshoes with cleats, it makes it much easier and safer. There a quite a variety of snowshoes out there. The bear paws are great for very rough or brushy terrain. Racquette type are a compromise between bearpaws and the longer trail shoes (there are a hundred different names for the different types). I got a great deal on a pair of the longer trail shoes, they are about 40 inches long but quite narrow. They now are my favorite for open terrain. Much easier to walk in and they track well. Good for you still getting out. If there is snow on the ground and I am out, I always pack a small tarp in a daypack. I wrap the deer in it and it pulls right along like a toboggan, as long as the snow isn't too deep.

That sounds great! I hunted Georgia about 20 years ago, and that was alot of fun, combining hogs and deer would be great. What is the limit (optimistically speaking?)

Okay, has anyone here ever heard of or followed the legendary ..."mall cop" thread from another site, that made quite a bit of news? Reads too much like this...

The block of wood is what the screws through the plaque tighten into to hold it in place. The horns I had professionally done were done like I did mine...needing a cut to the antler hole, but you can fold the edge over and glue it/ tack it so it is very minimal and doesn't look out of place. Honestly, my work is better looking than the 1/2 dozen I had done by 3 different taxidermists, and i like the felt cover look much better than the bald skull look. If I have chance, I will take a couple pics of the ones I did, but of course, too late to show the construction steps.

So you know him to talk to him (per you mentioning your conversation with him...)...or at least know his thoughts?

Fun easy winter project to mount them yourself. Find a nice piece of wood/ plaque. trim down the cap to a size to balance the plaque. epoxy/ construction glue a block of wood to the back of it, shaping the wood to roughly conform to the cap, at the angle you want to the antlers to come off the plaque at. For just a couple dollars buy some plaster at a hardware store. Wrap a cutting board/ plank, anything in saran wrap/foil, and position the antlers on the covered board at the angle you want it on the plaque, and form plaster roughly around and under the antlers. (wrap the antler bases first with saran wrap). The plaster sets up rather quickly, but you have about 5-10 minutes, and in this time you are very hands on building an "egg " around the cap. It will be hard enought to work in about 1/2 hr. Then you take a coarse file/rasp and sandpaper, shaping the plaster "egg" to the cap size and shape you want. For a few dollars you can buy some decent felt at any craft store. this is the trickies.t....roughly cut out the fabric with plenty of excess to wrap the cap, you cut out the antler holes, leaving them small...the fabric stretches. I use contact cement on the plast, pulling it snug around. The loose ends are held in place when you put screws through the plaque to the wood you glued in place. With a little trial and error , you can easily do a better looking job than what alot of folks pay for. If you dont like it...good news. You take everything down and start again, nothing ruined. Certainly they get better the more you do, but your first job can look great. Plaque from Ebay: 5 bucks. Engraved plate for the plaque...about 4 bucks on Ebay....Plaster, 3 bucks for enough for about 8 mounts, felt, 3-4 dollars. I have done my moose and several deer. Total project time is about an hour.

My favorite hunting / deer knife is my basic Grohman. Holds a wonderful edge, just seems to point and handle itself. I have a close match Grohman but a bit fancier with bone handles I pack for a go to, but my favorite buchcrafting / heavy duty knife is my Camillus Air Force survivial knife. Indestructable, not too big, sharpening stone right there with it. But....I usually have a Victorinox swiss army for real fine stuff, screwdriver / bottle opener and corkscrew. The three of them, I am ready of anything!

Even with my inline, I prefer the soap and water technique...I use either blackpowder (for my Lyman Great Plains,) or 777. I allways pull the breech plug. If I don't, it will seize up and rust. The patches will get satureated immediately with use. It is a good idea to run a brush first.

For centerfire, Hoppes #9 is tried and true, but I think Shooters Choice is actually better for heavy copper/brass, lead deposits. For muzzleloaders, even with the newer propellants I don't think anything works as good as a sink/bucket of boiling water and dish soap, a good scrub and plungering water in and out through the breech / nipple hole with a tight patch. run patches until dry,, chances are the bbl will be too hot to handle from the water, and will evaporate dry very well. Run a patch of your preferred lube/ etc. down the bore and ready to go. It takes only a little longer than cleaning with just the solvent of choice, but dangit, I never have to worry about any rust a year down the line.

I have chosen a base of the neck shot a fair number of times. A bit high, you brain em, a bit low you still take out the neck. Gruesome yes, but the deer were no deader than if I shot them elsewhere. I chose this shot over a butt shot each time, which I will not take (and which my rifle and I can easily handle). I am aiming directly at the kill zone, not two feet in front of where the vitals are and most likely if I pull the shot to the sides, the deer is missed. As is mentioned previously, if the deer isn't angled perfectly for the rear shot for you despite your best aiming, very unhappy results follow. I love whitetails. The most beautiful animal on the planet, and I am sorry each time I kill one, but that is part of the life. I do not have to and will not take a questionable shot, and my intent is to utilize the deer to the best of my skill and utility. It starts with the pull of the trigger. There are a lot of deer in the woods. I can wait for the next one. All the folks I knew who felt they had to shoot at every seen deer I eventually quit hunting with because they were ...a little too eager to shoot in general.

For what its worth, Patey and Sons usually is at the January sportsman show at the NY state fairgrounds.

New Brunswick moose is strictly draw, and be prepared to be a number of years...but can be very affordable (I have an outfitter for bear I have a long relationship with who does moose too). Newfoundland is awesome...I have been twice, the last time last year. Very high (high nineties) success rate, and the Newfies are wonderful. Long drive though...figure three days from central NY. We went with Patey and Sons, and would happily go again, but time for something else now. Patey is a full week hunting one on one guide, fly in. Awesome, and you likely could have a chance a some great bears too. I passed on a monster last year. I already have 5, and would have been shot myself if brought this one home....It was well in excess of 400 lbs., likely 5-6!

Wolc123, I am with you with what you say about big slow bullets. The deer I shot with my patch and ball ML dropped as quick as any other deer, with very minimal meat damage. The first bear I shot (year old, dinkydinkydinky) last light on my last day, I shot with a typical behind the shoulder shot, with a 180 grain 300 Win Mag I was told I had to have. I blew out a four inch long chunk of three ribs, both its lungs and guts, and it STILL ran about 30 yards. I was so horrified I swore ...and never did...shoot that gun again. The next 4 bears....all healthy adults, I shot with a 45-70. Knocked em over on the spot, minimal tissue damage. I keep wanting to use my 30-30 for deer (usually use my 8x57) but havent because of the sights in low light. I really want to see how it will work, which I believe will be just fine.

I dont normally tell anyone right off...If I am staying at my camp I always let the wife know everything is ok once I am back at the cabin and would mention it, or if I was planning on being home that evening if I was running late. I guess I kind of expect to shoot one and they expect me to, so....? If asked I tell.

November 2019 for november 2020

My favorite rack is a nice symmetrical 8-10 point, don't care the score. I have a 4 1/2 year old non typical 11 that is my favorite, and whatever nature provides I can appreciate. I hate and have no use for the farm breed mutants that are so popular in some circles. They re not what nature intended and wouldn't occur if not for our meddling (and no insult intended to those who are able to make a profit off of those who will pay for them), and are grotesque in my opinion.

I used to keep a lidded bucket in the woods in a handy location. I kept some plastic bags, gloves, a few hand warmers, etc. in it. I kind of got out of the habit of keeping it up, I need to start doing so again.

If he is there everyday, he came from somewhere and will be going somewhere. My guess is that figuring where he is going from the field is the best bet...wait him out for when he leave the field, give him some time and check out his route. Then plan your ambush.

I shoot to prepare to break the shoulder if necessary, but by choice aim for the crease. When things go wrong or I misread the angle, I want that bullet to hold together. Not important to me if it goes through, but my 8mm and .308 always have. Once it makes it through any bone on the near side and the organs, who cares if it lodges inside the muscle/ etc. under the skin? Holding behind the leg, I am taking out both lungs and have quite a bit of room for error. I rarely drop them in their tracks, but they are dead on their feet and seldom go more than 20 yards, usually ten or twenty feet (again, I routinely will NOT aim at the shoulder). I like the heart, so I aim above it (besides, most heart shot deer still run a hundred feet like a lit banshee!). I damn sure don't want to break up those shoulders and the accompanying meat. Hell, that's what I want in the first place. You hit the shoulder and you kiss the flatirons good bye. A lot of southern hunters use .27 and .25 caliber rounds, the .243 is very popular. But at the same time, the further south you go the smaller the deer are. When I hunted Georgia, I was loving the (then) 5deer limit, but my boned deer didn't equal two decent Finger Lakes deer. You don't need as much gun. It is funny when you are hunting, because when you are looking at the deer, the proportions are the same. ONce they are down on the ground its....WTF? A Three year old buck is fawn sized. My friends .270 quite literally blew a doe in half.