nyslowhand

Again ... Mfgers spec their Xbow as A-A width, cocked & uncocked. Confusion arises with NYS DEC law mandating min overall with as outside of limbs, NOT Axle to Axle. So .. You'll never know until you get one in hand with a tape measure. What I found a few years ago when shopping for Xbows was many models advertised with A-A widths of in the range or 14-15" actually met the DEC min width req. FYI - Current Ten Point Xbow models like the Titan or Turbo may well meet the DEC's requirement. Some other models do not look like they would comply! My gut-feel is any model with an advertised A-A width <~13" probably will not comply here in NY. Sure 10pt's customer service receives calls from NY'ers all the time about this spec confusion, give 'em a call if you're truly serious. Or a trip to BassPro with a tape measure in hand.

Don't know about this specific Gerber knife model, but after a cursory search I found only ~22% of Gerber knives are still USA made anymore. May also be true for other hunting or utility knife mfgers, IDK. Might reflect on the quality of the OP's knife.

Just so we're all clear. The DEC's definition of a Xbow's min width is NOT the same as a Xbow mfger's advertised width spec of Axle-Axle!!! The DEC's regulation refers to overall width, uncocked. EX - Lots of advertised 15" A-A (compound-ish) Xbows might well fall within the DEC's requirement when outside width is considered. FYI - Recurve Xbows are not the only legal ones in NYS that meet the width requirement! DEC width reg (From 2019-20 regs booklet): Crossbow—consists of a bow, a string, and either compound or recurve limbs with a minimum width of 17 inches (tip of limbs, uncocked),....... The history of this width reg goes back to what we currently have as Xbow hunting regs and to 2014. This min width was an attempt by the anti-Xbow lobbyist to eliminate the reverse draw type of compound Xbow from being allowed. Lecture over.. lol

Please refer to us correctly as rednecks. There are NO hills around here...

Seems like married guys have a knack of tuning out certain noises.... Can't believe I said that! Use that man trait when hunting in noisy areas!!

What 1st came to mind is carrying a sort of lucky charm, but ^^^^ is interesting, G-Man.

Not criticizing the OP, but at least for me this planning for alternate strategies was done during the summer and in place by now. I strictly use ladder stands, so being "mobile" is not in my toolbox! After you've hunted the same area for ~15yrs, you get a pretty good feel about what might happen & when. Predictable.. NO way!

Like the OP eluded to, shooting a bow requires 3X focusing at different distances. Up close for the string peep, med for the sight pin & hsg and far for target aiming. When you need tri-focal correction ... it can be challenging or a complete FUBAR for the archer. Didn't make a difference for me if the glasses were progressive, lined or no line lens. Same applies with open/iron sights on a long gun! A one word solution - scopes... .. w/o moving your eye to focus on different distances??? Never had contacts, so IDK.

^^^ I've used this and it's a great, inexpensive solution! If you don't duct tape it well, the foam will absorb moisture. Oh yeah, for whatever reason the squirrels seem to like the foam. As far as those D-rings, just another item included with new ladder stands I toss aside. I use SS 1/4-20 bolts & lg (fender?) washers. Strong enough and reduces the movement between ladder sections that are typical when D-rings are used. Just a little squirt of spray paint & shininess of SS bolts is gone.

Bizarre.. Always heard grey fox would climb trees, but not so much red fox.

Never did this, but always envisioned putting a crossbar in the front of the truck bed and attaching either a come-along or boat trailer type of ratchet mechanism. Any thing with a mechanical advantage to get the deer &/or cart partially onto the tailgate. IRC, have seen electric winches that attach to front of bed and pull items into the truck bed. Just need someone with a little mechanical ingenuity to devise a temp mount for a winch. Cheapo ~1K elec winch with ideally a remote control would be great. Maybe even an old section of a roller conveyor would be helpful...?

Expectations... none, never! Wish list; Get out as much as I am able to, Wishing the weather cooperates, Enjoy nature, the critters, etc, Not worried about filling the freezer anymore, so does walk, Have an encounter with a mature buck, Have a shot opportunity at a mature buck, Harvest a mature buck.

That's an interesting target block. Does it have 2X separate sides for field points and other for BHs? Not sure I've ever seen one with dual density.

One resident forum member has taught himself to be a semi-pro regarding scrapes. Has several threads on making them, maintaining them & even relocating licking branches. Buckstopshere. Take a look at his profile and you may find scrape topics he's posted.

I love these stories! A lot to be said about getting a ..budget rifle in a good caliber, upgrading the optics, trigger and finding the perfect ammo! The dead deer will never know if it was shot with a $300, $700 or $1500 rifle.

^^^ IRC, that's an old BetaMax movie.... What about Jeremiah Johnson, the grizz shot inside the cabin or the elk shot over the top of a horse!!

For decades I hunted the way you use to, hope for the best. Today I have cams out, do lots of stand prep work and even keep a journal for historical patterns, sightings, etc. Not convinced either way is exponentially better than the other.

Although these fall (Oct) patterns "typically" happen, there are exceptions... Always the possibility of a BB going to a large agr food source at dusk or returning to his hidey-hole at dawn. Lot of hunters try to key-in on known BB hide-outs waiting for one to venture out in the daylight hours. Some hunters try to s/u along known rub lines when they begin to do that activity. Why hunt Oct..? Hell, we all have been sitting around for ~11 months dreaming of hunting deer again. Invested a lot of effort/$$ into scouting, preparing stands, food plots etc for the upcoming deer season. Hard to restrain those urges if only with the slightest possibility of encountering a BB. Does are your best natural attractant for bucks, so if you keep track of their seasonal activity - where the girls are the boys will show up! This causes a lot of controversy among hunters, shooting does in Oct. IF... I were going to put a doe in the freezer, Oct is an ideal time for me. Personal preference! Sounds like you may be a somewhat new deer hunter..!?! Lot of other hunters are willing to offer advice/ You need to know how to pick n choose what is suggested and how it might apply to your specific hunting area. Not an easy task for a newbie!! So, my 2¢, get a few years of hunting under your belt and you'll have a better understand of whatz going on in your area, at what times and how to interpret cam activity. Sorry, I have no "how to get a BB now" secret. For people with questions like you have, wouldn't it be nice if the NYDEC posted a past deer season's harvest report by date AND by sex of deer reported.Maybe there is one, I'm just not aware of it! Closest I've seen is below & scroll down to pg16. The 2018 deer harvest, per day, but only as a total of all reported and not shown as by sex harvested. https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/2018deerrpt.pdf

^^^ and by mfgers using a sled with a mechanical release mechanism in a lab to determine advertised performance specs.All while using each specific bows MAX draw wgt and lightest arrows. Can't say never, but very rarely will a hunter ever achieve advertised specs. Like others have said, so what... ! Wonder if Saxton Pope or Fred Bear gave a $hit about this..?

OMFG, I'd be PO'ed with all the above situations too! But... think we all know what the MO of ALL insurance companies, whether auto, homeowner, med/health, etc, is when making their money. Collect exhortation premiums, almost "automatically" refuse initial payout requests and while deliberately putting the onus on the policy holder to negotiate a covered or fair payment.

Annual event - velvet comes off, the bucks don't like each other, bachelor groups break-up, infrequent solitary buck cam photos and eventually mostly nocturnal photos. Early estrous does in Oct bring out some of the smaller bucks into the daylight. Then around about the Halloween time frame the big boys begin to circulate a little more & a few daytime sightings occur. Obviously the main rut brings out all the bucks into daylight hours that you've been seeing on cams and some more never seen before. FYI - Just because the BBs have been around a specific area during the summer does NOT always mean you'll ever see them while hunting. Sorry, sad truth! This is a "rule of thumb" pattern I've seen over the years, but obviously there will be exceptions to this behavior pattern.

Sarcasm, maybe...? Begs the question - If not, are we going to draw some line in the sand between agr grain crops vs fruit farms vs food plots regarding hunting near each and their ethics or legalities...?

Granted, the DEC is our only ally in NYS for outdoor recreation, hunting, fishing, etc. At least for me, it's a love-hate relationship. They do some things that make me wonder what they're thinking....

So... If you happen upon a black trash bag with ~$50k of loose bills and a few unsold bags of pot, what do you do? Look around to see if any one is watching? Be a good Samaritan and turn it into the local PD? Myself, I plea the 5th amendment!

Attached video is exactly what anti-hunting groups are looking for. A means to categorize all hunters in a negative aspect. That hunter didn't do the rest of us any favors by posting the video. Clearly that sort of thing happens, but at least for me I'd end the animal's suffering. Idiots and their cameras...!