steve863

BSH, I'm afraid you are right, it sure doesn't sound like PA is abandoning AR's at this point, but at least this report takes a good bit of air out of the balloon for those pushing AR's in NYS. You are absolutely correct about the antler worship in todays hunting world. I have seen hunters feel superior because there deer had a piddly 6 points compared to the other guys piddly 5 points. A sad world we live in where everybody needs to beat out the next guy, and if they don't they don't feel satisfied.

Where's that guy from the old forum who told us guys who were opposed to AR's that we needed to get with the times and be educated, most especially by highly intelligent people like himself now??? Eating antler soup maybe...

So are they admitting they were wrong about AR's when they say. "An expanding research base supports the position that antler restrictions will have minimal impact on future antler development of Pennsylvania‘s deer herd." [/size]Sure sounds like it, don't it? LOL All this AR, QDM stuff is nothing but bafoonery thought up by some biologists down in Texas who were paid by some rich trophy hunters to come up with some ideas. None of it worth a darn it seems! If the herd has good antler genetics, you will have big bucks, if it doesn't you can implement AR's all you want and you won't see much of an improvement if any.

Exactly! I know a few hunters who abandoned those areas and now hunt where any buck is legal and where a doe tag is easier to draw. They were lucky that they found another place to hunt. Others aren't so lucky. If I hunted in these AR units I surely would not be getting up 4 in the morning for a chance at not being allowed to shoot at just about any deer that might walk in front of me! It would be a complete waste of time. At least if they tried out these AR regulations in areas where deer are way more numerous and where doe permits where easy to get. I really feel sorry for hunters in these AR units.

It's much easier with a friend. Shoot the shot aiming at the bullseye. Look through the scope and confirm where the shot hit. Maybe it's low to the right, whatever. After the recoil, reposition the gun and make sure it is still aiming at the bullseye. Now, while still looking through the scope, have a friend carefully move the crosshair (without bumping the gun) so that it covers where the bullet hit. Next shot should be dead on. Yes, this can get your gun to zero real fast. I would recommend that an experienced shooter take that first shot, however. I have seen a good many novice shooters who shoot poorly, so that first shot may actually be nowhere close to the guns zero. You would be moving the crosshairs to somewhere other than the guns zero and still end up wasting a lot of ammo.

There are a good many WMU's that have NO doe permits issued, and many where it will not be easy to draw one. It's not like doe permits are issued to everyone. Many meat hunters might as well give up hunting if we had AR's.

You're probably talking 15, 20 thousand at least for a gun like this. Probably more. Way too much just to have a quick second shot. I will keep my run of the mill one barrel bolt action that will kill just the same.

Well, if you want a pig that looks like Old McDonald's farm pig, then just go to Old McDonald's farm and pay him to let the pig out of the pen and shoot him right there. I'm sure it would cost you a lot less and you wouldn't need to drive all the way to PA for the shot. Old McDonald might even sing his song for you. An oink, oink, here and an oink, oink there. E-I-E-I OOOOOH! ;D Just pulling your leg here, but I would think a hunter would at least want to shoot an animal that looks somewhat like the real thing.

Looking thru the barrel or shooting at a big target at 25 yards will work. One must remember that adjusting a scope to bring the crosshairs in line with the bullet impact at short range will require a lot more clicks than when shooting at long range. 4 clicks at 100 yards would move your sights one inch with most scopes. To move one inch at 25 yards would probably require 16 or more clicks. I've seen guys waste bullets at short range also not realizing this.

I'm glad someone else said this, and not me, although I surely can't disagree. Makes one think, doesn't it? If us hunters don't trust others out there participating in the same sport we do, and who just happen to be gun owners like we are, why then should the rest of society?? Simple question with NO simple answers, that's for darned sure!!

My experience has been that hunters in general are some of the greatest complainers alive. I know a good many of them who think every hunter out there except themselves is an outlaw and poacher. Granted, I have come across my share of low life hunters over my earlier hunting years, but these days I just hunt and don't really care what other hunters do. I've been lucky enough to have exclusive hunting rights to some nice private property for a good many years now and have hardly ever seen anyone while hunting, nevermind being irritated by anyone. I do realize that a good many of the complaints here have merit. If you want to see some real life yahoo knuckleheads, just take up hunting. You are bound to run into them sooner than later. This is sad, but VERY true.

Very true! Statistical sampling is pretty darned accurate. Sometimes it's hard to believe how this could be so, but it has been proven time and again to be so.

Great, so that means we are invited to come over? We will be happy with the buck you photographed while you hunt the real Mr. Big. Still waiting for those GPS coordinates, though?

Completely against AR's. The states sole responsibility is to control deer numbers by setting up a hunting season for them. The number of points a male deer happens to be wearing on his head at the time he is shot doesn't matter one tiny bit. Those who don't want to kill small bucks can wait for bigger ones. Quite simple, and no one is telling anyone else that they can't shoot a smaller buck if they so desire.

I honestly don't think any changes will be made pertaining to this. The state has a hard enough time balancing it's financial budgets, never mind counting deer carcasses. I really don't think it's priority to anyone in power in NYS to have a more accurate count of the deer that get shot by hunters. The state simply wants hunters to shoot deer and control their numbers and the statistical figures they currently use are good enough for them. Whether they are off in the count by thousands or tens of thousands doesn't really matter to them. Deer hunting in NYS is pretty good in general, so they surely won't go to extremes to change anything. I remember a similar thread in the old forum. People were coming up with ideas like deer check stations, etc. Will NEVER happen! Way too costly, with little to gain for anyone other than the most avid hunter. And we shouldn't forget that hunters are far from priority in the scheme of things for the state of NY.

Fair enough. I would be happy if either of us got to kill that buck. We could then call Geno over for his photographic expertise and he could then take a nice picture of us with the buck and then post it on this forum! ;D

Thanks 33 Canuck! It will be nice to have a few helping hands when it's time for me to load that big buck into my vehicle!

Nice pics of the farm and bucks! Now if you would be kind enough to share the GPS coordinates of the property!

Don't let the photos on the Island hunts website fool you. Some of the pigs that are shot on that island look no wilder than the ones in farmer Joe's pen. I have attached a photo my uncle sent me of a couple of pigs taken on that Island this past winter by some friends of his. They surely don't look like wild Russian boar to me!! I would never hunt in either of these operations.

http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/30409.html The 2010 list of permit availability and probability by area has now been posted on the DEC website.