doulos

This state never stops its BS against hunters and firearms owners. And it never will without a radical political shift. I have very little hope that will happen.

I use a Vanguard tripod. It can be used as a tripod ,bipod or a single. Very handy when ground hunting.

I own 2 crossbows that can be let down after a hunt. A Camx and a Kodabow. I wouldnt even look at one if it didnt have that feature. Im actually surprised all of them dont

Im looking to purchase a Tenpoint Eclipse. Its specs say its 17 in Axle to Axle uncocked. But can only see from pics that the cams are on brackets and am not sure about the limb tip to limb tip measurement NY requires. Anybody know if it measures up?

It seems you think Im speaking out against owning an AR 15. No Just the opposite. I just have interest in other types of firearms. And spend my dollars on different stuff.

I dont personally own a AR 15 or that type of rifle and really dont want one. But these bans are nothing more than an illusion that the government is making us safe. Just 2 miles from my house a guy killed his sister set the house on fire, and then shot 4 firefighters killing 2 as they arrived at the scene. They make a big deal about he was using a Bushmaster AR 15. But the guy was a convicted felon who killed his grandmother and only served 18 years and then let go. He was not supposed to have any firearms. These people are not going to obey these laws. You cant protect against crazies except to keep them locked up. Dont for a minute think that the goal of many who support gun control is not total confiscation eventually. They just want at the present to seem reasonable with an assualt weapons ban Now to respond to the quote The 2nd ammendment is about checking the governments ability to tyrannize the people. Its not about hunting ,target shooting etc. And people always respond that the military is so much more powerful so what could we do. Superior firepower does not guarantee victory. Resolve ,conviction of beliefs and determination will win in the end. Just look at the history of conflicts. How about the Revolutionary war. England was the greatest military power in the world at the time. Remember Vietnam? And also I dont believe the most of the US military would be on the side of the government for long if this government was to become as oppressive as some of the other governments in the world. I believe there are too many freedom and constitution lovers in the military for that to happen. Just my 2 cents.

Ive killed at least 25 deer with 300 grain (non Magnum) XTP's. All at ranges from 10 yards to 165 yards. I have recovered 2. All have been pass throughs with big blood trails. And deer that went down within 50 yards. All this with charges of real black powder, pyrodex or 777 in the 90 -110 grain range. 100 grains of 777 is plenty.

If you have a sidelock and are shooting patch and roundball I would stay with real blackpowder. If you dont want to shoot black Ive used Triple 7 in sidelocks with fair results. Drop your load back about 15%-20% and start there. You will get a lot more velocity from 777. Its also hell on patches so keep a lookout. If you cant get a patch to not burn through you might need an over the powder wad. That being said I still think black powder is better in sidelocks.

i didnt respond to anything you posted bkln but that particular post by Ford

Totally untrue Where do you get that info? Did you just make it up?

Even though I havent hunted as much as I usually due to a medical problem, I have to agree that I have seen fewer deer than usual. But its hard to determine why. The beginning of bow season was pretty good and then it tailed off. Things to consider are weather and food sources. The wind was not conducive for me seeing deer in some of the places I hunt. The prevailing westerly wind at this time of year was non exsistent in some places I usually hunt. And the food sources werent the same as last year. As far as hunter pressure I rather not have it. Ive always done better toward late season when pressure dies down a bit. As far as numbers of permits I do believe it is over done. I dont consistently see the deer numbers I saw when permits were harder to come by.Now just about every area was in region 8 where I hunt was issuing 2 per hunter. And there was extra tags after Nov 1. In one area where I owned property nuisance permits were certainly over issued to a large farm owner. And the hunting really suffered. Numbers were way down after 2 years of these farm hands plugging away. And this is a place I knew well and hunted for 30 years. To be honest where Im hunting now even though Im not seeing deer Im still seeing alot of sign. So I know they are there. Ive seen seasons like this before. But there are a lot of variables. The best way to tell is to go there after the snow flies and the season is well over and hang around some late season food sources. I did that after a similar slow season and couldnt believe how many deer I saw

You have to remember also some shops are only dealers for a couple of brands of bows. That doesent mean they are a bad shop. It just means they dont carry every brand. Call around and see who carries what and go shoot them. Dont be afaid to take notes so you remember what you liked and disliked about a brand or model. Remember a fully set up bow with sights,quiver and rest isnt going to be a cheap purchase. So take your time

There is a lot of great bows out there. Pretty hard to say which is "best". I shoot Mathews now and like it. But think I am going back to a 2 cam system next year. I think the first one I will try is an Elite. I just prefer the valley on a 2 cam. I you like Mathews a lower priced alternative is Mission Archery. They are made and designed by Mathews. Keep one thing in mind pro shop dealer support from the manufacturer is sometimes important. Ask your dealer how they support them with quick parts delivery etc. Most will tell you Mathews breaks their butt to support their dealer. And I am sure it helps Elites headquarters are here in Rochester. It stinks when you need a part and cant get one very quick.

All year I have been battling hip arthritus to the point that I didnt know if I could get out this year. But I decided to set up a stand in an area I had to only walk about 250 yards from my truck. This morning I rattled in a 7 pointer that came in behind me that I was hesitant to shoot because of the extreme angle and I had decided to hold out the first week unless he was a bruiser buck or a any doe. Then I rattled in a small 6 pointer that offered 2 shots and let him go. Im sore as heck BUT I LOVE THIS STUFF.

I usually rattle the most during early bow season. I rattled in 2 small bucks this morning in my years first hunt. It seems to work best in early season. I also always carry a grunt tube and had that work through out bow season. But i have had good luck also with a doe bleat can. Ive found that calling seems to work best in areas with a good buck to doe ratio. Areas that have alot of 1.5 year old bucks seem to provide alot of action with calls during bow season.

fateddie You dont have to go through the hassle of finding that stuff Ive used nothing other than black electrical tape over the muzzle for years. Wipe the barrel crown and sides abit with alchol so the tape sticks. 1 piece should be enough. In fact I wouldnt double it up never had a problem, shoots right through it, no loss in accuracy

Thats what supposed to happen. You should be able to do that out to whatever range is your self imposed limit. Many times they will group together at 20 but not 30 or farther. And a tiny adjustment will bring them together. Sounds like your ready. Good luck!

I have to agree with Larry. I do the same thing. By the way I have alot less problems with broadhead accuracy since going back to helical fletching. Mechanicals are a product of us shooting faster and faster bows with light arows and small fletch. For years everyone used pretty straight fletch because most guys were using prong style shoot through rests. Clearance was an issue unless the fletch was straight or just slightly offset. Helical was a problem with those style rests. Well fixed broadheads wanted to steer your arrows and the smaller straight fletch wasnt helping much. Sometimes even the best tuned bows didnt shoot broadheads as well as they could have. So in comes mechanicals to fix the problem. Now I know many have good fortune with Blazer vanes that are straight.I have used them and they worked OK. They work because they have a high profile and are very stiff. Today people are fletching Blazers also with a helical twist. Since I started using a drop away years ago I figured there was no reason not to fletch with a tight helical. Clearance of the rest was not an issue anymore. Broadhead accuracy has improved and overall accuracy also. This is not a thread to bash mechanicals. Im just presenting altenatives to those who want to stay with fixed blades and are having difficulty. Most fixed blade heads can be controlled with a 4 inch 3 fletch helical. I still use 4 inch 4 fletch helical. And feathers are even better for control.

I'll second what loworange 88 said about the Beman ICS hunters. The thing to look for is tolerances. Those arrows have a straigtness factor of plus or minus ".003". And thats pretty good for the price. carbon express maxima's are much more expensive and only have a straightness of plus or minus .0025. I think they are pretty good arrows for the money.

I havent put it over a chronograph. But it is plenty out to 150 yards. I have usually used charges in the 90-110 grain range and never found power lacking. I settled on 90 with that gun because at the time I was setting up the gun for a newer hunter to use. Once I hit 90 in my load development and had 3 bullets in less than an inch I stopped. Im sure it would shoot good at 100 and 110 also. Ive personally killed 2 does and 1 8pt with that load. And the 8pt was about 90 yards. It doesent lack for power. I havent experimented more because I actually use my traditional styled guns more than my inlines now. The problem with 150 grain charges are they usually are less accurate or at least harder to shoot accurate. They just arent necessary. A 100 grain charge of Balckhorn or 777 will probably get you about 1850-1900 fps with a 250 grain bullet. I cant imagine needing more than 120 grains of either of these powders. Both Blackhorn and 777 will give you much more velocity than pyrodex or real black powder. And Ive killed alot of deer with 100 grain charges of both. PS dont use those "special muzzleloading primers" with Blackhorn. Use winchester regular w209 or federal 209a standard . Also Blackhorn has a very good shelf life according to all tests. You cant say that about any other powde except real black powder. A 100 grain charge of those powders is plenty for the style of hunting I do. And I wouldnt pass a 150 yard shot. Experiment and youll agree.

For economical bullets. Buy Hornady XTPs, in .45 cal in bulk. And some MMP sabots. Either the 250 grain or 300 grainer bullet will work. Both usually shoot very well out of most guns. They just plain whack deer. Ive killed more than 25 deer with the 300 grainer at ranges from 10 to 165 yards. Only recovered 2 bullets. Both perfect mushrooms. Great penetration even when hitting shoulders,and huge blood trails usually mean found deer. I have killed deer with the 250's and they work well too but prefer the 300's. I cant believe people pay so much for these so called premium bullets when thes XTP will do it all. If they shoot well in your gun use em. they wont fail you. If something like a barnes shoots better use these for parctice.

I use Blackhorn in a regular TC Encore . Hornady .452 250 XTP in a MMP 3 petal EZ sabot sitting on top of 90 grains Blackhorn will put em into an inch at 100yards, No swabbing between shots. Cleanup couldnt be easier. I use a couple patches soaked with Hoppes no 9 and follow with some dry patches. Clean it like you would a regular smokeless gun. Its one of the few powders I thought lived up to its hype.

Just a note Even though I dont own one I have read extensively about the Savages. the whole smokeless concept and patent design was bought by Savage from a North Carolina gunsmith named Henry Ball. He designed his rifle around the 300 grain Hornady XTP. MMP sabots and 5744 powder. And many owners say its a good place to start. Some good places to look for strting load data Modern Muzzleloading http://www.modernmuzzleloader.com/phpBB/ also Doug's message board --- http://dougsmessageboards.proboards.com/index.cgi and the Savage forum-----http://www.savageshooters.com/SavageForum there is alot of experienced Smokeless muzzleloaders there

Doc, try a 20 guage. I hear the bolt action Savage slug gun is awesome.

I would like to reload my own! For hunting I live in 3M. I would like to start out with the basics. The shots we make down here are 50 - 200 yards. Should I buy a single stage or a progressive reloader? Type of powder? The rifles I would reload are .243, 260, 7MM-08 and a 7MM Mag and mabey 30-30. Could I have your views. Landowner ] Welcome to the world of handloading If you are reloading those calibers I strongly suggest a single stage press. I own all 3 types a single stage, a turret, and a progressive. A single stage is the way to learn. Allthough a turret would be fine also. A turret is really not much faster than a single stage once especially if you use Hornady Lock n load or lee bushings that enable you to quickly change dies. With a turret you can set up 2 pistol calibers in the head and just leave them. Both RCBS, and Lyman make nice turrets and you can but extra turret heads and just leave your dies set up in them. Redding and Lee also make turret presses. IMO the Redding is the best but also the most expensive turret. All of those companies also make good single stage presses. As far as dies any 7/8 die of any manufacture will be interchangable. I have RCBS, Lyman, Redding and Dillon and have no complaints. As far as progressives Hornady and Dillon seem to be the popular choices. I use my Dillon progressive for pistol ammo only. It is for high capacity reloading and not the best choice for someone just getting in to reloading. I dont believe a progressive is a good starting point. My advice is to get the best stuff you can afford. I still have equpment I bought 30 years ago. Dont scrimp on your scale either. Start out with a good mecahnical scale. I have a Dillon Eliminator I like alot(about 55 bucks). Rcbs also makes The models 505,502 and the top of the line 1010 balance beam scale. IMO the best scales are all manufactured by a company called Ohaus for the reloading equipment industry. Electronic scales are fine but they sometimes dont last and are sensitive to temperature and humidity and break easily if they get accidently dropped. They are only usually warranted for a year while the other scales Ive mentioned have a lifetime warranty. I use both electronic and mechanical but the mechanical is more fool proof. Also while the internet provides great access to the powder companies reloading data you should pick up a copy of Lyman's reloading manual the 49th Edition. You can learn alot about reloading from Lyman's publication. Allways have more than 1 source for load data. Go to Midway's web site and you can see alot of comments by users of alot of reloading equipment. As far as suppliers Ive used and ordered stuff through Midway, Midsouth, Grafs, Weidners, Cabela's and my Dillon stuff directly through them. Have fun. Concentrate on what your doing. It is a great and enjoyable hobby