Fehyd643

Just don't use Pam or some cooking spray crap. It's too thin, and not smelly enough. Be also careful of any burnt oil (or pieces of any burnt breading/flour or skin or whatever), as that will throw things off. Just run it through a screen first. It also has to be thick enough to stick to the sides of the bucket and NOT settle to the bottom as it freezes. Joshua

Just keep in mind that most deer processing places would LOVE to have someone take some of the scraps. As Predate said too, any food scraps work, but with this method you really want it as stinky as possible.

I know this is not an answer to your original question, but I have a slightly different bait method. I hope you still have access to the guts (or stop buy any local processor, and they will probably give you some) Take the scraps, let them get a little warm/rank if you can. If not, this will still work. Get a 5 gallon bucket. Wipe the inside with crisco, or any good grease (bacon grease is the BEST!) Fill the bucket with guts and scraps and water. Less water, more guts. Let it freeze. Slide out the results and you have a solid gut-sicle! Put that out as bait. Yotes will gnaw at it for a while, giving you plenty of time to shoot. A lot of times, hanging ribs, or using a loose bait pile, the yotes or fox will just grab and run. This prevents that. The grease does double duty of helping get the ice block out of the bucket, and seeping into the top layer of ice for scent and taste. Just my $.02 Joshua

lmao. Nothing like a 155mm whistle!

I have a 700 SPS Varmint in 308. I have nothing but praise for my rifle! I personally put 5 round groups at 100 yds in about 1 inch, I let my friend, who is a much better shot than I am, shoot it, and was hitting .6" groups! I am a fan of the venture's bolt. Like dbHunterNY said, the location and ease is very nice. I just didnt think it was as smooth as the 700's though. Just my opinion. I think both will shoot better than most people can take advantage of simply because a stand or shooting sticks is not a bench. It really comes down to feel, price and comfort. (I believe reliability is equal, so I am not addressing the warranty) Joshua

Congrats!

Arrrrrgh! Tomorrow is my only day to hunt this week. The forecast? Windy with showers developing later in the day. High 44F. Winds W at 25 to 35 mph. Chance of rain 50%. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph. What the hell NY??

nice kill!

Damn... I was close!

I know it was rhetorical, but it looks like tire "chains" for a tractor

bow-chic-a-wow-wow

first wife was backwoods pensyltucky. You can keep the southern accent! Current wife is from tx, but I converted her to our yankee ways soon enough!

One reason I can't read in my stand: Squirrels My eyes and attention pop at every sound, whether it's a noisy day or not. I just can't concentrate on a book, as much as I'd love to. I cant listen to music for the same reason. My stand is set in a may that I have lanes in a full 360, so I constantly have to scan. By the time I'm hitting noon, I am actually tired from being hyper-alert! This is my first real year hunting though, and I'm sure I will relax sooner or later. On the plus side, I did get to see a ninja chipmunk fight off 2 squirrels. I'm pretty sure he knew jujitsu

ouch

Congrats on the buck!

This is the Coolest. Thing. Ever. I've done a tiny bit of reading on hawking, and I know just enough to say that I have no real idea how hard it really is. My hat is off to you sir!

Ok, that makes sense to me. If it's your only shot, and you are confident in the chances, I am all for it. I may not take it, but I dont begrudge the guy that can. I just dont understand choosing it if you had a choice.

Regarding the headshot: Why? Is it the challenge? If I want to challenge myself, I hit the range and try to plug plates at 500+. If I'm shooting/hunting, whether it's for meat, trophy, defense, or pest control (personally, my goal is meat), I just want the highest chance possible to put the target down as quick as possible. It's your tags, do what you want, but I just dont get it. I shoot by three rules: Aim small, miss small; Shoot center mass; You own the bullet once it leaves the gun. Joshua

I am, and thank you for your service! Former Army 55D here. Night fire... lol, been there done that. That's exactly why I am so anal about it now!

It's actually funny that you should bring this up. I am completely fanatic about this type of thing and just got into an argument with a buddy yesterday about it. The ONLY reason I am even going Rifle hunting this year is because I have a chance to hunt a piece of private land where the shots will be angled down to a ravine/creek bed. I have about 200 max yards of shooting lanes, all of which have 100% backstops. I went out shotgun hunting once last year, and the people I was with wanted to do a drive. I asked them about shooting lanes, fields of fire and intersecting FOF, and they looked at me like I was speaking another language. I thanked them and went home. Never actually hunted that year as this was my only opportunity. My philosophy is, if you do not have a safe shot, don't take it. Barring crazy events or ricochets, a safe shot to me is knowing exactly where your bullet can land. If you can't assure point of impact with some level of confidence, dont take the shot!

Elmo; Thanks for the input. I know it will sound like empty bragging and such, but I'm not worried about conditions and my reaction so much. I shot my very first deer with a bow a couple weeks ago, and remained pretty steady. Being military, I fully understand that bench shooting and real world scenarios are totally and completely different! All my bench work has been mostly for muscle memory and basic technique. As I stated in my previous post, I know that I am a much worse shooter than my rifles are capable of, but I have done OK in the past in pressure situations. Sub MOA on a bench is 2-3MOA in real world for me. I know I'm not really that good. More importantly, I completely agree with you and pretty much everyone else that has responded. I think I will be going with the 308. It seems that it will just give me a higher percentage chance to put food on the table! Thanks for your advice!

The Stag and I can shoot around 1MOA from a bench. Unsupported, I'd call myself a 2-3MOA shooter with a 1MOA gun. lol The 700 is definitely a sub MOA. I don't think I would be comfortable with a head shot. My goal is to give myself the highest possible kill-chance. There are just too many variables involved compared to a vital or shoulder shot. Thanks for the input! Joshua

I have a bit of range time before I head out for gun season, and was planning on zero'ing with whatever ammo I hunt with then. The 700's eat pretty much anything I gave it pretty clean, so I'm not expecting to have to make any major adjustments. I've been using mostly .308 Win Remington 150 Grain to shoot, but havent researched the requirements yet for deer. My mossberg does not have a rifled barrel (yet). I just dont have the mechanics down on it yet to feel comfortable with just the bead at beyond 50 yds, and I havent tapped in a rail or mount for a scope. Thanks for the advice!

I totally agree about limitations! I'd probably stick to 100-150 yds with the AR. I know I can go out further, but I prefer keeping my chance of a definite kill-shot above 95% Stacking shots at 200 is great... on a bench. Thanks for the input! Quick follow up Q: Would I target the shoulder with the .223 or the same kill zone as with a bow? I know it's a dumb question, but I'm still a noob! Joshua

Hey all New to hunting but familiar with firearms to a point. Here's my question: I have 2 rifles that I own, and I am not sure which caliber is better for deer hunting. Accuracy and range is really no problem for either, as I wont be shooting beyond 150-200 yds due to terrain. #1 Stag Arms AR-15, 5.56/.223 Red dot, accurate within a few inches at 150-200 yds #2 Remington 700, .308 Leopold 14x40, keyholes at 150/200 My main question is if the 223 is too small, and the 308 too big? I'd prefer the Stag, simply because it is a lot lighter, but I just don't know if a .223 will fill the bill. I also have a Mossberg 500c (20ga) but I am very new to shotguns and really don't have a lot of faith in myself as far as bullet drop/accuracy when changing distances. I don't have enough range time with it to be comfortable yet. I have hundreds of hours behind my rifles, and have 100% confidence in them. So which is better for a higher percentage clean kill-shot without overdoing it? Thanks in advance for any assistance. Joshua