philoshop

In the mid-1980's I was followed to a public hunting site in the Alfred/Almond area. I don't know exactly why they targeted me, but there were a half dozen cars filled with people who then followed me into the woods and sat around my treestand for a couple of hours talking loudly and ruining my morning hunt. Once I started taking the long logging road in from the other direction, which wasn't easy, the harassment stopped.

I've done zero research on this and don't know the answer, but why doesn't Leupold use U.S. made glass? It's a sincere question. Does Japan simply make the best? Is it about some trade agreement from thirty years ago? Does it have to do with the regulatory mess the EPA has created? Is it about the lack of skilled U.S. workers? I'm just wondering what your take on this is.

Drill baby drill!!

It's not the little bit of warming or cooling that will destroy the American way of life, It's the knee-jerk reactions and "solutions" that would have been or will be our greatest loss. Is crushing our ability to be energy independent really a "solution"? If that's the solution, we really need to think about what the actual problem might be. Is it a solution to mandate that for every pickup truck manufactured in the U.S. twelve little roller-skate cars that get 700 MPG be produced, even though very few people want to buy them? That's government control of private production through the use of regulatory over reach. How would the Paris Climate Accord, created specifically for the purpose of global wealth redistribution of U.S. treasure benefit the U.S.? (Notice how no one is talking about that since the U.S. withdrew.) I could go on...

Keep one thing in mind: Leo Dicaprio doesn't own a fancy private jet so that he can fly around the world informing people about climate change. He talks about climate change so that he can afford a fancy private jet.

I'm there my friend. I have plenty in my back woods, but it's always fun to see new territory. Keep me posted.

I still enjoy sitting in the woods as the sun comes up and the critters start to move. It takes me about two minutes to walk out my back door and do that. Sometimes I'll take a camera but neither one that I own has an off-switch for the shutter sound, and often I just don't want to disturb the woods like that. Things changed for me when I stopped focusing on "the kill" and started thinking more about the quality time in the woods. I still hunt squirrels, Pygmy. As long as I don't have to walk too far. Hint, hint.

I bought the better one of the two at Lowes a few years back. Not sure of the manufacturer. A very aggressive sawblade and a decent lopping jaw. During the winter I bolt an old bent-up shovel blade onto it to scrape snow off my roof. No problems so far.

Capybarra. Water Rat and Biz are working together to capture a pair and start their own zoo. Or an odd wild meat farm. I haven't questioned them in person, so it's just speculation at this point. Pink Panther out.

Could be something as simple as a dentition problem (bad teeth). It happens. It doesn't look like it will survive the winter anyway. A "mercy kill" might be the best thing, and that way it can be checked for other diseases/causes.

I'll go with "scruffy house cat whose lost part of his tail".

I hope that no one got the wrong impression and thought that I was saying NYS is a "lost cause". My observation was that the RNC and POTUS Trump's own strategists don't consider the state worthy of vast resources. We are the resources. It's up to us. The President only has just so much time to spend campaigning, and while I would love to see him fire up a rally in Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse... it's a tough sell in a state that can't turn out it's own people come election time. And it's not that people don't care, it's that we/they tend to work hard for a living. The cows and the crops don't care if it's election day. Face it, we're flyover country. I did the best I could to help out by working dawn to 9 PM on November 8, 2016 getting people to the voting booths. It was a long day.

The RNC has decided that NYS is a lost cause, and not worth spending money on. Sad, but true. Mobilize your friends and neighbors and we can turn it around. It's the only way out of this mess.

An excellent synopsis, jmark!!

It's called "lawfare". When you can't win on public opinion, find a way to use the court system to shut down your opponent. This guy wants to be POTUS!!!

Glad to have you with us!

A "d -type" hit can be unpleasant. Hose out the carcass and wipe dry with paper towels. Process as usual. I'm assuming the hit went to the mark, of course.

I've been doing a series of interviews with a high school friend about hunting. He has a number of P&Y club bucks on his wall. I hope that one day he will allow me to tell his whole story. But here's a part that he's allowed out: Number one: You have to be hunting where there are big deer and know how they move. Not everywhere in NYS has big deer. That's scouting. And it doesn't mean hangin' cameras in trees a month before the season. It means boots on the ground in December and January and then backtracking to where they were in the fall. Number two: You have to be ready and able to kill the animal when the time arrives. This gets to the OP. Getting a shot or just sticking an arrow into the animal doesn't count. It's a blood sport. Win or starve. Or buy a burger at the restaurant or grocery store on the way home.

Don't aim at "the deer". Aim at the vital organs within the deer. Know exactly where they are. If you have to shoot through a bunch of bone and muscle to hit that organ, pass on the shot, especially with a bow. It's not rocket science.

When I last had a TV (about 20 years ago) I refused to watch the show "60 Minutes". I thought it was an incredibly uninformed and biased show. I never came out and said that the show should be shut down. I just didn't watch. I don't like the fact that no one wears big-boy or big-girl pants any more. Where are the adults?

You also might contact a local auctioneer. A friend of mine picked up a dozen or so that were collecting dust in the corner of an auctioneer's warehouse. They're not worth the effort to auction off and generally get sold as scrap metal.

Has anyone ever tried smoking a Zweigel's hot? Just wondering. No Cheech, I mean in a food smoker.

I'll ask around and keep my ears open. I'll also mention it to my brother who spends a lot of time scouring garage sales and the like where those stands often pop up.

i spent my formative years around campfires and bonfires. Now that I heat with wood and have to spend 9 months of the year tending a fire to stay alive, the three months I get without the fire is seen a bit differently.

You helped to make some some great guns. Thank you.