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chrisw

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Posts posted by chrisw

    Time to do some predator control

    in Small Game and Predator Hunting

    Posted

    Nope not you, I'm implying we have lots of experts here.

    Note the times posted on your post and mine; I type with one finger............and the thought has been on my brain for a while. Lots of big talk from all the coyote killers and they have no idea just how difficult it is to do without dogs or while deer hunting.

    Sure, it can be done but it's difficult. Most guys get out in the winter and freeze their onions off or get too scared if hunting after dark. :)

    I too laugh every time I see newbies to coyote hunting going in all gung-ho. I was there once too so I fully understand. Coyotes make deer look really dumb, I'll be the first to admit I don't kill a lot of coyotes but I get a few every year and its no easy task. I bet your predator thread stays pretty quiet despite the millions of yotes people "know" are there.

    To the OP, I don't mean to come off negative, you should definitely get out there and have fun just don't get discouraged because kills are generally few and far between. There have been numerous threads lately on the coyote topic and most peoples knowledge of them is very limited/unfounded. If you need any help/information feel free to ask.

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    • Like 2

    .223 Deer

    in Rifle and Gun Hunting

    Posted

    Probably not the best choice in bullets for any chambering. Why not a Partition or Barnes TSX?

    Because at the time I didn't have them and you won't find them on any shelves around here. I agree a Barnes would've been ideal, if I were to ever give it another go I would certainly choose a heavily constructed bullet. Just too many better options in calibers for me to go back to a marginal one...

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    .223 Deer

    in Rifle and Gun Hunting

    Posted

    Not this season but a few years ago I did. Bullet was a Hornady 75gr. Match hollow point. Shot a doe at 20 yds. She went 30 yds and died. Bullet never exited and no blood in snow whatsoever, even where she lay dead. It worked but I'll probably never use it again. If it had been a less than perfect hit and no snow I doubt I'd have ever found it.

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    Eating Crow

    in Game Recipes / Cooking

    Posted

    I think pigeon is awesome! Not sure I would eat a city pigeon that's been eating bubblegum and pizza crust off the sidewalk but farm pigeons are great. Fun to shoot, no seasons, farmers typically don't like them, taste great. What's not to love!?

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    • Like 2

    PA may put $25 Bounty on Coyotes

    in Small Game and Predator Hunting

    Posted

    Around these parts the hunting consists of 3-4 pickups,4-5 snowmobiles, A good group of hunters and a pack of hunting dogs. The outside field watchers carry the rifles most times and the snow goers carry a shotgun.

    Have you ever seen how fast a guy can run down a yote on a snowmobile? Many people will call it many things but at the end of the day the goal is to take care of a problem and end up with a dead animal. That happens most times when the dogs and snow goers get done with their day.

    The hunters where I'm from do it a little different. There's no option to run them down on a machine as its thick forest with no fields to speak of. Its a matter of trying to get in front of the dogs and get the coyote as it comes by. Its a lot of running and scurrying around, physically exhausting. The guys I speak of don't swap out tired dogs for fresh as some seem to think is commonplace. There are many times the yote comes out the victor as it loses the dogs. I encourage anyone that has never done it to at least go along on a few hunts and experience it before you bash it based on hearsay or internet banter. I agree that if the animals are truly causing significant damage and are truly overpopulated then to me it wouldn't matter too much about sporting, its a matter of animal reduction. Although true overpopulation of coyotes in the majority of areas is just not true.

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    • Like 1

    PA may put $25 Bounty on Coyotes

    in Small Game and Predator Hunting

    Posted

    I have hounds run through here many times. I know several people who have witnessed them being released onto posted land. When a coyote comes into sight, you can hear the semi-autos going pop-pop-pop-pop at animals running full speed.

    Where are the houndsmen to defend themselves?

    I agree with your stance on coyotes here in NY but, do you know the guys didn't have permission on said private land? The guys I know have permission for about 1200 acres and all of that is posted property. And is hearing rapid shots so much different than a lot of deer hunters? Deer drives? The guys I speak of are a great group of guys that are just as much sportsmen as anyone on this forum, don't make all houndsmen out to be trespassing, I'll informed, lazy excuses for hunters... That's all I'm saying.

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    PA may put $25 Bounty on Coyotes

    in Small Game and Predator Hunting

    Posted

    To put it plain. If you want numbers of coyotes taken from an area, run them with dogs. If you want to be "sportsman like" then call them at night or trap them... I think the waters are getting muddled now about "hunting" and nuisance hunting. It doesn't sound like a single person on here has actually tried hunting with dogs? Most of you have no idea what it entails or the work involved not only with the hunt but year round dog work. I don't think shooting bears, coons or lions out of trees is very sporting either but I'm not advocating against it either. Running dogs is the most effective way of killing coyotes. Period.

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    • Like 1

    PA may put $25 Bounty on Coyotes

    in Small Game and Predator Hunting

    Posted

    There is a difference between hunting and population control. I'm curious how many on here have actually run coyotes with dogs? I know a group of guys that run yotes in the winter and its not as easy as walking up and putting a bullet in their heads. A fair share still elude the dogs. Its funny that this yhread went from most people hating coyotes and using any means necessary to eradicate to now worrying about how sporting the kills are...Is running hounds less sportsmanlike than using poisons? Is it less sportsmanlike than killing a coyote caught in a trap? How about the guys down south that run deer with dogs, are they not hunters? It may not be your style of hunting but saying they aren't hunters because you don't agree with them is ridiculous.

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    • Like 2

    Trimming meat

    in Deer Processing

    Posted

    A "happy medium" works pretty good for me on this. A doe generally require considerably more fat-trimming work than a buck, especially post-rut. If the temperature is ok for hanging inside the garage (32-50 F), I let them hang with the skin on for a week or so prior to processing. The skin provides great insulation against temperature extremes and keeps the meat from drying out too much. I usually take off the hide the day before processing. I also trim off much of the fat on the outside of the carcasses at that time. A large doe I butchered on opening weekend of gun season had fat more than 2 inches thick over most of the rear, but 2-1/2 year and 1-1/2 year bucks, killed the same day and a couple weeks prior, in the same spot, had very little.

    When I process the meat, I always trim off the easily accessible fat and tendons as I separate the muscles into roasts, chops, and grind. I don't go nuts on this, like many do, and we have never noticed any "rancid" flavor in the meat. My wife actually likes it so much, that she no longer buys any beef at the store. I always put the first deer each year into zip-lock bags. That is cheaper and saves time over vacuum sealing. As long as you eat it within a few months, there is no noticeable difference in flavor. The rest of the deer are vacuum-sealed. I have not noticed any freezer burn or loss in flavor, up to three years, on those, even without 100% fat removal.

    Next year, I am going to try making a neck roast or two from the first deer. That is the part that I usually struggle the most with fat-removal. It sounds like not worrying about it at all will not hurt flavor too bad, according to some posts I have read on here. That may only be true if it is not in the freezer too long however.

    Usually, I can age the meat for a week or so, but that only worked out for the first one this year. I skinned it, cut it in half, and hung it in an old fridge out in the garage (It was too warm to hang out in the garage). The skinned parts don't dry out too bad in that old non frost-free fridge. The other two had to be cut up the day after the kill due again to warm temps and a thanksgiving weekend trip we had planned. Other than the tenderloins, I turned those two "next-day" butchered deer all into roasts and grind. I figured the crock-pot and grinder could take care of the rigermortice that aging usually eliminates. We will have to see how those vacuum-sealed deer compare to the zip-locked one that hung for a week. That one has been excellent eating so far.

    Don't worry about going too crazy trimming the neck roast, the fat literally melts away in a crockpot or oven. Just get the thick, tallowy stuff off and put it right in a crockpot for 6 hours or so. You won't be able to tell the difference between it and a beef roast. One of the best parts of a deer to me.

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    • Like 1

    NY is #1 Worst State to Hunt Whitetails

    in General Hunting

    Posted

    I'm not saying I hate NY, as I said in the original post, I love hunting here. I spend a lot of time in these woods. I do think we could manage deer a little better though. Get the numbers up. Let them grow a little. I'll do my part in letting the small ones pass and have the chance to grow into a nice buck. You guys keep shooting all the year and a half olds so, "not everyone can get a trophy".

    Not everyone cares about a trophy. Shoot what you're happy with and let everyone else do the same. This shove trophy hunting down everyone's throat is ruining the sport. I too let all 1.5 yr old bucks walk and I don't always kill a buck every year as I hunt only state land but I'm certainly not going to begrudge someone else the right to shoot a 1.5 yr old buck if its legal.

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    • Like 3

    Thoughts On Bucks In Trail cam Pics.......

    in Trail Camera Reviews and Info

    Posted

    So I'd guess from that that if you shot a 140" buck you wouldn't score it?

    Kudos to you for sticking to your standards.

    I've never had a deer officially scored, no. If I shot a 140" buck its a beautiful buck and knowing the score wouldn't make me any more proud of him than if I didn't know it. The only time scores mean something to me is when someone tells me about a big buck, to some people an 80" is big, others its 130", so its a number that can describe the relative size of a rack without physically seeing it... I'm in no way against scoring bucks, it just doesn't rate very high on my priority list.

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    Thoughts On Bucks In Trail cam Pics.......

    in Trail Camera Reviews and Info

    Posted

    I like scores in racks too. I have had a few pretty good experiences in my time while hunting but walking up to a 140" buck is right up there. Not the top but not too shabby.

    You've killed some pretty good bucks I assume?

    I've killed good bucks for the public land I hunt, you certainly won't see me featured in any hunting magazines with my deer but I'm proud of them. In my opinion if you can get a 3.5 yr old deer on public land you're doing good. Don't get me wrong I like racks as much as the next guy but I think people get too hung up on score, too many TV shows preaching scores. It turns it into a competition and that turns people into poaching, cheating etc... If my 3.5 yr old buck scores 95" that's fine by me, if he tops 120" then I'm thrilled! Age class is important to me, not necessarily inches...

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    • Like 1

    Advice for calling coyotes needed!

    in Small Game and Predator Hunting

    Posted

    My best advice is patience. Eastern coyotes are notoriously hard to call. You'll have better luck at night. Always watch downwind as most will circle a call, I try to keep an open field or pond or something downwind so they can't circle or they expose themselves if they do. Don't overcall, wait longer than 30 minutes after each call. They are very leery at times and would rather go hungry than let their guard down it seems. Don't go out with expectations of laying waste to a coyote every stand, be mobile, if you get no action after 45 minutes or so move 1/4 to 1/2 mile and do it all over again. Its amazing how everyone thinks there are blood thirsty, deer slaughtering coyotes behind every tree in the woods and in the middle of winter you can sound like a TV dinner to these critters and..... Nothing.

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    • Like 1

    Time for a new gun!!!

    in Rifle and Gun Hunting

    Posted

    Don't bother looking at the 750 Woodsmaster. We took back several for repair at the shop I used to work at for cycling issues, including one that even Remington could not correct in 3 tries so they reimbursed the customer. My father owns one and it's heavy and won't cycle a lot of loads reliably. It won't even chamber a 180 gr ballistic tip from the mag, the tip gets caught up on the feed ramp. You couldn't give me one for free.

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    • Like 1

    Thoughts On Bucks In Trail cam Pics.......

    in Trail Camera Reviews and Info

    Posted

    They typically shrink in my opinion. What you could swear was a 120" suddenly becomes 100"... I've never really seen one become much bigger than anticipated. Often times we let our excitement get the best of us but that's what its all about! I don't care what score they are anyways. You want scores?, watch football. Its all about the experience! My .02...

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    • Like 1
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