adkbuck

I personally think slate calls are the best because you can easily make a very wide variety of turkey sounds with them. Yelps, clucks, purrs, cutting and even kee kee runs if you practice a bit. Turkey have a very poor sense of smell (if any) but their eye sight is extremely keen. I really recommend an extra full or turkey choke because turkeys, especially mature gobblers, are not that easy to kill and you need to be sure to get as many pellets in the head and neck region as possible to make a clean kill and anchor the bird. Never shoot at a turkey unless you have a clear shot at his head. If he is strutting with his head tucked intp his body be sure to wait until his head is fullly extended and if necessary make a clucking or yelping sound with your own voice to get him to extend his head up for the shot. A turkey choke will result in a much more palatable bird as you will have less shot in the meat of the bird. I have cleanly shot some birds that have not had a single pellet in the breast or back. They are a pleasure to eat. I typically pluck my spring birds and roast them whole. Save the drumsticks for the soup as they are tough until stewed. I also recommend having a a front and rear sight (Truglo make a great sight, I have the version that goes on ribbed barrels) or a scope on your turkey gun as you want to make sure you are dead nuts on when you pull the trigger. Spring turkey hunting is thrill. When you hear that big tom booming out a gobble in the spring woods as he closes in on your set-up...its really something! One of the greatest experiences in hunting!

I remove as much fat, silver skin and sinew as possible except for stew meat or shanks. In the case of stew meat and shanks (ie venison osso bucco ,,,an wonderful treat) the silver skin and sinew is melted away after 3 or 4 hours of stewing and actually adds to the flavor to the stew or osso bucco. Bon appetit!!!

This is why I believe that there should be a traditional bow season, nothing but string bows (long or recurve) without mechanical enhancements. People are always trying to make bows more like modern rifles all the time. Modern cross bows with scopes, eventually they will have rocket assisted arrows with stuff like this on their broadhead end. Defeats the whole purpose of bow season. This is totally contrary to the woodsmanship and archery skills that attracted many to bow hunting in the first place. The original intent of bow season was to use a weapon that required additional capability and the traditional skills of a woodsman. Just my opinion. .

Wow, I was not aware of this! It is frightening to see what is required in NYC to own a long gun. It seems the 2nd Amendment has been all but eradicated in NYC. The Democrats will probably try to make the whole state be like NYC. Gun of all sorts have always been available in the US homes in the past but senseless tragedies like Newtown were unheard of. Something must have changed. That something is the break-up of the family and the related breakdown of religion. As G. K. Chesterton said many years ago, "If the family breaks apart the whole society breaks apart." The influence of the family and religion has been minimized in our culture. The Democrats and liberals continue to damage the family and use government to usurp the role of the family. Then they pretend to wonder why bad things happen. In NY State a teenager can have an abortion without parental consent and without a waiting period yet a hunter has to get permission from the New York City Police department and undergo a long waiting period for a bird gun. In NY State the abortion rate is nearly twice the national average ( http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/sfaa/new_york.html). So its okay for lawmakers to promote the murder helpless unborn children in a goverment sanctioned abortion clinic. but when 20 children are killed in Newtown they blame the guns not their laws which eliminate and destroy the family! .People today are taught that they are entitled to have everything and have it their way, when they don't get it they resort to violence. Their are no restrictions on violent media which have been shown to be a factor in violence when children have anger related mental issues. All the gun control in the world won't stop the sort of violence we have experienced. Parents kill over 1.25 million innocent offspring every year in this country alone. Our culture of violence begins with abortion. Instead of taking guns from law abiding citizens maybe our government officials should be encouraging family values in our schools, supporting traditional marriage and marital fidelity and admit the importance of our children believeing in a moral code based on something bigger than themselves.

Good Point nyantler. Its time that all non-NRA gun owners and non gun owners who believe in freedom join up as widespead support will be needed now more than ever.

Yes, It transmission fluid and power steering fluid that can be used interchangably in some cars (not brake fluid). Always check you owners manual.

Depends on the vehicle, apparently some Fords use interchangably. Check out: http://www.ehow.com/way_5406591_can-transmission-fluid-power-steering_.html

Should be a great year as poult survival was very good! Should be plenty of Jakes although older birds will be tougher to come by. The next few years should be very good hunting.

Electrical Engineer. I go to work to rest up from hunting, fishing, gardening etc.

The Weatherby Vanguard target was to verify 1.5 inch groups at 100 yards. Not .5-inch (a typo).

Personally I'd be happy if they made only longbows and recurves legal for bow season. Guess I'm a throwback but what's wrong with having a season where skill and woodsmanship are essential for success and the weapon is primitive.

Fletch, Those are three great choices. I own a walnut stocked Weatherby Vanguard in 30-06, and its a tack driver. It came with a target fired by the rifle to verify the groupings are .5 inches or less. Its a wonderrful rifle. Anything made by Thompson has got to be great. I hear the Thompson ventures guanantee 1 minite of arc accuracy. Tikka has a great reputation. I would probably go with the Weatherby Vanguard or the Thompson Venture. I'm understand that S&W the new owner has cleared up the recall issue.

Congratulations. Great that you never gave up!

My270 Win browning was a tack driver since day one: http://www.browning.com/products/catalog/firearms/detail.asp?fid=001B&cid=035&tid=017 My experience with the Remingtons 7600's was a little different . My remington 7600's in 270 Win did not print great groups with factory ammunition. Ininitally only 2.5 - 3.5-inch goups at 100 yards. I had to increase cartridge overall length to reduce the bullet jump to the rifling lands to 15 - 20 mils using and OAL guage. Then the groups improved to 1.0 - 1.5-inch. They are a great rifle for woods hunting. One had a great trigger but one had to worked by a gunsmith to bring it in to about 2.5 - 3 pounds (was over 5 pounds to begin with and had excessive play). http://www.remington.com/en/product-families/firearms/centerfire-families/pump-action-model-7600.aspx

I agree with what pigmy said about recoil. Chuck hawks has a nice compaitive table regarding recoil: http://www.chuckhawks.com/recoil_table.htm If recoil is an issue and you want to shoot the 270 Winchester, 130 grain loads would be best. 270's shooting 130's have cleanly taken a lot of deer at long rangeand short.. I shoot mostly 150's but recoil isn't an issue for me. Going to 260 Winchester, 257 Roberts and 25-06 6.5X 55Swede are all good options for lower recoil. I've heard some great things about the 6.5 X 65 Swede buy I'm not sure if it is chambered in any current production rifles.

Ive been very happy with the TC omega. Very accurate and easy to clean.

I would recommend the 270 Winchester. I own several of them, a Browning A-bolt and a couple of Remington 7600's. The Remingtons have been deadly for deer in the Adirondacks and I have killed wood chucks out to 370 yards with the Browning A-bolt. I use an peep sighted synthetic stocked 7600 in bad weather when and a Trijicon 1.25-4X scoped walnut 7600 for better conditions. If you hand load you will be able to get the most out of this wonderful cartridge.

"Gray said he walked up to the deer, patted it between its antlers and thanked it for giving its life. He didn't expect what happened next." We usually give thanks to the deer for giving it life right before we have dinner on the fresh liver and/or tenderloins.

Sam, Great story and buck! I had a similiar experience and shot a big eight point in the Adirondacks on my birthday just after my Father died in 2002. I felt my Dad Spirit real big that day. I almost felt like his finger pulled trigger instead of mine. Congratulations!

Hi erussell, I have been aging venison for the last 25 years and have never had anything but tender sweet tasting flavorful venison. Attached is a very good brochure put out by the Penn State Cooperative Extension. I first saw the graph in Dennis Walrod's book Getting the most out of your Deer Take a look at the venison aging graph. When a deer is shot rigor mortis begins to set in and over the next 24 four hours the venison will continue to stiffen and get tougher. It will take 4 more days (at 36 degrees)just to get the vension as tender as the moment it was killed. Enzymes tenderize the deer and break down the fibers in the muscles. The graphs are for 36 degrees F. Hope this helps. Proper Processing of Wild Game.pdf

Great story, I'm sure you grandfather's spirit was with you. Thanks for passing it along!

Shawnhu, Scrape hunting is certainly an inexact science, to say the least. I shot my first buck over a scrape and have taken a number of bucks on scapelines so I think scrapes are worth hunting, especally in the late prerut and early rut. From my experience, secondary or perimeter scrapes are usually made before the rut and are often in random locations. The name "perimeter" can be misleading since they can be made on the edge of forage fields out of cover and away from primary scrape areas but I have watched them being made in cover by bucks following a group of does before the rut. I prefer to call these smaller random scrapes secondary scrapes. I have often watched bucks make secondary scrapes early in the season in areas where does frequent and also in the presence of does and never revisit them again. Primary scrapes on the other hand are made in cover and and are revisted again and again, often buy more than one buck and also by does. Primary scrapes tend to be be much larger and more dug out compared to secondary scrapes. Primary scrapes always have an overhanging branch and the branch usually broken or chewed up a bit. The are freshened up every day or two until the chase phase begins. I haven't read much about it but I often find droppings in primary scrapes. They are usually are smaller pellets so I believe they are being left by does. Good luck hunting!

Wow, Deerpassion thanks for posting the video. That makes a real impression! Nuff said!

Thats a fine looking buck droptine. What was he doing when you took the shot?

Five razor sharp broad heads in the quiver, one on the string. NAP Hellrazor's, a great broadhead.