G-Man

Unfortunatly the antler craze causes a lot of illegal activity, i would think there are a lot more illegal heads out there than fakes.Taking a deer Illegally is much more common poaching out of season,after legal hrs,non-hunting area, ect. Even sheds entered in nys record book are from non-hunting areas(not illegal to enter but to me its like picking them up at a zoo) Casting horns is tough a full rack is done from a mold and the seams must be filed down and shaped to look natural then color added(you can almost always find a spot that isn't right, adding points/fixing points a little easier as the mold is smaller and many times can be cast in place on the antler but they still need to be blended in and colored.Im sure some people will do amazing fakes but most are noticeable if they can be examined (tough to do when hanging on a wall from 5-8 ft away) the traveling buck shows use this trick with replicas so you think they are all real but there are lot of shows on the road with the same bucks. I remember a record book buck mount that was actually the sheds from a deer(screws in x ray showed) and the real buck was mounted and was thought to have been the sheds from the previous year as the rack was slightly smaller but in fact the deer was declining and the rack grew smaller the year it was harvested. I guess unless you can x-ray them buyer beware..

Steve, thats what this article says the percentages are skewed because no one hunts deep, yes say 15 big buck are taken near fields to 1 in big woods but there are 1000 hunters who hunt near field and 5 that hunt deep.. thus big woods big deerhunter is 1/5 or 20% chance at a trophy, where the field is 15/1000 or 1.5% . The deer that live on the edge will retreat to the deep woods as pressure increases on the edge, returning at night to feed. Its just easier to hunt close....

Rock, i though they're suposed to deploy easily... no deployment failure, i think your using them in the wrong application, would be fine in a treestand or a large ground blind (as long as you don't try to shoot thru mesh windows, heck crawling around i would use a fixed blade and a backquiver! I've taken 3 buck with rage 2blade heads 2 from stands and 1 on a spot n stalk with rage no deer made it further than i could see watched them all drop. Don't get me wrong they are by all means not the only head i use(i use steel force as well) but they do group well and give consistant flight nessary for good shot placement!

Heck that happens on private land as well! I rarely go further than 200-300 yards from my house even though my property is about a mile road to road. my friends and family go in from the other road and only go in 200-300 yards. that leaves a big gap in the middle! I could hunt down by the creek where the deertrails look like goat paths 4 in deep, but i'd have to haul that deer back uphill 900' to my house, much easier to get em close to the road or house and use the tractor to haul them out. I get my deer so why do excess work?? Yes i admit i am a lazy hunter ;D

thats like the asterik by homeruns when your on steroids... thanks i'll pass

Thats why there are different books for different hunting implements, longhunter,p&y,b&c ... it lets you know what the animal was taken with. you can't put a gun deer in p&y, or longhunter books but b&c accept all weapons in theirs. Fair chase to me is a non-highfenced, non baited area where all legal rules and regs are followed including legal shooting time! And remember p&y has changed their rules a few times as let off has increased from 0 to 50% to 65%..i myself shoot a bow with 80% so my nys trophy animal isn't elegiable for P&Y. So my opinion if nys includes crossbow in early season it will be fair chase as long as the crossbow is the proper size(limb tip to limb tip) and draw weight (100-200lbs) and all other rules are followed. Putting one "in the books is irrelevent to me!"

yes, but how many deer have been checked/measured? plus i genetic anomoly is usually the cause for large horns to begin with. Whitetail deer are geneticaly suposed to be 8 pointers.. would it be a record buck it it wasn't geneticaly different?? I think when he dies the truth will come out as someone in his family will be looking for $ for the story. Its just way to much work to place a whole fresh ungutted deer in the woods without disturbing the area,or knocking the freshly attached antlers off or askue,make a blood trail,get it weighed, and all on video to be a hoax... unless your talking about government involvement like faking a landing on the moon..

Perhaps the distance between brows is what caused it to grow such a wide rack? Besides lot of work to cut sew in securly attach to remaining skull so it can be picked up and moved around by the horns without causing the newly attached hide not to shift in videos,or when being held for pic. ...jmo

Love the log full in the 3rd pic! I'd buy a print of that!!

nice! just saw my 1st of the year this morning!

Earlier season will never happen... most breeding takes place in april.. thats why they let you hunt the toms in may, most hens are already bred and laying by our may 1st opener.

its fair chase,in short some people believe that early "archery season" should remain that hand drawn and hand released, almost the same as old english law outlawing crossbow and having mandatory longbow use(longbow had further range and speed and need to be practiced with and it would help prevent invasion of the horriable french xbowers..). Others would like to see the crossbow added in its own season, and others yet want it placed into the early archery season.Or some want a combination of things... These are all opinions.. As of now crossbows are legal for reg and late season only! Just imagine if all the effort put in on thistopic was actually put into letters to the state senate and assembly how confused would our lawmakers be!! lol!!!

If your going to go with factory ammo I would go to a heavier bullet 180grain over a155grain. Buy a box of both hp and solid then shoot into a wet phone book or two or make your own balistic gel(recipes on the web or watch mythbusters for theirs) see what penitrate the best and holds together. At pistol velocities you want an exit wound 1st and foremost a 40 cal hole without expansion will kill a deer. Put a round that comes apart yes you get max energy transfered but you'll spend more time tracking. Idealy id want a 180 gr. Soft point bonded bullet max penetration with expansion! Again limiting your range with a pistol is key!

Well like i said its the dec report TO the assembly.. and i can't find where they got their info or stats from.. it maybe the dec's opinion.. if it is i would assume by the verbage that they want crossbow in early bow season.. not that i agree with it.. But this is the problem with government agencys there is really no communication between them and the average taxpayer way to much wheeling and dealing behind closed doors imo.

that verbage is from the dec to the assembly not the other way around....."its their report not the assembly to the dec"

Get a nuisence permit and get rid of them quick!! Don't want them digging any more burrows as this can weaken the dam and cause it to fail even if you rid yourself of them the old burrow can colapse, even worse it it colapses when your walking over it and twist a knee.. shooting a muskrat is great they float like a cork and makes it easy to dispose of.. beaver sink like a stone...

ActuallyI've never been a put and take guy. Maybe the habitat isn't conducive to phesants and more to songbirds and such.. Maybe they groups that want phesant need to create some habitat for them. jmo.

Seems the dec does have an opinion...by the way the 2010 annual report is really a bore to read..our dec does way to much and is spread way to thin. jmo.

Here you go arrow, strait from dec 2010 report. notice i didn't give a link but copy and pasted for you Authorization for the Use of Crossbows for Hunting(A.924-E DelMonte; Chapter 483 of the Laws of 2010) In states that allow the use of crossbows, including Georgia, Michigan and Ohio, crossbows appear to be an important recruitment and retention tool for hunters. Many people start out hunting with crossbows and eventually switch to longbows or compound bows. Currently, crossbows are not permitted in New York. This law will permit, until, December 31, 2012, the use of crossbows for hunting purposes

Culver, i think that is how a lot of people look at it. I do believe that more hunters would be in the woods during archery season if xbow are allowed then. but a lot will give it up quick once they relalize what it takes to get close enough to use effectively. For those that catch the bug i will welcome them with open arms as i truly believe the skillls used/developed to make one a good archer/bowhunter make one a better hunter as well!

nice! good thing the date is on these pics if they wern't struttin one might think it nov!!

+1 ;D

I try to do it every year got birds 3 out of the 4 years i ben able to do it and got a few fathers into turkey hunting as well. Sill looking for a kid this year.. have a few leads but i like to see that the kids wants to do it not the parent pushing them.

I do like the dec's wording on their website on how in other states people start with a crossbow and many change over to a traditional/compound bow. Seems like that would create a increase in "true"bow hunters. Plus if they change overs it seems they are giving up their so called advantage it there ever was one.. We fear what we do not understand! For the record i would like to see a seperate season(means i get to hunt more ) but i'll get in the caboose with joe! And they are legal, and most states include them in archery season as archery equipment(new york put them in late archery season)! but enough with the definitions.....

Actually i personaly won't be anywhere near this spot to close to my house not for shooting distance, they're like pets when you see em' all the time. Though i am hoping that i can put a youth on one of them april 23rd or 24th.