Would You ........

[Larry]

sorry about that this guy in the post is a 6pt not going to let him walk and he's big have some vid. of him but it's not the right for-mat so i can't post them

Edited September 19, 2020 by Larry

[Kmartinson]

4 hours ago, Pygmy said:

IMHO,  an adult doe or a 1.5 year old buck tastes as good as any fawn and you get 1/3 more meat...Older bucks tend to taste stronger....I have shot a few 2.5 to 3.5 year old  rutting bucks that definitely had a stronger  "musky" flavor than young bucks or any doe...

Me too. Now I immediately remove the tarsals and it seems like the meat tastes better. And if its in bow the tarsals make a good sent cover for the rest of your season

[Hock3y24]

Not this year with what i have on cam, wouldn't blame anyone who did tho. 

[greg54]

Yep

[BizCT]

Hell yea. Non typical I would. He’s more than a spike on that one side. He’s got junk coming down too


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[mowin]

2 hours ago, Kmartinson said:

Me too. Now I immediately remove the tarsals and it seems like the meat tastes better. And if its in bow the tarsals make a good sent cover for the rest of your season

Sorry, but not removing the tarsals has nothing to do with the flavor of the meat.  They can't and do not affect the flavor of the meat once dead and hanging.  The time of death during the rut depends on the flavor. The tarsals can't continue to taint the meat unless it's hung in the rain where the glands can weep onto the meat. 

[Hock3y24]

2 hours ago, mowin said:

Sorry, but not removing the tarsals has nothing to do with the flavor of the meat.  They can't and do not affect the flavor of the meat once dead and hanging.  The time of death during the rut depends on the flavor. The tarsals can't continue to taint the meat unless it's hung in the rain where the glands can weep onto the meat. 

A deer in rut taste no different that one not to me.  I have never removed the tarsals either. 

[wolc123]

5 hours ago, Hock3y24 said:

A deer in rut taste no different that one not to me.  I have never removed the tarsals either. 

Same here, in fact the last three years I have killed mature bucks (3.5 year olds), during the rut, and none had any of that "off" flavor that some of these folks have mentioned. Only last year's had no visible fight damage on his rack.  The previous 2 had significant damage.  

I think that 90 percent of the trouble these folks have with eating mature bucks, is with the texture of the meat, not the flavor.  Most of that is due to failure to properly age the carcass after harvest and before processing.  

Any red-meated animal is affected by rigor mortis, and the older the animal, the longer it should be aged, to allow that stage to pass.  Killing an old deer and getting it processed and frozen in 8-24 hours, as many do, almost guaranteed maximum toughness of that meat.

Most seasons, the weather during late rut is cool enough for me to age skin-on carcasses in my insulated garage.  On years when it is too warm, I skin them, cut the rear off, and hang in my old non-frost free "deer fridge".  The rear hangs from hooks on the leg tendons and the front rests on the bottom, supported by the neck.

No one in our family has been able to tell the difference on texture or flavor of any 1.5 to 3.5 year old buck that I have aged this way. We can all pick out the 6 month old's however, which are definitely in a class by themselves when it comes to flavor and texture.  Hopefully this will be the year for a tender, delicious "fatted calf".

Edited September 19, 2020 by wolc123

[ncountry]

14 hours ago, mowin said:

Disagree 100% . 

My dad would purposefully shoot fawns. He loved em. And so did I. We would mark those packages when processing.  Dad wouldn't lets us eat all the Bambi first. He wanted it to last, lol.

  If everything is the same as far as time of year, quick kill, how it's processed, prepared, ECT, a fawn is definitely better eating over a 1 1/2 or older doe.

Agree 100% on the amount of meat. 

 

I'm with the Pygmy..;)

I've never noticed much difference..  I usually wait for an adult doe. Not that I haven't shot a 1/2 dozen or so fawns over the years by accident.... or not..lol

Edited September 19, 2020 by ncountry
Spelling

[ncountry]

Not sure if I would shoot the above buck or not. Depends on my mood at the time..

[wolc123]

5 minutes ago, ncountry said:

Not sure if I would shoot the above buck or not. Depends on my mood at the time..

That is about where I am.  The body looks to be 2.5 years old, and the odd rack would make for an interesting euro. Those are the reasons for.  

 In my 38 hunting seasons, I have yet to punch a buck tag, and then see a larger bodied buck, or one with a better rack, while I continued hunting with just antlerless tags.  Killing that buck on opening day would create a good opportunity for that. 

I have read here about a few folks who have complained about the feeling they get, when getting a chance at a much bigger buck, and not having a tag.  That does not sound to me like such a bad problem to have.

I can relate a little, in that 2 years ago, I killed a 3.5 year old buck on opening day of gun season, at home in western NY.  The rack was busted up, but the body was large, such that we just finished the last of the vacuum-sealed grind a few weeks ago. 

I was a little sad that year, to miss out on my normal, Thanksgiving weekend Adirondack deer hunt.  My buck tag was punched at home, and there is no gun-season doe hunting allowed up there.

  On the plus side, that gave me more family time, and a chance to sight in my father in law's scoped rifle, that I had long been wanting to try up there for deer hunting. 

They say a bird in hand is worth 3 in the bush. The same thing might apply to bucks.

 

[Pygmy]

22 hours ago, mowin said:

Disagree 100% . 

My dad would purposefully shoot fawns. He loved em. And so did I. We would mark those packages when processing.  Dad wouldn't lets us eat all the Bambi first. He wanted it to last, lol.

  If everything is the same as far as time of year, quick kill, how it's processed, prepared, ECT, a fawn is definitely better eating over a 1 1/2 or older doe.

Agree 100% on the amount of meat. 

 

Perhaps your taste buds are more refined than mine.....Everyone's taste varies...<<smile>>....

[squirrelwhisperer]

11 hours ago, wolc123 said:

Any red-meated animal is affected by rigor mortis, and the older the animal, the longer it should be aged, to allow that stage to pass.  Killing an old deer and getting it processed and frozen in 8-24 hours, as many do, almost guaranteed maximum toughness of that meat.

Most seasons, the weather during late rut is cool enough for me to age skin-on carcasses in my insulated garage.  On years when it is too warm, I skin them, cut the rear off, and hang in my old non-frost free "deer fridge".  The rear hangs from hooks on the leg tendons and the front rests on the bottom, supported by the neck.

So this is something I have never done. How long do you age the meat for and at what temperature? I always processed the animal as soon as I got it home. 

[crappyice]

So this is something I have never done. How long do you age the meat for and at what temperature? I always processed the animal as soon as I got it home. 

I too have a “deer fridge” that I will hang my skinned and quartered venison for 3-5 days and then will further process/freezer pack . I may grab a quarter or two one night then finish up the next night. Or just bang it out in one night


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[wolc123]

1 hour ago, squirrelwhisperer said:

So this is something I have never done. How long do you age the meat for and at what temperature? I always processed the animal as soon as I got it home. 

It depends on how old the deer is.  You can skip that step with 6 month olds.  1.5's should age 5 days,  2.5's a week, and 3.5's 10 days.  As long as the temperature is kept in the 33 - 45 F range, it don't hurt to err on the longer side.  Sometimes it is tough to guess the age of a doe.

Most years, it has not been difficult to keep the meat of a skin-on carcass in that range, for those times, hanging in my insulated garage.  I cover all the windows, to keep out the sunlight by day, and open a window at night, to let in the cool air.  The concrete floor helps hold a cooler temperature and the hide insulates against temperature rise.

A probe thermometer can be used to measure the meat temperature if you are nervous or afraid of spoilage.  In 35 years of doing this, I have never had one spoil.

I always check the long range forecast, prior to starting the aging process, to determine if the deer fridge will be needed.  I no longer hunt early bow, so it seldom is.  If it is going to be too warm, then I skin the deer, cut the rear off and hang in the fridge as described in my earlier post.

I have always used an antique, non-frost free fridge, and the skinned  carcasses don't dry out too bad in there.  The hide keeps those hung in the garage from drying out too much.  Except for the tenderloins , which should be removed prior to aging so they dont dry out too much.  They also get more tender, if you leave them in the fridge a couple days before eating.

You can tell when the rigor motis has passed by feeling the meat.  When first killed, the meat will feel soft.  As rigor motis takes hold (starts immediately at death and peaks about 8 hours after, depending on temp), it will get harder, like a pencil eraser.  The meat is ready to process and freeze after it gets soft again, similar to when it was fresh killed.

Last year, it was cool enough after November 2 to hang this 3.5 year old 10 days with the hide on.  Note the insulated wall, cardboard covered window behind and the antique GE non-frost free "deer fridge".   We still have a roast or two left from that one and they have been as tender as those from any 1.5 year old buck that I can recall.   That was my first deer last year, so the grind is long gone (I always zip-lock) the grind from the first deer of the year (used first), then vacuum seal the rest.

Edited September 20, 2020 by wolc123

[squirrelwhisperer]

It would appear that a deer fridge should be my next purchase. The winters have been pretty mild the last few down here. Heck warm compared to some on this forum, lol. I had a total of 3/4” of snow last year. Not that I’m complaining about that. It rarely gets into the 40s until late November (if at all) here, at least lately. I think the farmer’s almanac is calling for a colder winter this year, tho.

[Trial153]

No

[squirrelwhisperer]

These are the best 3 I could find. Could never determine if he broke off or if he had a deformity. My friend saw the last pic and said I should name him Peek-a-Boo

[wolc123]

3 minutes ago, squirrelwhisperer said:

It would appear that a deer fridge should be my next purchase. The winters have been pretty mild the last few down here. Heck warm compared to some on this forum, lol. I had a total of 3/4” of snow last year. Not that I’m complaining about that. It rarely gets into the 40s until late November (if at all) here, at least lately. I think the farmer’s almanac is calling for a colder winter this year, tho.

It is definitely a handy thing to have and you never know when you will need it.   My brother in law gave me that one when he moved out of his apartment, 30 some years ago.   They don't make them like that any more.  It can sit unplugged more than a year, get plugged in, and runs like it did when new.  Sometimes, I use it for beverages when we have a big party, but usually it just sits there unplugged.   Those old ones used more juice, but they were very dependable. 

The time it worked the best for me was about 20 years ago, when the temperature got up in the eighties on opening day of gun season.  I shot a large-bodied spike buck, shortly after sunup, skinned it, cut it in half, and put it in the fridge by 9:00 am.  There was not room for another in the fridge, so I squirrel hunted that afternoon.  That was the best squirrel hunting I ever saw, prior or since.   

Every deer hunter can relate to being pestered by squirrels.   It is almost like they somehow know that you are there for deer, not squirrels.  I turned the tables on them that warm November afternoon, armed with my Ruger 10/22 (aparently they thought it was a deer gun).   As they made their feerlessly up to my tree, they got quite the surprise.  I ended up with a limit of greys that day, and few bonus reds.         

[Chef]

I have never taken one, but am told they taste the best. I may sample one this season. 

They are great eating


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dbHunterNY]

i wouldn't shoot that buck. i don't think you can say for sure that it's base was injured. next year it could be normal or just bigger but still screwed up. injury somewhere else might take a couple years to be normal again. young deer so it'll grow a lot more. if you like it though then shoot it.

[fasteddie]

12 hours ago, dbHunterNY said:

i wouldn't shoot that buck. i don't think you can say for sure that it's base was injured. next year it could be normal or just bigger but still screwed up. injury somewhere else might take a couple years to be normal again. young deer so it'll grow a lot more. if you like it though then shoot it.

I have passed on a few bucks in the past only to find out that a hunter on an adjacent property had shot it . At 79 , I might not be so picky anymore . Don't like eating those Buck tags ! 

[ApexerER]

6 minutes ago, fasteddie said:

I have passed on a few bucks in the past only to find out that a hunter on an adjacent property had shot it . At 79 , I might not be so picky anymore . Don't like eating those Buck tags ! 

I passed a half racked 8 last year, at least i assume it would have been an 8pt thinking it would be even bigger this year and the guys across the tracks shot it two days later....

[dbHunterNY]

I have passed on a few bucks in the past only to find out that a hunter on an adjacent property had shot it . At 79 , I might not be so picky anymore . Don't like eating those Buck tags ! 

It definitely can happen. I'll probably never know truly how many bucks I've passed that got taken that same season after me. The number is probably really high. I can understand not being picky. It's all a personal choice.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk