2022 Deer Pics/Chatter/Excuses

[tynyphil]

The crossbow shot was just lucky in that I think it must have nicked the spine. If you watch the video the rear legs make essentially no movement. The crossbow was zeroed at 40 yards so I suspect it hit a litte high as this was only a 25 yard shot. However the entry and exit wounds were well below the spine so I’m not really sure what happened

Yes the 308 Ruger was suppressed. However the ammo was not subsonic. I missed last year using subsonic ammo. I decided a flatter traveling bullet was more advantageous that optimal sound suppression. But I always use the suppressor

 

[tynyphil]

lead to the need to track off my quarter in McIntosh county.

Ps. We are almost neighbors as my place is in Okfuskee county.

As for crossbow. Mine is the Equinox. It is old style recurve. I wanted one with as few moving parts as possible…it still has around 350ft/sec power.

 

[retrieverman]

tynyphil’s videos have stoked my desire to buy a crossbow. In his two amazing kill shots, zero tracking was needed with the crossbow, and I presume very little was needed with the Ruger. I know an “n” of 2 means nothing in that regard. Also wondering if the Ruger was suppressed or the “cat-spit” sound was just a function of the camera’s audio. I’ve never tried video with my single Reconyx camera, so am unsure if it even records audio. All 7 of the deer kills I/my eldest son have made with a 6.5 CR (MB) were bang-flop to 10 yards. I’m betting most well placed crossbow shots from 50 yards or less would not lead to the need to track off my quarter in McIntosh county. For me, the main draw of a crossbow is the 3.5 month season which would allow hunt date flexibility for an out-of-state land owner with a 1000 mile drive.

When I first started deer hunting in Oklahoma, I only hunted for a few days during muzzleloader season, because I couldn’t get away from work anymore than that. The length of archery season is why I started crossbow hunting around 2010, and that gave me more opportunities to come up to hunt. I’ve also found it easier to pattern and get on mature bucks during early archery season. I highly recommend adding a crossbow to hunting repertoire.

 

[retrieverman]

Something I didn’t address in my last post that some will probably disagree with is how far of a shot should be taken with a bow or crossbow. I know guys that practice with their bows out to 80 or 90 yards, and that’s fine when your shooting at a fixed target. In my opinion, any archery shot over about 40 yards is inviting trouble. Though bows today are fast, they’re still not as fast as a bullet, and alot can happen between you and a deer 50-60 yards away. One of the few pages I follow on FB is Oklahoma Blood Tracker, and I get text updates from OKbassin on his tracking exploits. The need for a tracking dog the last couple of years is like an epidemic.
Sorry, this is going to end up being a two fold rant.
I attribute the need for tracking help on multiple factors.
First, I’m of the opinion (based on people I know personally) that many people don’t practice with their bows (or rifles) like they should to be proficient.
Second, I think people get excited or overestimate their abilities and attempt shots they shouldn’t take (based on people I know personally).
And third and probably the biggest factor, a novice hunter that‘s never killed anything and doesn’t understand deer anatomy wants to be a bowhunter takes a shot at “minute of deer“ instead trying to place a shot in the kill zone. In this case, I don’t care how much practice he does or how small his groups are at xx yards shooting a deer in the @ss isn’t going end well.
I get aggravated at my youngest son that hunts with me, because he’ll come up, shoot the bow I have set up for him a few times, and thinks he’s ready to hunt, and he ended up having to call a tracking dog in 2020 and lost a buck in 2021.

In speaking for what I do, I practice a lot throughout the year with my crossbow out to 40 yards knowing I‘m not taking a shot on a deer past 35, and I set my stands up accordingly.
I shoot Excaiburs like Tynyphil.

 

[tynyphil]

Something I didn’t address in my last post that some will probably disagree with is how far of a shot should be taken with a bow or crossbow. I know guys that practice with their bows out to 80 or 90 yards, and that’s fine when your shooting at a fixed target. In my opinion, any archery shot over about 40 yards is inviting trouble. Though bows today are fast, they’re still not as fast as a bullet, and alot can happen between you and a deer 50-60 yards away. One of the few pages I follow on FB is Oklahoma Blood Tracker, and I get text updates from OKbassin on his tracking exploits. The need for a tracking dog the last couple of years is like an epidemic.
Sorry, this is going to end up being a two fold rant.
I attribute the need for tracking help on multiple factors.
First, I’m of the opinion (based on people I know personally) that many people don’t practice with their bows (or rifles) like they should to be proficient.
Second, I think people get excited or overestimate their abilities and attempt shots they shouldn’t take (based on people I know personally).
And third and probably the biggest factor, a novice hunter that‘s never killed anything and doesn’t understand deer anatomy wants to be a bowhunter takes a shot at “minute of deer“ instead trying to place a shot in the kill zone. In this case, I don’t care how much practice he does or how small his groups are at xx yards shooting a deer in the @ss isn’t going end well.
I get aggravated at my youngest son that hunts with me, because he’ll come up, shoot the bow I have set up for him a few times, and thinks he’s ready to hunt, and he ended up having to call a tracking dog in 2020 and lost a buck in 2021.

In speaking for what I do, I practice a lot throughout the year with my crossbow out to 40 yards knowing I‘m not taking a shot on a deer past 35, and I set my stands up accordingly.
I shoot Excaiburs like Tynyphil.

good info !!! That's why I sighted my bow in at 40 yards.....past that i'm not taking a shot. I keep a range finder in my pocket so after I get in the stand I 'range' a few trees around me so I know where that 40 yards is.

 

[Virtuaguyver]

Took out the crossbow today from 6am to 5pm, no deer... where'd they all go?

 

[meatGrinder]

Took out the crossbow today from 6am to 5pm, no deer... where'd they all go?

They left with all the ducks.

 

[dlbleak]

I moved one of my cell cams to the pond to keep an eye on the ducks. Deer and ducks have gone into hiding.

 

[Dorkus]

I moved one of my cell cams to the pond to keep an eye on the ducks. Deer and ducks have gone into hiding.

What is kind of a surprise (while I do agree with you) is we have seen quite a few turkey the last week or so. More than in quite a long time for this time of year. Hopefully that is a good sign for April.

 

[dlbleak]

What is kind of a surprise (while I do agree with you) is we have seen quite a few turkey the last week or so. More than in quite a long time for this time of year. Hopefully that is a good sign for April.

Yep, we set up for ducks last Monday. I saw more turkeys than anything.