Schmitty

What a monster, who's got it all; length, mass and symmetry. Truly an incredible bull! Now that you've got some free time on your hands you guys can head south down to 8 and find something similar for me! (I'm all packed up to head up there tomorrow for my 4th scouting trip, If I saw a bull even close to that toad I don't think I'd be able to come home) Once again congratulations to all involved. I'll actually agree with Casey on this one and I think the bull should be mounted in velvet. What is the actual process with a velvet bull? I imagine the velvet needs to be stripped down in order to be officially scored. I know there is reproduction velvet, but my understanding is that typically the velvet is "tanned" or preserved on the antler or freeze dried. How's it going to work out with this bull? Just curious. What a big son of a gun! Abslolutely awesome! A big congrats. Schmitty

What can you tell us about the 22-250? Make, model, barrel length, condition, etc. thanks, Schmitty

Unit 31 late Nov. here we come!

If you've got any pics of a sasquatch sized man scouting those tanks, I'm sorry! I've got the same tag as you've got and have scouted out 30-40 of them in the past few weekends, so while I didn't notice any cameras (I wasn't exactly looking up), I'm sorry if my ugly mug appears on your memory cards. good luck! Schmitty

Every tank in 8 already had some semblance of a blind or two built on them already. You can save your $ and your back and go ahead and spruce up an existing blind. Many of them are in pretty decent shape already and have been there for years and all of the critters are already used to them. Pop something new on a tank a week before the season and you might raise the alarm of some smart critters.

Is this what we're talking about? http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=41427

What a great weekend! Thanks again to Lance and Carrie's family for providing the great meals and putting the event on and it was great to finally meet everybody there. My 5 year old girl is here standing next to me looking at the pics and wishing that she had went. The archery shoot was a blast even though I blew up an arrow or two shooting at 100! I did finally make it over to unit 8 to scout a bit. I wish I had the camera as I was heavy into the elk on Sunday morning. The coolest being a large nursery herd (40+) of cows and calves that I watched for a good 15 minutes at 70 yards. One of the old cows finally figured me out and started barking like crazy at me. They never did spook, I just slowly backed on out of there. I saw a few smallish bulls and a few other cow groups as well, but the main thing was that I was able to hike into alot of new (to me) country and get a better feel for certain areas. Once again, it was great meeting everybody and we're looking forward to next year! Craig

It looks like I'll be able to make it. Lance, please let me know what I can bring to help with the effort. Looking forward to it. Craig

SOLD!

Casey, Did you buy that out at the swap meet in PV? I've never been out there, but there is a fella who always has a couple of his knives in the display case at PV archery on consignment that I've heard sells his knives at the swap meet on occasion. I can't recall his name, but he lives out in Chino and all of the knives that he's made look pretty nice to me. Any name on the blade or sheath? If so maybe I can dig up some info as to the maker and metal type. good looking knife, go work an extra shift or two and pay for it! Schmitty

I'll take it I'll get down to the valley sometime in the next week. If I remember you live down in QC. Any chance we can meet up in central PHX? thanks, Craig

How tight are the better archer's groups (consistently) at 80 yards? I need to go to a tournament or two and watch some of these guys in action. I'm just asking as I'm a very average shot. I usually shoot 4 shot groups at 60 yards (longest I can shoot w/ my current range setup) and I'd say the (average) spread at the widest point in my group is usually around 6". Some times I can suck them all in together and other times I pull a shot and get a flyer. I'm sure that there are guys that can shoot better groups consistently at 80-90 yards than I can at 60. Shooting 5 shot groups at 500 yards prone with a harris bipod, my groups at 500 yards are usually in that same 6" range, In theory, my archery shooting at 60 yards is equal to my abilities with a rifle at 500 yards. Despite the bullet traveling another 44o yards, it will still impact the target before the arrow would at 60 yards. The bullet would also hit the animal long before the sound arrived unlike an arrow. While living in CO, I flung a few arrows at antelope at the 65 yard mark using my old noisy setup. Those goats would put 2 body lenths between themselves and the arrow by the time it finally arrived. With my new setup (much quieter and faster), the results might have been a little different What does this rambling really mean? For me, my personal limit shooting at animals in ideal conditions tops out around 50 yards with a bow and around 500 yards with my rifle and personally I'd trust my abilities with the rifle at 500 (given a solid rest and minimal wind) over flinging a stick at 60 yards. There are certainly guys out there who are so skilled that there is no ethical/moral dilemna with them shooting at extended distances. (Depends on how you define "fair chase" I guess.) I think that the real danger with LR hunting becoming the new "fad" is that alot of young/inexperienced hunters watch these videos/shows or read on the internet where folks are killing animals at extreme distances. Rather than sharpening their skills with the gear they already own, they think that all they have to do is go down and buy a .300 ultra and a ballistic compensating scope and that they too are ready to roll at long ranges. Just my personal thoughts, Schmitty

Well, I got a package in the mail today from Coues Sniper containing a couple of FOB's to try out. Thanks Kevin! First impression regarding these things is that actual markup must be 10,000%, but that's business and Paul isn't going to put gas in his car selling these little jewels for a nickel I had a few unfletched shafts laying around and the best thing these FOBs have going for them is how quick and easy they are to install. I've got an old JoJan single fletcher and it takes me 15 minutes minimum (if I'm rushing things) to fletch a single arrow and then I won't shoot it for another day. With the FOBS you just pull out the nock and pop them on the shaft, push the nock back in and you're good. I know these FOB's are really supposed to shine with broadheads, but I don't have a very good broadhead target so I figured I'd try them out with a couple of field points just to get a feel. The first thing I noticed was when I drew my bow, the FOB pressed up against my chin which was kind of annoying, but it didn't seem to affect accuracy. The arrows shot a couple of inches lower than the same arrows fletched with Blazers. I wasn't able to shoot at any real distance as my neighbor's jackAzz kid parked his van right in my shooting lane at 40 yards, so 35 yards was the farthest I could shoot. I shot spots at 25 and 35 yards with no real accuracy difference between the FOBs and the Blazers. The Blazers were a bit more consistent, but that is more than likely the indian and not the arrow. The FOB's seemed to fly with just a hint of noise. A tad more noise than the Blazers, but certainly quieter than feathers. However, I did notice that the nocks were coming loose on about every 3rd shot w/ the FOBs. The nocks weren't popping off, just backing out a 1/8" or so. It was happening with both arrows, so it wasn't isolated to a single loose nock. I decided to shoot 2 shot groups at 35 yards and I smacked the FOB with arrow #2 so I didn't get much of a sample to really test, though it's tough to argue with the results. However, unless you've got real deep pockets or you are a horrendous shot, I wouldn't shoot groups with them under 60 yards. My initial impression is that I'll most likely stick with vanes as I didn't like them pressing into my chin and I like the more "traditional" look of vanes However, I really didn't get to fool around with them as much as I'd like and I'm going to order up a dozen to play around with. I want to try them out with some big nasty old broadheads that I've got laying around at further distances in windy conditions to see how well they really work. I think they are a bit overpriced at $2 a pop (shipping and tax included) for what they are, especially considering how easy they are to break. But that's probably just jealousy that I wasn't smart enough to come with the idea! I'll try a little bit more experimenting and try to develop a more solid opinion. Thanks again Kevin for sending me a couple to fool with! BTW, I have been on the search for your brass and primers with matching negatory results! take care, Schmitty

Kevin, Have you called Bruno's? They stock both nosler and norma brass. Casey, I thought that we had banned you from Mecca! What are you doing heading up this way? take care, Schmitty

Fantastic bucks and paired up together...........WOW! Thanks for sharing! Schmitty

Jim, Thanks for the info. My only thought is in regards to the "1000's who had to sit at home because they weren't drawn!" There were more than a few leftover tags for many of the southern unit early hunts last year. If these folks wanted to hunt, they could have done a bit of research and applied for these hunts with their 3rd-5th choices and could have sweat up a storm in the hills along with the rest of us hunting last October. Personally I feel some of the December cutbacks were a bit much when there was already plenty of "opportunity" to get drawn (90% plus draw odds) for many of the Southern Units. Once again, thank you again for taking the time to post up all of your research and information, ift was very informative. BTW, how did your muley hunt go down in "C" this past fall. take care, Schmitty

Nice looking patch of Gallardia there Doug! The rifle's pretty decent looking as well

I think they announced it in 97. My first season there was '98 and I believe that was wrestling's final season, however by that point most athletes had jumped ship to other programs. I really feel for the athletes, coaches and families involved. It sounds to me like it would be pretty easy to raise the $5 million to permanently endow wrestling. It would have been nice to have given them the shot to do so before cutting the program. I know the Cougar Club at BYU raised something like $25 million over a couple of years to pay for the fancy new indoor practice facility that was built a few years back. You'd think a program with a rich history like ASU could raise $5 million in a year or so. I'm just glad I wasn't the one that had to make the announcement. Sad Day, Schmitty

The real problem with Title 9 is that there is no women's equivalent to Men's football. NCAA allows football programs to offer 85 scholarships to it's athletes. There isn't a women's sport that comes anywhere close to that number. As football essentially covers the entire athletic budget for the entire year, you aren't going to ever see them cut football schoarships. All other sports w/ the exception of Men's basketball are huge drains on the athletic budget. I saw this first hand as a scholarshiped athlete who participated in two sports at BYU. Fortunately, I had a football scholarship, everything was paid for, lots of free nike's, flew chartered planes, stayed in first class hotels, etc. Our Men's track team only had 12 full scholarships that were spread amongst the whole team. One guy would get tuition, another would get housing, and other's would only get their books paid for. The budget didn't allow for the whole team to travel to far away meets and traveling was certainly more spartan accomodations. Meanwhile the women's track team had twice the # of scholarships and budget due to Title 9. They'd travel the bulk of their athletes, rent nicer vehicles and stay in nicer digs. It was quite frustrating for the Men's coaching staff to deal with and there was alot of animosity between the Men's and Women's staff. However, both track teams were a large financial burden on the athletic program. Home meets were free to attend and we'd only get a couple hundred folks to come out, mainly friends and family. Of the 14 football games we played each year, 10-12 were nationally televised. Every home game was sold out with 65,000 paying fans, not to mention concession and merchandise sales, bowl game payouts, etc. I'd like to see the #'s on how much $MILLIONS we made the University. However, most anything we made went on to pay for all of the other atheltic programs, administration, facilities, etc. and I think the atheltic budget balanced pretty close to the $0 mark each year. Men's wrestling was lost the year before I started at BYU and there were alot of peeved folks. However, our wrestling team sucked, unlike ASU who had a national championship to their credit and national respect. Until there is a provision for removing football from Title 9, you are going to see alot more reductions in Men's sports across the country.

Based on research and recommendations, I went with a spott-hog sight on my new setup. (Cameron Hanes 7 deadly pins w/ hogg wrap) Anyhow, I'm having a hard time making out the individual pins. The green pins are pretty easy to see, but I have a much harder time with the orange and red pins. I've got an astigmatism in both eyes that puts my vision at 20/40, but I haven't felt the need to wear glasses. I spoke with a good friend who happens to be an optometrist and bowhunter and he suggested I swap out all the pins to green or yellow. Having the hogg wrap, I'm not so sure this will be too easy. Anybody have any ideas for an easy to see sight for aging eyes? I ddidn't have near the problem with the older fiber optic PSE sight that I was using, however there was alot more space between the pins due to the bow being much slower. Go ahead and offer up any suggestions and or jokes about my getting old. thanks, Schmitty

I've got the same Harris bipod as Casey and it works very well. I'm pretty tall, so I 've got no problems shooting prone with it. I also find it a tad short for sitting, especially on a hillside, but I make it work. Sitting isn't nearly as steady as prone, but I can consistently hit P-dogs at 250 while sitting w/ the bipod. Out past that, it gets a bit shaky on such a small target for me. Prone w/ a bipod is almost as steady as shooting off a bench w/ the right technique. I'd highly recommend one to improve your shooting. Good luck, Schmitty

I'm ready for my elk hunt! I'll be using a: Hoyt Katera XL 32"/70lb draw 32" Easton Axis FMJ's tipped w/ Slick Trick Magnums ripcord rest and Spot Hogg sight Oh, you said rifle! If I wasn't chasing a bulls this year with a stick and string, I'd be trying hard to decide between two rifles. First is a trued up Rem 700 w/ a #4 contour Schneider covered in graphite cerakote chambered in .340 Weatherby magnum stocked in a McMillan Hunter stock. Second would be a MRC 1999 w/ a #2 contour MRC barrel chambered in .300 WSM stocked in a Bansner shooting 180 grain partitions scoped w/ a Leupold mark4 3-10x40. All depends on the terrain and anticipated shot distance as the .300 is a considerably lighter package. I received the Weatherby in a trade and haven't even pulled the trigger on it. I've got all the components, i just need to dig up some dies and find a reason to punish my shoulder. However, my experience with my .338 Win (now gone) was that the big bullets punish the elk as well. Good luck to all on your upcoming hunts! Schmitty

Doug, Actually, I've never looked thru the 10x50 ultravids, though I have looked thru a couple pairs of the 10x42's. I've only read on a couple of birding forums where folks who own/have owned both have said that the 10x50's are remarkably better. As I've been packing around the 8x42 trinovids for the last several years, the 10x50 ultravids are only 1-2 oz heavier than what I'm used to. I can just think of alot of areas that I will be scouting for elk this summer where 10's on a tripod would be ideal, not to mention quite a few pig/deer spots as well. I'll use a pair of lighter 7's or 8's as my primary around the neck wood's bino's. Makes a strong case for the duovids doesn't it? Craig

Gino, Do you find yourself using the 10x50's more of the tripod than the 15's? Doug has those ultravid 10x50's on sale pretty cheap and I'm awfully tempted as I can think of more than a few canyons where 15's may be a bit much. He's also got the 10x42's on sale which would be far more comfortable around the neck, but something about the 10x50's keep calling my name. thanks for any help, Craig

I was wondering if a group of guys/gals from CWT.com wanted to put together an archery pig hunt over in CA next year. One option would be the Tejon Ranch I've only driven past the north end of the ranch while driving across Tehachapi pass outside of Bakersfield, but it is nice looking country. You can book a private archery hunt, but need a minimum of 8 hunters. Cost is $450 per head for a 2.5 day hunt that includes lodging and meals. The hunt is unguided, but you do have one "guide" for the entire group that points you in the right direction. Hunting is all spot and stalk, no TX style feeders here in hilly country w/ a fair amount of brush. My understanding is that you can sit water/trails if that's more your style. From the research that I've done via the web and phone, it looks like everybody will see pigs and most should have shot oopportunities w/ a 50% success rate to be expected. Although, I think we might be able to do a bit better due to our glassing/hunting experience. I was thinking late Feb/March 2009 would give enough time for folks to get it on the schedule and it wouldn't interfere with any other hunts going on locally. The Tejon is about a 6 hour drive from Phoenix. More info can be found at www.hunttejon.com I'm sure there are other options as well, I'm open to any other ideas as well, just trying to extend my hunting season. Please post up if your interested. If we can get enough folks interested, I'd be happy to head up the reservations, logistics, etc. thanks, Schmitty