TAM

For those of you with personal expericnce with hand loading for the .300 RUM what brass do you use? I've heard some negative things about the Remington brass and I'd like to consider some other options. I'm really only interested in new brass and for the most part I'm not that concerned if I have to pay more for quality. Thanks, Tim

I will give the Remington brass a try for sure. In fact, I already have 200 pieces of it. I just want to see what other brands people have used with good results. I'm not ruleing anything out until I've tried it.

From pumping pooh all the way to the White House! Grong for Pres!

Wow! You guys scored bigtime! Congratulations.

Last week I had the opportunity to go to Nevada to do a high country wilderness back pack hunt for mule deer. A storm came in the day before we were supposed to pack in and dumped about a foot and a half of snow up top making it impossible for us to hike in for a couple days. After about three days of hunting the low country and seeing nothing but does and small bucks the snow melted enough that we were finally able to hike into our spike camp at 10,450 foot elevation. We camped in a saddle right at the top of the tree line and hunted for the next three days. We saw a lot of deer including a big boy that unfortunately I missed…. twice! The shot was extreme down hill and even after I compensated I still shot just a hair over his back. This other buck showed himself at about three in the afternoon on the last night of the hunt and I shot him at 418 yards, right at 10,800 foot elevation. This was the first time I’ve ever done a back pack style hunt into a wilderness area and even though I sucked wind climbing those mountains I had a great time. The temps were cold at night and warmed up during the day. The best part was that we didn’t see another soul for the three days and we had the entire top of the mountain where the bigger bucks lived all to ourselves. Steep country! Spike camp We could glass for miles Looking down where I missed the big buck The wind pushed the bullet just behind the shoulder and this is what we had to follow into the pine thicket Where he lay Me and my buck Caped out on the snow The sun sets as we're packing out

Sounds like an exciting hunt. Congratulations!

Hunting for fun = Hobby Hunting for money = Job No thanks!

One other thing that Casey eluded to. Buy the best quality boots you can afford. Don't cheap out! Spend $200+ if you have to, but don't expect the $45 Walmart boots to cut the mustard in the back country.

Looks like a great hunt!

I agree with Gino 100% on the prevention of blisters. Isn't the old saying "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"? If your feet do get blisters then I recomend duct tape. Yep, in fact if you just start getting hot spots on your feet then get some duct tape on them and hike away. I would even suggest that if your feet are blister prone then start your hike by applying duct tape to areas where you normally get blisters so you can stop them before they even start. For cuts I also recomend super glue, but then once you superglue the cut together cover it with duct tape. This should keep the cut covered, clean, and dry until you can get home and have it properly cared for. Avoiding infection is the key to cuts when you're out in the field. Never had a problem with leaky boots, but perhaps that shoe goo stuff? Duct tape is real handy stuff to have for quick fixes out in the field, I never leave home without it!

Been using them for years. Very simple and easy to use. Worth every penny!

If you're planning on good weather then I'm not sure why you'd need a tent? I use a cot all the time right under the stars and love it. Quick and easy to set up without the hassel of a tent.

Yep, that's a good bear!

Just wanted to share a few pic's and a quick story on my NM Antelope. Four of us drew these tags in the public draw and got assigned a ranch north of Carrizozo. After a few phone calls and emails I figured out that we had drawn a pretty good area so I really had high hopes. This was my third antelope tag in NM in the last four years and I really wanted to get a big one. Finally after all the preperation and hours at the shooting range we drove all night and arrived at our ranch just as it was getting light the day before the hunt opened. We had one full day to scout the ranch and we were determined to make the best of it. The ranch was about 25 square miles and we covered nearly every inch. The morning started off slow and we didn't see much, but by mid day we were seeing speed goats everywhere. The rut was just kicking in and the bucks were gathering herims of does. By the end of the day we figured we had seen 400-500 antelope including a few nice ones. A couple hours before our day of scouting was up we ran across a very tall forward hooking buck with about 10 or 12 does with him right off the main road. Right away it was obvious that the buck not only had the character factor going for him but he was very tall and one of the best bucks we'd seen all day. We knew he was a shooter so we decided to move away from him so we didn't disturb him. Our plan was to come back before light and pull just inside the ranch gate and wait for it to get light enough to glass him up. The next morning we followed our plan and parked just inside the ranch gate. My buddy started to glass with his Swarovski's even though it was still almost completly dark. I thought he was smoking crack and wasting his time using his binos in the dark to look through the windshield of the truck nonetheless. After a minute or two he said in a calm quiet voice "they're right there". I replied "what's right there"? and his response was "the antelope, and there close"! At that point I quietly opened the door of the truck and snuck out and got out my rifle, loaded up and got ready to shoot, but there was still one small problem. It was still not legal shooting light. Luckly the buck laid down and I just sat there with my rifle shouldered and rested on my tripod next to the front driver side tire of the truck waiting for the minutes to tick by so we'd be legal. After what seemed like a very long time we were finally within legal shooting hours the buck stood up to check his does. As soon as he was clear of the other animals I sent a 140 grain Berger VLD his way and he was mine! Yes Casey the Berger bullet performed perfectly. He is by far my best antelope and has some real unique character. His horns are 17.5 inches long and hook forward. I had a great time with Mike, Greg, and Russ and we all killed some nice antelope. Hopefully we'll draw out again next year and I can make it four NM antelope tags in five years. Also just to set the record straight. We did not use walkie-talkie radios on this hunt, but we were listening to the satelite radio when we found him. I hope that doesn't cross any ethics barriers.

There are several states which have laws against harvesting albino or white animals. I think Michigan is one of them. I don't think there are any laws against it in Arizona.

Congratulations on a beautiful trophy!

We always called them wolf spiders. Not sure if that's the real name or not. When they have all the babies on there back like that you've really got to step on them good to keep all the little ones from getting away. Even worse was when mamma and babies got into the pool. Never seemed to be a good way to get mamma spider out/dead without having a thousand little spiders taking a swim with you. Pretty sure they're harmless.

2005 Chevy Colorado 2WD Regular Cab. 4 speed automatic transmission. Vortec inline 4 cylinder engine. 60/40 cloth seats. Driver and passenger air bags. 4 wheel anti-lock brakes. Cold AC. Vinyl flooring. Good tread left on tires. Original owner. 76K miles. 18 MPG city and 25 MPG highway. This truck has been a light duty work truck for our business. With the construction industry slowing down it just sits in the driveway. Mechanically it's in great shape and runs excellent. Cosmetically inside the bed is scratched up and the body has a few minor blemishes. The interior is in good condition. Never wrecked or smoked in. It's located in Prescott. I've got it listed in the Truck Trader for $6,250, but I'd be happy to sell it here for $5,000. Feel free to call or PM me. Tim 928-533-8807

It's all good Mike! You're right no direct accusations, just stirred the pot. Sometimes that's a good thing. I'm not sure how much you followed the Spider bull deal, but they watched this bull all summer long! Not just the Mossback guys but lots of people from miles around. He was VERY visible and many people got to see him. I heard reports that as many as 30 trucks a night were parked on the edge of the meadow he was using.

Just curious as fellow hunters why we need to be so suspicious and critical of other hunters when they find success? Does this type of criticism really do anything to benefit our passion? Do you have any evidence to justify your concerns? Mike, I really respect your input on this site over the years, but this one seems a bit out of character for you? I'm not trying to start a fight, just think we should be careful what we say in public until we have the facts sorted out. I've been on the Monroe and yes it does produce 400 inch bulls. Yes there have been 500 inch bulls killed in captivity and free roaming. Seems like this bull just showed up this year, but what's wrong with that? Bucks and bulls just "show up" all the time? Look at the 300 inch mule deer that the kid in Colorado killed a couple years ago. That buck just showed up? The Monroe is HUGE country and it's not completley out of the question that there are other huge bulls and sheds out there that no one knows about. Yes, some people will do anything for money, but now you're accusing Mossback of breaking the law? Without evidence, why? How are your comments going to improve our sport and the public preception of hunting? If I'm wrong and the guy did something wrong then throw the book at him, until we have some evidence why not congratulate him?

Is it necesary? Probably not. Does the animal deserve a little extra effort to insure the best possible shot placement for a quick humane kill? Yes, with out a doubt. By spending time at the bench working up a 1/2" load THE SHOOTER is getting in lots of valuable practice. Even if you fail to get under moa you are still getting in practice. To me lots of practice with a 2 inch moa rifle is better than little or no practice with a sub moa rifle. I enjoy shooting my rifle and each time I go out I'm trying to better myself as a shooter. I am able to guage my progress by how small my groups are. In doing so I feel more prepared to be a responsible hunter in the field. I also learn what my limitations are. I know the rifle can make the shot... but can you?

I've said all along that I'm not a big John McCain fan, to moderate for my taste. I expressed that opinion in the primary election and did not vote for him. Now it's more a matter of making sure the worse of the two canidates doesn't get voted in. A vote for anyone other than McCain is a vote for BO.

You also may want to go to that camera shop up by ASU. I think it's called Tempe Camera. I broke one of my plastic adjustment buckles on my Bogen tripod a couple years ago and they were able to get the part and fix it. May be worth checking into.

I have a RCBS 5-0-5 powder scale that I'm willing to part with. I don't think it's ever been used. Shoot me a PM if you're interested.

Yes you can still write in Luke Skywalker's name as well and we all know that he has the force and is quite skilled at fighting the evil powers of the dark side! Yoda could be another good choice. I believe he's much more consertive than Luke, but then again I think his age is a factor? Yes I'll say it again just for you DB... At this point there are only two canidates in this election, and a vote for anyone other than McCain is a vote for BO.