azsugarbear

My case file is at the office, so I won't be able to quote chapter and verse on ARS until tomorrow. My citation was for a felony as are most other major game violations. I knew there would be some coulda, shoulda woulda comments. At this point, it doesn't matter so much. I am through it and out the other side. My point in writing this is to make other hunters and fishermen aware of how things really work. Secondly, are there other hunters out there who feel the laws need to be changed? I agree that any new laws regarding self-reporting would have to be narrowly construed, but many other states seem to have successfully navigated these waters. In short: are we happy with the way things are, or does there seem to be some injustice here? From my experience, the punishment far exceeded the 'crime'. I went from being a life-time supporter of AZGFD to an adversary in the blink of an eye. Every time I tell my story to hunters, boy scouts and their leaders, church members, and anyone else who will listen - everyone has been appalled at the treatment.

Sorry guys, I'm with Big Tub on this one. Just because you can doesn't mean you should. If the road was a dead end and that was explained to the first truck, they had the option of turning around and heading back out - thus preserving the hunt for the first group there; or they could push forward and exercise their right to the public road. Ethics and courtesy be damned. With those kinds of hunters, I go out of my way to return the favor first chance I get. It is not just about public rights, it is about respect and recognizing there is enough public land for everybody. Now if this were a road going from point A to point B and beyond - then I have no problem with them driving through.

I got a call for the second hunt. It was for cow elk. She said terrain was flat with thick juniper & pinon. I was also told about 150 elk in the area. She also stated that the warden anticipated a success rate around 25%. I had just finished up a tough cow elk hunt on a friend's tag in Unit 9. Tough hunt - couldn't pattern anything. We gave up and came home early. I wasn't about to go through that again, so I took a pass on this hunt. Best if luck to all those who decided to plunk down the dollars.

I'll start the reports. Late cow elk hunt in Unit 9 was miserable. Dry & dusty. Checked close to 20 tanks on the northwest side. Only one tank was holding water. There were elk in the area, but only in groups of 1 to 4 - never any bigger. No way to pattern them. Spoke with rancher in the area. It is the worst he has seen in 30 years. No water down in the southeast side of Unit 9 around Red Butte. Northeast side near the park border faired better with the water, but all the elk holed up in the park and then came across at night to water.

long or short action? right hand, I presume?

I'm pretty certain that a 452 will not drop into your Manners. The 452 has a different footprint than the 455.

I'll take this at $200.

I thought I would post this to see if anyone has any interest. I bought 200 rounds of this ammo, mostly for breaking in a new barrel and some elk hunting. I still have 100 rounds (5 boxes) that I want to sell. I bought this ammo at roughly $20.00 per box, including shipping. I took advantage of Remington's rebate at $5 per box which I would pass on to the buyer. Total would be $15 per box, with 2 box minimum. Sell all five boxes for $70 ($14/box). Only trade would be for Winchester brass in 270 WSM. Respond here, send PM or text to 602-361-7191. Listed on other boards as well.

Sold

Devcon with Johnson car wax as a release agent.

Upon further reflection, I have decided to keep this as a project gun. Thanks to all those that expressed their interest.

I recently took ownership of this rifle. I don't need a second rifle in the 270 WSM caliber, so this one is up for sale. The Ultimate Shadow was designed as an all-weather rig with a synthetic stock. Barrel is 24" in length with a 1 in 10 twist that can stabilize bullets up to 160 grains. The scope that comes with the rifle is a cheap 3-9x40mm Bushnell. The entire set-up weighs just 7.5 lbs. Honest appraisal: This rifle has seen some use. The scope and mounting hardware have many dings and scrapes - so does the stock. I had my doubts about this rifle's accuracy, so I gave the barrel a good cleaning and then took it to the range yesterday. Even with the typical untuned Winchester trigger and crappy scope, it still held a three shot group that measured 1.25" with both 140 gr. & 150 gr. factory Winchester Silver tip ammo. With a decent scope, I have no doubt the groups will shrink to 1.0" This isn't the pretty girl you take to the prom. It's more a truck gun or starter gun with an appearance that belies its ability to perform. Priced to move at $435. If interested email or text/call at 602-361-7191. Listed on other web sites as well, but preference given to CTW members.

If this doesn't sell, then I will keep it and start the improvements.

These should go quick.

Just picked up a used Winchester 70 in above caliber. Bought it mostly for the action and bottom metal. I need to find out if this stock rifle is a shooter, or if it needs to be re-barreled. Not looking for the expensive stuff. Partial boxes (at least12 rounds leftover) are fine. PM me here at CWT or text/call at 602-361-7191.

Deal pending with 5guyshunting

Stored the box on top of the safe. The gunsmith did some extensive stoning of the parts (trigger, hammer, disconnect). May have done something to the trigger spring as well, You have to remember - this was back in 1989 when there were no (or very few) drop in triggers to be had. Nowadays, it is less expensive to buy a new drop in trigger than to pay a smith for several hours of work on the parts.

Sold

I have a Sightron SIII 5-25X that sits on top of my 6.5-06 AI. Glass is fantastic and clear and the turret dialing is repeatable. Prior to that, I had tried both Vortex and Leupold VX3. Nightforce is my go-to scope on my larger rigs, but they just seem to make the rifle too top heavy on a lighter sport rifle.

Weekend bump. Forgot to mention: the barrel is 20" and has a 1 in 7 twist that will handle the heaviest .224 bullets out there.

Weekend bump.

I bought this unit new about 2-3 years ago. It has been out in the field a few times, but looks fantastic. No scratches on the glass or body. Works and functions fine. The second generation distinguished itself from the original Gen one model with the ability to calculate and display in both yards and meters. More importantly, the Gen II model contains revised algorithms that helped to 'tighten up' the fire solutions calculated by the on-board computer. Asking price is $1,250. The only reason I am selling this unit is to fund the purchase of the new third generation G7 rangefinder. I'm curious to see what it has to offer. If interested, PM me here at CWT or call/text me at 602-361-7191. Listed locally only. I will be gone from 9/20-9/22, returning to the valley on Friday afternoon.

H1000. You cannot underestimate the value of having a temp stable powder for your ammo in AZ where temps can swing 40-50 degrees in a single day on an elk hunt.

Setting up a rifle for long range shooting can be a bit of a drawn out process. You need a load that is both consistent and accurate. Finding the most accurate ammo can take a few outings (more if you are handloading and tweaking your recipe). You will need a quality scope with repeatable results in terms of dialing up and then returning to your zero. If you don't have a higher end scope, then you are wasting both time and resources. You will need to mount that scope and then take it to the range and confirm the absence of cant by shooting at 100 yds with your zero and then dialing up 30 MOA and then shooting at the same 100 yd target to see if you tracked the plumb line you traced onto your target. Then dial back down again to see if you return to zero. Now you need to run your ballistics program to get a drop table. Then you head into the real world by actually shooting your load at 400 and 800 yds to see what your actual drops are (as opposed to those calculated in the ballistics table for you). You then go back into your ballistics program and change your speed and/or BC to get the program to reflect your actual results in the field. It's a lot of work and usually involves several trips to remote locations where you can shoot long range. In the end, what you will have is a rifle set up for long distance shots. At this point, the shooter becomes the weak link in the system. I would be glad to help out, but my time commitment is zero until much later this fall - probably too late for your hunt. I will be completing the set-up of rifle for a friend (started process last year) for his cow elk hunt in December. I am willing to help where I can, but my time for outings is extremely limited.

A couple years ago, this topic was discussed in a very long thread on www.longrangehuning.com. Lots of stories about Bergers penciling through. Some stories about Bergers blowing up on shoulders at close ranges under 200 yds. But many, many more stores about Bergers just doing their job. All bullets will have some fails. Berger took stories to heart and did an exhaustive test on their bullets trying to replicate the pass through results. Couln't duplicate the pencil through shot. In the end, they felt it may have been some clogged tips. They made changes to their production process and the tips seam much cleaner today than a few years back. In my opinion, no bullet performs 100% of the time. You just need to understand and compensate for any weaknesses of the bullet you are shooting. I mostly shoot the Bergers because of their accuracy and higher BC's. Having said that, my favorite overall bullet that get closest to the 'Holy Grail" of bullet performance are the bonded bullets like the Accubond and the Sirocco. I just wish they had better BC's and tighter groups in my rifles.