Red Rabbit

Marshall Lake on the 8-9 sounds fine with me. No archery shoots that weekend. Good location for fishing, and close to Flag itself. I have a McKenzie mule deer I can bring. Doug~RR

The clamp is attached to the tripler's lens body with two small Allen head bolts. All that would be needed to align the adapter and bino would be a spacer of appropriate thickness between the clamp and the tripler body, and longer bolts.

A weekday evening would work better for me as there is nary an open weekend between spring turkey, fishing, and archery. Doug~RR

The Jim White Tripler comes in an unpadded camo cordura case with a flap fastened with velcro. There is no belt loop on the case. The flap has a plastic cap in which a lens cloth is stuffed. The cap fits into the clamp when the flap is closed, but is sized large enough that it rests against the end of the lens tube and will not fit down into the recess of the lens tube and rub against the lens. In the case, it weighs 7 oz on my digital fish scale. I tested the tripler using a pair of Leica Duovid 10+15x50 binoculars, and a Cabelas 20-60x60mm spotter which I purchased in the late 1980's and believe them to be Redfield Regal IVs with the Cabelas badge. The optics were tested on a homemade resolution chart of the letters aaeeoocc and 111 of various sizes. This was stapled to a cardboard box and set out down the street at a distance of 65 yards. The tripler attaches easily to one eyepiece of the binoculars by squeezing the two tabs together to enlarge the ring and fit over the eyepiece. Due to the clamp attaching to one side of the tripler tube and the larger size in the binocular eyepiece, the centerline axis of the tripler does not line up with the axis of the bino lens tube/center of the exit pupil. The tripler is slightly off center. This may result in an eclipsed view, but the tripler angle may be adjusted easily by squeezing the clamp so a full field of view is given. I noticed that the tripler is not in the same line as the bino lens tube when so adjusted (i.e. it is clamped on a a slight angle). Different binos may have different eyepiece diameters, so this effect may vary. I compared the Duovids set at 10x with the tripler attached (30x total) against the spotter set at 30x. With the bino/tripler, I could distinguish the e's distinctly in the 4th smallest set of letters. In particular, I keyed on being able to distinguish the horizontal line of the e. The 3rd smallest set of 1's could be distinguished as separate and can detect the top cap and bottom of the 1 clearly. With the spotter at 30x, I could see the 2nd smallest set of e's clearly. The 4th set of letters are 4.0mm tall and the 2nd set are 2.8mm tall, or 40% smaller. With the Douvid set at 15x and the tripler attached (45x total), I could discern the 2nd smallest set of e's and the 1's of the 2nd set. I could see separate 1's in the top, smallest set of letters, but could not tell the top and bottom of the 1 clearly. With the spotter set at a comparable 45X, I could see both the e's and 1's of the smallest set clearly. The 1st set of letters are 2.3mm tall, or 18% smaller than the 2nd set. Using just the Duovids set at 15x, no tripler, I could discern the e's of the 7th set of letters, and the 1's of the 6th set. The 1's in the 5th set appeared to run together. After sunset, I tested how long I could tell the e's on the bottom left, 9th set. Sunset was at 6:58 this evening and the sky was clear. With the Duovids set at 10x and tripler attached, I lost detail of the e's at 7:10pm. At 7:15, I could not distinguish the largest letter on the right side of the chart. The 9th set, bottom left was readable using the spotter set at 30x until 7:15. I noticed that the spotter appeared brighter during daylight than the tripler assembly. The view through the spotter was also noticably sharper. The tripler setup had about 20% less field of view than my spotter when set at comparable powers. Different binos and spotter mey give a different FOV. Also noticed was that the focusing of the bino with the tripler attached was more critical/touchy to the amount of focus dial rotation, than when just using the bino alone. I did not notice any tinting of colors different than the Duovids transmitted. Nor did I see any color fringing when looking at pine needle clusters against the sky. In looking through the spotter and tripler, I held a cupped hand over the off eye rather than squint. I also used a towell draped over my capped head and optics which helped cut ambient light from the side and really helps with seeing more acutely. Doug~RR

Here's a link to Accubond and Barnes MRX bullet performance on my Kodiak hunt last fall. The two Accubonds pictured on page one of the thread are from my 300WSM, and appear to have tumbled. The two Barnes MRX bullets were from another hunter's 300WSM. He shot at close range 20-40 yards. One bullet had no petals, and looks like they broke off early and the remaining bullet still travelled, as evidenced by the worn front. What amazed me is that they did not pass through. http://24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbth.../page/0/fpart/1 Doug~RR

Yougbuck, the 180 gr E-tip in the ad in the nosler forum shows a BC of .523. The 180gr Accubond and Ballistic Tip are published at .507 The increase is probably due to the longer bullet length since there is no lead core. Casey, You'll have to trade in that 270WSM and get a 300 since the initial bullet offering is 180gr 30 cal. Winchester should load it for the 30-06 in factory fodder, so you can grin too. RR

Kevin, You can get the bonus point analysis from G&F for $25, which covers the number of applicants in each bonus point group for each individual hunt number, and their draw rates. From 2006 hunt apps, the max # BP of applicants for 36b,c was 7, for 33 was 7, 34A was 8, for the dec hunts. For Oct and Nov hunts, the max bp were less. Doug~RR

A) I was thinking about the late 12AW tag I will draw and was distracted by the increase in tags up there. the junior hunt was printed on a different page C) frankly in all the excitement, I overlooked the obvious D) CRS E) I knew you had me covered. Doug PS Chris-your inbox is full.

Jim, If the guidelines based on buck:doe ratio indicates that the number of permits should remain the same, and the fawn:doe ratio indicates a decrease in permits, and if hunter success was higher than goals, I ask why are the number of permits in unit 33 being increased by 50 or 5.9% ? Did the WM call for the increase? Did the dept override the WM and recommend the increase? If so, is this in the guise of increased hunter opportunity over the biological guidelines, or can the population handle the increase in permits over what the guidelines call for? Doug~RR

Jim, If I recall correctly, the figures given were something like 102 or 105:100 for last year, whereas the normal has been about 50:100 on the Kaibab, and closer to 20-30:100 south of the river. Unasked was why the doe permit numbers were reduced last year, in reponse to ADA recommendations, but upped again this year. (I can suspect the answer would be for hunter recruitment, retention and opportunity) Last year on the first hunt on the Kaibab west side, the hunter success was higher than wanted, like 50%. They hope that moving the season up, success will drop to 35-40% With the increase in tag numbers from 500 to 900, one would estimate another 65-90 deer killed over last year, but less than the 450 of 2005 (45% success of 1000 tags) ABA will most likely address the archery issue at the April 21 meeting, as the ADA will likely speak towards the Kaibab permit numbers and earlier Oct season dates. It was mentioned that the elk season was shifted forward in response to the hunter comments about wanting the archery and early rifle hunts to be closer to the rut. The conflict/overlap was noticed at that time, but nothing corrective was done. Doug~RR

There were 7 people at the Flagstaff meeting, plus 3 G&F members. Rather informal but a good open discussion. Concern was raised about the overlap of the archery deer and elk seasons. Hope th commission changes the season dates. No valid reason for the overlap was given. The increase in the number of Kaibab tags was basically attributed to wanting to keep the herd in check while winter range improvements/plantings have a chance to establish themselves. Fawn: doe ratios was given at slightly over 100:100 for this year. Concern was made that the earlier October season will catch the bucks up on top in bachelor groups and result in a good kill of the deer, predicting greater than harvest objectives and detrimentally affecting the future age class structures. The 3 month closure of the lion season is during time when lions are not normally harvested anyway, and is thus a moot politcal closure. Point was made about not being able to train dogs by pursuit though. The October whitetail hunt in 6a was split to reduce hunter crowding. Last year, 6A WT hunter success in Oct was 17%. First year it was 6% The theme of increased opportunity was evident in the discussion. The idea that he survey was canned in its questioning was stated by the audience. RR

Another problem is having 1000 turkey hunters the week before the Oct Kaibab deer hunt. Guess if you have the deer on alert from turkey season ending the day before the opener, deer harvest will be less and thus you can have more tags issued. RR

I keep wondering how the increase in Kaibab tags can be validated biologically (and not simply for love of money). Loss of 58,000 acres due to the Warm Fire? But this was on summer range and not on limiting winter range. The recent fire on winter range in the southwest corner (can't recall its name)? But the habitat on the larger area burned a few years ago should be recovering enough. Seems strange that the number of junior doe tags on the Kaibab were reduced last year and then substantially increased this year. Here's a story published for the ADA study done for the AZG&F a couple years ago regarding browse, and the deer population and permit allocations http://azdeer.org/kaibab_article.htm RR

It's always fun to look back on the past hunting season and reflect at the special moments. What ONE picture from your season is your best capture of the hunt? I did not draw a tag last year, so was forced to go to Kodiak and hunt Blacktails. I think this photo captures the spirit of my hunt by showing the beauty of the area, the weather sustained, and the peacefulness atop the island we hunted. I took a lot of photos on that trip, but this is the one. I had a lot of good times hunting quail and grouse with Rica, but hunting Kodiak was tops last year for me. Doug~RR

My initial thought is after scanning the recommendations: "Beam me up, Scotty. There's no intelligent life down here." The archery deer season ends the 20th of September, but archery elk opens the 14th. If you have an elk tag, you can still hunt deer, but you will have archery deer hunters in the woods without elk tags. It rained close to a normal amount last year, so there are a few more spikes and forkies this year. Let's issue more WT tags in October and November. Move the early rifle Kaibab hunt up a week because the harvest was higher than projected last year. But then let's issue 550 more tags for the earlier hunts? RR

My code was "larva enoch" = spiritual soul of Enoch? I applied for 2C muley and 27 WT. Have not decided on antelope yet, as I may try to find a landowner tag intead of being assigned a random ranch somewhere in half of NM. RR

HuntnCoues, The ACI can be attached to your bow and would be useful from a treestand or in steep terrain. Or use Leupolds new rangefinder. RR

This is a great canoe for trout fishing on the Mogollon Rim or White Mountains.

Shortpants, Does seem like the true colors of certain people were revealed through toilet bowl eyeglasses. The amusing irony is the trophies that were killed after all the deception. Thanks for the story. No names or locations were needed to get the value of the scenario. You can tell from my pics were I hunted two years ago, but its not a secret spot as evidenced by all the other hunters there. Had 5 other groups spotted within the area I hunted. Time to find a new spot. The fence cutting reminded me of a fence-cutting episode in northern AZ. Some well-known hunters were met at a gate and told of private property and not to tresspass. They cut/let down the fence anyway and shot the buck the ranchers friend was hunting. Charges were filed with Coconino sheriffs, but I do not know of the outcome. This was the during the time of the Navajo Rez/Lacey Act legal episodes a several years ago. Doug~RR

Shortpants, Would you relate to us your Rod Serling episode? RR

I would suggest going to a lot of archery 3D shoots this summer, and shoot any smokers. The knowledge you learn on the smoker course about shooting in tough, tight lanes and targets will be worth more than the $10 arrow you break. Take the rangefinder out on your scouting trips and learn what 20 yards looks like in different lighting and terrain conditions, guess the distance to an object and then check with the rangefinder, Figure out why you were wrong. Work on being within 1-2 yards off. Practice shooting up and down hill., kneeling, sitting, squatting, standing on a stump, one foot, give yourself only 30 seconds to range, load, draw and shoot. Run 100 yards and then shoot while you're breathing hard. RR

I believe last year G&F approved the carrying of handguns during archery hunts. 6" barrel length restriction and has to be open sights. From Hunting Highlights, Feb 2006 http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/highlights/highlights_0602.html#2 "Archery-only hunters can now carry a non-hunting handgun for protection The October issue of â€Hunting Highlights“ reviewed the legality of carrying a handgun during an archery-only hunt. The rule at that time was that hunters participating in an archery-only hunt could not possess a firearm, even if they had a concealed weapons permit. Since that time, the Arizona Game and Fish Department has issued a directive allowing hunters participating in an archery-only hunt to carry a non-hunting handgun for personal protection and safety. As a guideline, a non-hunting handgun shall be defined as a handgun with a barrel length of 6 inches or less that does not have a scope or any type of electronic device. Handguns meeting this definition may be carried during an archery-only hunt for personal protection only. They may not be used to take any species of wildlife while participating in an archery-only hunt." RR

**SOLD** Marlin 1894CL Classic lever action chambered in 218 Bee. NRA Banquet edition w/ NRA coin in stock. Leupold Vari X 3-9 Compact, Weaver bases & rings, ring marks. Hornady dies and brass. Hammer extension. ~1.5" 5-shot groups @100 yards w/ factory ammo. $725 shipped, or can do f2f in Phoenix over Easter. Doug~RR

Remington shows a 700 SPS youth model and Model 7 youth, both with 20" barrels in 7mm-08. My choice would be a 700 Mountain LSS (laminated stainless) in 7mm-08- light at 6 1/2 pounds and has a thin 22" barrel. You can cut the laminated stock for a shorter length of pull, or get a cheap synthetic to cut. Friend's son and daughter used the 7-08 on cow elk successfully over a period of years. Doug~RR

http://data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp http://www.reloadbench.com/cartridges/218b.html http://www.reloadingroom.com/page12.html A start for info. I originally bought the 218 Bee for spring turkey, but G&F changed the rule about using centerfires that next year. Did use it for one fall bird.