bwlacy

Morrell outdoor range target. They are big enough to shoot different spots, and last for a very long time. I shoot pretty much year round, and I only wear these out about every 5 or 6 years. I have not found a good broadhead target. They all get shot up fast when slicing them up with blades.

I time by bows on my draw board. It's very easy actually with the proper tools. Put in the draw board and see where the cams are at. Put in the press and twist or untwist the cables, then back to the draw board. Once your cams are set, adding a twist or two to the string to get the peep straight shouldn't change your timing on the cams.

I'm starting to plan a mule deer hunt for 2011. Is there any good public land in western Nebraska for mule deer? How hard is it to draw a tag? This will be a rifle hunt for probably 4 guys. May consider other states also. Just looking for something that has an easy to obtain tag and some good public land within a fairly easy drive from Michigan. Thanks for any info.

Barnes TSX I shoot them in a .300 H&H. I've shot whitetails from 90 to 300 yards with the 180's and have had great results on all of them.

IMHO. It costs more for a number of reasons. Brass costs more, more powder, lower demand, and alot of the magnums loads are using premium bullets that do cost more also. Most premium ammo for the 30.06 is around $30 per box also. You can reload much cheaper than buying factory ammo. Most guys don't shoot enough ammo during the year that it really affects the decision of buying a magnum. If you only shoot a couple boxes a year that really isn't much money. We hunters spend money on everything else, so what's another $50 per year. If you want that gun and it's a good deal, then buy it. I wouldn't let the price of ammo change my mind. The only thing I try to watch for is buying a caliber that is obsolete cuz it's real hard to get ammo without reloading. Matt

Follow the advice from the bowhunting forum. If at all possible use a dog to find him. If it's legal where you are. We have used a dog on a couple deer over the years to track one down that had gone a long ways. Be persistent and you should find him. Good luck

Start with under armour, then a polypropelene long underwear, then a wool or fleece layer. What I've done the last few years if to get some of the large handwarmers that have adhesive on them. They are called body warmers, stick them on you second layer. One on each kidney will keep you warm all day. Also those hand warmers can be used over. They say 8 to 10 hours. So if you sit only a few hours in the morning when you are done take those hand warmers and put in a ziploc back, squeeze all the air out and close. Then in the afternoon reuse them. As far as the outer layer. I've been told by many people that Rivers West makes the best outer layer clothing. Very quiet, warm, wind proof and water proof. It is pricey though, I think around $400 for both pieces. But if it lasts 10 years that is only $40 per year. Good luck Matt

We have the same problem in the UP of michigan. The last time I hunted up there near Ralph we didn't see many deer. Ran into the local DNR officer in the diner, he said the deer population is down from around 30 or 40 deer per square mile to less than 10!! He said that the wolves eat most of the fawns in the spring, and as many as they can the rest of the year. There is talk of taking the wolves off the endagered list and opening some type of hunting season on them to control the population. I have read that out west the wolves have reaked havoc on the elk and deer in many areas. They breed like crazy and have no predator to control them. I never understood why we needed them back in michigan.

I've seen young bucks grunting and bird dogging does the last two days. No older bucks yet. The does didn't want anything to do with it. Getting closer, been seeing rubs for a month, a few small scrapes. Now just wishing they get some more corn cut around me.

I just put an I 450 out last week, haven't been back to check on it yet. Someone told me that the batteries will last longer if it is not in burst mode. Not sure about that. With those 12 volt batteries does anyone sell a solor charger? I see other brands that have a solor kit, didn't know if they would work with that battery. Can you use any 12 volt battery? What about a marine deep cycle battery? If I get the Stealth Cam 12 volt, then I would want 2 of them so I would have a fresh one to swap out. That's another $100. What about the rechargable C batteries? I've seen them at walmart. They are pricey, but I think they would pay for themselves in the long run. You can get 12 batteries and a charger for around $80, and just keep recharging them. This is my first trail cam so I have lots of questions, ideas about batteries. I don't want to buy 6 C batteries every week. Matt

I didn't go out this weekend because of the hot weather. Don't want to ruin any stands with the wrong winds and sweating my butt off, it's a long season.

That is really cool what you guys do for the kids. Now that my son is too old for the youth hunt, I'm thinking of taking one child out to the farm next year to try and get their first deer also. Great job guys. And congradulations to the two shooters for making good shots on their first bucks. Matt

That's what I would do also. I have hunted in a couple camps up there where the cabin or trailer was packed, but had alot of fun anyway. I just had to do a little leg work and find a few good spots on public land. What area of the UP is the camp in? Maybe I could give you a couple places to look. There is so much public land up there that I don't think I would even hesitate about going. Good luck Matt

Hey thanks for the reply. I didn't think you could. I told dad not to buy any, in case he shouldn't be using them. But I could shoot them in my pump. Matt

My first bow kill was a big doe. Man haven't thought about that in awhile. It was October 1, 1984. Had a whole bunch of deer coming down a trail, the first one thru the opening was an adult doe. I double lunged her at 15 yards and watched her go down after 60 yards. My dad could see me shoot, and when he got down and came over to my tree, he said why didn't you wait for the buck in the back of the group? I didn't care, didn't even know there was a buck. The only bummer was back then Michigan only gave you 1 bow tag. So I waited all year to bowhunt, and it was all done in a couple hours. So I had to wait a whole year to get back out there.

Hornady sell light magnum ammo that they claim is 200 fps faster than other factory ammo. My question is this. Can you shoot these in an auto loader? My dad has a Rem. 7400 30.06 and was thinking about trying these. I was always told not to shoot hot handloads in an auto. Just curious. If Hornady is correct then the 150 grain in the 30.06 should be around 3100 fps. Thanks for any info. Matt

Well I may have just bought my last box of TSX's. I just got a box of 50 from Gander Mountain and they are now $45. I don't have time to work up a new load for my .300 H&H so I will shoot these for this year. Next year may have to try something else. Any suggestions? I may try the Scirocco, Accubond, or Interbond. Will need something that will hold up at 3100 to 3200 fps.

Thanks for the info. I will leave the O.A.L. the same. I was hoping that it wouldn't be a problem, just wanted to check.

I messed up and trimmed a handfull of cases .010 shorter than I wanted to. Will being .010 shorter affect anything? Will it affect pressure or accuracy? Just wondering how critical the case length is? Thanks for any info. Matt

Man that sucks!! I've had stands stolen on private and public land also. Besides locking them up, I try to fold the stand flat to the tree to make it less visible, and I take the steps or climbing sticks down also. That way they can't get up the tree. If they know where they are though and want to they can just bring a ladder or some steps. There is no sure way to keep them from stealing your stands. You can build permanant stands, or use climbers, or find a way to catch the scumbags. I hope I never catch someone stealing my stand, afraid what I might do over a tree stand. Does anybody make a cable that you can't cut thru? I've had cables and chains cut.

I tuck my scent lok pants into my rubber boots on the way to my stand. Once I'm in the stand I pull them over and spray them down again.

I read an article awhile back about scouting smarter from home. It made alot of sense, I just wish that I could remember what magazine it was in. Anyway. Get a county Plat book, topo maps, and ariel photos. You can rule out alot of property from home. With the plat book you may find those small pieces of public land that you didn't know where public. Use the topo's and the computer to check all the pieces you are interested in. Make notes of the spots you want to check out. Then when you have time you go right to them and have a look around. This will lessen the amount of time wasted on property that you don't want to hunt. Also the state has hunter access farms still. I don't know if there are any around your area. They don't hand the booklet out anymore. I think you can get it at a field office or maybe online. I hunt a couple of those farms around here and not many people even know they exist anymore. It was a big program in the 80's. The state leases the hunting rights from the landowner. You just sign in and hunt. One thing you can do also. Since you said that you are a full time student is hunt during mid week in the mornings if your schedule allows. Not many guys on public land on Wednesday mornings. Don't get discouraged it isn't even October yet. You have time.

What I've found here in MI is to let all those other guys spook the deer to you. Get a arial photo or topo of the area you have been scouting. Mark all the stands on there and go from there. Look for funnels and bedding areas away from the other guys, paying attention to the predominant winds. Look for N/S ridge lines with oaks, if there are any, that are down wind from the other guys. Also look for an island in a swamp, if you can find a high and dry spot in a swamp I doubt that you will see other guys in there. Also if those other guys are baiting like most people around here, follow the trails from there bait back towards the bedding areas. If you get 1/4 mile from there bait you will see alot of deer in the evening that last half hour before dark while they are waiting for dark to go to the bait piles. Don't get to discouraged, there are some really good spots on public land it just takes a lot more work to find them. Matt

My son killed an 8 point with 32lbs of draw weight. With modern compound bows 30 lbs will generate enough energy to take a whitetail. The key is having a good tune, the correct arrow, and a cut on contact broadhead. Also limit shots to 20 yards and under and only take broadside or quartering away shots. I would also shoot a medium to heavy arrow for that draw weight. My son was shooting 26 inch 1816's with a Steelforce broadhead and at 17 yards quartering away the arrow went in up to the nock. So he had plenty of penetration. Just get her started at whatever weight is comfortable for her to shoot accurately and go from there.

I have always used a heavier bullet. But only because I couldn't get the lighter ones to group well. If the 200's are grouping well and you are happy with the way they shoot then I wouldn't change. 200 grains is still heavier than most people shoot in a center fire rifle. If you put a 200 grain Shockwave behind the shoulder you will have no problems. You could always buy a pack of the heavier ones and shoot them to see how they group and what the difference would be in trajectory at 150 yards. Good luck Matt