not a gun.....but close

**0rion** · 09-16-2016, 03:33 AM

got regular muzzy 100's yesterday. While I was there I was gonna pick up some swhacker 100's and called my buddy to see if I should get the 1.75" or 2". He said not to buy them he had shipped some too me earlier in the week haha. I'll get those out and run that practice head through the bow a few times to see how it shoots. I was shooting the regular muzzy out to 35 yards and was dead on using a single pin. I'm going to move my target this week and get some 40 yard shots in but that's as far as I'll go. I won't take shots longer than that in the woods. I may just for shits and giggles set up a 2nd pin and see how it shoots out to 50 but I highly doubt I would ever take that shot in the woods....too many branches and shit to hit at those ranges. I like the new bow though. Shoots pretty good and arrow stays pretty flat out to 30+. I was kinda stressing last year over not having that pendulum site on the bow but it's really not needed as much for this bow as my old bow. That old bow dropped big time from 20 to 30. This one if I'm on at 20 it's still a kill shot out to over 30 without adjusting my aim. At 40 I would probably aim inch and a half high or so.

My daughter started her hunter safety course last night. Going to take her for the test next month so we can squirrel hunt a few times this year. She probably won't be ready to shoot deer for another year or so. Just have to wait and see. I'd love to get her hunting deer though.....more freezer meat.

Here soon the pressure for me to get 2 and 3 deer a year will go way down. Right now I have to sit with them so I still have to get on deer. In a year or 2 I'll be able to turn Zach loose into his own stand so I'll basically be hunting 2 of my spots at once.

**Zinergy** · 09-16-2016, 06:24 AM

I have 3 sights currently, one I don't like at all, my old single pin and the trophy ridge. Still not sure which one I like more my old single pin or the new trophy ridge. This is the sight on my bow currently (the trophy ridge). I have shot at 70 yards with it for shits and giggles. At 70 yards probably had a 5-7 inch diameter circle of arrows. I have never taken a shot farther than 35ish yards with a bow while hunting though.

https://www.abbeyarchery.com.au/mm5/...lack_large.jpg

How old is your daughter? I take my girls in the woods sometimes, it's so much fun.... for free. Sitting still isn't their thing yet so only for small game/bird hunting. My son turned 1 in June so his wobbly legs don't make it far but someday I hope I can get him into hunting.

**0rion** · 09-16-2016, 08:47 AM

daughter is 10. She's went squirrel hunting with me the last 2 or 3 years but using Ohio's apprentice license. Ohio lets youths get 3 apprentice licenses before they require the test. I've lost track of if this is her 3rd year or if last year was her 3rd so we decided she should just go ahead and take the test and be done with it. She's yet to kill a squirrel but has had a few shots at some. That .410 makes it tough.....range sucks and you have to aim for the head. I do like starting them on that though because it makes it so they can't just throw the gun up and shoot....still some aiming required. Took zach a few before he started killing them with it then I moved him to a 20 gauge. It was like getting into a cadiallac for him haha.....he was amazed at how much easier it was to kill squirrel.

**Zinergy** · 09-16-2016, 09:00 AM

Yea, .410 is a challenging gun for anyone to kill with past 7 yards haha.

That's when they will go... at 10. We'll see how interested Lily my oldest is, she is 8 now. She is super girly, dresses up every day of the week for school etc. Rowan the middle child on the other hand is all about tigers, earth worms, dirt, cars and shooting at squirrels with nerf guns.

***SMWS6TA*** · 09-16-2016, 12:08 PM

My daughter is in that in between stage of girly and tom boy. Some things she's girly on while others the opposite. She'll jump in and help on the bird when I work on it, go shoot guns and other stuff. Bait a hook - nope, unless I tell her no bait, no fish...

What's a good beginner bow for a girl? She wants to learn to shot a bow, it's been forever since I last used one.

**0rion** · 09-16-2016, 04:04 PM

https://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Arche...+infinite+edge

Only bow she will ever need. Draw length adjustable from 13-31" and draw weight from 5-70#. Package for ~$300 although the rest sucks on them but so do most "package" bows you buy. Another huge plus is you can do all the work on it without needing a bow press. You can back off the limb screws and get the string completely slack which means you can change your own string, put your own peep sight on, ect ect. The limb screws are marked so when you put them back in you can keep the same tension on the limbs which helps alot with tuning. I bought one for zach and liked it so much I bought one for myself. It's made by bowtech and rated for a shade over 300fps although in hunting trim I doubt it would see 300fps.

mint used one on ebay for $269 shipped. I think I got mine new for $299 shipped xmas before last.
Diamond Bowtech Infinite Edge Bow 5 70 lb Camo Right Hand SS2009740 847019074567 | eBay

The other option is a mission craze which is similar in specs although not quite as adjustable and made by mathews. I'm not sure if you can let these all the way down though without a press. Maybe you can.....just not sure.

Mission 2015 Craze Right Hand Lost New in Box Mathews Full Package with Case | eBay

I don't think you could go wrong with either bow. Great starter bows that will grow with her. Like I say....no good reason really to ever need another bow unless you just wanted one. Mathews and Bowtech both build quality bows.

**0rion** · 10-02-2016, 05:07 PM

spent my first hours in the stand this afternoon......not a damn thing was seen all afternoon. It rained the first hour or so and the woods are still really thick so a deer would've had to tap me on the shoulder to let me know it was there. Good sit though. Several times I thought I would hear something but most likely was just squirrels. That'll probably be it for me until the 13th most likely. Going to see Casey Donahew next weekend with some friends so I'll be far to drunk the entire weekend to even consider going out to hunt. Come the 13th though it's on like donkey kong. Gonna get extra serious since I'm getting a late start this season.

I did end up switching over to swhacker broadheads. Looking forward to putting one in my first deer.

**Zinergy** · 10-03-2016, 05:55 AM

I shot a big doe. Have gone out 5 times now. Could have shot deer every time but 1.

Do not use havoc g5 broad heads. They cut good and do good damage but the penetration is horrible. If it hits any bone or thick hide they are really lacking. Must now go track a buck that was shot last night by a friend. Same thing happened on Friday to another friend. I watched it happen from the blind. The penetration is AMAZINGLY bad. Both deer shot with 300+fps bows at 20ish yards.

**0rion** · 10-03-2016, 10:19 AM

there's no excuse for that......at 20 yards with any newer bow that should be a pass thru pretty much no matter where you hit it. Double shoulder I could see not being a pass thru but even then I know a muzzy will pass on that shot. That's the one thing I worry about these swhacker heads.....just no experience with them and no idea how they're going to act in certain situations where with muzzy I've been in just about every situation and know what to expect. 2 shots with the swhackers concern me.....one where both blades catch a rib when they're opening. They're pretty thick blades so I don't see the blades breaking.....just not sure how much energy they lose when opening and if they'll have the balls to go through 2 ribs. The other one is a heavy quartering shot. Not sure what happens when one side of the blades tries to open before the other.....worries me about it glancing off on a shot like that.

**Zinergy** · 10-03-2016, 01:42 PM

The nice thing about the swhacker when it comes to glancing blows is that the tip is over a full inch away from the blades. So hopefully that tip is in flesh before the side blades can change the direction of the shot and glance off.

I might just pull out the ole fixed blades. As I now have 2 shots of example from the same blind...... at the same distance..... both side shots..... same broadheads..... both good hits directly at the deer.... neither passed through.... that have failed to produce kills. That buck is still alive BTW. He lived through the night.

I am very disappointed in the Havoc G5s. They cut well as shown by the deer I shot and the deer a buddy shot last year but none of that means anything if they can't penetrate... which they can't. You're not going to miss bones or tough muscle etc every time.

**0rion** · 10-03-2016, 03:55 PM

could be a couple things......I definitely think at some point the width of the cut starts acting like a parachute as far as kinetic energy. Not sure it should do it at 2.3" but you also have some of that energy being burned to open the actual blade. I just watched a video on slasharrows
Slash Arrows Inset Blade Hunting Equipment for Bow Hunters â€“ SlashArrows

Even if I could get past that shitty looking flight on the 55 yard shot I think a 5" cut is ridiculous. Plus they tip it with a 3 blade fixed blade style which is probably why it flies so shitty. I'm sure it makes a hell of a gash in a deer but could you imagine that thing opening on a rib cage? those blades would hit 4 ribs.

I also don't like the way those havoc look like they open....looks like they hinge open in a cross pattern. Seems like even more wasted energy. Compare that to how a swhacker opens where it basically flips that blade straight back. Probably not a huge difference but all that adding up might equal enough energy lost to keep those arrows from passing thru. Technically you don't need a pass thru to do the job....a hole in the heart or lungs is a hole either way. I've seen an arrow clog a wound long enough though to let that deer get counties away.

At the end of the day you don't know until you try. I'm sure plenty of people swear by those havoc blades just like the swhackers, muzzy's, rage's, ect ect. Your personal experience will have you settle on something that works. At least it wasn't your deer that was lost.

I could hunt with these swhackers and hate them. If I lose a deer I will certainly blame the broadhead and go back to muzzy and call it a learning experience. I was just telling my buddy this weekend that I don't want to be hard headed for the sake of being hard headed so I will at least give them a try. I do know my first impressions of them are good and they fly better than the muzzy. I really wanted to try those muzzy trocar that have the offset blades to see how they fly.....that will probably be the next one I try if these don't work out. I'm just not overly happy with how those muzzy are flying out of my bow currently. They still hit on but there's weird little wiggle they do coming out of the bow every now and then....not every shot though.

**Zinergy** · 10-04-2016, 10:10 AM

I bought some swhackers because in the penetration tests I read they scored really high for mechanical heads. Even a test where they shot a ballistics gel body through a windshield.... incase you ever see a deer driving a car.

Yes, at least they weren't my deer. And I get to give my friends shit.... which is fun. But I do want them to be successful hunters, they put in the time. Plus the buck would have been my friends first real buck with a bow.

**0rion** · 11-22-2016, 10:51 PM

son scored his second deer last weekend during the youth gun season.....another button buck. Hopefully at some point we start seeing some bigger deer in front of him. Right now he's pretty content to shoot whatever is there and I can understand that.....I was a brown and down hunter for a long ass time before I started getting picky. He'll get there and he's getting some good experience in the mean time. I let him do a lot more on this one as far as field dressing it and he drug it all the way out. We could've went and got the deer cart but honestly it was a pretty easy drag so I let him decide and he chose to just drag it out.
We actually got this out of someone else's stand. There's a home built 2 man stand that's been in some pines for years. The old man that hunts it only uses it during gun season if he's even still alive and his group was the people that stole one of my stands some years back so I have zero issues sitting in his stand when I want.

Before hand I had worked out signals with Zach that if a deer came in I would squeeze his leg and if it was ok for him to move to look for it I would squeeze it several times and to just look wherever I was looking. It had been raining and blowing all morning but we had the tree umbrellas up so we were pretty comfortable and the pines keep 90% of that wind off of you. I turn to my right and 10 yards from the stand are 2 button bucks so I gave him the signal and kept squeezing so he was able to lean forward some and see them. They kept coming right in front of the stand at 10 yards and zach got the gun up. Due to the rain I had him keep his see thru scope covers on to help protect the scope. The deer at 10 yards with wet blurry scope covers he was having a hard time finding the deer and making sure he was putting the cross hairs in the right spot so it felt like he took forever after getting his gun up. In the meantime the button in the rear had kind of spotted us and was getting funny so I started whispering "shoot shoot". Still felt like it took a while but he eventually felt comfortable with his aim and squeezed one off. Deer didn't take another step and went down. Great shot. Right behind the shoulder and wiped out both lungs and the heart. We go back out next monday to try our luck during regular gun season. I've already told him that unlike last year he doesn't get first shot this year since he has one in the freezer and I don't.

doing work

**Zinergy** · 11-23-2016, 05:32 AM

Very nice. He's getting big.

Opening morning of gun deer was 25 degrees with 25mph winds with 40mph gusts. Not my favorite morning.

***SMWS6TA*** · 11-23-2016, 08:24 AM

Awesome!

My dad bagged one last weekend. 80lb doe, I know it's small but in East Tx that's a bid doe.

With my Mom being sick he's had to stay home, hopefully she's out of the hospital today. It's Buck only season now.

We are planning a trip next yr to My Aunt's farm in IL.

Only thing I hate is that it's shotgun only. Gotta get some practice in with slugs and 00 Buck shot.

**0rion** · 11-23-2016, 10:02 AM

shotgun only really isn't a big deal for us....I kinda like it. That 20 gauge zach has with a rifled barrel and scope is pretty damn accurate. I wouldn't have an issue making a 100-150 yard shot with it. The only thing I don't care for are the $13 box of shells. Gets pretty expensive to just shoot and have a good time with. We can also use muzzle loaders which really don't get you a ton more range but can be a little more accurate at distance like that. 2 years ago they started allowing straight walled rifles which are basically pistol rounds fired through a rifle. Again....not gaining any distance but improving on accuracy. I'd love to have a 45-70 but I just can't wrap my head around forking over $600 for a gun that I suspect is a stepping stone to them legalizing rifles in general here. I know if I buy one the very next year I'll be wishing for a 30-06 or 30-30. Personally I hope that never happens. I already don't feel safe with these morons carrying around shotguns. I don't need someone that can shoot my ass from 2 more ridges over.
80lb doe is pretty damn small for up here......I killed one several years ago that would've went 200 I bet but that's pretty big for here. I want to get into some of those deer Zinergy has up north. You start getting far north like that and up towards canada the deer just carry a ton more weight. Saw a thing on TV and either far north wisconsin or one of the dakotas or some shit and they were talking about 400 lb bucks. That's a massive damn deer. Imagine the meat you get from one of those....more than I get from 3 down here.

**0rion** · 11-23-2016, 10:11 AM

Originally Posted by Zinergy

Very nice. He's getting big.

Opening morning of gun deer was 25 degrees with 25mph winds with 40mph gusts. Not my favorite morning.

he is getting big and it's awesome......last year or year before last I would've been dragging that deer out

My buddy brings his dad to hunt with us who is 75 so he's long past doing much work so my buddy does it all. I'm starting to understand how nice that is for his dad. I can see a point where I just tell zach where I want my stand and it magically appears in the tree.

I can handle the cold temps.....the wind however sucks. I'd rather hunt in rain than wind. Last year I was in my stand and it was like that....gusting to 40-50. Only time wind has ever run me out of a tree stand. The tree was swaying so much I wouldn't have been able to let go of it long enough to draw my bow. Then trees around me started falling so it was time to get the hell out of there. That's a cool thing about pines. That evening I went in and ground hunted pines and had a group of 4 walk in on me. I wasn't able to get drawn on them but it just reinforced my belief that if you get windy or just general shitty weather find a big stand of pines. The deer head right for those and was the main reason I picked the spot we were in last weekend.

**Zinergy** · 11-24-2016, 07:15 AM

The wind did suck. I got out of my stand 1-2 hours after sunrise. Couldn't stand it anymore.

Here is the buck the guy who owns the house we stay at for deer camp shot opening weekend.

Here is the exit wound from a doe shot with the swhackers. Didn't hit anything dense. Passed through between ribs. Kind of hard to see with the flash. 47 yard shot

**Zinergy** · 11-24-2016, 07:40 AM

Originally Posted by 0rion

shotgun only really isn't a big deal for us....I kinda like it. That 20 gauge zach has with a rifled barrel and scope is pretty damn accurate. I wouldn't have an issue making a 100-150 yard shot with it. The only thing I don't care for are the $13 box of shells. Gets pretty expensive to just shoot and have a good time with. We can also use muzzle loaders which really don't get you a ton more range but can be a little more accurate at distance like that. 2 years ago they started allowing straight walled rifles which are basically pistol rounds fired through a rifle. Again....not gaining any distance but improving on accuracy. I'd love to have a 45-70 but I just can't wrap my head around forking over $600 for a gun that I suspect is a stepping stone to them legalizing rifles in general here. I know if I buy one the very next year I'll be wishing for a 30-06 or 30-30. Personally I hope that never happens. I already don't feel safe with these morons carrying around shotguns. I don't need someone that can shoot my ass from 2 more ridges over.
80lb doe is pretty damn small for up here......I killed one several years ago that would've went 200 I bet but that's pretty big for here. I want to get into some of those deer Zinergy has up north. You start getting far north like that and up towards canada the deer just carry a ton more weight. Saw a thing on TV and either far north wisconsin or one of the dakotas or some shit and they were talking about 400 lb bucks. That's a massive damn deer. Imagine the meat you get from one of those....more than I get from 3 down here.

That is one gun I need to get. A good slug shotgun. I have 2 12s, one bolt(50s sears catalog gun) and a semi-auto(my bird/trap gun) and a 20 single shot. I really want to get a semi-auto slug gun for drives. I would also love a 45-70. Such a cool round and because it has no necking it's much easier to reload. Plus I love lever action. Not the safest guns since my 30-30 has no safety but good guns.

80lbs is small. The yearlings around here are 80lbs+. There have been some monster bucks shot and hit around my hunting areas..... just not by me this year. Were talking 170-195 inch racks, some 20 inch wide. Within 10 miles of where I'm hunting. 400lbs deer only really happen on game farms from what I have seen/heard in WI. There have been some 300ishlbs shot though on real hunting lands.

**0rion** · 11-24-2016, 10:40 PM

I used my buddies 11-87 remington some years back to hunt with. It was like carrying around a sack of weights all day. Before you run out and buy an auto I would hold it and a pump side by side. Pretty fair difference between the 2. Honestly I would love an auto but my memory of how heavy that gun was has always kept me from seriously looking at them. I think a pump also forces you to aim more on the 2nd and/or 3rd shot because you have to bring the gun down a little to pump it then reset on the target. I remember being out deer hunting and I could always tell when it was my buddy shooting.....bam bam bam in about a 1 second window

It was an absolutely beautiful gun though.
That's a helluva hole in that doe. I never got to fire mine at anything this season. I may get out with the bow another time or two but after gun season the hunting gets extremely hard. I've never killed a deer with a bow after gun week. That's a nice deer in the pic......I've given up hope on taking a buck this year. If I did it would be a smaller buck because the big boys disappear during gun season here....they actually just go lay up on private land I'm sure. I did have a nice 8 sneak in on my 2 years ago from behind while I was ground hunting opening day. I turned and he's standing there looking at me 10 yards away. It was like he got shot out of a canon.