RE: Count points now or later?
I never counted before AR's. I always looked at "size," not # of points. Now, in PA, we have to count and make sure, but everything I shot before AR's is still legal, so it was no change for me.
A couple seasons ago, I killed a monster 6 point that I never counted the points. I judged him to be a big 8 or 10 point at least, and never gave a second glance at the rack. When I found him dead, and realized that he had no brow tines, and only 3 on a side, it was a surprise to say the least. It was over 18" wide with 9" G1's (no browtines). Really quite a spectacle.
Lucky for me, it was a 3-to-a-side area, so he was legal. That's the closest I've ever came to really making a big mistake.
I'm still not a point counter. It takes me one glance to realize whether he's a shooter or not. Hopefully, I never run across another monster 6 point in a 4-point area, or I'll be up the creek.