Field judging Elk
 

Hello everyone,

I am live in Tampa FL, but have been going to CO to hunt elk for about the last 12 years. Last year I watched a bull from about 650 yards for about 45 minutes. My assessment was he didn't have reall long beams, and I could never count points. But, he seemed a bit wider than his body. He ended up going into a small stand of pine, which ended up having two springs/wallows in it. I stalked up, but he was gone. I wasn't really agressive at getting into a shooting spot when he was in the open or getting to him quick 'cause I didn't think he was that big.

I have been trying to research on how to field judge bulls, and I am thinking he was better than I thought.

What resources are out there for someone who can see elk year round? I have looked at a many tropy pics, but I really don't have a plan for how to size one in the field, especially at a distance.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Bullethead

RE: Field judging Elk
 

A guide that I use was told to me by an old timer that has hunted many elk. He said that if the brow tines are within a couple of inches of his nose, and you can draw an imaginary line from the tip of the brow tine to the 4th tine, and the 2nd and 3rd touch that line, and his rack is wider than his body, then the bull should score 350 or more, but I would maybe go a little on the conservative side in the field.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

Bottom line is that if you have been hunting elk for 12 years, if he had been big, you would have known it. And when you see a big one, you won't even have to ask yourself if he is big or not.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

Oh yeah, and if you start to feel like your knees are going to give out, he's a shooter.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

I judge them by shooting the first legal elk I see. I don't like tag soup too much.;);)

If I were truely trophy hunting I would look for the brow tines to come close to their nose tip and then curl up. the G-3 would be at least half as long or more than the brow tines and then curl up and preferably out to the side, The G-4 or dagger point should be as thick as the main beam and as long as your arm from the elbow out or longer, and then the last two should be about equal in length preferably making a sideways "Y". If there are any more pointo add to the standard six then that's a big plus. Then the inside spread should be at least as wide as his body.

This would be a true trophy to me.

And if you got time to judge all of this while you're hunting you're doing pretty dang good. Usually you only got about three seconds to decide to shoot or not.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

True. Once you've seen enough elk you can tell without having to count points. I knew within seconds that my bull was big. Scored 336 B&C with 49" mainbeams.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

First off counting points is made simple if you just count back from the fourth ''royal or dager'' point. Example one behind the royal is a 5 point, two is 6 point and 3 is a seven point.

The mass should be around 7 to 8 inches and can be judged in reference to the base of the ear and should maintain that mass througout the beam.
Like it has been said the fronts or ''brow tine and bay or bestine'' should be almost to the end of the nose and should be no less then 18 inches.
The third points or ''tray or treztine'' should be about the same in length.
The fouth the ''dagger point or royal is the longest and should be close to 24 inches or more.
The fifth point should be close to the third point for length and usualy if there is a scorable sixth point it typicaly wont be real long.
Beam length should be 50 inches or better and if the bull tips his head back and the last point almost touches the rump he has good beam length.
Inside spread is proably the toughest to judge and should be at a bare minimum of 36 inches and usualy the widest spot will be around the third points.
The way I look at a big bull is if the brow tine and bestine are about out to the nose and it looks like the rest of the points are eaqual or better and the mass looks to be heavy from the base all the way throughout the beam and there is five scorably points with beams that look to be close 50 inches or touching the rump, I know I'm looking at a 300 plus inch bull.
What it really comes down to is experience and looking at trophy heads.
Me I'm basicaly a meat hunter but if the opportunity arise I'll take it.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

Thanks everyone. All of your advice definitely helped. I had to got to the B&C site to get a refresher on the G1-G7 nomenclature.

I had never heard the aspect of relating the brow tine (and bestine? another new one for me) to the nose. This really helps. I am also clearer on the "dagger point" and it's relation to the beam.

I try and pull either sex tags in CO for a couple areas I am familiar with every year. I spend the first couple days looking for something memorable, after that I try and shoot out. It has worked decent for me. I have shot 3 bulls and 4 cows. Last year was the best, an OK 5x5, but almost every tip was busted.

I have only seen two elk that I truly believe were trophies. One was at a 1/4 mile moving through a thin aspen meadow (pushed out by some guys on horses). He stopped once and through his head back. With a naked eye I could see the rack almost hit him in the middle of his ass. Tried to stalk him, lost his trail in the timber. That night he was bugling, he was so hoarse it almost sounded like a steer. The strangest bugle I have ever heard.

Two years ago a heavy 6x6 came down to a river at dusk. My hunting buddy who was with me has never shot an elk, so I moved back a bit and cow called. I could have shot it 20 times. He never fired, stating he wasn't comfortable with the shot. The family heirloom 30.06 and 200 yds was too much for him, I was in shock. He said he just couldn't pick it up through the scope. They next day I looked through it... like looking through the bottom of a Miller high life bottle. I wanted to beat him on the head with it.

I sincerely appreciate everyone's advice, it has definitely helped.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

i dont pay a lot of attention to the main beams i shot a bull with 48" main beams and he scored just over 370.pay close attention to the third point the seem to run a little short i like them to be atleast as long as the brow tine.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

If he's pickin dingle-berries out of his rectum with the points above his royals you migh consider getting into range;)

RE: Field judging Elk
 

Most areas in CO, you're kind of living a lie if you're trying to differentiate a 280 bull from a 320 bull from a 360 bull. If it's a legal bull it's a keeper, and if it's a 6 by 6 it's a trophy.

Bugle magazine is a great source for practicing sizing up bulls, lots of photos. I think the one skill any aspiring trophy hunter should acquire is the ability to tell instantly if it's a 6 pointer or bigger. You do this without counting 1-2-3-4-5-yup 6 points, oh boy oh boy! Look at enough photos until you see what people mean by the "sword point", that's the G-4 point. It is the dominant point on 99% of elk racks out there from a 4-point wimp to 7-point monster. Then, if the bull has a fork behind that sword point you know it's a 6-pointer. No fork, it's a 5-pointer, and almost certainly not a trophy.

Beyond that, the more steps you have in analyzing a rack, the longer it takes, and so many systems can't be applied to hunting situations when the bulls is three steps from passing out of your life forever. If you have time, check the brow tines - do they appear to be out to the tip of his nose if you bent them out straight (they'll usually have an upcurl)? Still have more time? Another simple indicator is how the rack sweeps back. By that I mean, does the rack continue in basically a straight line as it passes the famous sword point? If so it's probably not a big bull. Really big bulls will usually have a pronounced angle of the main beam as it goes by the sword point.

I hope this helps, you're getting some good advice from a lot of the other guys on this post.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

Real quick - brow tines that reach his nose are good, look for curl some are decieving(look shorter but curl up and are longer than they look). fourth point is always longest, if any others are close they are exceptional or the 4th is short. Last, the fifth and sixth should look seperate and distinct, not short and slightly webed. The web will be there on all racks, but if the tines are long then you wont notice this feature, only two distinct tines.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

Now that's funny! :D:D

Quick field judging is usually the norm, so really practice from the G4 back. When my binocs or scope go up, that's all I'm looking for at the beginning. Look at the G4 and back. Beware of the infamous crab 6's out there where the G4 looks good but his G5 & G6are a crab fork (index and middle finger on your hand spread out). If you have time, G4 and back, then brow tines, then G3.

Also, know your area. A unit here in Utah is notorious for little G3's, another is notorious for little 7 pointers, etc.

RE: Field judging Elk
 

I look for the fork/fishtail behind the "Royal/Dager/Sword/G4" point that makes it a 6 point. I look for "Ivory" thats where the point curl upwards and go form the dark brown color of the rest of beam to white. More Ivory = longer points.I look how far back on the torso does the rack go. Now, after saying all that I second the point made that when a trophy steps out you don't have to judge you just know.