spaniel

Well, the "traditionalists" want it both ways. In one thread they wail about what an unfair advantage inlines are. In the next they strut about how traditional guns have made very long shots and can be just as accurate. Well, which way do you want it?

The truth is a RB gun could be loaded a lot faster than my gun, so speed shooting 4 deer is not an issue. Another frequent traditionalist claim is that inlines allow any boob to hunt ML season. Well, #1, I think my preparation, gun customization, and shots show I'm no average boob. Second, this was the opening day of all-around firearm season so it's a moot point, I could just as easily have accurized a bolt-action slug gun to the same affect. Back when I shot open sights and conicals I could do 150-175 yd shots just like I did these...it's all in the practice and shooting ability.

Another frequent criticism of long shots is "you should have got closer". Well, I could have shot that buck the first time I saw him at 400 yds (I ranged him at 402). Instead I crawled on my belly for an hour and shot him at 20. Could have shot the first doe at 250 too, but I crawled to the last cover at 209.

I don't encourage everybody to try this. I try to make it very clear bow much work it took. But I'm not embarassed of it either and there ARE other shooters out there who can do it.

The whole issue of ammo for the traditionalists honestly irritates me a bit. Exactly how many people are posting stories like mine? In the last 5 years I've heard exactly ONE report of a 300 yd shot. So game divisions are going to start changing laws because what, a half dozen of us NATIONALLY are doing this? That seems like a pretty weak argument. Truth is, one of my desires is a nice conical shooter with a globe front and Vernier rear sight that I can shoot out to 200-250 yds. Totally traditional, yet range is still long.

Those people will never be happy. If there are more than 2 of them in the woods they'll have something to complain about. If two of them lived on ajoining properties and could hear each other shoot, they'd complain about each other. I don't let people like that govern what I do.

If you want to be upset at someone for providing ammo, be upset at Nikon for marketing a scope that insinuates that there is nothing more to shooting 300 yds than slapping on their scope and holding over with an oversized aiming circle. Not me for describing what a ton of work, shooting, and expense it took to put together a setup that does it right (not to mention practice)

Yes, there are a lot of deer around here (the guy in the treestand reported 87 deer in the first 4 hrs of the season) and I feed 3 families.

sabotloader

spaniel

This is the problem with posting written messages instead of direct communication...

See, I am not upset at you or even Nikon - I think your accomplishment is great and yes I have made those same shots with a modern centerfire without a problem - all I was trying to say is your whole tail with a ML will be spun in a different direction than what you wrote or what you intended it to say.

If you were available to explain the whole thing every time it came up it would be great - but that can not happen - so it will be spun in a different light...

But in fact - congratualtions to you and I mean that - but I still wish you would have written the whole thing as you did but not discussed the actual distances... actually when I first read it I thought it was a sniper story right out of WWII in Germany - can not remember their names at this point and I am a history teacher...

Wish we had the deer here that you have there - actually there are a lot of hunters in the west that wish we had the deer you have... On the norm we get one tag a year...

spaniel

Please don't take my tone wrong sabotloader...I understood you. And I understand being from Idaho that you are feeling this issue more acutely that those of us with over-populated populations out east. (I think it interesting that the current Idaho regs make popular RB sizes illegal as they are a little too under-bore).

I've just come to the point that I know those people will never be happy and will always find something to be fighting about. I've had them bash me for a 150 yd shot one week and saw the same poster boast about making a similar shot with a RB the next. I'm not going to censor my stories or slink around the ML world because of them.

You want to see these over-populated deer some season, I can hook you up!

sabotloader

spaniel

I hear you!

oldrookie

spaniel, I for one really enjoyed your story and congrats on your success. I must have missed it somewhere, what State are you located. I am in Indiana and at one time the State sold lifetime licenses. Meaning one did not have to buy tags. We have bag limits by county. Because of our doe population in certain areas, its not uncommon to hear harvest counts of 3,4,5 does same hunter same day during gun season here. Yes, and most of us here eat what we kill. Again, good story and congrats!

rockyshamrock

Iowa has a deer problem too. more in southern Iowa but they have a late Jan season for anterless deer only. we can use anything from bows to center fire. it is nothing for a guy toharvest 3 or 4 deer in a day here in Iowa. the deer arethicker thenfleas on a coon hound in some parts of the state.

Indiana SmokePole

Spaniel
I enjoyed your story very much and congrats on your harvest also doing your home work with your rifle .

spaniel

I am in Indiana. The county doe limit for that county was 3, which is why I had to stop shooting (I was out of ammo for that gun, but after I retrieved my other I had 2 more close-range opportunities I could have made). Ironically the county limit in my home county is 8 and there are FEW deer there...but it's closer to Indianapolis so I think they just try to keep down the car-deer accidents by having no deer.

The property owner and his son are both natives and have lifetime licenses (don't offer anymore), I just moved from Michigan so it was a fairly expensive day for me having to buy all those licenses. Michigan was even worse though; deer cause $15-$20k damage per year to my parents' crops and the DNR is CUTTING doe licenses per person so I can't manage the herd there well. When I was younger I had to HUNT, the last 5-6 years I showed up for 1-2 weekends and cleaned out 6-10 does; and I was picky. That's just shooting, not really hunting. I need to bug the MI DNR for crop damage permits this year.

My favorite shot from this hunt was actually the 20 yd shot on the buck. I crawled a quarter mile, HUNTED, for that shot.

HEAD0001

Congratulations on your accomplishment. It takes alot of range time to be able to know your rifle that well.I do not have a problem with a hunter who know's his rifle(a true rifleman) and takes long range shots.

The only problem with it is time of flight.Ethics comes in to play when you consider time of flight. Remember when you shoot a bullet around 1600-2000 fps-the sound get's there way before the bullet gets there. when I shoot my 45-70 at chunk rock at 400 yards, it is amazing how long it takes to hear the bullet impact the rock. I can lift my head off the stock, take a breath, then watch the smoke come off the rock.

Shooting long range with this type of projectile is definitely something that can be accomplished. But I guarantee that if a person makes a habit of shooting long range with slow projectiles, a bad hit will ensue. Tom.

wabi

I don't think it's as much a question of the style of rifle as the sighting system that makes the accuracy potential fo long shots possible. With about any good rifle long shots would be possible if the shooter has the right sights and has done his homework. I have an old sidelock that has the potential for long range accuracy, but with open sights and aging eyes I'm not about to try it on game over 100 yards or so. I've had a couple good scoped inlines that made 200 yards a very realistic range, but that was the limit - not because of accuracy potential, but because of my inability to accurately aim beyond that range. With a scope or mount designed to provide accurate repeatable adjustment for longer ranges it would be quite possible to really reach out there!
My hat's off to the hunter that has the time and ability to find the loads and make those long shots!!!!!!!!!
For myself, I'll stick to my short ranges and enjoy the problem of figuring out how to outsmart the deer and get close. It'swhat makes deer hunting fun for me.