Hey 870,

Whats a q-beam. (or did I just miss a joke somewhere).

Common name for a hand held spot light

In Maine and New Hampshire it is legal without a weapon but not between September and the end of December.

We call it spotlighting also, and I’ve never heard it called shinning!

The DEC has a robotic buck they put in fields that gets shot up all the time around deer season. Just to tell you about the caliber of hunters around here.[:@]


Tazman, Jack lighting means poaching with a light around here.

You decide: Quoted from the Illinois DNR 2003-2004 hunting digest:

It is unlawful to use lights of, any light from, or any light connected to a vehicle or conveyance in any area where wildlife can be found. This does not prohibit normal use of headlamps for driving upon a roadway. EXCEPT: Skunk, opossum, red or gray fox, coyote and raccoon may be taken during the open season by the use of a small hand-operated light by a person who is on foot and not in any vehicle.

My interpretation of this is that you can NEVER use a spotlight attached to a vehicle (or conveyance like mountain bike) but CAN use battery powered lights for other legal hunting of Coyote etc. Coyote is legal to hunt at night with a spotlight between Nov 10th and Jan 31st (same as Red and Gray Fox) but is closed during whitetail firearm season. However, if a conservation officer saw you spotlighting a deer at any time I would expect a prompt ticket!

yes double creek is correct.

hazcon,
so it is legal for me to take a q-beam [that runs off a battery.] anytime of the year as long as i dont have a weapon just to look at a deer as long as i am not in a vehcile or on a mountain bike?

im confused[&:]

The way I understood it - you may only have a light if you are legally hunting for raccoons, coyotes, red and gray fox, etc.

Otherwise you are considered poaching - weapon or not.

well thats a dumb law. what do they think someone is going to beat the animal to death with a god damn q-beam

I guess they figure it as an unfair advantage and disturbing wildlife???

In PA, spotlighting is legal year-round between sunrise and 11 pm, except during the general (gun) deer season. You cannot be in possession of a bow or gun, and cannot shine your light onto buildings or streetlights.

Too bad we can't at least have a bow in the truck. It would be fun to spotlight fields on the way home from hunting, but that's a no-can-do. The PGC must think there's a pacel full of poachers who might try to shoot their bows out of their windows at deer across a field...