RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

Did someone say QDM:D:D

Although I practice QDM in my own way (passing little bucks, shooting does and planting plots) an actual score of a buck isn't a huge deal to me. What matters to me is I shoot a mature buck that is hopefully better then the one I have hanging on my wall. If not I hope he survives to next year and matures into a buck that will hang on my wall.

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

I could care less what it scores. If I get one this year it would be the first time I ever scored a buck and that is for the contest on this forum. I do pass on little bucks in hope to see a better rack but for the most part I harvest does to fill my freezer. Does the buck have to be a wall hanger? No but it would be nice whether it is a 90 class or 160 class. Just depends on how the hunt was and my personal feelings on that buck at the time. They all go on the wall on a plaque anyway because they are all trophies to me with great memories that I will pass on to my two boys!!!

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

i don't care about the score either, i am just looking for a quality buck, the memories and experience is what it is all about

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

No

Paul

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

So the obsession is a # on a scale of measuring racks or the rack itself and not the passion of the hunt? Do you appreciate anything else around you while hunting or just grinning and bearing it and waiting for the 150class buck to show himself? Just seems a shame to me thats' what it's boiled down to these days.
Dont' get me wrong, I have no problems with being out there hunting for a trophy buck (I do it myself), but that is probably secondary in respect to all the little things that go along with hunting.

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

I already mentioned the fact that if money and records were on the line I can see why someone would care about an arbitrary number obtained from a stranger.........other then that I have trouble seeing the relevance to the greatness of the buck or the hunt.


Yes.........you are reading me wrong. Maybe I wasn't very clear........if so I am sorry.

I have no problem with getting a buck scored.........I had one scored myself. BUT, when I see thread after thread with the immediate question of "What do you think he will score?" it becomes very obvious that this is a PRIMARY concern of the hunter and none of those bucks are near any records or income potential.

If no money or fame is on the line then what else is there besides validation from others and/or a way of comparing that particular animal to others?? why would someone care so much about what number a complete stranger assigns to his deer??.........unless that number held some special meaning I couldn't figure it out. So I asked.

I really meant no offense to anyone or their way of hunting. I freely apologize to anyone who thought I was putting them down in any way.

They are fictitious............because people assign meaning to them. The higher the number.......the better the buck right?? That is fiction at it's purest form. No dweeb sitting at his kitchen table with a tape measure and pencil is gonna tell me how good my deer is or isn't.

Hell, they even assign the numbers like it DEFINES the animal..........."He was a 150 class" "170 class" and at paid hunts they will charge you MORE to shoot a buck with another 10-20" of antler as if it is a "better" deer and so you should pay more.


Actually that is a perfect example of what I mean. There you havea guy that shot a boss hog of a buck and because he is not allowed in some book club he is now left wishing the buck was bigger..........a deer with a c-hair less then 170 inches of antlers and he wishes it was a little bigger?? Do you see how insane that sounds??



If I was hung up on scores do you think I would have shot a 6 pt that scored 64" last month?? [8D]



I think you may be missing the point..............there is nothing wrong with scoring a buck in my opinion. When that score is a primary concern it makes the animal and hunt seem like background music. We have all heard and/or read stories of people being let down or disappointed when their buck scores less after deductions...........I just can't figure out why??

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

atlasman, asking people what a buck might score after shooting one does not mean that it is a "primary" concern of the hunter. It is usually just part of the celebration and excitement after harvesting a nice buck. There does tend to be more excitement after shooting a mature deer because it is a more dificult accomplishment than shooting those 64" bucks.

I think very few people are hung up on the final score of their deer. Yes there are some but not very many like you are suggesting. I have never entered any of mine in the P&Y book, could care less. But yes measuring them and BS'ing about it with your buddies is part of the fun.....

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

Well i dont know if i really CARE about a score,, but if i dont want to get it mounted I dont shoot it,, except for mature does,, BUT,, a score is something that is relative to all racks that better describe the size of the buck ive taken. Big is a word that means different to all hunters, whats big to one may only be mediocre to another,, and when someone tells me they killed a (nice 8 point) it could mean a wide range of things to many people,, but if someone tells me that he took a 140 inch 8 point, then i have a much better idea of what he has,, and of course his trophy is his trpohy and no one can take that away no matter what it scores,, just my opinion but i use scores to better translate the size of the rack my buck has,, nothing more to me.

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

The higher score doesn't make a buck better, but it does make it more desirable. If you have 2 bucks, side by side with an equally good shot opportunity, and one scores 125" and the second one scores 150", 99.99999% of people will shoot the larger antlered buck. Why, because bigger antlered bucks are more desirable in the eyes of almost everyone. It is certainly not vain, or weird or any other negative thing, to want to score the buck to see how it compares. This gives relevance to other's scores. It adds to your knowledge. The comparison may be to other bucks you've taken or for what you know to be the normal buck for the area. For someone to suggest that because I want to know how it scores, makes me some kind of lesser hunter, is rediculous.

Now, if someone passed on a larger antlered buck, so they could shoot a smaller one that scored better (fewer deductions), I'd fine that a bit weird. I've heard of that happening, but rarely. Most people scoring their racks, are genuinely just curious as to what the measurement is. It's like when hunters weigh evey deer they shoot - even the little ones. It adds to our information base and is knowledge that satifies curiosity or tells us something about the deer habitat. Heck, I know guys who measure the antlers, weight the deer, measure the hoof size, take chest circumference and age the deer, on every single deer they take. They feel they're learning more about deer and like keeping track of such things.

So yes, there is meaning to numbers. They are factual and they do supply information. No one knows what is in a hunter's mind when he wants to know these numbes, and to judge them negatively is less than admirable in my opinion.

RE: Do you REALLY care what a buck scores??
 

This will be my 18th year bow hunting. My biggest buck until this year scores around 80" Does that mean I'm not proud of them. Of course not. The buck I've gotten this year will make P&Y and yes I will enter it. Next season will my deer have to make P&Y to shoot it......no it will just have to be an impressive looking deer. If it makes book thats just a bonus. All these years of hunting and I finally shot a good buck of course I'm going to brag a little about the score!

I actually only recently began to start to understand about score. Thats because I rarely seen deer that where mature! So now I want to know what everything scores so I can get good at judging. When you see a deer in the field and say it was a ten point that means nothing to me. If you say it was a 140'' ten point now I know how big it was.