RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

Yes, I have 3 full shoulder mounts now and the next will have to bust 140 to hit the wall. That being said, I will toast any 120 that strolls within range.

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

Wow I didn't expect the responses I read thus far![:o]

I'm the odd ball in the group! I don't shoot a buck unless it's going on the wall but my bar is way lower than most. The three over the fireplace gross score between 111 and 118. And the Missouri buck I killed this year will be joining when it's finished.(also 118)

For starters I think shoulder mounts are a beautiful representation of the animal. I don't stroke myself while sipping coffee and glancing up at them. There's no ego boosting aspect in the matter. They are there for me......bringing me back to the hunt every time I gaze upon them. Each one tells a story and pulls me into the moment. Even greater than that of a rack on a plack. The time, skill, and hard work it took to take them is staring me in the face. A climatic moment froze in time as a reminder of what you can achive if you put your heart in it. Yes all racks should adorn your living space in some way. They are reminders of succesful times afield. And yes there are some that can't afford to mount every nice buck they harvest. And not all deserve three to four hundred plus dollars of your hard earned cash. But don't get caught up in the hipe that a buck doesn't deserve a shoulder mount just because of the # of inches it failed to grow. Or as I see it on this thread, you may get labled as an ego moniecle deer hunter. If you want it mounted, get it done! Do it for you!

All three on my wall are from this area. Two were bow kills and one my first muzzleloader deer. For this area they are remarkable animals and a very low % of hunter get even a chance to take. My Missouri buck took many hours of research and planning from me and it was the most exiting and memerable hunt I've ever experienced.

I don't feel like proof reading so you do if for me! Later!;):D

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

No I dont! I keep memories from all my hunts wether it be a rack or pics of my doe in a scrap book.
Here's just one wall in my basement.

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

Yes would shoot a deer that would not have mounted.. in my opnon meat s meat untill you have enough. Ok maybe not that extreme but am pretty sure the only man that can wait for a wall hanger is a man of great privlage. I am not a man a privlage when it comes to that..


Tim

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

Yes I shoot 3 1/2 year old deer or older buck or doe. But I don't mount them

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

But if you both shoot one that's 2 small bucks down. If you pass it and he shoots it that's only one down.

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

I'm very fortunate to have around 2000 acres, in several areas, to hunt in 2 counties in MD. I live on 700 acres that are overrun with deer. As someone mentioned before we have a deer problem in this state. Old timer mentality was to not take does and anyone taking one was asked to leave the property. That view along with very aggressive development, loss of hunting areas, a lack of natural predators (except cars) and a declining number of hunters has led to the problem. I can remember when it was 1 gun (mzl or shotgun) and one bow deer only. You had to draw an anterless permit for a doe. Now we have a limit of 36 per year with 12 per weapon. If you take a buck you have to take 2 does before the second buck and only 2 bucks are allowed. The county I'm in allows UNLIMITED anterless deer with a bow. We remove about 30-40 deer a year from the 700 acres (between 5 guys) and still we see more deer every year. Maryland is an underrated state when it comes to big deer. I see at least 6 deer a year in the 150 class range with one once in a while that will go 170-180. We have limited the hunters on our property to 8 points or better and one of those per year. That along with an aggressive doe harvest seems to be helping the ratio a little. I have two mounted a 150 class and a 170 class 4 years ago. I have two in the freezer that will get mounted from this year. A 140 class 8 point taken in October and a 150 class 8 point taken 2 days ago. We used to shoot anything before we knew better (except yearlings) and I have a shed full of small racks. Our season comes in Sep 15th and goes continuous through Jan 31. You can hunt every day with the exception of Sundays and the first day of shotgun. With a season that long you can be a little picky. We also have about 7 weeks of gun seasons when you combine them. Nowadays I take 5-10 deer a year. I will and have shot very wounded deer. I usually take 5+ does per year for meat and a buck or 2. I'll donate 1 or 2 per year to the F&H Feeding the Hungry program. I take a lot because I have 2 freezers and do all of my own processing including sausage and jerky. Some guys don't because they charge $55-65 to process a deer in my area. It's not uncommon to see 10 deer in a morning or evening. I've seen up to 23 one morning when I had a hot doe nearby. It's rare that I go out and don't see something, so like I said before I'm very blessed.

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

That is always my goal, and I have been very lucky the last 5 years in a row to be able to
harvest wall hangers, however sometimes part of management is taking out bad genes,
and that requires harvesting smaller bucks at times.

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

i won`t shoot a buck unless i get it mounted, i`ll just pass him and see what he will look like next year, as for shooting a little buck for meat, i`ll wait for a doe.
jamie

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

Yes, I've done it a lot and probably will continue to.

RE: Do you shoot bucks you wouldn't have mounted?
 

Doe, Buck, Fawn, Injured, Old, Booner, 3 Legged, Albino....I'll eat any of em. I shot a deer 3 weeks ago at a Ski Resort here in VA that had two spikes about 3 inches long. From 200 yards I didn't know this deer was over 4 years old. I saw a decent body with a little rack showing. Deer was huge when I walked up to it. Dressed out at 208. I was meat hunting two days before thanksgiving and was planning to shoot the first deer I saw. A massive 11 point led 12 does right in front of me. I took him cause he was first and I won't mount him. I'll be posting pics of the brute here in a few days when I get the pics developed. I have about 15 more pics to burn. I also took a 60 pound doe in archery season. Meat is meat is meat. I'm not real obsessed on having something on my wall. I enjoy the meat.