a simple "Thank You" to my fellow forum members
05-23-2007, 10:37 PM
#1
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Northeast Texas
Posts: 442
a simple "Thank You" to my fellow forum members
Folks,
I'm relatively new to this forum, but I've been hunting since I was old enough to hold a B.B. gun. I've been very blessed with a father that brought me up to appreciate the outdoors and know how luckywe are to have a sport like hunting.
Having said that, I've posted several questions recently about rifle selection, caliber selection, bullet selection, ect....and probably have bored some of you to death.
I just thought that a "thank you" was deserved to all who have replied to my never ending questions.
Instead of just hearing, I'm finally starting to UNDERSTAND what you guys mean when you dismiss the "holy caliber" or "holy rifle" theory.
It's really is all about SHOT PLACEMENT and finding the gun/caliber combo that you feel confident in using.
I've only taken about a dozen deer in my hunting career. I can remember almost every detail about every one of them. The weather that day. The gun, caliber, and ammo I was using. The shot placement. The reaction of the deer.....THESE things are whatmean the most to me. The adventure and memories of the HUNT.
I came here looking for advice on what to buy for my next deer/hog rifle and caliber, but what I got was way better......the rifle/caliber doesn't really mean much at all.
My biggest buck dropped in his tracks from a 145gr. Speer Grand Slam handload out of a 7mm. Rem. Mag.......would he have still dropped from a .270 or .30-06....most likely. I'm starting to understand that he didn't drop because I shot him with a magnum, it was because that bullet broke both shoulders and tore up the lungs.
I shot a big doe last season. A perfect double lung shot right behing the shoulder with a .270 and 130 gr. Core Lokt......she ran 50 yards before stopping. Would she have dropped on the spot with a magnum.....most likely not.
Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to all you folks for doing more for me and my outlook on hunting than you probably realize. My problem deciding on the next deer rifle I buy had NOTHING to do with the brand or model of the gun or the caliber or bullet it's shooting. My problem was sitting right in between my ears the whole time.
I think I'll go out and buy me a .270 or .30-06 in a rifle that feels right to me. It's not the equipment that keeps us heading into the woods year after year....it's the experience.....something I realize now that I had forgotten.
So, I just wanted to say thanks to all of you for helping me remember why I love to hunt so much...the experience and the memories.
Thank you all very much.
Schoolcraft
I'm relatively new to this forum, but I've been hunting since I was old enough to hold a B.B. gun. I've been very blessed with a father that brought me up to appreciate the outdoors and know how luckywe are to have a sport like hunting.
Having said that, I've posted several questions recently about rifle selection, caliber selection, bullet selection, ect....and probably have bored some of you to death.
I just thought that a "thank you" was deserved to all who have replied to my never ending questions.
Instead of just hearing, I'm finally starting to UNDERSTAND what you guys mean when you dismiss the "holy caliber" or "holy rifle" theory.
It's really is all about SHOT PLACEMENT and finding the gun/caliber combo that you feel confident in using.
I've only taken about a dozen deer in my hunting career. I can remember almost every detail about every one of them. The weather that day. The gun, caliber, and ammo I was using. The shot placement. The reaction of the deer.....THESE things are whatmean the most to me. The adventure and memories of the HUNT.
I came here looking for advice on what to buy for my next deer/hog rifle and caliber, but what I got was way better......the rifle/caliber doesn't really mean much at all.
My biggest buck dropped in his tracks from a 145gr. Speer Grand Slam handload out of a 7mm. Rem. Mag.......would he have still dropped from a .270 or .30-06....most likely. I'm starting to understand that he didn't drop because I shot him with a magnum, it was because that bullet broke both shoulders and tore up the lungs.
I shot a big doe last season. A perfect double lung shot right behing the shoulder with a .270 and 130 gr. Core Lokt......she ran 50 yards before stopping. Would she have dropped on the spot with a magnum.....most likely not.
Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to all you folks for doing more for me and my outlook on hunting than you probably realize. My problem deciding on the next deer rifle I buy had NOTHING to do with the brand or model of the gun or the caliber or bullet it's shooting. My problem was sitting right in between my ears the whole time.
I think I'll go out and buy me a .270 or .30-06 in a rifle that feels right to me. It's not the equipment that keeps us heading into the woods year after year....it's the experience.....something I realize now that I had forgotten.
So, I just wanted to say thanks to all of you for helping me remember why I love to hunt so much...the experience and the memories.
Thank you all very much.
Schoolcraft
05-24-2007, 09:57 AM
#2
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Texas - BUT NOW in Madison County, NY
Posts: 6,270
RE: a simple "Thank You" to my fellow forum members
I was sent to Alaska by the Army in 1963, and I took several rifles with me - a .45/70, a .270, a .308 Norma Magnum, and later while there acquired a .375 H&H.
For some reason, with one exception, every time I spotted a game animal while hunting up there (3-yuear tour of duty), I happened to be carrying my Mannlicher-Schoenauer .270 carbine. (Now, this may have something to do with magic,or St. Hubertus had blessed this particular rifle!) It was always loaded with the old-style 150-grain Nosler Partition jacket bullet at a MV of 2800 FPS (20" barrel). I managed to kill every big-game animal in the state, except for the great bears,with one of those 150-grain Noslers -one bullet per critter. This include two 300-pound + black bears. I did manage to get a caribou with the .308 Norma, but never even had a chance to fire the .375 H&H at game. I carried it on a couple of brown bear hunts, but never got a shot!
But I must agree with you about bullet placement. To quote Jack O'Connor's quoting of one of his Indian guides once.When the usual debate about "which caliber is best" started up in camp one evening, the guide said: "ANY gun good, shoot-em good!".
For some reason, with one exception, every time I spotted a game animal while hunting up there (3-yuear tour of duty), I happened to be carrying my Mannlicher-Schoenauer .270 carbine. (Now, this may have something to do with magic,or St. Hubertus had blessed this particular rifle!) It was always loaded with the old-style 150-grain Nosler Partition jacket bullet at a MV of 2800 FPS (20" barrel). I managed to kill every big-game animal in the state, except for the great bears,with one of those 150-grain Noslers -one bullet per critter. This include two 300-pound + black bears. I did manage to get a caribou with the .308 Norma, but never even had a chance to fire the .375 H&H at game. I carried it on a couple of brown bear hunts, but never got a shot!
But I must agree with you about bullet placement. To quote Jack O'Connor's quoting of one of his Indian guides once.When the usual debate about "which caliber is best" started up in camp one evening, the guide said: "ANY gun good, shoot-em good!".
05-26-2007, 10:31 AM
#3
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Maine
Posts: 1,327
RE: a simple "Thank You" to my fellow forum members
Too many think it's all bigger is better and have this idea that with the biggest and baddest gun, they'll esily get thier game. Too bad. It's these folks that'll need multiple shots to dorp the game. They expect the bigger, badder cartridge to compensate for their poor bullet placement. Sad! Simply choosing a mre approriate cartridge and practicing to know your abilites and limits will make for a better hunter and a better hunt.
05-27-2007, 01:58 PM
#5
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Texas - BUT NOW in Madison County, NY
Posts: 6,270
RE: a simple "Thank You" to my fellow forum members
Maine Shooter
Too many think it's all bigger is better and have this idea that with the biggest and baddest gun, they'll esily get thier game. Too bad. It's these folks that'll need multiple shots to dorp the game. They expect the bigger, badder cartridge to compensate for their poor bullet placement.
Too many think it's all bigger is better and have this idea that with the biggest and baddest gun, they'll esily get thier game. Too bad. It's these folks that'll need multiple shots to dorp the game. They expect the bigger, badder cartridge to compensate for their poor bullet placement.
