Shackablacka

Heya all American hunters!

Since I'm completly new to this forum, here comes a short presentation of myself. If you dont want to read this just continue down past the line
I'm 22 years old and gonna start hunting this autumn, I'm also from Sweden (hopefully you will understand my sw-english anyway ). I'm taking a course right now in hunting and will start practice shooting as soon as the spring shows up alittle bit more on this side of the world again. I have a labrador which also is why I got into hunting, I wanted to train with him and the natural choice was to track up hurt animals (whats the english word for a tracking dog that search for shotdamaged/car hit animals?)
Well, enough about me, if you want to know more about me just ask! Oh, I also live in the southern most part of Sweden.
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I have a few questions, which I havent gotten any answers on so far, hopefully theres someone in here who can help me out

I have a sister that is currently in LA but will be going home in a few months. Everything in USA is between 2times upto 10 times cheaper then in Sweden so I figured she should buy a few things for me before going home.

But since I'm a rookie hunter at the moment and I have no knowledge of the american market of equipment maybe you can help me find and order a few things?

I'm looking for a website with good prices and lots of fun and usefull things to buy. Maybe their is a site that almost every hunter knows and use because of their good prices?
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I'm mainly looking into optics and callers.
In Sweden I will hunt crows, pigeons, ducks, redfoxes, wildboars, mooses, roe deer bucks, canadian gooses and greylag goose. So I'm looking for good and good-priced callers for thoose animals, is there any special kind you can recommend and a site that sells them? In Sweden a caller is almost never cheaper then 30$ ! So imagine having all equipment to buy exept clothing and having to pay at least 30$ per each caller, its alittle bit too much for a student.

I also wanna buy optics. I haven't tried any yet so I have no bigger knowledge of optics but as far as i understand 3-9x is the optimal to start with? I dont know why but I want the scope to be alittle huge rather x50 then 40, does it give me better lightinput?

I have been looking into Trijicon accupoint TR22 alot, its alot cheaper then here (I found one Swedish supplier, he took 2000$ for that scope ) but I think even if its cheaper its still alittle bit expensive to buy a new one. Do you know any good site with used items like ebay but with hunting gears and such? Maybe the Trijicon is possible to find cheaper on the used-market?

I have also been looking alittle bit into Bushnell , they are alot cheaper so I'm thinking of buying one(are they any good?). Is there any special kind/modell or maybe another brand you can recommend or a site which sells them for the best prices? Is there other optics like Trijicon but at lower prices, the red-points aiming is pretty interesting also. I want it cheap, but also good, I rather choose good then cheap since I've heard the optics are the most important piece of your gear, however as I'm a student i cant afford the swarowski's just yet. If you have any tips of good scopes that arent too expensive or know a place where to get a used one in good shape, let me know!

Is there anyway to get your hands on a cheap and working range finder? They cost a fortune here in Sweden, maybe a used-one here aswell?

I would love if you gave me an url of the items if you know a good place to buy it from, so I can buy them straight away

Phew I hope you survived and managed to read thru it all. I'm very very gratefull for all the help you can give me!

Thanks alot from your swedish hunterfriend. Tack!
/Chris

duckhunter578

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/Main.aspx?

Try this site for hunting gear.

psandhu

There are 2 major chains of outdoor sporting gear here in the U.S. One is Cabela's and one is Bass Pro Shops. They both have good websites that you can browse and compare their prices to other places that have the things you want to buy.

Have you sister go to one of their stores (if there is one near to where she lives) and buy the things on your list. Or she can order it online and ship it to you (or fly back with it if it's not too bulky)

Shackablacka

Thanks you very very much for thoose tips and links! I really appreciate it! I've been looking alittle into Cabela before but the others I havent seen before.

Is there any site that lists used scopes and stuff for cheaper prices then buying new ones? And is there any rifle scope you can recommend me to look closer into? I hope there isnt already another thread about this, if so I'm sorry for posting about it here.

I have another question aswell, I guess its just a matter of checking it up, however I have no clue as to where to check it. If I should order stuff to my sister and have her post it to me, is there anyway to check what the costs for posting it to Sweden could be approximitely? I've found a few things that are alittle too big for her suitcase but I dont want to order it if the cheap prices get eaten up by expensive shipping costs.

Again, thanks alot for your help mates!

Mojotex

Advice - but only one man's opinion. Excellent value is the Ziess Conquest line. The Bushnell 4200 series is also an excellent value. Stay away from off-brand names and el-cheapo stuff. You'll be dissapoionted. If you have the funds, go straight to Swarovski. Rangefinder - look closely at Leupold or Nikon. Binos - Top end Nikon which I think is referred to as the Venturer. Excellent! For comparison pricing on optics look at Bear Basin Outfitters. I have used them and they are a quality operation.
Cabelas and Bass Pro Shop are too.

ronmc1954

This sight is very good for any optics
http://www.opticsplanet.com/

Ron

psandhu

You've never been to a Cabela's or Bass Pro Shops before, but just to give you an idea about how big they are, they are probably 2-4 hectares in size. That's the building, the boat testing pond, the parking lot, and the other ancilliary ground. The building itself is about 1 hectare, and it's a two story building, with a roof about 30 meters high. You can pretty much see every part of the building from every other spot. I've known people that go to Cabela's or Bass Pro Shops on their honeymoon. They are called Rednecks.

Shackablacka

I start by warning you of this wall of text, however I really need some help now and truly appreciate it! It's concerning the answer I got from Dep. of Commerce below.

Thank you for the new links and info about the bushnell 4200! And thanks for giving me a picture about how big Cabela are!

I'm sorry I haven't been able to give any updates or answer until now, I've just had a huge exam this weekens and was pretty ill the days before it. The exam went well so thats a big relief! hehe

I've been having alittle problem now since last time I updated here. It's all bureaucracy and maybe someone can help me out with it since I'm getting alittle bit frustrated with it since I'm way too unfamiliar with US laws and stuff.

I was about to send my order with the Bushnell 4200 and a Nikon Prostaff at Cabelas (bargain cave) But as I checked out it said I wasn't allowed to take them outside the US. I've read that there should be any problem (on a Swedish forum) to bring out regular scopes, but night vision and red-dots is more problematic.

Since it's my sister who is going to bring it home to me I dont want her to get into any trouble at all because of me so I need to be 110% sure its completly legal and no documents nor papers or anything else. That's why I wrote a e-mail to the departure of commerce to ask if it was legal to just put it in their and bring hoem for private use.
I cannot understand the text and what I should do which makes me alittle bit frustrated, maybe someone can help me on this one?
I've tried to get into contact (e-mail) with the US customs but I cant find any adress, does anyone know how to get into contact with them via e-mail?


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The answer from US Dep. of Commerce. (My question was, is it legal to put regular hunting optics in the luggage and bring home to Sweden for private-use?)
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"Thank you for your inquiry to BIS regarding the export licensing requirements for optics or rifle scopes used with hunting rifles. In your correspondence you state the final destination for these rifle scopes is Sweden. Here at BIS we determine the export licensing requirements on a case-by-case basis for all export transactions that are subject to our jurisdiction and regulations. We review the details of the transaction starting with the item and the appropriate ECCN or Export Control Classification Number covering the item's capabilities. We then review where the item is exported, who will be the end-user and what will be the end-use? Without reviewing all of these details, BIS can not provide a definitive answer as to when an export license is required. When identifying the ECCN for an item, there are a couple of options. Contacting the manufacturer is generally the quickest source of the ECCN. The next quickest option is for anyone familiar enough with the item and the item's capabilities to compare the capabilities against the technical parameters found under the ECCN entries located on the Commerce Control List (CCL), within part 774 of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). The other option is to request the engineers at BIS to identify the ECCN for you. This option will take much longer than the first two options because that request must be made by submitting an application to BIS electronically using our SNAP-R system, which is accessible from the BIS website: www.bis.doc.gov. Look for the link On Line Submissions, which will be found on the left side of the BIS homepage. If you have any further questions as you attempt to identify the ECCN for the rifle scopes, please do not hesitate to contact me for further guidance, and again thank you for your inquiry to BIS."

What does this mean put in simple english? What must I do?

Thank you very very much for all help, and ideas and everything you can contribute with!

/Christopher

Shackablacka

Maybe I could mail them via USPS back home to Sweden? How much does approximately 3 optics weight? (as I said earlier, I'm a rookie hunter so far so I have no idea of the weights ) Or does anyone know a cheaper/better shipping company to send them via?


Again, thank you my friends!

Mugshot1523

i love sportsmansguide its great another good site for apparel would be sierra trading post