I know many of you have started your season, and I'm envious. During the summer I spent a good amount of time long distance scouting with my video camera. I've got some pictures of one of the largest bucks I've been watching, but they were at over 500 yds with a 150 power digital zoom, the detail is quite poor at that distance. Still, there is enough to maybe come up with a rough score - and I'd like your opinions. I'm also curious of the deer's age if you'd like to give your thoughts on that as well. He is the dominate buck in a group of 7 we watched for most of July and part of August. The pictures attatched are from Aug 7, fully one month before shedding the velvet, so its possible a little more growth would occur. I last saw the buck sparring with anothe good buck (not quite as large) 2 weeks ago out of velvet - he was looking pretty impressive (no camera with me).

We've taken several bucks the last few years scoring around 120 B&C, to me this one seems a bit larger, please post your estimates. Hopefully one of our group will get this buck, and I'll share what we find out.

Again - I apologize for the fuzzy pics:












Thanks........

http://images.honesty.com/imagedata/h/252/98/22529841

Being from Texas, our deer aren't near that big bodied. Not to sound like an idiot, it would greatly help for me to have an idea of what the live body weight of one of your avg. size bucks might be? Our bucks down here often around weigh 150lbs on the hoof, so that can make the rack really look big compared to a buck that weighed 200lbs or more on the hoof.

Either way, that is a very nice buck and a definate shooter!

--------------------------------------------
Hunting the Piney Woods of Deep East Texas.

Good point, TxCowboy.

Our yearling bucks dress out anywhere from 120-140 lbs normally. A 2-1/2 yr buck averages 140-160 dressed weight, and 3-1/2 and older are generally 160+ dressed out - 200 lb dressed weight is a BIG one around here. Of course it depends at what point in the rut a deer is taken.

I would think our deer would compare to MN, WI, OH, Maybe parts of PA.

Thanks

Nice looking buck, I'm guessing 130-135 class buck. Deffinately a shooter. Thanks for the pic

Visit My Hunting Page

I'd guess his gross score somewhere around 130 to 140. Nice
buck, thanks for posting the pics. Good luck hunting him this
fall!


TB

I'm with Two Beards on this one-About 130-140.As for age,it's pretty impossible to age a deer without looking at the jaw bone.Hopefully you'll be able to look at that soon.Good luck-he's a nice buck in anybody's book.

The buck I would say is 2 1/2 years old, the reason I say this is with age their antlers migrate further down the sides of thier heads and tend to go more to the sides than up and forward, this does not hold true for all deer, but most. He has one heck of a nice set of headgear, if he makes it through this season he will be a monster next year. As far as scoring him, I have no idea, I have never had one scored.

The Tazman aka Martin Price
Founder and President of
Virginia Disabled Outdoorsmen Club

I would have to guess that it may hit the 120's, but no larger this season. I am taking into account that the rack is still in velvet, and this gives the rack the illusion of a larger size. Also, the ears are laid back as a sign of aggresion to the other deer nearby, again, giving the size of the animals rack to look larger. I have witnessed several deer that look huge to an anxious hunter like myself early in the fall, just to be slightly disappointed once I see the buck with polished headgear. I too, agree that if he makes it to next year, he should be pretty impressive. This is going by N.W. Missouri standards of body size to rack ratio. Not many, but quite a few deer harvested here will reach 230-250 lbs, dressed out, for the largest of bucks. 256 lbs. is the largest that I have ever seen on a certified scale. But mainly you hear of deer body weight reaching the 220 lb. range on a regular basis.

Edited by - richie3 on 10/05/2002 20:23:27

Looks like a good one I am going to have to say close to 140 gross... He is certainly bigger the 120... It is hard to tell but looks like a 10 point with pretty good tine length... Depending on how wide he is he could very well get close to 140... Good luck on finding out exactly....

The pictures are not clear enough to make a good judgement but I would guess in the 130 range.