here its 3 pts to a side or 4 in some areas...thats the law....for me anything goes because im still a junior hunter.......but my rules are following my heart this year.....i dont want any bucks smaller then my basket 6pt i got last year......so atleast a nice 6pt or bigger.....for rifle season it will have to be a pretty good deer i think.....but im just starting my " trophy hunting" of my life.....it all depends when i see him with the mauser in my hands.....but those are my limits i want to go by...i dont like bragging about a little animal...and love to brag.....and meat will be taken by my dad and his does and if he sees a buck to take im sure and if he needs help ill have my doe tags as well.....

8 point or better at my camp or mature does only, no fawns. 3 out of 4 of the guys now hold out for a taxidermy trip or shoot a doe late in the week. The other takes the first deer he sees, then fishes the rest of the week.

First and foremost it must be mature, on my property I try to make sure it is at least 3-4 years old. If it is for sure a young deer, it walks. I passed on a nice 120 class 8-pointer last season, because I have pictures of it and a spike sparring in a food plot and the spike is bigger,(body wise) the 8 was a young deer for sure and it is nice to look forward to what he looks like this year.

My personal goal is to harvest mature bucks (3.5 or older). Usually where I hunt, they will be 8pt or better by then, but if it is a big racked, mature buck, IMO he' s a shooter regardless of # of points. I really don' t judge them by score, as we don' t get many high scoring bucks where I hunt at all. To take a P&Y qualifier would be quite a feat of success. There' s only been 3 ever taken in my county. A good deer where I hunt is over 110" . They are getting better though, after 5 years of QDM.

Man you guys that wait for 150" + class deer, wow...that must be awesome! Maybe someday!

Shooting any mature buck is not easy, regardless of what his rack scores. I am very pleased to so many respond with the same answer of mature...way to go! Now not that i have anything against people who shoot the first buck they see, but it is often those people who complain about no big bucks around and so on. Stands to reason big horns don' t usually come on young deer, so if you practice harvesting mature deer your odds will go way up for harvesting bigger horns eventually. Please don' t jump on me for saying this, as mentioned whatever you choose to harvest is aok with me, as long as your are satisfied.

WV, I am fortunate to live in an area that is home to world class deer, I know this and thank my lucky starts for it too! However harvesting a 150 + class deer on a yearly basis is no small feat. I turned the page to trophy style hunting 16 years ago, of which my min standard of 150 has been in place for about 10 years. I can tell you with all honesty I have hung my share of tags on the wall vs. heads, in no way have I harvested a 150 each year. But like yourself I know the areas in which I hunt and what is around, as such I have set a standard in which I keep & know is possible. Each of our area varies and should be put into that perspective as well. A 150 here is above average but in no way is it front page news, again all relative. I certainly do not grade myself to other and hope vice versa is true, hunting is personal and we all share the common ground & passion(well most do).

The score isn' t everything to me, if he his young, he gets a pass by me. My thought is never some other hunter may/will get him but rather wow can you image what potential he has for the future & not only his but the bucks in which he helps produce.

Good Hunting all. It is getting close

Skeeter7mm-My experiences are the same as yours.I too have had tags left unfilled even though I could have easily killed smaller deer.I too killed the first deer when I started hunting but in time this became less and less of a challenge and quite frankly became boring eventually.Holding out for a larger buck put the challenge back into my hunting and I don' t feel as if I am missing anything if my tag does not get filled.I hunt for the challenge and if I am successful that is just a bonus.

We have gotten several properties to agree to the same rule. The tip to tip ear spread runs about 15 inches in our area, so we go with a minimum of a 15-inch spread. We are estimating that this minimum is protecting 100% of the 1.5-year old bucks and about 70% of the 2.5-year olds. We do not allow any culling. At this point, we feel that any spike or small racked buck on our property is most likely a young buck or a late born buck that will develop normally if given time.

Even though our requirement is a minimum spread of 15 inches, that does not mean that we do not have any bucks that ever make it past 15 inches. It is just a tool to give the bucks a fighting chance.

Depending on your level of management, you may choose a minimum score for bucks as some have stated. Be aware that basic QDM philosophy is to protect bucks until they reach 2.5 years of age. Going beyond this requires more investment in the property and more space. On average, you are going to lose up to 25% of the bucks due to natural mortality per year. That means that a typical QDM property will produce 1 buck in the 150 class or better (5.5-year old) per 1,000 acres per year (if managed extensively). You can increase your odds through intensive management, but that also requires more resources.

Remember that the ultimate goal of QDM to bring balance back to the deer herd. Your doe harvest is just as important as your buck harvest and will be a major factor in your success. If you are not taking does off your property, you are not practicing QDM.

Oh at least 200 b&c ! and must weigh in over 275!
Now that is only typical you know!

soark, how you doing bud[8D]. Hows those tower stands look for this year???? Hope you and the boy have a good one.

sling, excellent point on needing to harvest does and keep the balance in the herd. However if you only have one tag per year (either sex), what do you do? I know myself and SJ are in that boat. I can only speak for myself but I will take a doe on the last day(if I need the meat and the area needs the reduction) instead of a marginal buck. So I am curious to see those who are similar, what would they do? No wrong answer just curious. I personally know many guys will shoot any buck come the end of the season, just so they say I got my buck. However here we usually hunt public land or private but do not own it, so less sense of responsibilty and resources are required for the average guy.

Man I am Hearin 130 140 160 Class bucks, Where Are You Guys HUNTING!>!>>!>!? I hunt the farmland of Wisconsin and I try Qdm but neighbors dont, They make the quote" Brown its Down" look Childish. Its hard trying to produce nice bucks especially when Im the only one haha.
I am 15 and I to me personally a " Shooter Buck" is any buck that looks like it wont live to next yr. Ill just leave it at that!

Brandon
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