Do you REALLY hunt??

[Robby]

:hmm: :grin: me too. OH, and was it round ball and iron sights/
Robby

 

[George]

Taken far enough, see, is that ANY shot under ANY circumstances EVER is "OK" as long as the hunter is "doing his/her part".

I've been hearing that phrase, 'do your part' for several decades, and it was always a positive thing, nothing remotely like what you read into it. Usually used in praise of a gun, basically saying it is accurate enough, powerful enough, shoots well enough so that it won't be the limiting factor in the outcome of a shot. If you are skillful enough to take advantages or its capabilities, if you 'do your part', then you will hit the mark, take down the game. If you don't 'do your part', you won't, but it won't be the fault of the rifle/shotgun.

Of course, in these modern times, who knows what the... what it means?

Spence

 

[broknaero]

"it'll (the gun) do its part if you do yours", "Its just shot placemant"

I've been guilty of using those statements, and I stand behind my opinion. I also respect your opinion. They are not much different.

I hunt mostly in PA and NY. I "really" hunt. We don't have hogs here where I hunt so I can't comment on "enough gun" for them critters. I do bear hunt, and don't feel undergunned with .50 and .54cal with 600lb bears in the woods. If I ever get drawn for an elk tag here or moose tag up north, I may buy a larger caliber but then again I would'nt mind using the .54 GPR.

My current hunting bow is only 45lbs. It will blow clean through a deer "doing my part" To me doing my part is all about how I was trained to hunt. Archery or flintlock, I don't take longer shots than I practice. I don't take shots at bad angles, and I dang sure don't take running shots. Not even with modern weapons. I use the largest calibers I have and make them work.

All the what if's in hunting are part of the hunt. Someone said something about what if the animal moved, jumped, ran, etc. Well thats hunting. It's simple, doing my part means I know not to shoot. I never starved to death because I passed a bad shot. No one is forcing me to pull the trigger. I filled 4 deer tags this year, with 4 calm properly placed shots. I hunt them, and I eat them, shoulder shots are out, wastes too much meat, and leads to long tracking jobs more times than not. I can't count how many shots I passed this year. Even passed a bear that was kicked out by a drive, sucker just would'nt slow down for a shot. No matter how much I'd like another rug on the wall I'm not taking a pop shot at a bear (or any game) plowing through the brush.

Those shots are what shotguns are made for. I'll go bust some bunnys or grouse with shot if I want moving shots. Or like I'll be trying this year decoying ducks and geese with my recurve.

I only get so much time off to hunt, but when I'm off I'm hunting. In doing my part I don't let myself get caught up in the "gotta fill all my tags or big trophy" hoopala. I like big bears and big racks, but not to the point of violating my ethics. I don't hunt with my states minimum big game calibers, but I don't need the cannons either. :hatsoff:

 

[Little Wattsy]

"it'll (the gun) do its part if you do yours", "Its just shot placemant"

I've been guilty of using those statements, and I stand behind my opinion. I also respect your opinion. They are not much different.

I hunt mostly in PA and NY. I "really" hunt. We don't have hogs here where I hunt so I can't comment on "enough gun" for them critters. I do bear hunt, and don't feel undergunned with .50 and .54cal with 600lb bears in the woods. If I ever get drawn for an elk tag here or moose tag up north, I may buy a larger caliber but then again I would'nt mind using the .54 GPR.

My current hunting bow is only 45lbs. It will blow clean through a deer "doing my part" To me doing my part is all about how I was trained to hunt. Archery or flintlock, I don't take longer shots than I practice. I don't take shots at bad angles, and I dang sure don't take running shots. Not even with modern weapons. I use the largest calibers I have and make them work.

All the what if's in hunting are part of the hunt. Someone said something about what if the animal moved, jumped, ran, etc. Well thats hunting. It's simple, doing my part means I know not to shoot. I never starved to death because I passed a bad shot. No one is forcing me to pull the trigger. I filled 4 deer tags this year, with 4 calm properly placed shots. I hunt them, and I eat them, shoulder shots are out, wastes too much meat, and leads to long tracking jobs more times than not. I can't count how many shots I passed this year. Even passed a bear that was kicked out by a drive, sucker just would'nt slow down for a shot. No matter how much I'd like another rug on the wall I'm not taking a pop shot at a bear (or any game) plowing through the brush.

Those shots are what shotguns are made for. I'll go bust some bunnys or grouse with shot if I want moving shots. Or like I'll be trying this year decoying ducks and geese with my recurve.

I only get so much time off to hunt, but when I'm off I'm hunting. In doing my part I don't let myself get caught up in the "gotta fill all my tags or big trophy" hoopala. I like big bears and big racks, but not to the point of violating my ethics. I don't hunt with my states minimum big game calibers, but I don't need the cannons either. :hatsoff:

Obviously the hunter has part to play and play it well enough but the statements I see so often imply that being ethically under-gunned is OK, "you just gotta do your part".
You with a .50 or .54 are not under gunned. This QUOTE from a thread one click over is assinine and absurd, "you can kill them with a field tipped arrow if you put it in the right spot". I guess you could kill a grizley with a rock if "you did your part" but again the implication so often is that ANY weapon is good enough "if you do your part" seriously degrades the value of the game from noble to pig.

 

[RevGeo]

I kind of feel there is a caliber police theme to this thread. A crusade against smaller legal calibers.

Since hunting is such a personal and private pursuit why do you care what someone else uses and further more is really anybodies business?

Blackbruin this is not directed at you but the whole thread in general.

This says it all. And yeah, I really hunt. Been hunting all of my life. Since I've been perusing different internet 'outdoors' sites I've seen this argument pop up over and over. I don't give a rat's patootie what someone hunts with, so long as it's legal. I shoot a .50 with a PRB and all the deer I've hit with it died. Quick. If I get drawn for a moose tag this year I'm taking the muzzleloader. If I get a good broadside shot, not too far away, I'm taking it. If the shot is questionable at all I'm not taking it. Too often caliber is blamed for poor shooting, as many have said here. If you 'really hunt' you will make sure you don't shoot until you are sure of the shot. It's really that simple.

 

[Supercracker]

This QUOTE from a thread one click over is assinine and absurd, "you can kill them with a field tipped arrow if you put it in the right spot".

It absolutely would be.....except for the part where it's the Gods honest truth. A 3/8 hole through the heart or both lungs will kill them dead.

Did I say you SHOULD do it? NO
Did I say it was a good idea? NO
Did I say I would do it? NO
Did I even say it was legal anywhere that I know of? NO

It was merely to demonstrate that the original posters .50 rifle is wayyyyy past the threshold for "enough gun" for a boar and he shouldn't give using it a second thought.

The school of thought that you seem to be pushing is that, instead of holding off until you can put yourself into the most favorable position possible before taking the shot with a reasonable gun you should use the largest caliber you can come up with so that you don't have to worry so much about those things.

I hunt, for the most part, with a .50. As I said earlier I prefer to spend more time and effort getting closer and getting into a good position. I have passed up on some really nice pigs because I wasn't comfortable with shooting at a moving target, or a nervous one on high alert that might bolt at any second or one that was pushing the limit of what range I felt I could get the job done at. I never realized I was screwing up so badly with this philosophy until I came to this forum. I'm so glad I have been shown the errors of my ways. I guess I need to go ahead and finish up that 12bore rifle before Squirrel season opens back up. Better to be safe than sorry when it comes to firepower.


Now I get why Mike Brooks left. :td:

 

[George]

Obviously the hunter has part to play and play it well enough but the statements I see so often imply that being ethically under-gunned is OK, "you just gotta do your part".

Who do we check with to see if we are "ethically under-gunned"? Wouldn't be you, by any chance, would it? Was I ethically under-gunned when I killed my buck with a .40 this year?

This QUOTE from a thread one click over is assinine and absurd, "you can kill them with a field tipped arrow if you put it in the right spot". I guess you could kill a grizley with a rock if "you did your part" but again the implication so often is that ANY weapon is good enough "if you do your part" seriously degrades the value of the game from noble to pig.

Perfect example of a straw man argument... he never said anything remotely like that, but you are calling him out for saying it, calling him names over something you invented. The interpretation you put on it, as with the implications you assign to the other statements you reference, was of your own making, and from the outside would appear to be from misreading the intent.

"I know you think you understand what you thought you heard me say, but I am not sure you realize that what you thought you heard me say is not at all what I really meant." Anonymous

Spence

 

[ryoung14]

Thankfully, this one's easy for me. I'm not a hunter, I'm a poser.

I hunt with my (almost) traditional sidelock and shoot traditional roundballs over traditional black powder...all while wearing traditional hat and pants. I cut up whatever game I get with a traditional knife that won't hold an edge. I'd take pictures of all this, but that wouldn't be traditional. Y'see maintaining the tradition is the main thing.

If I were a hunter, I'd use an inline, shoot Shockwaves over Triple 7, wear the finest from BassPro, carry a knife with a ceramic blade, and take pictures with a Canon Powershot. Cuz then we'd be talkin' about gettin' the job done.
:wink:
Sorry, guys. A 'Traditional' forum is about the last place I'd expect to see this topic discussed.

But, carry on. :stir:

 

[ryoung14]

The first elk I killed was running wide open, jumping a 5'high bush at about 50 yd. The last deer I killed was about 300 yd. running flat out. The last antelope I killed was about 125 yd. running flat out. I have killed around 200 deer and I am thinking about 75% of them have been running. My 2nd deer with my .50 TC was an 85 YD running wide open shot. When I was a young kid I didn't care if the squirrel was sitting or running---- I got them by the hundreds. My bros. and I kept my family in meat. We lived off the land back then. Didn't have indoor water until 1945. Not sure if it's better now but I loved it then and I still do.

Well, sidelock, I'm in awe of your abilities. I don't have much I can say.

I will say this, however:
I own 50 acres in prime deer country with a number of tree stands and blinds. The place is infested with deer, but it's surrounded by land I can't set foot on.

I sometimes invite people to hunt with me on this land. If I find they've been taking shots at running deer, they don't get invited again.

Times have changed...maybe not for the better.

 

[Shine]

I get poo pooed for shooting sitting partridge all the time. Its not sporting :nono: .
I chuckle, I just snuck up on a sitting partrige :blah: .
I think I just found the difference between a hunter and a sportsman. I get supper most nights.

 

[Preacher Jeremy]

Sorry, I'm new to this muzzle loader hunting thing, sadly, I haven't even bought my first rifle yet,(Soon hopefully!) but I thought the reason we do the things we do is to have fun. I mean if it's all about owning the biggest and baddest rifle than I want out. I can't afford a different rifle for every occasion, so when I buy one it will have to be what I use. If someone thinks a .45 or .50 is too small for hunting whitetail in Minnesota, than they can buy me a new gun, or let me have my fun doing the best with what I have. I'm going to enjoy myself just as much with a .45 as I would with a .58, and I'm also going to take the same care to take the right shot. I'm not slamming anyone who enjoys bringing artillery into the woods with them, so please don't slam me for bringing what you consider a pea-shooter. :v

 

[smo]

Too often caliber is blamed for poor shooting, as many have said here.

IMHO "I" Believe that this is a true statement... However "I" Believe that more shots are off their mark from being "overgunned" than "undergunned"...

Can you say "Flinch" :wink: :v

 

[smo]

Well said Spence

:applause: :applause: :applause:

 

[smo]

I get poo pooed for shooting sitting partridge all the time. Its not sporting :nono: .
I chuckle, I just snuck up on a sitting partrige :blah: .
I think I just found the difference between a hunter and a sportsman. I get supper most nights.

[url]
http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q169/shine3040/DSCI0228.jpg

[/url]


I wonder how many here flush Turkeys before they shoot them or wait for the Squirrel to run before shooting it. :hmm: :stir: :haha: :v

 

[Shine]

exactly

 

[hanshi]

If you can sneak close enough to a turkey (or partridge) to flush it, then WHY flush it in the second place!? It takes skill to get close to game.

The most important thing for me is WHAT I shoot the game with and not whether I bag anything at all. I own a couple of modern rifles that have taken scores and scores of deer. No longer use them; haven't for years. I don't handicap myself, either, I use a good, reliable flintlock.

 

[Moose Guide]

"it'll (the gun) do its part if you do yours", "Its just shot placemant"

I've been guilty of using those statements, and I stand behind my opinion. I also respect your opinion. They are not much different.

I hunt mostly in PA and NY. I "really" hunt. We don't have hogs here where I hunt so I can't comment on "enough gun" for them critters. I do bear hunt, and don't feel undergunned with .50 and .54cal with 600lb bears in the woods. If I ever get drawn for an elk tag here or moose tag up north, I may buy a larger caliber but then again I would'nt mind using the .54 GPR.

My current hunting bow is only 45lbs. It will blow clean through a deer "doing my part" To me doing my part is all about how I was trained to hunt. Archery or flintlock, I don't take longer shots than I practice. I don't take shots at bad angles, and I dang sure don't take running shots. Not even with modern weapons. I use the largest calibers I have and make them work.

All the what if's in hunting are part of the hunt. Someone said something about what if the animal moved, jumped, ran, etc. Well thats hunting. It's simple, doing my part means I know not to shoot. I never starved to death because I passed a bad shot. No one is forcing me to pull the trigger. I filled 4 deer tags this year, with 4 calm properly placed shots. I hunt them, and I eat them, shoulder shots are out, wastes too much meat, and leads to long tracking jobs more times than not. I can't count how many shots I passed this year. Even passed a bear that was kicked out by a drive, sucker just would'nt slow down for a shot. No matter how much I'd like another rug on the wall I'm not taking a pop shot at a bear (or any game) plowing through the brush.

Those shots are what shotguns are made for. I'll go bust some bunnys or grouse with shot if I want moving shots. Or like I'll be trying this year decoying ducks and geese with my recurve.

I only get so much time off to hunt, but when I'm off I'm hunting. In doing my part I don't let myself get caught up in the "gotta fill all my tags or big trophy" hoopala. I like big bears and big racks, but not to the point of violating my ethics. I don't hunt with my states minimum big game calibers, but I don't need the cannons either. :hatsoff:

Obviously the hunter has part to play and play it well enough but the statements I see so often imply that being ethically under-gunned is OK, "you just gotta do your part".
You with a .50 or .54 are not under gunned. This QUOTE from a thread one click over is assinine and absurd, "you can kill them with a field tipped arrow if you put it in the right spot". I guess you could kill a grizley with a rock if "you did your part" but again the implication so often is that ANY weapon is good enough "if you do your part" seriously degrades the value of the game from noble to pig.

I think that being what you call "ethically undergunned" is afar better situation than taking poor angle or position shots with a large calibre gun because it is a large calibre gun! The impression I get is that if you get a big bore (or magnum flavour of the month) you can take all those iffy shot instead of waiting for a perfect shot! The impression given is that if you blow off a leg or notch its ear the critter will drop in its tracks as long as you use a big bore! No one is suggesting you hunt bison with a .36 but you don't need a .60 for whitetails!

 

[Shine]

Did you read the whole thing I told you I shoot them on the ground.I dont even flush the toilet.

 

[flyfisher76544]

Did you read the whole thing I told you I shoot them on the ground.I dont even flush the toilet.

:rotf: :rotf: :rotf: :rotf:
Nice....lol

 

[blackpowderscout]

I sid I was done but this is too good.

Wattsy, I am not following your arguement. Who here has implied that using a small caliber is preferred over larger calibers?

Who has implied that ANY weapon is good enough?

I've read the 3 most recent topics on this subject (the moose, the deer, and the hog ones) and in none of them does anyone TRULY suggest foregoing an adequate caliber for a smaller one just because....examples at the far end of the extreme were given but this doesn't mean that any of us believe these methods are/should be normal. They just prove a point.

However YOU did recommend the .54 for a moose. And several other folks gave the go ahead for a .50 on a hog and .45 on a deer, with the caveat that good shots are important. Scratch that caveat out of their posts and the statements are the same as yours. Seems to me that a .54 on a moose hunt is adequate no more or less than going after deer with a .45 and pigs with a .50....

I don't personally hunt deer here with a .45 for my own reasons but I'll readily admit that it's completely reasonable to do so. I don't believe that it is an ethically undergunned caliber. Nor do I believe that telling a kid who asked, that he's good to go hunt hogs with his .50 and reminding him to be sure of his shot, is advocating the use of an ethically undergunned caliber.

SO...I'm not sure why you got so upset. I think maybe you read into things people write a little too deeply.