Opening Day Flintlock Tom

[The Baron]

Opening day found me walking into one of my favourite spots well before light. I picked out a centrally located spot, where I know any birds on the property will spend time at some point in the morning. I was set and ready when I heard the first gobble at 5:40am. I thought this will be good, as the bird was roosted not 250 yards away on a ridge, and I was in an open field and very visible. About 5:50 there were a few more gobbles and I knew there were at least 2 toms and a jake up there. :hmm: At about 6:00 am I heard some hens cackle and heard the birds pitch down. I let out a few soft yelps and clucks to let the boys know I was here. It sounded like the whle gang was heading to fields on the opposite side of the ridge, so I did a little louder calling and got some response. I saw one tom strutting on my side of the ridge and he eventually worked his way down and came into my field. I had Pretty Boy out and when the tom came into the field he strutted and gobbled quite a bit, slowly closing the 100 yards between us. He hung for a while at 60 yards and a soft yelp broke him loose. He hit th 30 yard mark and started strutting around Pretty Boy but he was reluctant to come right in, in case this new guy outmatched him. The tom was slipping by at 22 yards and I could tell from his body language he was going to slide right on by and this was as close as he would probably get. A couple clucks got his head up nicely and the 20ga. Caywod put him down with surprising authority. Load was 80gr. 3F, 4 o/s cards on the charge, 1 1/8oz. #6 and 1 o/s card to hold it all in.

6:20am and time for some self-portraits. :grin: A little off on my camera aiming, but it's the best I got.

Tom and the flinter. Tom was 18.5lbs, 8 3/4" beard and 7/8" spurs.

 

[shootemup]

Congratulations Baron,

Enjoyed reading your story, thanks for posting it. Nice bird, beautiful fowler too.
:thumbsup:
Spot

 

[Britsmoothy]

Boy have I been waiting for these stories to come in!
Well done and thanks for sharing.
Brittsmoothy.

 

[RC]

SHOW OFF!................... :wink: Seriously congrats! good story! :thumbsup: :haha:

 

[highPlains]

Very cool!

 

[alaskasmoker]

Great pictures!

 

[roundball]

Good work, congratulations !

 

[lone hunter]

Excellent!! Congratulations on a great hunt.

 

[rabjr]

Nice grats! Thats more than I saw today. :thumbsup:

 

[jtmattison]

Congratulations!

Nice job.

HD

 

[Dausener]

Great story! Thanks for posting. I hope to be using a similer fowler next season. :thumbsup: What is your "max" range with yours? :hatsoff: Basset

 

[Rancocas]

Good show!
Hey, that's the same gun that I use, except that mine is a lefty.

 

[The Baron]

...What is your "max" range with yours?

Hi Basset... I have established a max. range of 25 yards, but I try to limit myself to 20 whenever possible, to be 100% sure. Most times, the only difference between a 25 yard turkey and a 20 yard turkey is a few seconds and steady nerves. :wink:

 

[Halftail]

Awsome Baron!
Nice pics too!What would a bird that size weigh after it's cleaned and ready for the roast pan?

 

[lizz]

Can't beat a morning like that :thumbsup: .

 

[wirehairman]

Nice job! :hatsoff:

 

[The Baron]

What would a bird that size weigh after it's cleaned and ready for the roast pan?

That's a good question, Halftail. :hmm: I've never weighed one cleaned, but I'll guess an 18.5 bird might go about 12-13 pounds. They don't seem to have a lot of guts in them, for their size.

 

[paulvallandigham]

You should assume that you will lose a third (1/3) of the live weight in cleaning and plucking the bird for cooking. Remember the weight of the feet, and head, and neck that are also usually removed, as they all add up. The blood in the muscles also drains out during dressing. This is just a rule of thumb, and some birds will weigh more dressed, than others. If your bird happens to be carrying fat( more common in birds shot in the early Fall than in Spring), it may also weigh more.

 

[KyFlintlock]

Congrats on your gobbler!

Wess

 

[CG6018]

Great story! Fine looking fowler and bird! And, like Basset stated above, I hope to have my 24 guage (.58) ready for our fall deer season and 2009's Spring gobbler season.

Again, congratulations! :thumbsup: