lancetkenyon

The .243 can shoot bullets weighing up to 115 grains just like the .257 calibers. BC is great with these bullets. Barrel life will be less than a .260 though. But it will also be a flatter shooting round out to 500 yards. My daughters shoot a .250 Ackley for deer. Shoots a 100gr SMK at about 3200 fps, or a 115gr. VLD at 3050. I would think those are right in between the .243Win and a .260Rem. Here is the kicker...it recoils a bit more with the same bullets than my .25-06 Ackley at higher velocities because of the build of the gun. I would just add a brake to your .257 Ackley and call it good. You can always get either a clamp on brake or remove a thread on when you want to for your hunting preference.

Way better than before with the HDs. I spent a ton of time behind all kinds of glass before I bought mine.

Love item #10.

Before you buy the Vortex 12x50 Razor HDs, look at them alongside the Cabela's Euro 12x50 HDs by Meopta. Go to Cabela's and have them take both pairs outside with a tripod.

Let's resurrect this zombie of a thread with some of todays hype..... Zoomies. You know, the binocular eyeglasses? I bought two pair at Walgreen's as a joke for my brother's and my varmint hunting. He always talked about how cool they would be. Hilarious gag gift, but an absolute waste of even $.01. But I expected no less. In all seriousness, cheap optics. They either don't work, break, are not clear enough to actually be of use, or give you a raging headache. I will never again buy a scope under $1K unless it is for a .22LR. I have enough $600 scopes for my close work, so anything else I buy will be top quality. Saving for a really high end scope now. About halfway there at $1500.

Your life is about to get a whole lot better! And more frustrating. And less restful.

I just purchased two 162 qt. Igloo Ultra Marine coolers from Costco for $129 each. They have the metal latches and hinges, not the plastic ones that break after 5 years, and the well formed deep lids that should not deform. I bought them for my daughters wedding over Labor Day weekend. They maintained ice for 4 days in 100° weather in Sedona. They were left in the sun, and were constantly being opened by family and guests. Plus, they will hold a deer, or an elk if it is cut up. Gotta love that. My last Igloos lasted for about 12 years before the tops started to warp. If I get that out of these, it would take 70+ years to make up the difference of a pair of Yetis. I really like the Yetis, but I cannot justify paying 5 times the cost of an Igloo to my wife (especially since I dropped about $5K on other hunting gear for my daughters upcoming elk hunt this year). This was the year for upgrades. Been wanting to do that for quite some time.

Was up until 11:00PM last night packing. Most of the trailer is packed and ready to go with the camping supplies. 95% of the clothing is packed and ready to throw in the truck. 80% of the groceries are in the tote and ready to go, just need to buy the fruit and veggies mainly. Truck has new shocks, new wiper blades, oil change, and washed. Rifles are all in the cases, pack is stocked and ready to go at a moments notice, and all hunting accessories are ready to go. All optics have been cleaned and ready to go. Just need to finish the groceries, load the ice chests, and throw the expensive stuff in the truck. Should take about an hour or two to be ready to hit the road after the groceries are bought!!! Today and tomorrow are going to SUCK at work!!!

I am a knife whore. I have a ton of daily carry folders. Benchmade, SOG, CRKT, Kershaw, Spyderco, Gerber, Buck. I mostly carry assisted opening folders on a daily basis, and Kershaw is one of my favorites. But my Benchmade and CRKT are both unassisted, and they are amazing tools. But the ones in my pack are a Havalon Piranta for the light weight and ease of changing a blade, a Schrade Old Timer Skinner, an old (but extremely sharp) CRKT Tanto folder, and a Gerber bone saw. I can cut up any game animal with this small assortment.

Great customer relations there. Good to see people still respect our LEOs enough to show they care. Thank you for your service to public safety as well.

She took a true brute. Great story, even with no opportunity at the non-typical. Great memories made, and great eating in the near future for all.

Two of the biggest bucks I have seen off the Bab have come from guys in vehicles being in the right place at the right time. My buddy took a big 7x8 non-typical at noon just driving down the road. Stupidest buck I have ever seen. Seriously, 30 yards off the road and just stood there.

Take it off when you hike and put it back on when you are stationary. You sweat to cool the body, so allowing the head to cool will help regulate body heat. Or wear ear muffs only if your ears get cold. Wear layers and shed/add layers as needed to keep from sweating in the first place. Sweat stinks, no mater whether you can smell it or not. Game can. My goal is always to keep warm without sweating.

OP is in Queen Creek. I am not a stalker, but I remember the Badlands pack thread.

Very nice cat. Big teeth!

Since you are in Mesa, you can check Bass Pro too.

The Zeiss Victory HTs are on par with the Swaro SLC HDs. But they are not the $1500 Zeiss Conquest binos. They are the $2300+ Zeiss binos. Also the Leica Ultravids. Take a long look at the Cabela's Euro HD 15x56 from Meopta. I tried them for hours alongside a set of the Swaro SLC HD 15x56s, and I like them better. Amazing quality for $1600. Plus, if you get a Cabela's Visa and wait for the right sales time, they give you points back (I got 10% points and it is basically a 10% gift card), a $25 gift card, a $100 gift card, and wait for a coupon of 10-20% off, they come out at about $1100-1200 out the door (if you consider the gift cards you get).

Sportsman's has the QS36 for $12.99. Not sure what you have though. Call the store to see if they have them in stock. But if you are more than 10-15 miles, the $7 S&H will equal the amount of gas you will waste to get there and back. Plus the added costs of buying other stuff while you are there. You know you can't just buy one thing there.... http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sportsmans/Vanguard-QS36-Quick-Shoe/productDetail/Tripods-and-Mounts/prod999901362809/cat100752 Or the QS52 for $16.99 http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sportsmans/Vanguard-QS52-Quick-Shoe/productDetail/Tripods-and-Mounts/prod999901362810/cat100752

I dropped a bunch of coin on two new binos this year. After looking through a ton of glass, I opted for the Meopta HD 10x42s. The only other binos that barely beat them out were the Swaro EL HDs, Zeiss Victory HT, and Leica Ultravid. But at double+ the cost, it was a no brainer to me. I got mine for $949 from www.sportoptics.com as a demo model. There was not a single mark that I could find on them. I also purchased the Cabela's Euro Meopta HD 15x56s this year. They are, in MY opinion, better than the new Swaro SLC HDs. And I compared both side by side for hours in all conditions.

Cabela's carries them, and they will be glad to mount them on a tripod and take them out front with you to check out. They spent a lot of time with me looking through about 10 sets of optics before I purchased mine. Good group of folks down there.

For around $500, the Cabela's Outfitter Series 10x42 for $519 are very hard to beat. I have had a set (formerly the Alaskan Guide series) for 12+ years, and they are still going strong. They are just about as clear as the $1300 Vortex Razors, and better than the Vortex Viper HDs by a long ways to my eyes. I am not impressed by the Vortex binos at all.

The burns are a good start, but they will be crawling with hunters too. But good deer are EVERYWHERE in 12AW. I have seen bruisers from Jacobs Lake to the Park boundary. I missed a true brute during archery season years ago that still haunts my dreams. With the warm weather the Kaibab has been having (41°-72° this past week), I would look up top first. The Junipers always hold s a few big deer, but few and far between at this time of year. Deer move to cover and canyons where there are no roads when pressured. And the big bucks are almost totally nocturnal. So seeing on in the daylight is rare. But you can catch them at very first and last light if you know where they bed. Good luck, I will be in 12AE at the end of the week.

Let me guess...you have a hunt coming up in a week to a month? Go buy the cheap Sellior & Bellot, Remington Core-lokt, Federal Power Shok or Winchester Super X stuff. It can usually be found at $20-22/box or less. Or wait for a gun show and buy some cheap military surplus garbage. The interweb is your friend if you use it... Cabela's has Winchester Super X .30-06 on sale for $19.99. http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/includes/variants_popup.jsp?productId=740347&categoryIds=104792580|104691780|104532480&mainWindow=mainWindow1413812782163 Also Herters for $17.99 http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/includes/variants_popup.jsp?productId=1403960&categoryIds=104792580|104691780|104532480&mainWindow=mainWindow1413812934524 And Sellior & Bellot for $17.99 http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/includes/variants_popup.jsp?productId=706469&categoryIds=104792580|104691780|104532480&mainWindow=mainWindow1413812988611

I only clean when groups start to open up, somewhere between 100 & 800 rounds or so. Or after an entire season and I am going to store the gun for a while. Clean bore shots are far more errant than cold bore shots. I can't have that happen during a hunt. It takes at least 10-20 rounds to lay copper back in the grooves to return POI and accuracy to pre-cleaning consistency after a thorough cleaning.

Been packing all weekend. My 12 year old daughter and I are heading up to 12AE. She only has 3 days, but I have the whole hunt off.