Hatchet Jack

I didn't even know they made a 12x42.

I come from up north and have hunted deer and elk my whole life, but this javelina stuff is brand new to me. I have a 28 general tag and have been out scouting some, and I glass a lot of deer but no pigs, even in thick prickly pear country away from roads. Do these critters like to frequent the slopes and sit in the sun in the morning, or do they generally prefer the flats? I'm just wondering where to focus my glassing efforts and if rougher country is better or not. Thanks guys

For what it's worth... Today a guy from work brought his 15x56 slc neu and i had my euro hd 15x56. we put them side by side on tripods. i went into this fully expecting to want an upgrade to swaro after comparing them. we looked for 30 minutes back and forth. into sun, shade, near, far. I thought the euro's were better but i didnt say anything to him. Finally, the guy who owns the swaros admitted that he thought the Euro's were sharper. I was actually really surprised the difference in clarity was that noticeable. I thought the edges were comparable. of course the swaro has a little wider FOV but it's not by much. I told him Swaro would probably beat Euro's in low light so he'd feel better, which may or may not be true. Anyway, this is starting to look like the best 1100 bucks i ever spent. As far as i'm concerned the only way to step up from here is the slc HD

Anybody had a chance to compare these much in the field? It's hard for me to tell when i'm looking outside at cabela's

same here. I'd upgrade 15's first. I'm usually hand holding my 10's to scan while I'm getting to a new glassing spot, so the dip in quality of your 10's isn't as apparent as when you put them on a tripod and sit for a while like you would with the 15's. if that makes sense

I want to take my 8 month old hiking with me out in the hills and have no idea whats best to pack her in. She doesn't ride well in my horn hunter pack. Anybody use those dorky looking kid packers? i dont care what it looks like just want it to work and be comfy. Thanks

I've only had the 27 late tag, but have had similar experiences as those above. I tried to hit it too hard the first few days and even put on several miles the day before my opener trying to find the elk, and I was worn down just a few days into the hunt. my right knee still isn't the same after taking a tumble while putting a stalk on the bull I ended up shooting on day 6. you'll also get really sick of jumping deadfall and trying to get thru the thorns for days on end if you hunt in the burn. they'll get ya right in the pouch if you're not careful. such an neat area and it'll make you earn it, but you'll have a blast. wish I was going. let me know if you need a meat hauler I'm only a couple hours away.

I picked up a pair of lightly used euro 15's a month ago and have really enjoyed them. Just was curious if conquests were a slight upgrade at same price point. I didn't get an elk tag so I don't have much else to talk about right now.

You should see good numbers of elk and they shouldn't be getting pushed much. Will be a fun tough hunt I was very tempted to do that same one. Good luck

same here, my card was hit this day last year. hoping for another miracle

glad I moved...

that's a tank

Anybody know if you can do "view shed" on caltopo? Basically you select a point, and the program shows the land surface area that is visible from that point. I took a GIS class where we used it a little in ArcMap but I forgot how to do all that. that would be great for finding good glassing points in areas you aren't able to scout a bunch. I need to look into this caltopo site more now.

I get a lot of crap from guys at work for always being on Google earth. the biggest problem is that I'll plan out my weekend hikes while sitting in my comfy chair and staring at the computer screen. it usually makes for a miserable Saturday morning, trying to get to that glass point that i swear was only 3 inches from the road! but i keep doing it time and time again.

I help out w/ one of our local scout troops and I've noticed the parents are the number 1 main factor here no doubt. The scouts who have parents that make them do chores and take them outdoors are heads and shoulders above the ones whose parents just let them play video games all day. When we go on backpacking or fishing trips, the kids that never go outside literally can't make their own food or tie on their own lure, while the others who have more active parents are able to have a good time and do their own thing. They are better at resolving problems. Kids aren't just born lazy/stupid/entitled pieces of crap... well maybe a few. It's mostly developed over years of no responsibility and never having set goals and working toward something worthwhile. jmo. Then again, I guess I am considered by definition a "millennial" and I'm blinded by my own stupidity and we really are the scum of the earth.

Not sure what history knowledge has to do w/ a generation's productivity, but ok.

This^^^. I've never guided but both my brother and dad did a little for a local outfitter a few years back. the hunters they had were regular joes that had saved for years to come to utah to hunt big mule deer. My dad and bro felt the pressure big time especially as the temps kept rising and all they could show these guys were 20" 3 points. They did end up killing some decent bucks but i know they both did not enjoy that their hobby and escape from everyday life had turned into a job and more stress. having said that, if you have the grit and skill i could see it turning into something positive for you. Anything that's really worth doing won't be a walk in the park. Good luck with whatever you decide.

I've always wanted to make my own elk burger, so I decided to start this year. I have several large freezer bags of elk meat I already cut into small chunks and froze back in December. I finally have my grinder and want to make some elk burger. Would it be ok to slightly thaw the meat to where I can break the chunks apart, grind/mix with a little beef fat, and refreeze? I really don't want to grind a pound at a time as I use it.

man I learn more useful info off this board in a week than I did in 5 yrs of college. heck of a lot cheaper too. Thanks to all.

when is the drawing?

as long as you keep that avatar pic i'll be watching your updates...

thanks guys, you are all awesome. So what I've gathered is... 1. Don't think 2. Don't look for them 3. Sleep in. sounds like a good hunt to me

I should put this in the optics forum but I figured I'd get more feedback here. I realize it's a lot or personal preference but i'll ask anyway Just moved to AZ from UT about 2 years ago. on my late rifle hunt last fall I decided it's time to step up my optics. I have used vortex viper (non hd) 10x42 for several years now. They still work great for hand held scanning at medium distance. I also have the vortex nomad 20-60x60 (not the greatest). Should I stick w/ the vipers for around my neck and and get a pair of SLC 15's for the tripod or ditch the vipers and get a good 12x50 as my all purpose glass I'll be hunting mule deer in WY/CO/UT, elk in WY/AZ and coues deer. What do you guys think?

i'm going thru this same dilemma and i think i'm going to get the 15's and keep my 10's around my neck. I thought about just getting 12's as an all purpose glass but i liked the idea of the extra power if i need it.

thanks for the input fellers. I have gone back and forth about ten times but i now think i've settled on the 15's. Of course i gotta wait until i've finished paying off the wife's student loans this summer before i buy a pair. that'll give me plenty of time to mull it over whether i wanna break the bank and go w/ the SLCs or settle for the zeiss or meopta