Benbrown

Not clear, right now. This from jamaro: Per the quota statute that was the result of SB196. It's pretty straightforward that the quota applies per hunt code and that if the quota percentage yields a fraction of .5 or greater the number of licenses rounds up to the next whole number, less than .5 the number of licenses rounds down to the next whole number. By that, there would need to be a minimum of 5 tags in a hunt code for there to be an outfitter tag. There would need to be 9 tags in a hunt code for there to be a nonresident tag. The only hunt code that has enough tags for a nonres or outfitter tag is Latirs ewe hunt. The only way around it would to be to put all the sheep tags in one hunt code (or groups of hunt codes to get above the 5 or 9 tags required to "generate" a nonres and/or outfitter tag) and then assign specific hunts to applicants that draw. It might take legislation to create special rules for sheep quotas for the resident/nonresident/outfitter tags. Interesting... and I am not sure we are going to get around it.

What a beautiful little girl! God has blessed you and your family.

I'm late to the party, as usual. CONGRATULATIONS!

You won't have any problems with illegal immigrants in any of those units. Once they hit I-10, they are on their way to Phoenix, LA or Denver. You don't say where you are from, but if you are out of state or living someplace like Albuquerque or Santa Fe, I would recommend that you look closely at Tommy Maldonado (aka crazyaboutcoues in the forum) and his scouting service. If you have only 5-7 days to scout and hunt, the money will be well spent. Coues whitetails in those units occur in pockets--they are not distributed uniformly across the landscape.

Looks like a wolf to me. Besides, those Yellowstone wolf watchers know those animals better than they know their own kids. Coyotes in Yellowstone are pretty rare these days. Populations plunged after the wolves were reintroduced.

I have had a Ruger 10/22 for almost 40 years. For most of those years, it has lived in my pickup. With a good 4X or compact 2-7X scope, it will shoot minute of coyote out to 100 yards. However, if you are going to get a lot of 100 yard shots, a Ruger 77/22 in .22 Magnum would be a better choice. I did a LOT of calling back in the 1970s and used a Savage/Anschutz bolt action in .22 Magnum almost exclusively to very good effect.

Thanks for the update. Not sure what is going on with New Mexicos deer herd but you hear a lot of reports like this all over the state. It's the ongoing drought. If it ever starts raining again for a few years in a row, the mule deer will come back and the whitetails will increase in abundance, as well. Judging by the Climas reports out of the U of A, I may not live to see it, though.

My 2005 Tacoma 4WD Access Cab has 231,800+ miles. They do last if you take care of them...

That's really decadent!

If I were you, I would go back to the "gunsmiths" who appraised them and offer to sell the rifles to them at their appraisal prices. If they agree to buy them, that is very likely the best deal that you are going to get.

I don't mean to be critical. If the .243 is in 95% or better condition, the appraisal for it is reasonable. However, not having the rifle in hand, I can only deduce from the photos that the .375 H&H did not come from the factory in its present configuration. It does not have a factory Super Grade stock and the rear sight is missing. Some Super Grades did come from the factory without sights, but all of the .375s that I have seen have had them. This one still has the front sight, but one screw hole for the rear sight is visible in the second photo, and it does not even have a filler screw. It's value as a non-original, "custom" Model 70 Super Grade is whatever someone who likes "California" stocks with roll-over cheek pieces and "white line" accents will pay for it. However, it would have minimal value to a collector of Winchester rifles. The value of custom rifles is almost always a function of the reputation of the gunsmith who built them, and the components account for a relatively modest portion of the appraised value. Do you know who modified this rifle? If it was a well-respected builder, that could inflate the value somewhat, but it is not typical of the gunsmiths whose customs command top dollar these days.

Might want to get a second appraisal...

Years ago, I was able to find topos for the northern parts of Chihuahua and Sonora at Tucson Map and Flag. I haven't looked lately, so I have no idea if they still stock them.

Foot traffic in that area is down, but smuggling remains about the same. Lots of Border Patrol presence these days, although you won't see many of them until they detect an illegal incursion. There were a fair number of hunters during the first hunts (bow, muzzle loader and two rifle hunts), and I haven't heard of any trouble this year. Foot traffic generally falls off pretty quickly once it turns cold. Guides and outfitters have taken to parking their trailers in Hachita at the little RV park next to the old convenience store, and taking their hunters from there. If you are worried, that is probably the safest thing to do. The Border Patrol has a Forward Operating Base about 15 miles east of Hachita on Hwy 9. The phone number is (575) 531-3010. That would be the closest law enforcement if you run into trouble. I haven't seen a game warden down here in years.

You will find that both mulies and quail are pretty thin. Good luck with both!

Photoshopped. Elk (Cervus elaphus) and moose (Alces alces) are not even in the same genus. A quick search of the literature not only turns up no accounts of hybridization, but one study of "genetic distance" based on mitochondrial DNA places the two at pretty much opposite ends of the spectrum in the family Cervidae. It seems very unlikely that, even if a mating occurred, that a viable embryo would result. In addition, the "antlers" on the animal in the picture seem to be mule deer antlers, not elk antlers (no brow tines, no tines branching off of the main beam). Likewise, there are no characteristics associated with the form of moose antlers, either.

Most of New Mexico has had fair to good summer rains. That, combined with some winter rain as well, has started our desert quail on the comeback road. Quail are still not abundant, but we are seeing broods and coveys in good habitat--much better than it has been for the last few years. Southeastern New Mexico has actually been about the wettest area of the state this year.

The brass is stretching when it is fired. When it is resized, the shoulder is pushed back and the excess goes into the neck. This is why you have to trim cases after several reloads--the neck gets too long to allow the round to seat properly in the chamber. This situation is worsened when ammo is fired in a break-action such as the T/C, as they do not lock up as tight as a bolt action and allow the case to stretch a little more. The hotter the loads, the worse the problem becomes. When cases separate, they almost always do it at approximately the same place as those in the photo. You can check to see whether your cases are getting close to separating by taking a paper clip and straightening it out with only a small "L" right at the end. Push it down into a fired case until it bottoms out, then scrape the point of the "L" against the side wall as you pull it out. If the case is thinning almost to the point of breaking, you will feel a slight tug as the point of the "L" drops into the thinned line of brass where the case will separate when it lets go. If you feel this, discard that case.

New Mexico went to all-online this year--we'll see how it works. Basically, you apply, pay and print out your license and your tags. If you don't have a computer, you can go to Wal*Mart or other outlets that have an online application computer. If you go to one of the NM DGF offices, there are computers there that you can use to apply for licenses and drawing tags. You can still buy "over the counter" general hunting and fishing licenses at authorized vendors, along with habitat stamps, private land deer licenses, etc., but the writing is on the wall: either those guys will set up computerized terminals for license applications or they will be phased out...

FWIW, we quit using SSTs in our .257, ,270s and .280s. They come apart and ruin too much meat. I shot an antelope through the shoulders at a little over 300 yards with a 117 grain SST from my .257 AI and we basically had to discard the entire front end. Had pretty much the same experience on mule deer with my .270 and my wife's .280 at ranges between 150 and 250 yards. An SST is about the last thing I would use in a .300 Mag.

With IMR 4350, 41.0 grains with a 95-grain Ballistic Tip will get you right around 3,000 fps (I load W-W cases with Winchester Large Rifle primers). As always, start a little lower and work your way up. FWIW, with a young hunter, there is no need to push envelope and a lighter load may do the job just as well with less recoil and muzzle blast.

If you haven't sorted this out yet, the Barnes No. 3 manual (which doesn't show any data for TSX or TTSXs) lists 40.5 grains of IMR 4350 for a starting load and 44.5 as the maximum load for their 140 grain bullets. It's interesting that the No. 4 manual doesn't list any loads for the 4350 powders. This is probably as good a reason as any to look for more suitable powders for the 140 TTSXs that you want to use. You can download the latest data from the Barnes web site. This makes it easy to get data for not only specific bullets, but it also means that you don't have to buy the manual just to see what your options are for just one or two cartridge/bullet combinations.

Me too! I am thinking that within a year or two, that's going to be the only way that I'll be able to get to the places that I want to go.

I assume that this is the 62 mm body--does it have the ED glass? Thanks!

Well, now he knows how much difference the brass can make. Anytime you change ANY component, you should back down a bit and work your way back up--even with different lots of the same powder.