Coach

"The color differnce is what I think is really neat." The amazing racks they are sporting is what I think is really neat! Nice bucks - I sure hope you get an arrow in one. Thanks for sharing.

Until they see the Swaro's around your neck, lol. Guess you could claim to be out "birding" but you'd need the signature orange shirt for that.

But if it did "magically show back up" that would be an admission of guilt by the guy who took it. Let's hope he has a concience and does the right thing - but it's hard to expect that from someone who would just take it in the first place. Personally, I'd have a lot more respect for the guy if he just manned up and admitted to taking it "in a moment of passion" and gave it back with an apology.

I've heard great things about Lowa, Kentrek. Best boots I've owned in a long time are the Perfekt Hunters you already have. Do you wear wool socks with them? Might keep the sweat controlled better but if you don't like hot feet, that might make it worse. Personally I love mine in the desert, but don't hunt it much outside Dec - Feb. Those Denali look like a great boot. I'd stay away from anything that is has any part of the upper Nylon/Cordura if waterproofing is a high priority. I've never seen one that could stand more than a couple days of cactus and not break the membrane. My speed freaks leak like a sieve after a couple of Javi hunts. Still like them for light/medium use but they are overpriced for what you get, IMO. IMO all the good boots are a little hot, but experimenting with socks can mitigate that. I find my feet stay much cooler with Merino wool than with cotton. Let us know what you find.

+ 2.

Dang Jim - I sure hope you get it back. You might have timed this better though. Isn't there a big expo coming up? If this guy gets wind that you've got a volunteer army looking for it, he probably won't display it in Phx. If there is a big one coming up, might have been better to wait until he was set up and the CWT'ers could give him heck. One very nice deer BTW. Sorry it was stolen.

I'm using the old-style bino harness and keep my rangefinder in a pouch on my daypack. I'm sure there are much better systems out there, so I wanted to get some opinions as to what is the best way to carry your binocs and rangefinder these days. I want something that keeps my binocs from bouncing around and my rangefinder easy to get at with one hand.

Wow - I'm glad I haven't gone prarie dog hunting this summer. I had no idea there was a season on them. Bet there won't be next year I'm not surprised that he was cited, but I would sure like to be in the courtroom to hear to proceedings. On the one hand, it sounds like he didn't even shoot the p-dog. So is he now an "accessorie" to taking wildlife out of season? Is the kid being cited? This could get interesting.

I saw a doe a couple years back in 3C that was almost white - I'm sure not a true albino, but she looked nothing like the other does she was hanging around.

I put my Covert II out on July 5th on a really active spot. The biggest card it would take was 2GB. Well, that filled up in 5 days. I was looking forward to almost a month's worth of pictures but missed out on the last couple weeks because the card filled up so quickly. I tried putting in a 4GB card today and the menu wouldn't come up to format it. Is there any way to get this camera to work with larger cards? I absolutely LOVE the camera. The battery life is fantastic, the triggering, everything about it. I just need more capacity.

Happy Birthday, Clay. I hope it ws a good day, and I wish you many more.

I'll be up there, and from the research I've done so far, it's a little overwhelming. Just wanted to know if any other CTW'ers will be up there at the same time. I'll be on the rifle hunt Nov 9 - 19. Planning some scouting trips.

Super how those came out. Becker, I have dried out skull and cape in the freezer. I'm not real happy with the last mount my "local guy" did. I love the way those turned out and would ilke to talk to you about doing mine. jason.jones@sage.com

I'm right there with ya TJ.

I wanted a 1911 for a long time and still do just because it's such an iconic weapon. But for the same $$ you can get a really nice h&k USP. The 1911 will have to wait.

Yeah, those are a little out of my price range. I'm nervous enough leaving $120 cams out. I just won't leave a piece of equipment that costs close to what one of my rifles does where it's fair game for thieves.

Even if a law is passed, I don't think AZ hunters will ever stop hunting over salt. Imagine being a public prosecutor trying to make a case against someone shooting a deer over a salt lick. If they have to prove that the hunter actually put the salt there, they are hamstrung. If they had to prove intent by somehow showing they knew an established salt lick was there, they are hamstrung. It's a totally un-enforceable law. How far from the salt do you have to be? Is every trail that goes near a salt lick illegal? If you've ever had any encounters with the local justice, you know how overwhelmed they are by DUI repeats, domestic fights and B.S. IMO, they don't have the bandwidth to handle "Joe shot a deer that might be on a trial to a spot where Larry dumped some salt". They are up to their eyeballs in 2nd and 3rd offense shoplifters, driving without a license, stealing out of the cash drawer at Wendy's or little league fund. If this does pass, it will by symbolic at best - and some people will be made examples of, but it won't stop hunters from using salt, alphalpha, corn or store-bought attracants. It will, however create a rift between normally law abiding hunters and G&F officers trying to enforce a law they don't even believe in. don't kid yourself. in arkansas a few years back, somebody got mad at a hunter, and put corn under his tree stand, which is illegal. then they called dnr and reported the dude hunting over bait. DNR showed with leafblowers and cleared the area and found one, yes, ONE kernel of corn, and threw the guy in jail, took his truck and his gun. True story. Wow, I hope that never happens here. But I still believe after 3 decades of hunting and dealing with our G&F LEO's that we are way better off than many other states. There have been the odd "tools" over the years, but overall, my interaction with G&F has been extremeley positive. And I'd rather continue that positive relationship with them than start rift over something like salt or corn.

Take a look at your rest. The best move I ever made was switching from a Whisker Biscuit to a QAD drop away. I still get the full containment of a WB, but there is nothing in the way of the fletchings. Good luck and let us know what you find outl

Even if a law is passed, I don't think AZ hunters will ever stop hunting over salt. Imagine being a public prosecutor trying to make a case against someone shooting a deer over a salt lick. If they have to prove that the hunter actually put the salt there, they are hamstrung. If they had to prove intent by somehow showing they knew an established salt lick was there, they are hamstrung. It's a totally un-enforceable law. How far from the salt do you have to be? Is every trail that goes near a salt lick illegal? If you've ever had any encounters with the local justice, you know how overwhelmed they are by DUI repeats, domestic fights and B.S. IMO, they don't have the bandwidth to handle "Joe shot a deer that might be on a trial to a spot where Larry dumped some salt". They are up to their eyeballs in 2nd and 3rd offense shoplifters, driving without a license, stealing out of the cash drawer at Wendy's or little league fund. If this does pass, it will by symbolic at best - and some people will be made examples of, but it won't stop hunters from using salt, alphalpha, corn or store-bought attracants. It will, however create a rift between normally law abiding hunters and G&F officers trying to enforce a law they don't even believe in.

Nighthawk, it's funny you mentioned your rifle as a "lower class" model. The gun my buddy was shooting clover leaves out of is a "stock" Rem 700. I've been shooting my 300 WSM with bullet holes touching out of a Savage 14 classic with the oiled walnut and medium countour barrel. These are $500 guns with decent/good optics. On my gun I've got a Cabela's Alaskan Guide 6-20x50mm and he's got a Leupold Vari-X III that came on a different gun he bought. Not one of these guns has over $900 in them and they shoot like guns people pay several thousand dollars for, with the right hand loads. Brings to mind a bumper sticker I saw on a bad a$$ 4x4 a while back, "Built, not bought". If anyone thinks you have to spend 3 grand on a tack driver, I'd disagree. You can build a sub MOA rifle under a grand easily if you are willing to do a little work.

This may sound stupid, but hear me out. A few years ago Old Navy was doing a "blowout sale". I bought 4 or 5 nylon parkas that fold up into their own pocket about 6x4 inches and maybe 3 inches thick. They are totally compact, and I've sat out huge downpours in those things. I think I paid around $5 each and I keep one in my truck, one in my pack, 3 in our camper. They aren't "top of the line" raingear, but when you're out hunting and rain or snow starts coming in, they are fantastic. I just keep watching Old Navy to see if they ever offer them again. If they do, I'll buy at least another 3 - 5 of them.

Thanks Lance, I'll check those out. I've got a Moultrie M80 sitting here in my office that takes high capacity cards. I should have this one out there, and will by the weekend. The super sucky part is, I somehow dropped/lost a card off of one of my best spots. I'm going to have to go find that and hope it is still operative. As I was walking in to set up that camera a really nice bull was on the salt.

14 for me. I've never had an Antelope tag in AZ. Once in NM, and I'll be trying to get back there again. I saw more 17-18 inch bucks on that hunt than I have ever seen here. Antelope with a bow is one of those "You did it" moments that I'm really looking forward to. I actually blew 2 great oppotunities at 80+ bucks the last time I hunted them in NM. For AZ, it's rifle or nothing. Congrats to all of you who have a tag in your pocket! Make it a good hunt.

I'm really glad to see CWT keeping this post positive. As we all know, that's kind of rare on hunting sites. Once again, a huge congrats to the hunter, and to those that worked their tail off to make it happen.

Wow, that is up there. Personally, I've got a good friend getting ready for an antelope hunt and he's been hand loading for his 7mm. He's shooting 140 grain Nosler Accubonds behind 57 grains of IMR 4350 and at 100 yards it's bullets stacking in one hole. One of the tighest 4 shot groups I've ever seen was just a couple days ago with this setup. And it's only shooting around 3050 - 3100 fps (only - lol). Something about trying to get the highest velocity seems to lead to more erratic flight, finnicky loads and depending on the bullet, premature expansion (I don't think that last one will be a problem with the Barnes TTX or TTSX). Anyway, something to think about. I'd rather have a really stable, heavier bullet, lighter powder load with lower velocity than a ton of powder behind a light bullet. Same debate goes on year after year about super fast, super light arrows vs heavier slower and more stable ones. Good luck on your research. I'd love to hear how it comes out.