Coach

I saw some 2 weeks ago on Hardscrabble Mesa while camping and hiking Fossil Creek that looked like they had a lot of growing left to do. One was a really nice buck - if someone gets him when he fills out, I hope they post some pix here.

Brian, PM sent on the security box.

Well, you have come to the right place. There's more knowledge about hunting everyting from spiders to big horn sheep in this forum. Welcome aboard. Unit-specific details are hard to come by, even if you've contributed a lot here. Lots of people show up, ask for directions to a honey-hole, and never appear again. If you are serious, want some mentoring, and want to share what you've found, I'm guessing you will find some mentors here, but it will probably come in the form of private messages. Personally, I know less than nothing about 36B. Good luck.

Can't wait to see it. Normally, I woulda thought it would be crap, but given the cast and producers, they've got to make it a fun show to watch.

I've been playing around with the new Covert CA 3.0 (I've bought 2 now) and these are neat little camearas. They're a little "light" technologically, but they take very good pictures, and the trigger speed is very good. The range, well I'll say it's average. I've got a Covert II that has incredible range, and a Moultrie M-80 that appears to have about the same range as the CA 3.0. Overall, I like these cameras for the price. I paid a lot for my Covert II and it has been a great camera. The CA 3.0 has done pretty well in my tests, but it is limited to normal triggering. The moultrie M-80 is a lot more bulky, but has the "plot-watcher" feature, which the Covert Extreme has, but the M-80 is about $100 cheaper. About $10 more than the the CA 3.0, that doesn't have this capability. The way I'm setting up is to have 2 CA 3.0 cams where I can count on close proximity and triggering, a Moultrie M-80 set on larger areas that I can use the plot-watcher feature, and my old, standby Covert II on anything in between that needs long range and fast trigger speed. BTW, look for the DIY security box 2 thread coming soon. I built a box for my moultrie M-80 with an adjustable tilt. It's pretty tough.

Wow, what can I add? Great pix and great sequence. That's super cool for sure.

Congratulations! I hope you will share a beautiful life together, and it looks like you are off to a great start!

Wow - what a great buck! Can't wait to see the "ground" pictures. Good luck!

Nice bucks, Brian! Good luck getting them this fall.

My two oldest boys shoot that bow, and I've been really impressed with it. It's super adjustable, and seems to shoot very well.

That's a lot of scope for $80. I'm thinking this will sit really well on a varmint rig. Somebody's gonna get a real good deal on this one. If I had a bare rifle, I'd buy it.

Without any more to go on, I would say that the bow is not tuned correctly - or the arrows aren't splined properly. I would take the whole setup to a reputable shop in your area to trouble-shoot the issues. Usually, a little tweaking of the rest and/or knock point will resolve most tuning problems. Depending on the bow and it's cams, it could be a timing issue. Once the bow is properly tuned, you should be able to choose from any quality broadhead and hit consistently with your field points. Good luck, and let us know what find out.

Very well said. I agree completely. If I may also add, there are many people out there who never get to experience the joy of hunting, or those who know it but can no longer participate. Some due to illness or financial situations, others due to not having a parent or mentor to get them into the field. It's easy to get caught up in the desire to take trophy animals and the jealousy and competition surrounding that goal. But that's really not what it's all about, in my opinion. Just having the ability and support of family and friends to go hunting makes us very fortunate. Think about all of the amazing things you've seen and done while hunting, that otherwise you would never have gotten to experience. Watching an amazing sunset over the Arizona desert, a meteor shower at night many miles away from the city lights. Seeing your kids take their first game or catch their first fish. Seeing and hearing bull elk fighting for their breeding rights, or watching a herd of Javelina and recognizing the familial aspecs among them. Or even just sitting quietly in nature, looking, listening, smelling and observing how the world works outside of our "normal" world. Money can't buy that, and it isn't measured in inches - it's measured in minutes, even seconds. Those of us lucky enough to have a tag in our pockets, or a family member or friend who does, have an amazing opportunity to get away from the confines and stresses of modern life and enjoy hunting and the outdoors - especially here out west. Let's try not to squander that by getting caught up in the competition of the biggest buck or bull, or how "unfair" it is that someone else has more money, friends, resources. If we're lucky enough to be out hunting, we should count our blessings.

Great job, Jed. That's a magnificent bull.

Well that is one beautiful bull. I hope one of our DIY members can fulfill the tag in their pocket with a bull that matches their dreams. Congrats to the hunter, and the guides.

Seems like an odd comparison at opposite ends of the specturm??? But since you asked... The .257 is a light weight fast bullet with the very best Ballistic Coeficent of about .500 and a pretty mild recoil. On the other hand the 300 RUM is twice the bullet weight launched at speeds over 3,000 FPS with the best BC's being as high as .680 and a pretty stout recoil. I guess it all comes down to what you want to do with the rifle? Shoot up to deer size critters out to 500 or 600 yards with the .257 or shoot Elk size animals out to 1000 yards and beyond with the .300 RUM? The BC is without a doubt much better with the 300 RUM. I'm not sure about the ballistics from 0-500 yards but I'm sure the ballistics on the .300 are much better than the .257 from 500-1000 yards. Not to mention more energy delivered to the target at all ranges. However it all comes at a price... more recoil, more powder, and more money. I still think it's a real wierd compairson... It's like asking which is better a Corvette or a Peterbilt??? I agree with TAM. If you had asked .300 RUM vs .300 WBY or 7MM Mag, something like that it would be more along the expected. .300 RUM is a hard hitting, hard kicking, wind-bucking, powder burning round. Some are very accurate, but others are very picky when it comes to matching the gun to all aspects of the cartridge. .257 Wby is a sweet, fast, light and accurate but more prone to wind drift and far less downrange energy. If I were going to compare those two I'd say a different analogy would be, "Should I buy a Dodge Mega Cab Diesel, or a Toyota Tacoma?"? Both are very good - depending on what you need. There are things the Tacoma won't do, but there are things the Dodge is way overkill for. Honestly, if a buddy of mine came up to me and said, which of these two should I choose, I'd say neither. Go with a .270 WSM, maybe 7MM mag or 7MM-08. You want speed, flatter trajectory, I'm guessing a case smaller than a gunpowder filled hotdog, maybe something you can shoot more than 4 times in a day without visiting your dentist to have your crowns all replaced...There are lots of good bullets out there right "in the middle" that do almost everything very well. But, if I *had* to choose between the two you asked about, it would be the .257 Wby. because I'd rather see you shoot a gun you can learn to shoot accurately without developing a flinch. An accurate shot from that gun can take down any big game you're likely to hunt (as others have pointed out, this was Roy Weatherby's favorite round - even for some tough African game). I have nothing against the big mags, but I will say, not just everyone can go out and make them shoot well. Many guys develop a flinch from the recoil, others are unwilling or unable to find a load that shoots well for them - lots of factors push experienced shooters away from the big 300 mags back to more mainstream loads that may not look as good on paper (ballistics charts) but do way better for them on other paper (a target at 300 - 500 yards).

Hey TJ, better late than never, right? Happy belated birthday. Sorry I missed you last year at the Sunrise shoot.

I always like it when I get checked. Sometimes, maybe more than I like to admit, you have to flag them down. Once you talk with them, they usually do the "check". I've been hunting in AZ for decades now, most of the time, if you actually encounter an AZGF official, they are very busy, and can tell right away if you are following the rules or not. I ran into a "unit manager" for 24A a while back, maybe 5+ years. She was patrolling the horseshoe-bend area between Globe and the Salt. Her truck was full of white bags filled with beer cans. I always look back on that time when GMU were so involved. I actually felt bad that she was out there picking up after drunk kids just to be sure that the private areas would still be accessible to the rest of us. If you don't like G&F policies, join the club, but get to know the guys and gals actually charged with monitoring the activities in the units you hunt. They're good folks, just like us, that want to see the best, but they have to deal with all kinds of crap in their day-to-day routine. I fully support the people in AZ G&F that are out there checking tags, fighting poachers, just doing a thankless, low-paying job that they hope will bring sportsmen and the state a little closer to finally figuring out how to manage this awesome country we all love to hunt.

That is a gorgeous buck! Congrats - he looks fantastic.

Wow - huge congrats to those who drew awesome tags! EBB, can't wait to see the trophy pix posted here!

My boys got skunked this year - no deer, no elk. I got a bonus point.

Here's a Navajo Muley that I took one week later with a muzzy. 55 yard shot bedded, and he sprayed blood all over the place before he expired just 55 yards later...

Here's a coues buck shot with Muzzy 100s. He literally went 10-15 steps and fell over dead.

Muzzy 100 Grain first choice - I've shot a lot of heads, but these are very reliable - they kill what they hit and give you plenty of blood to follow, but from what I've seen, you usually don't have to blood trail long with Muzzys. Slick Tricks are very good, Magnus Stingers and Snuffers, G5 Strikers - so many good heads to choose from, a good hit from any of them will give you the reslults you are after.

Great pictures! I love the spotted fawns. That bull has some darn nice 3rds - hopefully he'll top out to match.