Trad Gang
Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: BAK on February 17, 2021, 11:57:39 AM
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Let me preface this by saying there is no correct answer. I shot this heavy bodied buck last Oct. He boned out 109 pounds of meat. I consider him a trophy. The antler was not deformed, it was snapped off. The question is would you have taken him? Why or why not?
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Heck yeah. Old buck with good mass gets shot if I have the opportunity.
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If I had a good ethical shot, I would certainly have taken it! Everyone loves a good typical rack, but I’ve always been attracted to the funkier stuff myself.
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For me it would depend on the method of hunting. Trad bow or flintlock, YES. Rifle, no. JMO
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I would have taken the first clean shot he presented me and never given it a second thought.
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Given an ethical shot, in a heartbeat...
Congrats to you on a fine trophy!!!
Randy
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Cool Springer, interesting qualification. I can see your point.. :coffee:
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Absolutely! I've got a couple of racks very similar to yours (not quite as big). They are very unique and beautiful in an odd sort of way.
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I probably would shoot him. I like weird or unusual stuff when it comes to antlers.
Bisch
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Of cores...I eat meat :bigsmyl:
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In a word YES,when i hunt I'm shopping on the hoof. I've never seen a recipe for antlers?
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I would have unless his back straps were missing! Nice kill congrats
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I would take any deer that gave me the opportunity. :readit:
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Yep.
Congrats on a great deer. :thumbsup:
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I have, and will continue to do so. Great buck!
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Since it was Oct. and it takes me 2-3 years to draw a tag I'd so no. When I hunt Iowa I'm looking for a good experience and seeing multiple bucks over 125" to shoot. If this one was in late season then I might but I doubt it.
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Congrats on a great buck and I would consider him a trophy as well! That being said I probably would have tried to resist the urge to shoot and pass on him. In NE Iowa where you are only allowed one buck and you have the entire month of November to go that is bow only I would have tried to pass figuring I would probably see him again sometime during the rut. I love hunting Iowa during that third week of November. It gets crazy! Having a shot at a nice buck like that early in the season does present a dilemma. Do you shoot and end your season early or pass and take the chance you'll be kicking yourself at the end of the season with a smaller buck or an unfilled tag? But then again; shooting him frees up time to enjoy Iowa's pheasant season. Good call.
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Well actually Flingblade, I had multiple tags. A state wide buck tag, a land owner tenant tag, and then doe tags. Had I only had the one tag however I think I'd still have taken the shot as having a perfect trophy is not my top priority. I respect those who do hold that position. For me I seldom ever will shoot a doe, and I do not like to shoot immature bucks under three years old. JMHO :thumbsup:
As I said, I really see no correct answer, just how folks view their choice.
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I've never left an Iowa doe tag unfilled, usually fill it in Oct. I have left buck tags unfilled.
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With multiple tags I would have dropped the string for sure. I just hate to see the season end so I usually hold on to my last tag longer than I should. I shoot does as well though but my family really likes venison. We usually eat two or three deer per year. Just curious; was his left side broke off or did it grow that way?
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Yup !!!!
Took a four by spike Mule Deer off of, of all places, Santa Catalina Island back in the '80s. It was a trophy then and still is.
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Heck yes. I think that unusual antlers are very cool.
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It was a broken antler, he'd already been fighting. And I did get very fussy with the 2nd tag and ended up not filling it. Passed on a number of small 4 and 6 pointers after that one. :dunno:
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No, I wouldn't have killed him broken off, just me. I dont care about score but I give broken up bucks a pass. I do have one back of the house here that I've been watching for 2 years, he's a big 4 pt on one side, really messed up on the other. At 3 1/2 yrs old he was a 4xspike and this year at 4 1/2 he had big "Y" on the bad side with a cluster of small points at the base and still a big typical 4 on the other. If I get a chance next year I'll kill him as a 5 1/2 yr old, he'd be a cool trophy.
R
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Had been holding out for a goodin for quite some time. After the 489th hunt, without loosing an arrow on a buck, I let one loose on a 5 1/2 yr...>200# buck.
Yes, I would have let an arrow fly this past season.
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Yep. Took one like that several years ago. Early season winding down and it was 4 below zero fahrenheit that morning. Time was running out. However, would have shot him earlier as well if i had the chance. Aged as a 4-plus-year-old buck. That's what I'm after.
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Can't eat the antlers and that's a really neat buck anyways. I would have shot him.
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Nope. I don't like shooting one with a broken tine much less a broken main beam unless it is a cull I know and want out of the gene pool.
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Ask me again again when hes standing in front of me. Usually my answer would be yes.
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I’m certain i would have, he had some age to him i think, and I don’t get very many opportunities at older deer where i hunt, I wouldn’t pass one because he was broken.
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I would have shot without hesitation!
Great deer!
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Yes, I'm grateful for any shot that presents itself. I went through a phase of trophy hunting, but finally woke up to the reason I was out there. Much more satisfying and less stress.
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Would I? No. Personal decision. I hunt SE Iowa and have the option to shoot lots of mature bucks.
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YES, he probably didn't have any teeth and the coyotes ain't picky.
:coffee: :campfire: :archer2:
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You bet’ cha, he was a beauty!!
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Yes Sir! A heavy bodied buck means more meat in the freezer :archer2:
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I have read in a number of sources that mismatched antler growth often results after a severe accident such as getting hit by a car. Sometimes, the next year, growth is again normal. To answer the question, YES.
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Yes, every year if possible, congrats!!
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Well it just depends on how many opportunities I would expect to get and time of season. I'm proud of every deer I get with a traditional bow and I really enjoy venison. Yes to me, he's a trophy.
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Yep. Wouldn't think twice about it. Unique antlers make me think even more about its life. And out here, on public land, you take what you can get because shot opportunities don't come every year.
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If it’s a natural freak rack yeah. If broken , nope. That’s just me and I’m fine with it if somebody else does.
We have plenty of deer and some good ones so count me as lucky I reckon.
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First off wonderful buck and congratulations. I always say shoot what brings you joy or sustenance for some. I know when it’s go time and brings me joy... I personally would likely let him go if broken that significantly in hopes of seeing him the following year in all his glory... A smaller broken tine is not limiting too me. A whole beam or a character/special key tine it’s a pass. A mature unique non typical likely gets the go signal. I passed this buck this year at 12 yards unawares as he just didn’t bring the obvious signal and he’s deformed not broken (I called him unicorn as that left beam/tine is easily 15” or so):
I was fortunate to shoot a wonderful ten point a few days later, but guess what? He had a broken brow tine that I did not see... He still brought me all the joy I need and that rack was on a 200+ pound Iowa 11:00am cruiser in 75 deg November 9th weather. I was ecstatic and praising God for the wonderful gift/blessing :goldtooth: :pray: :notworthy:
To each his own as they say... :campfire: :thumbsup:
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I'd pass.
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Here's the one I mentioned earlier - cant see a few small burr points on the "Y" side. These are from this fall, and he's a 4 1/2 yr old buck. Probably 240lbs on the hoof. Would you or wouldn't you? :goldtooth:
If I get a crack at him next year as a 5 1/2 yr old I will.
R
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I'd pass
Deno
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Ryan - Why, yes I would! :bigsmyl:
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Here is a unique buck my brother in law killed in archery this past season.
I'd seen him a bunch of times last year and got this picture of him from my tree. It's a little tough to see but the right side of his rack grew into a little 3 point crown.
My BIL had a bunch of pics of him on his trail cam over the summer and we were surprised to see how wild that right side grew.
He just got him back from the taxidermist last week.
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Yes sir! If I had a good opportunity I’d sling one at him. He got them back straps and what a thrill. I mostly hunt from the ground now so yeah, I’d try him
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Passing up 4 and 6 pointers sounds to me like you hunt horns not deer. AND most everybody else here hunts deer.
Can't eat horns no matter how or how long you cook'm.
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The question would have to include where you are hunting and the amount of hunting time you have in front of you that season.
Tedd
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Weelllll, if I shot the first buck I had a chance at , my season would be over way too soon most years . So I hunt deer and antlers , get to spend more time at it that way .
By the way I shot 2 does and no bucks last season and had a great time . Last doe was 2 days before season end, so I dragged it out about all I could.
Everyone has their own method to the madness. If you wanna shoot a spike go for it .
I say shoot what you like and like what you shoot.
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Yup . . . Dead!
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I'd have to see a picture of the whole buck not just a skull mount before I'd decide to shoot it or not. :dunno:
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If I lived in an area where I had multiple tags, I would entertain the idea of passing on him. However, as a North Dakotan that doesn't own enough land to apply for a yearly gratis tag, many years the only deer tag I get is my one bow tag (I know I could hunt out of state, but I'm not quite at that point in my hunting life). Add to that I'm in it mostly for the meat. So, if he was within 20 yards and slightly quartering away from me, I'd take the shot.
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Ty brings a great point- we have unlimited doe tags for I think $7 so wanting the meat isn’t the deal here. So depends on available tags , deer population , and how bad you want one... :thumbsup:
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I don't hunt deer for food, I hunt deer to hunt deer. If I figured deer hunting at cost per lb of meat taken home it would be more expensive than buying wagu, I'm sure. If I was required to shoot the first buck I had a chance to shoot, every year, I'd probably give up deer hunting because a 2 or 3 day season every year wouldn't be much fun. I bowhunt deer (and other big game) because I love to do it. I never worry about eating tag soup, that just means I had all the fun I could for that year. I work to make money to buy food, we also raise our own cattle and butcher one every couple of years for our own use. I hunt deer because I love to hunt deer. I eat the ones I shoot, but frankly I'm not interested in eating several deer a year. I pass up young bucks and focus on older ones because I like the challenge. I dont shoot broken up bucks because I dont. As the kids say "You do you!" :biglaugh:
R
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Some great incite into the "hunters" mind here. Great posts. Thanks :thumbsup:
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I would take that buck in a heart beat on the first day.
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To me its like killing an animal that would be a trophy next year but with a broken antler I normally dont shoot .
I have had several big bucks come by with broken tines and main beams and have passed .This year the biggest buck in the area had his main beam broke off in front of the g 2 he broke it in velvet early in the year according to my trail cameras. I had him at 12 yards in Dec but never shot he would have been a high 150" buck and only a 4x4 .He may still be there next year something to look forward too.
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Ryan Rothhaar X 2. :campfire:
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Here in NE Vermont and also in upper NH & Maine, weight is everything. With every deer I ever shot the first question anybody asked was “how big was he? (meaning how heavy after field dressing)
Big “horns” as they are call here, are a bonus. :dunno:
So yes I would have shot him. No question.
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Given the chance,shot it in a heartbeat!
Ernie
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That's the way it was here where I grew up here in Iowa Bob, but boy has that ever changed.
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Obviously all about personal preference. Some consider that a cool trophy.
Personally though, no - he would have gotten a pass. That being said, I hunt private land with a TON of does, so no question about not getting enough meat, and I feel confident that a good number of the bucks I let go have a chance to be around the following year.
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Ryan Rothhaar X 3.
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A buck like that one? Heck Yah! If it was a spike or fork with or without a busted of side, no. I'm not that desperate for meat. Besides, If I look around, I might find the broken off side and glue it back together. :thumbsup:
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No since it was snapped off but yes if it was genetics. Why? Because I can shoot unlimited does where I am for meat.