Trad Gang

Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: LookMomNoSights on May 12, 2010, 09:46:00 PM

Title: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: LookMomNoSights on May 12, 2010, 09:46:00 PM
Been seeing alot of groundhogs ....out in the grass here and there....eating dandelions and whatever else they eat.  Seen a few Id really like to get rid of.   Never put an arrow to one before though.   There are a couple spots where I can use some thick cover and slither within 20 yards or so.  So I have to ask - My Woodsmans or my ACE hex blunts? What say you?  :campfire:
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Guru on May 12, 2010, 09:53:00 PM
Broadheads!!!  Don't even consider blunts, 'chucks are one tough little critter!  Bh's give the best chance to kill them without them making it back to their holes.

Good luck!
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: BCWV on May 12, 2010, 09:53:00 PM
Woodsmans. Whistlepigs are tough. Broadheads for sure. I like hunting them almost as much as big game.
Good luck.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: caleb7mm on May 12, 2010, 10:18:00 PM
X2 on the above. and post up your after shot pictures!!  :)
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: bmfer on May 12, 2010, 10:38:00 PM
Groundhogs can can be pretty tough, gotta have a broadhead. Lots of fun to hunt, I lose arrows though.   :rolleyes:
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Red Beastmaster on May 12, 2010, 10:42:00 PM
Use any cheap broadhead you don't mind losing down the hole. Most G-hogs will take the arrow with them. You will never see your Woodsman again unless you get a pass thru or it dies above ground.

I pick up my groundhog heads at swap meets. I'd never use an expensive broadhead.

Blunts just pi$$ them off.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: reddogge on May 12, 2010, 11:05:00 PM
They are very tough critters and take a ton of killing.  Also a tough target at 20 yards.  You have a vital the size of an tangerine.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Gunnar Mullins on May 12, 2010, 11:47:00 PM
Id use a cheap broadhead like everyone else has said
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Shinken on May 13, 2010, 12:13:00 AM
To put a groundhog down ethically with a clean kill using stick and string takes a great shot and I would recommend the same terminal equipment that you would use for any big game - a razor sharp broadhead - that is well placed.

Shoot straight, Shinken
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: wollelybugger on May 13, 2010, 05:11:00 AM
Broadheads, the last time I shot a groundhog with a regular arrow it took five arrows to dispatch. Never again.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: ishoot4thrills on May 13, 2010, 05:57:00 AM
You got your work cut out for ya when it comes to arrowing a groundhog with trad. If it were me, I would find an active den and play the waiting game and hide in some thick stuff about 15 yards away and wait for him to come out.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: smokin joe on May 13, 2010, 07:39:00 AM
Use your deer set up with sharp broadheads. You will have fun. They are tough to get close to. Setting up near an active den is good...better if you have a tree stand near an active den.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Ryan Rothhaar on May 13, 2010, 08:12:00 AM
I used to be pretty hard on the local groundhogs back in Ohio - I don't have enough around where I live to hunt them now and I really miss that.  They are great training for becoming a good woodsman and hunter.  I always said if they weighed 100 lbs they'd be able to fight a grizzly bear - like the other guys said, use your deer setup for 'chucks.

The last year I seriously hunted them in Ohio I killed an even 50 with my recurve, that was pretty good in an area that a serious rifle hunter might get 100 in a year with a 22-250.

My Dad always said if he was King of the World an aspiring deer hunter would have to bring him 20 tails from bowkilled groundhogs - then he'd be ready to start hunting deer.

Ryan
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Gila on May 13, 2010, 08:44:00 AM
Woodchucks are fun to hunt, but amazingly tough for their size. They have an excellent sense of smell and must be approach with stealth. Like mentioned in previous post, use sharp broadheads that you are willing to lose, because even a fatally hit "chuck" will take your arrow down the hole. Shoot straight. Bruce
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: 59Alaskan on May 13, 2010, 08:46:00 AM
How do they taste?
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Doc Nock on May 13, 2010, 08:57:00 AM
C24,

I've eaten up to big old sows and they were fine. There are tricks. Under each of 4 legs there is some gnarly grey "fatty" looking stuff... they're some sort of "gland" and STINK! There are 2 more between the shoulder blades.

One I shot as a kid weighed 26# on grandma's bathroom scale...fwtw. I took off 5 qt pail of fat skinnin it. I'm told the fat renders down wonderfully...and smells just like Vit E! Might be loaded with Vit E since they're Vegans.

We par-boiled in onion and salt/pepper and then breaded and baked in oven...I've fried, too, and done up other ways. The youn'uns being kicked outa the hole later in the summer are DELICIOUS!

I use old Savora replaceable blade heads. I sharpen the blades with a KME B-head sharpener and as stated, often loose them or have them damaged beyond use. They weren't excellent to start, but are sharp!

Only one I ever saw killed w/ a blunt was a compound guy hit one in the eye with a muzzy blunt from an 80# bow! Wouldn't count on that though! Broadheads! Sharp ones!
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Bluehawk on May 13, 2010, 09:24:00 AM
I use MA3s for Ground hogs very tough and easy to sharpen.      YOUNG ground hogs taste great boned and put on shish-ka-bobs   jsut like real good pork
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: NJWoodsman on May 13, 2010, 10:34:00 AM
Towards the end of deer season last year I was wearing a leafy suit walking down a path in the woods. I saw a woodchuck scooting right towards me, so I stepped behind a sapling and he scurried right past me. I shot him with a Magnus MAII quartering away at 8 yards First shot, just under the armpit, pinned him down. Second shot did the trick, but he just about gnawed through my wood arrow first.

I made a delicious beef-style stew from the ribs & legs after soaking the meat in salt water for a couple of days.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: PSUBowhunter on May 13, 2010, 10:40:00 AM
Dont even consider blunts or field points. Groundhogs are crazy tough and will quickly destroy an arrow. I use some older steelforce heads that I have.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: shedhunter on May 13, 2010, 10:42:00 AM
160 snuffers!!!!!  good medicine! ron
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: lil jake on May 13, 2010, 12:56:00 PM
ive shot them and caught one by the tail in a snare trap. i killed it with an axe.  :knothead:  i took it back to the house... skinned it... and my dad thru it in the smoker... it was awesome.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Chris Shelton on May 13, 2010, 01:20:00 PM
I consider myself the local groundhog expert around here.  I had to stop trapping them because I was doing too good, I have to have something to keep me busy in the summer, and if I got rid of them all, that wouldnt be any fun.  Ive killed 2 with my 22lr at 300 yards.  Took one down with a judo to the skull, he died instantly.  However with that said I would probably not try it again.  I often have thunderbolts 100 grains with a muzzy grasshopper behind the shaft, that way if I miss I wont loose the arrow, and that seems to work fine, still good penetration.  If you penetrate 2 inches that would be like a foot into a deer.  It will do damage.  I personally like to use old 2 blade magnus stingers, they zip right through them with my 55# take down.  If they are really a problem you should consider other methods.  Such as trapping, or a rifle.  But if there is no rush or anything to get rid of them, they will definatly give you a run for your money:)
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Chris Shelton on May 13, 2010, 01:22:00 PM
p.s the small ones are tasty, and if you can get a bigger one skinned then that meat is fine too.  But their skin can be as thick if not thicker than deer hide!!!
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Red Beastmaster on May 13, 2010, 01:40:00 PM
Sometimes my initial shot pins them against the side of the hole or they just need a finishing shot. In that case I'll use a steel blunt to the head from close range. Otherwise it won't be long until they gnawl or break your first arrow.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Uncle Buck on May 13, 2010, 02:31:00 PM
they can be good eating. My grandfather loved to cook ones taken in alfalfa fields. toss them in a crock pot along with the ususal vegatables. take off the excess fat and the glands
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: ISP 5353 on May 13, 2010, 03:55:00 PM
A sharp broadhead or a .44 SWC.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: TooManyHobbies on May 13, 2010, 03:59:00 PM
I've only shot one, and a field point wasn't even close to being enough. I almost got him when the arrow got snagged going into the hole, but it slipped out and chucky was gone.
broadheads only.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: LookMomNoSights on May 13, 2010, 05:45:00 PM
Hmmmm.   I have some old Zwickey Eskimos Id chance.  How do they taste?  Never heard of anyone eating the destructive little suckers.... and figured myself they would taste something like coyote?!  Salt and pepper or not,  the one (or more?) that is dangerously close to my septic better know how to limbo and real fast.  Would POC hold up on my rotisserie?  :jumper:
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Don Stokes on May 13, 2010, 06:15:00 PM
The only one I've shot waddled under my deer stand and took two big broadheads in the vitals to kill, and he chewed up the arrows anyhow. I was planning to eat him until I smelled him. No thanks! Must have been a rank old boar.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: LookMomNoSights on May 13, 2010, 07:57:00 PM
Seems they chew through arrows too huh.  Maybe I'll make up a half dozen 2117's ....see if they chew through that!
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: BOWMARKS on May 13, 2010, 08:19:00 PM
Be carefull as said one tough critter!! I once shot one with a 357 mag. hit it right center in the chest it came after me like a wild bull. I never backed up so quickly and pulling the trigger so fast in my life. It took two more hits to stop it! Whew what a rush I grew very carefull after that.  :scared:    :scared:
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Friend on May 13, 2010, 09:29:00 PM
KY goundcarp do not like large snuffers.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Conan 1883 on May 13, 2010, 10:57:00 PM
Here's a couple pics of what a 125 grain Snuffer out a 47# Firefly will do when you're bored during bow season and know that these little guys are taking a toll on a farmer's plot of beans during the summer months!
(http://i608.photobucket.com/albums/tt161/Conan_1883/0205101019.jpg) (http://i608.photobucket.com/albums/tt161/Conan_1883/0205101020.jpg)
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: LookMomNoSights on May 14, 2010, 06:46:00 AM
Hey thanks a bunch for all the info!  Seems people like to shoot these little guys . . . and I didnt think Id get much response with the thread!  Thanks for the pics too!  Im hoping to be posting some myself after this weekend,  we'll see!  Ive heard of a whistle made for calling these guys too buy the way.  Its supposed to bring them right out of the hole and keep their attention?  Anyone ever use one?  Heard its tricky though,  as some whistles say "Hey come check this out!"  and other pitches say "Keep down ....he's on the field edge with his recurve and a quiver full of razor sharp Zwickeys!"  :D
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Doc Nock on May 14, 2010, 07:46:00 AM
Some guy in PA made a brass call that sounded like a kid's plastic toy bird whistle with a plunger that goes in and out. I could never quite get the hang of it or the run of notes.

I did learn after listening to their website sound bite (nope, don't have name of product or website anymore)that some of the sounds I heard out in the field I thought were birds were really groundhogs.  Interesting stuff...

In fencerows, it's hard to see them and not hard for them to see you. I'm sure it was operator error...but I found more success just sneaking along downwind of treelines, hedgerows, and brush lines... close enounters of the 3rd kind!
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: tkytrac on May 14, 2010, 08:15:00 AM
Some good info here.  Groundhogs are indeed tough.  I have had them charge me just walking near their dens.  Taken them w/ all manor of weapons.  A sharp broadhead w/ some older aluminum arrows I don't mind losing is what I use.  A hit critter isn't able to shred it as fast as cedar and if he makes it to the hole, a bent or lost shaft is going to be the result.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: FlintRiverKen on May 14, 2010, 08:26:00 AM
Here in N AL we have a few whistle pigs and we're seeing more around our homesite on the mtnside. Still trying to pattern them- you go a long time without seeing any, then they're everywhere. Wanting to slow grill one with lots of hickory.

-from Wikip ____________
In most areas, groundhogs hibernate from October to March or April, but in more temperate areas, they may hibernate as little as 3 months. To survive the winter, they are at their maximum weight shortly before entering hibernation.

As birth of the young approaches in April or May, the male leaves the den. One litter is produced annually, usually containing 2–6 blind, hairless and helpless young. Young groundhogs are weaned and ready to seek their own dens at five to six weeks of age.
_____________________________

I don't want to harvest a sow that's still suckling piglets so it looks like late summer/early fall is best time to try for some.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: DW Dyer on May 14, 2010, 03:31:00 PM
I didn't have any luck with turkeys the other day, but managed to take a woodchuck at about ten yards. They are tough, but the broadhead I was using did the trick.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: hawkeye n pa on May 14, 2010, 04:26:00 PM
They are edible.  And have done so.

Bowhunting groundhogs is a good testing place for new heads you might want to big game hunt with.  Other than that sharpen up the cheap and used broadheads.  I use pdf? weight so they are all the same.
Title: Re: GROUNDHOGS!
Post by: Onions on May 14, 2010, 09:00:00 PM
I made the mistake of shooting one with a Hex Blunt. The arrow bounced right off. The 'chuck just stood there, like nothing happened!
I then put a WW right through him.
Stick with broadheads! They are tough critters.

chris <><