Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting I just don't care how old a buck is

No problem.

I don't pass up legal bucks. And I don't agree with the horn hunters forcing their agenda on everyone who just wants to eat some venison. I don't force you to shoot a spike-don't force me to pass one up and we'll get along just fine.

My state makes everybody pass up spikes and forkhorns.

Mike -

Arkansas Law says MUST HAVE 3 pts. on 1 side. So a 4-5 pt CAN be legal,
Also, "Button Bucks MUST be registered as ANTLERED--- in most zones.

Jerry

So, if you hunted where you saw a lot of deer you wouldnt want the challenge of taking one which had had the chance to reproduce? Ok.

I am interested in mature bucks, shooting a young buck doesn't do much for me. I've killed my fair share of young bucks years ago but my tastes have changed. I can kill 7 does a year, I usually only kill 2, and I usually kill a nice buck every other year or so. That gives us plenty of meat to eat and I enjoy letting little ones walk.



If shooting spikes makes you happy have at it, you're buying the license so you need to enjoy spending your money. A buddy of mine kills 2 small bucks a year and is shickled titless every year and I'm happy for him.

I agree hunting shows are a joke, for the most part. I watched one the other day and they had about 12 bucks in front of them that many people would consider the trophy of a lifetime, but they were looking for "something bigger." Many shows are filmed in locations, read 'game farms,' which most people will never have access to. It gives a false sense of reality to younger hunters.

And how 'bout hunter nowadays calling everything smaller a "cull buck." A guy at work who I've known for at least 7 years, and in that time I've never known him to kill a buck, shot a 1 antlered buck and told everybody he shot it because it needed to be "culled" from the herd. Yeah, pretty unnecessary to cull bucks from the National forest.

I hunt public land. I try and put myself in a position to kill big bucks and I do pass smaller bucks, sometimes. However, that is a personal choice and I encourage young, or new, hunters to shoot the first legal buck they see.

This year I shot a buck towards the end of season that I wouldn't have shot earlier. I'd actually already passed up several bucks slightly larger to include that one. However, after watching him through my $1700 binoculars, I looked down and realized that I have a $1500 rifle, in a $600 McMillan stock, topped with a $1500 scope, that I'd never killed a deer with. I ranged him at 237 yards, and made a perfect shot. There's a saying in the army, "train as you fight."

I'm a deer hunter. Sometimes I have to remind myself this is a hobby, and I'm just out to have fun.

If I remember right the Hanson buck was 4 1/2. Knowing how these celebrity hunters now like to only shoot 5 1/2's and up, I wonder how many of them would've been willing to pass on the Hanson buck and "give him another year"? LOL.

My local processor charger per deer, no per pound...so big is a better value. Just so happens that big deer frequently are older and have more headgear. Show me a doe equal to a 4.5 year old buck and I'll shoot her.

One of the funniest analogies to this topic.

When mule deer hunting above timberline. It usually involves 4 am wake up. 2.5 hour ride in the dark on mules. Tying them off at 8000 ft elevation. Then climbing 500 to 1000 vertical feet to get to the summit.

I hear it from my buddies and I think it my self " if I am gonna shoot one in this hell hole, it has got to be a whopper!"

Very counter intuitive........ a dink would be easier to get out. Heck you could pan fry a squirrel and call it good!

I will not shoot anything with spots, empty freezer or not, but it is my intention to fill the freezer. I use antlers for only 2 things, we screw 'em to the cabin walls as hanging hooks for all sort of things, and I supply antlers from time to time to a Indian knife maker for handles. Last delivery I traded a paper box load for a #100 anvil from the 1850-1870 era.
I have never had a mount made, nor would I waste the money. I haven't found a good recipe for antlers yet.

Side note: my father-in-law gave up hunting, when the lead of thier hunting party declared no one could shoot less than a 6 point. And no does until each had thier own buck. Pissed him off enough to hang up his hunting gear for all time. (Gifted and sold some of it to me)

Killing a deer 4.5 yrs and older gives me a sense of accomplishment, but is not how I judge the quality of the hunt. My hunting style has evolved to where I seek and peek hunt in the timber for the most part. The action can be fast and furious at times, but does offer the occasional time to attempt to judge an animal. In our area, the amount of horn that a deer can add between 3.5 and 5.5 years is incredible. I believe it more important to age a deer to get an understanding of the age structure of your herd, both bucks and does. How many of you check the teeth of your doe?

I seldom watch deer hunting shows any longer. They have changed the culture of deer hunting...excuse me, I think it is called "harvesting" these days. I thought we were deer hunters, not deer farmers. My opinion is not to tick anyone off, it is just my opinion...not saying I'm right or wrong. I enjoyed the days before leasing where I could walk the woods, find deer sign, and figure out how to kill him. Now, where I hunt you are not allowed to hunt anywhere except in your stands as you might be too close to another stand; even if you wanted to hunt on one of your shooting lanes but not "in" your stand.

But I stopped watching when scouting on the shows (and now by people everywhere, including my best friend) was done by trail cameras, pulling cards, and going home and putting them on a computer to see what deer was coming out where and when or for those who can get a signal now don't even have to go pull their cards from said camera, they can just sit in the warmth of their own home and figure out where they need to be at a certain time to kill a certain buck. The majority of our young people wouldn't know how to hunt the old way so if the state came in and outlawed corn, food plots, trail cameras, etc. I'm afraid many of them would not have a clue as to locate a good buck and kill him. Again, that is my opinion.

I hunt because I enjoy being in the outdoors. Don't use trail cameras so I don't have a clue what is going to come out or when or if. I still hate to hunt this way, but if my family and I are going to eat venison, I have to endure it.

I didn't read past your first post. But spikes are trash and need to be shot if you want better older bucks...

there are many hunters this day and age that assume just because they don't shoot a particular deer
that it will be alive year after year and forget to factor in natural death, or disease, or predators, or parasites,
or poachers, road kill, injuries, etc. etc.
of course, the particular deer may not have the genes to make a "trophy" rack, or the nutrition available to
grow one even with the right genetics to do so.

just me, i'd say hunt the way you want to and accord the next guy the same courtesy.

I hunt with my brother back in Ohio. The shotgun season is a week long. My nephews usually only take a day or two off work to hunt. We shoot the 1st legal deer we see----buck or doe.

I'll shoot a dink----How else do I have a chance to win ingwe's "Dink-a-thon"

When I'm hunting locally, its usually on my own place. If I or my kids don't shoot a buck the chances are good that he'll be around next year, or next week if someone changes changes their mind. Getting a decent buck isn't really much of a trick, and letting a really big young one go if he obviously has all sorts of growing potential isn't some great display of self restraint. Doing what you want is easy and what I want is an older heavy buck preferably with some character. That sort of sets the bar, because why shoot something elsewhere that I let go at home?

If someone else (or myself 30 years ago) wants to shoot a young deer, a small deer or the first deer they see what business is it of mine? Maybe they are lucky to get anything, or maybe they don't care. Still none of my business. Conversely; why should they care what I do, or hope to do?

Hunting shows are 100% infomercials.
Not a grain of information that isn't scripted with the sole intention of selling some product hawked by a sponsor.
Every gun is the best, every scent, call, camo, truck, knife, yada yada yada... Cutting edge , blah blah blah.... Bell and Howell tactical this and that.

I grew up hunting in a family that shot just about every single legal buck they saw. I'd have to say we had a pile of fun killing all of those deer and I still have a pile of small antlers from back then as well as many fond memories. A lot of those guys would pass up a pile of doe to shoot a 1.5yo fork horn and be elated about the "accomplishment." After 15-20 years or so of that style hunting, it started losing interest for me, so I started shooting does for meat early & late season and hunting the core of each season for older bucks. I do think that those early years and the enjoyment we had hunting "deer" instilled a fire in me for deer hunting in general as I still get really shook up even when shooting a doe. I've been around many hunters that don't get much excitement out of deer hunting and many of those hunters are really caught up in "score." It's much more fun sharing camp with those that get utterly thrilled out of any deer period regardless of antler size.

I do feel like the TV hunting takes away from the sport in many ways, especially for what some feel like are trophies based on antler size alone. When you've hunted in many states/areas, it's pretty easy to determine that "trophy" status is more about area than what a tape measure reveals. I've hunted in some places where an older deer may only score 100-110" yet they are of the same maturity as some of the TV show 160" plus type bucks and some guys consider the smaller bucks dinks just based on score. I can also bet good money that some of those smaller deer took a heck of a lot more effort and time than some of the unpressured giants you see on the TV.

TV style, trophy hunting isn't for me.

I've shot them, big & small, based solely on what I want !

The one common denominator in all my family's deer hunting, is that every deer we shoot is legal & will be processed, vacuum packaged & eaten by us.

I truly loath the trophy hunter that shoots a big deer in multiple states/provinces & supposedly "donates" the meat from their animal to "the needy" !

You shoot a deer, you should respect the resource & eat it.

YMMV