Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Pronghorns....

Great buck! What part of the state were you hunting?

Well done rosco! I miss not hunting pronghorns this year, but don't miss the greasewood. I hate that stuff.

thanks pointer. That’s exactly what I was thinking too. “Oh great he’s living in the damn greasers”! But it kept him safe for a few days while I looked around.. so I guess they are a good thing sometimes? 😂

No greasewood here. They hide in the mule deer.....

Where do the mule deer hide?

Got my 1st Antelope of 2018 today. Smallish buck.

Use the old 1903 Mannlicher carbine. 6.5X54 M/S. 160 grain round Nose Sierra bullet 2200 FPS.
Shot was 177 yards. He is in a gully (as you can see from the pic) He stuck up his head and saw me before I got as close as I wanted to, but I was solid for the shot, so I took it. Used the 200 yard blade on the rear sight.. Broadside shot. Hit the neck and the bullet blew out in 3 holes. One big one at the front of the neck (so part of the blast turned 90 degrees) one about the size of a 9MM pistol bullet hole on the other side, and about 1" away was a hole about the size of a 50 cent piece. You can see the entry hole and the hole that blew out the front in one of the pics. Sierras do strange things at times. But it was still a bang/flop so I am happy. But I think I'll use PPU 156 grain RN or Hornady 160 grain RN next time. My rifle is of the type that will only feed RN bullets so my choices are limited.
I have 2 more tags and my wife has one to fill too. We'll go back out tomorrow.
2018 #1 Ant. Buck 2 by Steve Zihn, on Flickr
2018 #1 Ant. Buck by Steve Zihn, on Flickr

Well done congratulations szihn...

Congratulations. Nice antelope and a grand old rifle.

Grand old rifle....a classic. I hope you get your newly built Enfield 303. sporters out for a hunt this year.

Doc

I may do just that next Doc.
I have it out and cleaned, so I am ready to get some blood on that one too. Also the new (to me) 9.3X57 Husky. I made a new stock for it because I could no stand to cut off the original, and it seems to have been made for a 7 foot tall Swede. My new one fits me a lot better.

Oh,,,,,,,,,so many guns and so little time to use them. I need about 100 more years to test all the guns and different bullets I would like to use.

now that's old school! very cool!

Might be the only redeeming quality for greasewood.

Wife Anna got her buck on Friday.
30-06 I made for her on a Mauser. Shot was a bit far back but put the speed-goat down. It moved about 15 yards after the hit. She used a 165 grain Hornady Inner Lock bullet which shoots very well in her Mauser. 2825 FPS load with 4350 powder. I substitute a 165 InnerBond for elk and leave the zero alone. Both loads shoot to the same point of impact right at 1 MOA for accuracy, and that set of ballistics covers every mission she want to tackle from coyotes to moose.

She did this all herself. I was not with her when she fired. Killed, dragged, gutted, skinned and field butchered it all herself. She's learning and learning fast. She does well. 7 years ago she didn't even own a gun, not she is a dedicated hunter and has several rifles, a shotguna dn several handguns.
Coming form a "liberal" up-bringing, she has sure made a lot of progress. Very right-wing on most issues now. Funny how facts and truth can open people's eyes and those that don't see the truth are only that way because they refuse to see the truth, Not because it's hard to see. It's hard to miss, but some of the most evil ones will try as hard as they need to.

Picture0922180833_1 by Steve Zihn, on Flickr

So now I have 5 days to work in my shop before my friends get here and I go with them after more antelope, deer and elk. I am Anna also have more tags to fill and I am going to help several friends this year too, so I should be busy for the next 6 weeks or so.

Dang it. Now she has to warsh the blood outta the kids sled.....

Yeah, true ---------------- but it washes.

SZIHN,

Congrat's to Anna. Fine job!!

SZIHN,

Congrat's to you both.....

OUTSTANDING! Congratulations

Well, it's been since last year but the little Mannlicher scored for me again on Friday the 16th of August, 2019.

Doe antelope tag. I spotted a heard of them at about 1/2 mile and worked my way up to them about 300 yards off. When they were that close I went to my hands and knees. I worked up to about 150 yards and got in front of the heard as they were slowly moving toward an alfalfa field below me about 1/4 mile.
I then went to my belly and as I worked up to a low hump in the ground that formed the side of the gully the antelope were coming down. A few of them came right up to the brow of the hump and one stuck her head over it and saw me but didn't know what I was. She snorted her little reedy bark. I was set for a prone shot and I had only her head and neck in sight over the crest, but at only 20 yards it was more then enough target.

So the little 6.5 scores again. I butcher tomorrow.
load was 39 grains of 4350 and the PPU 156 grain soft point. PPU brass and CCI primer.

That PPU bullet is exceptionally accurate in this barrel, which I made from a Green Mountain blank. It's a 1-8" twist and at 107 yards it is more accurate then I dare write about --- because no one would believe me.
But I am safe to say it shoots VERY well, and I am not the marksman I once was due to my eyesight being less then 1/2 of what it was a few years ago.

This bullet hit her sightly off center of the neck as she faced me directly. It exited at the bottom of the back of the neck about 2" in front of the shoulder hump of the spine. Not very far through, (maybe 10")but the bullet hit 3 vertebra and shattered them, and then curved upwards a slight bit and blew out the top center of her neck where it meets the back. I was happy I missed all the shoulder loins.

This is the only kill I have made with a PPU bullet, and a doe antelope is not a "hard test" for a bullet, but it seemed to hold together better then the Sierra I killed the last one with. I have shot the Hornady 160s, the Sierra 160s (no longer made) and this PPU 156 bullet and so far, the PPU is the most accurate, but all 3 shoot well and I would not hesitate to use any of them on antelope of deer. For elk I would say the PPU may be a bit better then the Sierra. The sierra I killed last years buck with came apart when it hit the neck higher where the bones were smaller. 2 kills are not a definitive teat, but so far that what I have seen.
no picture. I didn't have a camera with me this time. The doe was 112 pounds dressed.

My next PPU test I hope is from a 285 Grain 9.3MM that I will shoot from my 9.3X57 Husqvarna M46. May be a deer, antelope or even an elk. We'll just have to see.

Excellent!