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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
Eastern Montana is a long way from Durham, CA, but a good friend and I made the 18+ hour trek anyway. Heck, diesel is cheap right? We made Bozeman the first night after 14 hrs or so on the road. Dropped by and met up with the 24hcf's own 6mmWasp on Monday mid morning. Great guy and I wish we'd have had a longer visit, but the Siren song of the P-dogs was a-calling! The ranch where we had access is simply gigantic. My buddy had been there before but it had been several years. We shot prairie dogs the first afternoon, but it was clear we'd have to do some exploring for better opportunities, presumably further out from the easier access areas that had been shot a bunch. Tuesday morning was spent trying to explore a few areas further out but was a bust for the most part as the dogs were extremely wary and went down as soon as we would get set up. We were a little frustrated but kept wandering around and ended up getting into them pretty thick on BLM land of all places. As the week progressed, it became clear that the public land hadn't been shot as much and held more dogs. We continued to explore new places in the mornings and shoot BLM in the afternoon. Shots were 200-350 at first, but we started setting up further out and taking longer shots in order to not spook the hole. We both carried 3 rifles and approx 400 rounds for each. I took the following rifles. McWalnut .223AI Bighorn Origin Bartlein 2b 1-8" twist @ 21" McM Hunter stock - Stealth M5 DBM 10x SWFA MQ TT diamond 75 ELD's at 3,090 fps M70 Coyote .223AI Brux #6 1-7" @ 23" 10x SWFA MQ 40 Vmax Fire Forming Rem brass @ 3,700 fps CHONK! .223AI Bighorn Origin Mullerworks MTU 1-8" @ 21" KRG Bravo Bushnell 4.5-18x LRHS2 TT Diamond 40 Vmax Fire Forming Rem brass @ 3,700 fps 20 Practical 21" Shilen Bighorn TL3 McM A5 - Stealth M5 DBM Vortex Razor Gen2 4.5-27x56 w EBR-2c reticle TT Diamond 32 Vmax @ 4,100 fps At the end of the week, I shot approximately 1,100 rounds over 3.5 days. I ended up shooting the CHONK! build the most at 600+ rounds. The LRHS2 is a great scope and with the great weather, I was able to make use of the higher power available. This is not something that happens often as the mirage always seems to screw with you, but with the awesome weather we had, it wasn't an issue at all to have it set on 16 power. Not crazy about the "donut of death" for wind holds at longer distances as it gets in the way, but dialing eliminated that issue. The KRG Bravo is great ergonomically and the tapered buttstock allows elevation changes rather easily. The M5 DBM also came in handy as the shooting was fast. 10 round MDT mags kept the bbl warm. Cleaned the Mullerworks out after 500 rounds just because. A few patches with Wipe Out Patch out and an over night soak and she was bare. The McWalnut build with 75's was the long range poodle popper when the wind came up on Weds. Those 75 ELD's sure make a great sound when impacting the bigger dogs and goo flinging is rather impressive as well when compared to the much smaller gophers we shoot up in the North Eastern part of CA. We had a really great time with my Sig Kilo 3000's paired to a Kestrel with Applied Ballistics. One guy would spot the P-dog, walk the shooter into it, range and give dope. The shooter would dial and guess wind. Made for some great laughs as dogs were falling over at 500+. The 20 Practical was rather underwhelming for me. The McM A5 is awesome from prone, but dang it if I don't hate it from a bench. It's heavy and cumbersome and the butt hook doesn't lend itself to elevation adjustments. The dang thing wouldn't fit in the Bog Pod deathgrip Tripod either which is rather lame. The Vortex Razor has a bunch going for it as far as long range capability but the reticle is REALLY busy, and trying to find a P-dog amongst the cactus when looking through all the clutter made it way too easy to switch to another rifle. My old standby M70 Coyote with its new Brux did its usual thing with 40's buzzing 3,700 fps. The 1 pound trigger and BDL style floor plate sure leave something to be desired compared to the TT Diamond and M5 DBM of CHONK!, but the smooth action and overall familiarity of the old girl kinda makes up for any clunkiness.
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 32,130
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 32,130 |
If you put Taco Bell sauce in your ramen noodles it tastes just like poverty
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 6,368
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 6,368 |
Nice photos and write-up. After shooting gophers the PD's seem almost gigantic don't they. I generally have a couple of thousand gophers down by the time we go to PD camp the first part of June. When I first start shooting the PD's my thoughts are "these things are so big that I should never miss one" - but we all know how that works out. Glad you had a great time - I feel sorry for folks who don't have gophers and PD's to shoot. drover
223 Rem, my favorite cartridge - you can't argue with truckloads of dead PD's and gophers.
24hourcampfire.com - The site where there is a problem for every solution.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
There were a bunch of pups out so when you saw a big one, it looked like Godzilla!
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300 |
Very cool! LOVE Hi-volume shoots!
"...the left considers you vermin, and they'll kill you given the chance..." Bristoe
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
I've had some high volume shoots that were WAY higher volume, but none as satisfying in regards to body mass and carnage!
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 5,819
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 5,819 |
It was a pleasure meeting you and Sol. Glad you had a good shoot, and thanks for the ammons!
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Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 8,283
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 8,283 |
gets me excited to go back out there too shoot some more sun dogs ! nice pictures,Pete53
LIFE NRA , we vote Red up here, Norseman
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
It was a pleasure meeting you and Sol. Glad you had a good shoot, and thanks for the ammons! Likewise Mike!
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 24,520
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 24,520 |
So that was you, just east of us making all that noise?
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 15,651
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 15,651 |
NRA Life,Endowment,Patron or Benefactor since '72.
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Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 1,735
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 1,735 |
Sounds great, we’re heading out mid June. I think I have enough ammo ready. This could be the last year with the usual gang, one’s off to the military in August.
Seems like fuel prices are still trending up some, even eating from the Walmart deli won’t be enough to offset the $$. Oh well, when the weather & dogs cooperate, it’s more fun than deer or grouse hunting.
I like to be mobile, move around the prairie as things dictate, portable shooting setup.
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Joined: May 2011
Posts: 15,882
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 15,882 |
I'll be in NE Wyoming in July.
There are 2 rules to success:
1. Never tell everything that you know.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
Sounds great, we’re heading out mid June. I think I have enough ammo ready. This could be the last year with the usual gang, one’s off to the military in August.
Seems like fuel prices are still trending up some, even eating from the Walmart deli won’t be enough to offset the $$. Oh well, when the weather & dogs cooperate, it’s more fun than deer or grouse hunting.
I like to be mobile, move around the prairie as things dictate, portable shooting setup. A good varmint shoot is my fav hunting! I really like hunting birds, bucks and bulls, but whacking varmints is the ultimate! Hope you have a safe and memorable shoot with the usual gang sourdough!
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 23,506
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 23,506 |
Good stuff, Higgy! How did the new elbow shooting pad work out for you? I forgot mine at home when I left the house at 3:45AM to drive East for assassinating Belding ground squirrels. We had a couple days of just decent shooting on a property that had alfalfa that was a tad bit tall. Spent a lot of time on the bins looking for heads and shoulders in the food plot, then going to the 17 HMR for smacking them. The wind get’s sporty at 12-15 MPH when you’re slinging a 17 grain Vmax round. The best shots I made weren’t the farthest, which was 221 yards. It was the shots made between 150-170 yards in the wind. Fun stuff! The 3rd day we hit Squirrel Mecca on a 1000 acre property that hadn’t been shot much and the ground cover was thin for about 350 yards around the edges of the taller alfalfa crop in the middle. We sat in one spot for 5 hours and just blazed ground squirrels with HMR’s out to 185 yards. The Mecca Property had mostly mature sage rats. The largest ones were fat and of similar size to a medium Pdog. When I would smack a big one, it was impossible to get that 3’ to 4’ foot Air Jordan effect with just an HMR. It was more like a ‘Thud’ with a gut bomb, but only a 1’ft lift off. Not anything spectacular. This trip was more of an exploration and scouting trip to meet some new ranch owners and find good shooting properties. I came well prepared to negotiate shooting terms with a few bottles of booze and a cooler full of elk summer sausage and pepperoni as goodwill offerings. I went home without the booze and my cooler empty. Mission accomplished. On my return hunt in a few weeks. I’ll only bring one rimfire, a 17 WSM, the rest will be centerfire rifles. That’ll make them fat ground squirrels fly. The tools - Zeiss Victory RF 10x42 Cooper LVT 17 HMR sighted in with a 1.5” high @ 100 on a Vortex Diamondback 4-16x42. ‘Boo the scope’ Ruger Precision 17 HMR zero’d with the same 1.5” high on a Leupold VX3 4.5-14x40. ‘More scope Booing’ The shooting grounds Target carnage - 🦫
Curiosity Killed the Cat & The Prairie Dog “Molon Labe”
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Joined: May 2011
Posts: 15,882
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 15,882 |
I'm not booing any of your scopes.
There are 2 rules to success:
1. Never tell everything that you know.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306
Campfire Ranger
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OP
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 17,306 |
Nice Beave!
Those times when you don't have to move because the shooting is so good are THE best!
It's amazing you killed any though, what with your choice of scopes and aiming oil! LOL
Screw you! I'm voting for Trump again!
Ecc 10:2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but that of a fool to the 24HCF.
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Joined: Nov 2021
Posts: 177
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Nov 2021
Posts: 177 |
Always wanted to do a p dog shoot. Nice write up
Let him grow, Shoot a doe !
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Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 1,036
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 1,036 |
I'll be in NE Wyoming in July. OSU, the wife and I just got back Sat. (yesterday) from NE Wyoming, Newcastle area. We had a fairly good week, weather kept us in the motel for 1.5 days. Not sure of what's normal but we did see a ton of speed goats.
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