I've read - right on this forum - guys pimping for some deer hunting place....... "Most of the bucks are only gonna be in the 120 - 130 class...".

The truth is that a majority of Whitetail hunters will never kill a 120 net typical buck.

Now... that's MY opinion.

Yours?

Most of 'em around here don't let them live long enough to get to the 50" class...

Agreed. A 130 class typical is a pretty damned nice deer. Pope & Young minimum is 125, for reference, and that takes a VERY nice 8-pt to make it, or a solid, decent 10. Either way, it's going to have to be a mature buck of 3.5 or older, or a 2.5 year old with crazy genetics and great feed.

I've taken quite a few 130 pound deer.

You've taken quite a few 30 pound deer.

Hmmm don't know if this one makes the cut

I'd say he goes 130 pounds easy.

Shoot it.

I kill a Buck over 130 every year...We take about 5 bucks every year over 130 off our place in KY.. Last year we took 7 over 130...


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Does this one?

21-22" beams, 17-18" spread, G2s and G3s around 9" each, G4s at 6", brows at 4". Without going with mass at all, that's pushing the 120 class.

It's moot. He's been shot.

You are way under estimating all your measurements

Yes, I know.

But, you'll have to kill him to prove it. :evil:

Any more to me I could give a crap about score...If he looks good and gets the ticker pumping without shooters remorse after the fact I'm good

I hunted a deer hunting camp where they talked nothing else but what class a deer was to the point it was an obsession. Never went back.

Understood, but you're still saying I'm under-estimating. Go get him and prove it.

I hunt them like hell to take care of the wife's meat needs (no double entendre).

Then I can spend the rest of the season taking it easy - and maybe catching a few naps up against a log somewhere in a ravine...

Guess if I see a big 130 class deer in the process, I'll worry about it when it happens.

Guess it depends where you hunt. 130's and 140's pretty common in South Texas. Now if you say 150 that changes every thing. I'm not talking inside a high fence but large managed ranches. Hasbeen

That's why I specified "most hunters"."most" will never hunt S Tx.

Nothing horns me up like a nice 8 point. My biggest 8 to date is 130.


The 'least' impressive measurement in the B&C scoring is spread. It's just air.

Gene, I would guess you to be correct. Some hunters will kill several, but most will not. I only have a very few, and I have killed lots of deer in my lifetime. I will say that a big rack is not my priority, but I don't pass them up either. I shoot a lot with genetics that I don't like, for here, even though I know that I am wasting my time given the amount of land that I have control of. miles

makes it nicer for us who live down here.

Disagree. An otherwise great buck with a small spread is just a basket rack.

And?

If air impresses you great, but a 130 class 8 point with a 15" spread is more impressive to me than a 130 with a 24" spred

My opinion is the same as yours. I'm kinda put off by the whole "bass tournament" inspired trophy hunting. Any deer is a good deer, in my book. Nice to get a big one, but good to just get one . Pa. is a good example. Used to be, the average guy could just go out and shoot a deer. I do not like, or agree with, the antler restrictions. Joe Average has 2 or 3 days to hunt rifle season, and he should at least see something legal. Pa. has really shot themselves in the foot, regarding deer hunting. They got rid of a lot of their deer. Used to be THE deer hunting state. Not anymore. I've shot a few deer over 130, but I'm a meat hunter, and you don't eat antlers. Fun to chase a big one. I'll admit that...

I have been hunting and killing deer since I was 7, some 60+ years. I don't recall ever feeling the need to kill a deer based on it's antlers. Just don't care. I hunt for the enjoyment of the event, and for the meat. I have never mounted a head, and saved just one set of antlers from a deer I killed.
That's my opinion...............

i think curdog is right. In many parts of the country it seems they are hard to find and kill.

In other places they seem more abundant. Depends where you are and what hunting opportunities you have.

This one is pushing 130" I believe.

OBTW he will exceed 250lbs live weight as well.

Here you go Scott last years archery buck(sorry he was a 9pt)

One I'm also after this year the piebald

These are my "training aids" for helping young hunters estimate scores:



Their scores, Left to Right: 110, 115, 120. These are all net scores, but these three racks had few deductions.

Interestingly, the 110 on the left was a 4 1/2 year old deer, but would not be legal under the 13 inch rule in effect here now. He only has a 12 1/2" spread, but he is a nice trophy as s I'm concerned because he only drops 1/2 inch left to right.

Id say if you said 140 or 150 yes. 120 just isn't much, even in the hill country, took me about 10 years to do it with my bow up there where the deer are tiny.

Took me 2 deer to do it at home and have/could have shot 130 plus every year.

I"m not that serious of a hunter, iMHO, but I don't have a clue how that relates to "normal"

Currently 3 bucks at home over 140 gross, I could have shot any of them by now, but they can all benefit from another year... or more. Or at least breed some more does as I saw one after this morning again.

The major fault I see, if you have not shot one that size, is age. You typically won't get that at 1-2 years of age that a lot of bucks are shot at. It should be self serving, IE once I've shot one of X age/size I"m moving up... plenty of does and culls for meat, at least in the areas I hunt, even on public land.

There's never anything wrong with a big rack. Never.

shoot what ever makes you happy.

Most years it makes me happy to not shoot one.

Absolutely! My philosophy is simple.

Hunt until it's time to shoot, then shoot.

Sometimes it's on the first day and sometimes the time doesn't come at all.

It should be about the hunting experience, not just the antler score, and certainly not about competition.

I enjoy deer with big antlers, they are fun to look at fun to hunt, living in S.Tex. we see our share of nice deer in the 130 to 150 B&C class.

Here we control what is killed and what is not killed, based on age of the deer, we look at age first, antlers 2nd, we rarely kill a buck that's under 5 yr old unless he is a sure enough cull. most people seem to forget, deer have a whole new set of antlers every year, if the genetics for good antler growth is present antlers will be good with age.

Most of the deer I see pictures of are killed to young, and never get a chance to mature.

My advise would be, look at the whole deer, not just the head. spend some time learning to age deer and score deer on the hoof.

I posted some of our deer pic's here on deer hunting thread, (from the chopper), if you look at the pic's think age, and you will understand what I am talking about. Rio7

Bingo, we have a winner ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Perfectly stated.

That's been going on around here for 6 weeks or so...

I know. The season hasn't started yet. But, that makes no difference to the idiots around here.

Nearly every morning at daybreak I hear a single shot with a thud.

They aren't "sighting their rifles in" at the crack of dawn...

Sage advice here.
I messed this up last year by not getting a good look at the body, killing a young deer in an area where they can put some age on.

How do you tell?

Yes sir! Hard for me to get real excited about deer with all the good quail action of recent!

Barry,

The chest and shoulders of a fully mature buck can be so full and deep as to make the front legs look too short.

The stomach may sag slightly, with a waistline level with or lower than the chest. Eventually, an old buck shows a full-blown potbelly.

A mature buck’s legs appear either well proportioned to the body or a little short. Tarsal glands become very large and dark during the rut.

Full, rounded, even a little chunky, this buck’s face has a deep ­profile. A convex—or Roman—nose is common.

Much wider than the face, the neck here can seem almost unnaturally thick during the rut. At its base, it blends in seamlessly with the chest and shoulders.


So the key to shooting mature deer is to be able to hunt where there are mature deer. And that's difficult to do.

Nice bucks

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There are always exceptions, but deer like most any creature will start taking on certain visual characteristics as they age.
Looking a lot of pics of deer in general at known ages is a good place to start. The inter web is great tool to help imo.

Was shredding an olive farm yesterday, and jumped several coveys of Bob White's.

Then when I quit, I filled the tractor up, started cleaning the tractor and radiators with my gasoline air compressor... Must have been 1/2 hour at least of that loud SOB. Turned it off and there was a big old bobcat sitting there watching me.

Guess he was entertained. (And full of quail)

Yes! Very well stated!

This. In spades.

I agree, to an extent. What bothers me is the rancher wouldn't shoot/sell his bull every year.

Thats where I think some management should come into play.

But some don't care about managing, they just care about shooting.

And in some areas there isn't a chance to manage I keep hearing. What I do know is if you kill a young buck that can age and could pass along better genetics at 2.5, then its dead. If you let it walk, it at least has a chance.

I've never pulled the trigger on a deer I didn't want to kill.

The same can be said for does.

Some time ago, I hunted the Callaghan Ranch in south Texas four years in a row. There, as RIO7 writes, the buck had to be 5 1/2 years old minimum to be taken. I saw huge bucks, some that "looked" old but I never pulled the trigger. I was just never that confident in my ability to age a deer hundreds of yards away. It also caused me to lose interest in deer hunting in Texas. Just not what I grew up doing.

Good points guys. There is absolutely no substitute for age. Killing mature bucks is our goal, whether whitetails or muleys, trophies or culls.

Nothing beats good Quail hunting, with good dogs, and good friends, truly a gentleman's sport. and you can carry them home in your pocket, and they taste great. Rio7

Age is good. I like seeing older and blockier bucks, regardless of the racks. A 130 where I hunt is a once every 5 or 10 years kind of buck, maybe. We have 3 straight months of rifle season and lots of pipeline rights-of-way for travelling bucks to get their butts shot off. Lots of private land with lots of hunters too.....

Mature.....

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Could use a couple more years...

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And I should ad that I shoot culls, every last one I see generally, occasionally a trophy, have not shot one of those less than 5.5 years old in a LONG time. Likely will never shoot one again either. And does. Meat is meat, and I"ve not use of shooting a buck thats not a cull, where I'm not going to mount the head.

To me its not the score, its the hunt. Heck to be honest I've some culls I just cannot kill. They are old and sneaky. I enjoy the hunt, the camping, etc... the company at camp.

I"ve never set out to shoot X inches. I"ve only scored a few of my deer simply because others asked what they scored.

I have a good understanding of scoring as I used to be certified to do that but have not done it in many years.

I'd say you n ever saw a real old buck then, there is no mistaking a mature one when you see it. At least to my eyes.

I don't age by year, I go by bracket. Young, 1-2 years old. Promising years, 3-5, and shooter age. YOung are super easy to age. Old are super easy to age. If its neither its in the non shoot category then. SImple enough.

The whiteface is a dead giveaway for mature Mule Deer.

Most of the ranches I've hunted allowed one trophy each year. This is a basic 8 my wife shot. This buck was shot on a 36,000 acre low fence ranch. Hasbeen

^^^ This ^^^

I agree.

Superior, average or inferior genetics are just as likely to be inherited from a doe's lineage.

hasbeen.....WOW! Gorgeous buck.

I never have quite understood the point of the spread measurement, either. Some buck's antlers simply tend to grow more vertical and others more horizontal.

As to my own likes, overall mass is most impressive.

May have been my worst mistake. My wife and I hunt together and I let her shoot it. Hard to live with a woman who shoots a 173 6/8 gross buck. Hasbeen

Yeppers!
Give me the Jordan buck over the Hanson buck 100-out-of-100 times.

Great deer!

There are plenty of deer around our camp most years, but we usually don't see anything approaching 120. #1 deer was 165 or thereabouts. There have been maybe a half-dozen taken over 125, and we consider ourselves blessed.

After I took The Big One in 2007, I realized this might be IT. The county holds monsters, and the state record was taken less than 20 miles from us. However, the point here isn't getting all worked up about what could be. We usually know what's going to be around through pre-season scouting, and that gives us an idea what is worth holding out for.

The Trans-Bluegrass of Northern KY, is crawling with deer and crawling with hunters. It's Zone 1, so you can take as many antlerless deer as you want. Most deer I see coming into the processor are no where near 120. On the other hand, we have occasional visits by walking hat racks. Every year or two we bump into a monster in the off-season. The last one came by while I was taking down the camo skirt around the rail on my stand. It was the last day of season, my buck tag was already filled. He just came out and watched me from about 50 yards out.

^

We get alot of 130 class whitetails around here.

What does this one score?

A lot of folks think they see mature bucks. When you see a really big mature buck there is no question. That being said deer are like humans . All old people aren't big and fat some are small and skinny. I've seen some really old bucks that look years younger than they were.
My hunting buddy has been on the Callahan ranch for 7 years. They think the bucks reach their greatest potential at 6 1/2. They try to wait until then. He and his son have killed several deer in the 170's and one in the 180's. They don't kill a trophy every year. Hasbeen

Not much of a view but 140ish maybe?

They have some real big bodies up there. Hard to tell from that angle. Hasbeen

130 class is about what I top out at on my little bit of heaven, though there are some monsters in the area. They just don't tend to wander through my land. If I had more land I'd do more quality management, but I'm a little spot surrounded by out of state hunters from back east that think any 4pt is a monster or locals that poach deer all year long to fill their freezers. So I take does or a nice buck when I can. Gotta have venison.

I self-measured this guy at about 135, he'd have been a monster with another 2 years under his belt.

I have not way basically, to know about the doe part. I have a way to know about the buck part.

Why not control at least what you can..... instead of just ignoring the whole thing.

Here I have the ability to follow what does produce what bucks basically but thats a rare thing and it takes a lot of note taking and having cameras out all year.

Hasbeen, That's a very nice deer your wife shot. I'll bet that tickled you big time. Rio7

A hunter killed this buck on my property.

What do you think it scored?

Another buck from my property....

What would he score? Would you shoot him?

160+, gross.

No clue how to score that one. Shoot him.

I'm of the opinion that during rut Whitetail bucks can often travel over a relatively large area, especially once the shooting starts. We never knew our two largest bucks existed anywhere around the property we hunted prior to killing them.

Net mid 180's.

With the asymmetrical rack? Must have Hell for stout beams and be wider and longer than I thought. The G4 on the left has no match that I see in that pic on the right, and therefore it would lose that from the total and the extra circumference measurement.

But, I'd rather guess under in the field than over.

[quote=RIO7]Hasbeen, That's a very nice deer your wife shot. I'll bet that tickled you big time. Rio7 [/quote

Thanks, you and I both know how lucky she was. She had killed some 140's and one 150 then she jumped to this. I've delegated to killing the management deer for a long time. Hasbeen

Looks like northern monster to me. Hasbeen

Still the oldest buck I've ever killed.
Taxi said all he could tell me was the deer was older than 6.5 years.

Whopping 130"

Either you're a runt, or that is a TOAD!

What do you think this one scores???

That is a very, very big bodied deer.. Wow!

That's when it's good to be hunting with friends. Or have a power hoist.

BOOM!

I've been in the tree over 40 times since September 3rd. I have over 200 pictures of him this year alone. Only two daylight pictures since August 30th.

It's still too hot to be right. I'm not giving up though...The bow will go on the hook November 11th...

Nets are for fishing.

99.99% of folks are discussing gross scores.

Wish folks would focus the big picture rather than just a number.



This.

I think the obsession with score has really tainted hunting, but also understand its use in helping compare/contrast good racks.

I'd die perfectly content if I never shot a 130" deer but sure would love one or bigger.

Experiences like hunting which defies quantification get ruined quickly for me when I put expectations upon them, and it's that poison that the numbers obsession has introduced into hunting over the last couple decades. Fishing too.

Pages of talk and no mention of the rackulator?

This place is slipping.


That said - never shot something close to 130, seen some I'm sure were 170, never connected.

Don't care if I ever do. I like spending the time at camp more than looking at some number.

I'd only be considered on the smallish side to an NFL offensive lineman.

I figured out a long time ago that I can't kill a deer bigger than the biggest one in the pasture I'm hunting.

So.... it keeps me from becoming bored with deer hunting if I set out each year to identify and then kill the biggest buck in the pasture.

Game cameras would detract from the experience so I don't use them.

btw.... I figure I accomplish my goal about 1 in 4 years and I'm a damn good deer hunter.

+ 1!

Yep..... but it has become a rich man's sport around here.

My Dad started me deer hunting in 1950 and it has not been a hobby; more like onto a way of life! I've shot just about everything that can be shot....hunting sometimes 5 different states within a season. My biggest gripe these days is that when I was young and shot a small 4 or 6 point buck I felt proud that I had accomplished something good whereas in this era a young man can't go out and shoot a small buck and feel the same way because these friggin 'hunting shows' always show most often huge racked bucks (in their view) that make one shooting anything smaller feel as a felon!! Incidentally 95% of the stuff they make videos of I let walk these days.

Here's a free ranging buck I took in 2014:

Brandon Mulhern with his Dad's 2014 Kansas whitetail buck. by Sharps Man, on Flickr

Good Lord what a pig! (Not you SKane..... :))

About ten years back a buck was trapped and tagged just prior to the rut at Swan Lake Wildlife Area at Sumner, Missouri. Said buck was hit/killed by a truck three days later in the city limits of Kansas City.....107 miles west of Sumner!!

What folks don't understand either, generally, you have to learn your deer and your area. The best age here is 6.5 or even 7.5 sometimes... depends on the year too, but where we hunt in the hill country, often a 4.5 may score as well as he ever will. He may get more mass or longer points, but he might loose length and so on. For sure at 6.5 and over, they are going downhill.

Takes a lot of work and years to try to figure out whats best. This year a newer neighbor told my boss not to shoot the 3.5 year old 11 point, thats actually 4.5 I"m pretty sure. He needs a year.. which means my boss will shoot him likely. I've had many chances to shoot him, but I won't... And I'll just run the risk that he doesn't cross paths with my boss. And if he does I"ll say congrats.

Callahagn is the only place I've ever seen 2 things. A typical 7x7 14 point whitetail buck. And shot a pig the size of a VW... well lets just say 600 plus pounds, unfortunately her shoats pushed her so hard, that we never could figure the trail out an dlost her... but they had a couple huge ones in pens... and compared to them... wow. Wish I owned 5000 acres in there... and now that the father died its even more about only the money...Tried to hook my buddy up with Amanda.. imght have been set by about now....

My WAG is he's just too froggy to call but I'd say he has a 160-165 class main frame(gross) as a 10 point....add more for the NT stuff.

Who cares.... he's is one of those bucks you don't size up; you just shoot.

Not sure the above buck is old enough to shoot? At least his shape, in our area, would notate 1-2 more years.

Score wise, thats easy. Bang.

Since a lot of 8 pointers are being discussed, I'll show you a nice one. He's my best 8 point. Nets 159 2/8" B&C. Dressed at 253#.

Not much for spread to this guy - just a basket rack.

Almost 130",


See how great AIR is.

That's still a lot of digits for a sixer...

I deer hunted for 13 years before I killed my first buck. The population was low back then and we had a one deer bag limit back then.

My first buck, 130 1/8".

What would this score?



Or this one?



How about this?

Score?

I would love to cull that Dink...He needs to be taken out of the gene pool.....

That is a beautiful deer! I would probably stop hunting if I ever was fortunate enough to harvest one like this. How could you improve on that?!

I'd happily shoot that thing pretty distinctive rack.

Somebody sold some of yall some stretchy tape measures.

Tom Cruise uses tape measures for other things....

My best local buck taken in 1981 about 2-1/2 miles from home. He is the 11th biggest buck ever taken in Clare County per Commerative Bucks of Michigan. He was scored at 139 pts.

I can take a selfie in my boxers to help illustrate, s'il vous plait...

Looks like the Favre days treated you good

That's a nice one!

Do you know how much this one weighed?

The deer above < 6 pt shows why stupid 4 pt restrictions are so ignorant. That buck was a trophy and was a good kill here it wouldn't have been legal Mo. game and fish suck balls let the hunter decide!!!!!!!!

I used to quail hunt a lot back when we had quail and I could still walk good. I have really enjoyed seeing the quail that you have down there, along with the other wildlife. Randy and I damn near wore the hinges out on your back door watching for deer. I don't think we ever got through a breakfast without one of us peeking out the back door to see if anything had shown. miles

Morning Miles,I am guilty of looking out my back door morning and evening to see what shows up to, I am lucky to have the wildlife traffic close to the house.

The Quail look really good again this year we have a higher covey count than last year, we just need to get the deer hunting over with then we can turn the dogs loose and Quail hunt.

That does not mean I don't like to hunt deer, and everything else we hunt. Grin !

Rio7

Put me down in the shoot what ever makes you happy column. I agree that if you take more than a couple of 120 plus point bucks you are pretty lucky if you hunt in the east on small farms and public land. I find the QDMA types that either own/work at a location where there is a large amount of acreage where basically they farm deer to be a bit hard to take when they cop an attitude about shooting smaller bucks. I also note that most of these guys tend to let slip that they seem to shoot a lot of smaller deer but act like its a chore for them and they have to do it like killing rats. Ive seen some pretty decent deer pictures and then the guy gives it the old "well I had to shoot him he was a cull buck". I always sort of call BS on that. I always wonder what their attitude would be if they only got to spend 2-5 days in the woods and hunted a 100 acre tract where you know if you didn't shoot the buck as soon as he crossed over to the neighbors farm he was down. Most of the 20 or so deer I have killed have been 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 year old bucks and does with the bucks probably averaging 90 -110 score. I did get lucky a bout 4-5 years ago and had a really nice 10 pt walk out that using the B&C scoring chart grossed 156. I figure he's my once in a lifetime buck, but who knows.

Good Morning Bangeye, There are a lot of things that make a deer a cull,stunted growth,injured,sick,starving from worn out teeth,antler growing into their eye or head,tumors,

at one time or another I have seen all of the above problems and to many more to list. I say again look at the whole deer not just the antlers. antlers are replaced every year, my 2 cents worth. Rio7

One other aspect I will ask the wildlife biologists on here to comment on : Take away hunting mortality what would be the chances of a 1 1/2 year old deer living over 4 more winters in a normal free range situation not a place where there are corn feeders, winter food plots and mineral blocks abundant but instead surviving on mast, browse and what ag crop predadation opportunities they can find. I would guess that adult mortality due to winter kill, coyotes, wolves, dogs automobiles, disease, worms, injury, etc. to be fairly high depending on location but probably in the 15% to maybe 30% range annually. So out of 100 yearling bucks probably less than 30- 40 would make it to 5 1/2 years with no hunting losses at all would that be a fair guess?

The second part of the question is out of the survivors how many would ever make it to 140-150 class bucks based on health issues, nutrition limitations, and just plain genetics 20%-30% ??? thats 10-12 deer out of the original 100 1 1/2 years bucks. So based on the above Im not sure that every time somebody shoots a 2 1/2-3 1/2 year old buck that its very smart to assume that they killed a potential boone and crocket trophy. They most likely killed a deer that would have never reached trophy status at all.

You have to have the genetics to start with to get trophy deer, and then age. Age will help all bucks look better but they still may not get in that 140-150 range that you were talking about. I do not control enough land to really make a difference, but by shooting the sure enough culls, I am hurting nothing. I also feel like I am leaving the woods a better place. miles

JG has a bunch of nice culls, doesnt he. Darn those whitetail racked mulies.

Enough

Id like to know what that hog weighed.

I had my head where the sun don't shine......just realized this thread title says "whitetail"........sorry.

Couldnt give a rats ass.

Food for the freezer. Horns for the wall is a bonus.

Dont be sorry, please. It was great seeing those big mature muley pics, JG.

I was only referring to the fact so many huge west Texas muleys miss having the back forks. OTOH, they usually have the 5th point (brow tine).

I'm not sure enough to argue it and I don't know if it applies everywhere but around here, there are more big deer than ever. The biggest deer I had ever killed 15 years ago isn't even in my top ten anymore. In the last five years me, my dad, and my nephew have all killed deer bigger than 140 and we're not trophy hunters. We just see lots more big deer than we used to. And judging by the pics I see, so does everyone else around here.

This buck didn't score very well. Only 8 points, low tines, and not a lot of spread kept it below 120". It was 4 years old.

Moosemike t hats what I'm talking about that there's a nice deer I dont care who you are.

Just wow, what a porker, I hope you were close to the truck.

Thanks.

Your deer is another example of how stupid our "13 inch inside spread rule" is. Problem is that I can't offer a better alternative since most hunters can't age a deer.

It ain't just Texas. Here is a Montana Mule Deer that could pass for a Whitetail. But he is damn near perfectly symmetrical....
Scored Typical, he loses only one inch.

Here is what I like to see when I skin a buck!!

You seldom see a buck where I live with that much fat, but over at my cousins place, which is only about 10-12 miles as the crow flies, it is common. Heavier horns over there too. He is closer to the White River bottoms where the deer are heavier and the minerals are different. Doesn't seem like much but He is around 25-30 feet lower in elevation. My house is just around 230 ft above sea level. His house is around 200, and on a ridge between two creeks. The surrounding farm land is in the 180's. miles

That deer is a hog. I have never seen a whitetail that big.

As of a few years ago, the heaviest deer on record in the U.S. was not a Mule Deer, but a Whitetail.

A hunter took the game-camera-pictured buck below, this last weekend.

Some thought 140ish.
161+ gross
151+ net

What will this one score?

Estimated good spread 23+, by hunter in field.

According to the book Deer Of North America the heaviest deer was a whitetail about 500 pounds. I think it was killed by a woman with a shotgun.

I don't know the first thing about scoring a buck. What do the scoring experts say about this one? Inside spread is 17", 9 points (split brow tine). He was taken on public land in the woods.

I also like 8's. This one from last year is 150 gross (tiny G4 sticker on left beam), 21" spread, 25" beams. 5 1/2 years old.

Just checked some cameras yesterday.

As long as you don't live any closer to me than a couple of miles I"m good with it. LOL. 100 acres here. I let lots walk often... managed to keep three decent 10s in the mid to upper 120s last year without any of the local I just have to kill a deer folks shooitng them. They are QUITE a bit better this year. But like last year I"ll likely take out one bad spike that showed up and a 4x1 that needed to go last year...and see if any of those three can continue to grow.

Two best bucks...both taken with the bow...back to back within 100 yds of each other...both grossed in the 130's

Back when I was writing for Precision Shooting a reader sent me pictures of a whitetail he got in CT. He said it dressed out at 325 lbs. After seeing the pics I believed him.

Eqfd beautiful deer

We have some pretty big deer here in my part of Kentucky, with several B&C bucks being taken each year. We also have a huge influx of out of state hunters who have leased land here, or bought farms. I would say that most of them are from Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida. They will shoot a 130 class buck and act like they've just killed the new state record. I'm guessing that they don't have big deer in those states.

I hate the term "cull". It is like it has a disease or something. And I suspect a good portion of the time, that buck will grow good antlers the next year. We see very, very few "cull" bucks. We control over 700 acres and I bet we don't see 1 every 5 years (that is both hunting and with 9 trail cameras out year long).

I believe for a long time, the heaviest whitetail was shot near Duluth MN and was over 500 pounds. Our biggest dressed out at 272 pounds.

No lie. I'd have been a grinning like that too.



I wouldn't want to drag him, that's for sure. That's a whale with antlers.

Not what I see here. A couple of examples. Back 15 years or longer, we had a big 5pt on one side and what we thought was a broken antler on the other. He was seen about 3 years in a row, but never killed. Then we started getting young deer with a good antler on one side and a stub antler on the other. It could be either side, and I killed several of them. They still pop up every once in a while. Bad genetics. Also, right after Arkansas instituted the pt. rule, where a deer had to have at least 3 pts. on one side, we had a long antlered spike that was not legal to kill. I saw him for several years and the spikes just kept getting longer. They finally turned into a main beam that looked, at a distance, like a good buck. But when you put your binoculars on Him, no points, just main beams. Bad genetics. He finally disappeared, and then they changed the rules so that kids under 16 can kill a spike. I have seen several that needed to die, but I can't kill them and there are no kids there at the time. When a deer has spikes his second year, he needs to die. miles

I agree with this, 100%.

Furthermore, I am against states instituting antler restrictions. If you have your own private ranch, or property, and wish to practice QDM, I'm all for it. However, I do not believe your values should be placed on the public, as a whole. This is, after all, America.

Many, if not most, "average Joes" only get to hunt weekends, and only hunt public lands where any buck, is a good buck.
Personally, I like to shoot a bigger buck- but that is a personal decision.

As the season winds down though, if my tag hasn't been filled, I have no shame in harvesting a smaller buck(on the hunting shows they refer to them as "cull bucks").

Here's my 2016 130"(may be a lil' bigger) class buck-

Big In Texas is 200lbs

This is a classic. Good one!

WTF!

When we weigh deer here its is fully gutted. The biggest i know of right around here was one my DAD killed years ago. It won the big buck contest at 267.5 a day after he shot it. This is northern north dakota. ED K

The mortality numbers would be roughly the same. winter is the biggest limiting factor to carrying capacity, hunting removes excess deer prior to them being winter-killed. most if not all states determine the targeted harvest numbers based on that. states with unlimited tags use other restrictions such as limited doe tags to keep the numbers in check.

to put it in it's most simple form it's like this.
Surveys indicate Hunt unit 123 has 100 deer in it, Carrying capacity (k) is 75 animals per year. average hunter success is 50% so they issue 50 tags for the unit.

*due to weather only 20 deer were harvested, so statistically 5 will die due to weather/food limitations.

since most tags/application deadlines have to be set the year before it can really complicate things. there are many factors EHD, Drought, bad winters etc. that can happen, but are hard to account for in their severity. especially if they occur AFTER tags are purchased. which is why the deer population can have swings in it, and why hunters love to say the state has no idea what they are doing, where in reality they are the only ones who can manage deer populations on such a huge scale.




your second part is hard to follow, and is more genetic/geographic dependent rather than just speculation.

shooting a 2.5-3.5 year old deer guarantees it will not grow up any, telling yourself "well it probably wouldn't have been a monster anyway" is just a way to justify shooting it.

180

If he hunts where a 130 is a top end buck and never goes anywhere else then he may never kill a 130 class buck. After all what are the odds that any of us will kill the biggest buck the area has to offer?


But for sure there are places where a 130 class buck can be passed up in hopes of something bigger. Not that a 30 class is not a good buck anywhere but in some places you will never kill a big one if you blow a tag on a 130.

This was aged by biologist at 8.5 years:

Brandon Mulhern with his Dad&#x27;s 2014 Kansas whitetail buck. by Sharps Man, on Flickr

Got 3 more that were 7-8 years age.

Holy bases, Batman!

How about this one Scott. Was hoping for him this year, didn't happen.


picture from august with a couple of his running mates.


I've got a feeling he might be related to this one I took several years ago.


I ended up taking a 161 gross buck with better mass, but would of taken this buck with a choice.

one my second cousin killed a couple days ago here in south texas, 15 points, typical points measured 191.

I like 8s, too.

That couldn't be any more beautiful. Love the color contrast on the face and neck. Looks alot like a blacktail in that regard.

Is that a Catawba County buck Mike? Reminds me of the area around Catfish and Lake Lookout. I hunted that area in the 80s. Your buck would been a true trophy then- any 6 or 8 pt deer was a trophy. I believe the county has a lot more deer now- not to mention turkeys and coyotes.

This buck will fall well below 120

If you notice a black pickup following you around during hunting season next year, that's me.

This goes for the rest of you too.

Saw a 130 class this yr. Never got a shot at him. Best buck we saw all yr.

Cuz popped a 150 gross 3 yrs ago. Last yr I got this one, 131 gross (126 net). Never saw him in bow

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3rd best buck I've taken. Best is my avatar deer was 177 gross, 166 net. Shot on a bud's farm in another county. saw some whoppers up there. Bucked out on something small once, went out MZ for doe and saw a 189 net non typ. Found one of his sheds. Rabbit hunters found him all ate up by coyotes later.......got him scored. Dunno if poached/lost or hit by vehicle or what.

Most of my deer run 100-120". They taste great

Kid around the corner popped a 160 class, dunno if off that farm or away where he goes to college.

Guy at work said he about hit a whopper 13 pointer a quarter mile from my current spot. Was headed that way. 3rd shift.....saw it just before midnight.

The 130 we saw in gun didn't get popped.
Hopefully he dodges the blue hairs and their Buicks.

Not many recurve hunts left in me. Really want a P&Y with bent stick.

Mmmmm... 8's. This one was 140 even. Best part is I had a friend Photoshop out the tongue, but the shadow remains... :-)

Lost 5 1/2" for the split brow.
Saw him after legal light in bow. Told a couple of coworkers I was gonna hold out for him........they called BS on that.

Shot him middle of gun season couple weeks later, morning
TC Hawken Silver Elite .50 cal

200# dressed. Drug up hill, and loaded into my K5 by myself.
After a gall bladder attack. Damn near killed me.

Lot less work/excitement blasting smaller deer.

177 and change gross, 166 3/8" net. Shot about 15 yrs ago. Taxi said 5 1/2" yrs old??? Wasn't the best table fare either.

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Next to last day of season, popped a 90" 140# 8 pt.
Cool rifle (Ruger #1 RSI- first blood for it).
I'm happy.
Shoot a bigger one next yr, or not. Just depends.
I figure if I'm hunting, I'm not at work.
That's fine by me

Can you guess which one of these may make 130"?

Yep

Yrs ago, didn't know what scoring was. Saw a nice buck, didn't have a good shot (bow). Wanted him in gun (just around the corner). Other guy hunting the property shot it opening day.....had it scored= 145". That's when I started paying attention.

My best buck, not sure what he'll hit since he only had a 17.5" inner spread. Best thing about it I took him with my dad's Marlin. He'd have been thrilled.

Sorry for the delay in response.

IIRC, he was mid 280's. (sans guts)
I shot him around the St. Martin area in Manitoba.

The deer was actually pretty short in length or he'd have really tipped the scales.
And, believe it or not, I shot an even heavier deer the week prior in Ontario.
Both were killed in late October, early November so they were obviously at peak weight.

I can hunt five more lifetimes and never come close to shooting a heavier deer, let alone two in a week's time.

The Ontario deer:

Amazing critters!

I agree.

Good grief! Toads.

Here are two of mine that fell short of 120"

None of these break 130

Two dont break 120

This one doesn't break 120"

Even with the 3rd antler.....laffin

Far short of 130

One of these breaks into the 130's

142

My buddy quick scored at one at 138, not counting his kicker points coming off his bases. usually I don't care too much about score, just want to shoot the one that strikes my fancy. the width on this one did, pretty sure he was the one that eluded me two nights before a half mile away.

No offense but I think your buddy had his thumbs on the scale (figuratively) on his quick score because this guy is not 138 and he has length and mass

Deed tend to shrink up when the tape hits the horn

sorry I didn't read through the entire post to see if this was already added

lot of nice bucks what I did see

http://www.boone-crockett.org/bgRec...gRecords&type=Typical+Whitetail+Deer