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2012 OH groundhogs - Final Tally

Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

The following was posted over on the wssmzone forum by James Rowe, a fellow long distance shooter. He has hit the one mile target at Thunder Valley using a custom 300 WSM.

I finally made it to Bill's yesterday for some g'hog busting. While our numbers were not as high as I would have liked (my fault) we both set our personal best distance records. While my 975 yd shot held on for a couple years, Bill dropped one at 1062 and I one at 1025. Both with Bill's 6XC. What a day! Thanks for the hospitality Bill.

"A liberal nation still needs defended." - Unknown
"Come on, you sons of bitches-do you want to live forever?" - Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly


It was a great day. We started out by banging steel. And earlier in the day (before our 1000 yard shots) we spotted one at 1280 yards, but he went to his hole before we could get set up on him. That is getting real close to the limit for my 6XC.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

I missed one at 515 this morning twice. nephew thought I hit second time. he hobbled away though. I'm going to check for buzzards on the way to work cause I didn't feel like walking where I had to go to check. out of time. had to take a nap. I thought I was right again myself. last year when I missed it ticked me off but that's gonna happen. I couldn't notice any wind what so ever so I'm not sure if it was my shooting ora wind we was unaware of or a little spin drift. just gotta think why when I miss. farmer got field cut that I can get 700+ shot out of but it's still pretty brown but won't be long.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

model 12 toby said:
but it's still pretty brown but won't be long.

They don't seem to mind brown just a little harder to spot at that range w/o the color contrast. Darn old eyes! :(
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

just gotta be at the right place at the right time. I'm going to try to get a scope setting for 770 this week coming up so I have a very good idea of what it's gonna do. If it doesn't rain soon I think the fields gonna stay brown a while. got permission to hunt another 400 acre or so farm tonight gotta meet up with guy to see where the property lines are. can't wait. I've hunted same 400 3rd year in a row.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

Toby, why aren't you using a 100 yard zero? I use a 100 yard zero on a 20 MOA base and I created a range card that tells me turret setting out to 1300 yards. I did my range card by turret setting (every .5 MOA) instead of every 25 yards.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

that's just what I happened to be shooting that day. ;D. I usually use my shooter by sean kennedy on my android. it also inputs the local weather conditions and spin drift. It's usually right on or 1 minute high as it is on my 7mm mag shooting 162 a-maxes at 3030fps. I've had a lot of luck with it but It still needs more testing. :)
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

Got 12 this morning, 5 between 600 and 620 yards at the end of a recently mowed & baled alfalfa field, 6 between 57 and 171 yards, and 1 at 498 yards. Missed one at 1012 yards - twice. Elevation was good, not enough wind dialed in either shot.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

Thanks, MM. I also should have said that I missed one at what I thought was 600 yards. I dialed in 600 yards on my scope and shot over him. But it was close enough to scare the heck out of him and he wasted no time in getting back to the weeds and the end of the field.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

it's super hard to find ranges like that where I live. big hills. those damn glaciers. I did find a spot the other day to shoot 1400 yards. no ground hogs but I could get a target. what round did you say you were shooting at a grand?
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

105 AMax hBN coated bullet in a 6mmXC. 28" barrel with a brake, Savage 12BVSS, Sightron SIII 10-50x60.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

This is one of three I got today with my 20" barreled Contender chambered in .17 Ackley Hornet shooting the 20 gr. V-Max at a MV of 3575 fps. 140 yards was the longest but they were all standing resting on my High Tension Tower hides leg brace, they make 51 for the season. This guy was a mercy killing, I feel, as he was very thin and probably had much difficulty eating. You can't see to well but his uppers were as long and curled way back in his mouth. A fellow Saubier guy called me "Saint Centerfire"! ;D
062312Dentalissue.jpg
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

WOW. Mercy killing, for sure. You did your good deed for the day.

Forgot to mention in my previous post that my season total now sits at 220. I'm shooting 10 farms - I've killed 59, 52, and 44 on the three major farms.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

i can't stand it!!! my YEARLY kill is about 80. ranchers out west welcome prairie dog shooters. is there anything like that here in the east...soybean growers that welcome ghog hunters or is it left to the individual hunter to invite additional hunters. i bet there are some of us diehard ghog hunters that would be willing to travel to such sites that you guys describe...just a thought(dream). anyway, saturday i parked in the shade of a small field(90 degrees) and a small one came out and dropped dead...i helped. another showed up and i missed! as they do here, he ran to his hole and stood up. bad move...my les baer ar super varmint spat another 52 gr fowler and it found it's mark...drt. an old man peeked out to see what was going on and he only got a brief glimpse...the les baer answered the call...one more in about 30 min and i had 4 in less than an hour, and that is very unusual around here. finished the day with two more in another field, one weighed 9# 2 oz and the big one was 10# 10 oz. i'm trying to figure out how to post photos. i think i see one sneaking thru the grass...
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

lpreddick said:
i can't stand it!!! my YEARLY kill is about 80. ranchers out west welcome prairie dog shooters. is there anything like that here in the east...soybean growers that welcome ghog hunters or is it left to the individual hunter to invite additional hunters. i bet there are some of us diehard ghog hunters that would be willing to travel to such sites that you guys describe...just a thought(dream). anyway, saturday i parked in the shade of a small field(90 degrees) and a small one came out and dropped dead...i helped. another showed up and i missed! as they do here, he ran to his hole and stood up. bad move...my les baer ar super varmint spat another 52 gr fowler and it found it's mark...drt. an old man peeked out to see what was going on and he only got a brief glimpse...the les baer answered the call...one more in about 30 min and i had 4 in less than an hour, and that is very unusual around here. finished the day with two more in another field, one weighed 9# 2 oz and the big one was 10# 10 oz. i'm trying to figure out how to post photos. i think i see one sneaking thru the grass...

I guess I'm blessed to spend my summers in a groundhog rich area. Got 5 more tonight. One was 511 yards, it was windy and I had 1.5 MOA windage dialed in. Another was 688 yards and I had 3 MOA dialed in for it. I also had two misses on the 688 yarder. The other three were 191, 88, and 62 yards. REAL big hay field.
I missed one last night at 1208 yards in a soybean field. Had the elevation correct but should have had .5 MOA more windage to make the kill. DANG, that 6XC is accurate.

I had to first ask permission at all the farms I shoot. And some of the farmers almost asked for references. But now I've got the farmers telling me when they have mowed their alfalfa. Or asking me to keep an eye on certain bean fields. I respect their land, asking where I can and can't drive my pickup, keeping gates closed, etc. One of the farmers paid me a nice compliment recently. He said his wife mentioned she was seeing fewer new holes. Other farmers have told me their bean yields are up.

I probably spend close to 40 hours per week in the fields, so my season total likely averages less than one groundhog per hour. That 1208 yard miss came after watching a 10 acre bean field for two hours. Man, they are hard to spot at that distance - even with 10x binoculars. I frequently sweep the really long distance stuff with my scope on about 40x.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

i use 15x50 steiner binocs and couldn't hunt without them. i'v noted when using these binocs i can mentally move my vision into the instrument and get the sensation i'm just at the site i'm watching and i can see the eyelashes on the varmint! i don't smoke green cigs or snort stuff and i know this sounds a bit weird, but it's just a sensation i strive for since i feel i can see the target clearer. i wear glasses and have noted this sensation is even greater if i remove them. you're right, pleasing the land owner is very important. i even tell them i remove the ghog after the kill so as not to attract predators, etc and they all react positively.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

Interesting on the removal of the groundhogs... I've asked the farmers and most say just leave them lay and the buzzards & coyotes will get them.
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

Nomad47 said:
Interesting on the removal of the groundhogs... I've asked the farmers and most say just leave them lay and the buzzards & coyotes will get them.

It sure don't take them long either!
 
Re: The pups are out - 2012 OH groundhogs

The heat wave is finally over - at least for a while. Went out last evening and shot 4, then again this morning and shot two. Four of the six were over 300 yards.

My season total now stands at 273.
 

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