Hey Chino69, what`s the chuck count up to?, I`m still sitting on 9. I took a ride this past Sat. afternoon to find some new spots & knock on a few doors. All the fields are so high now & I only found one new spot that looked promising. I got permission to hunt and finally did see one, but he was gone by the time I got set up on him & didn`t come back out.
Chuck Count
- Thread starter ARW
- Start date
ARW,
The count as of 5/30 is five confirmed and five misses. The five misses were all shooting into the sun, windy, and misjudged distances. Several of the fields that I hunt have planted soybean this season. The soybean has sprouted and is starting to grow, so that should draw the chucks out of their burrows. I have one hillside that has approx. 38 burrows that I have been watching since spring. Many of the burrows are now covered by weeds but I'm hoping the growing soybean lures them to their demise. Now that it is getting hotter, I'll start going out in the evening. I haven't picked up on their rhythm yet as it has been rainy and cool prior to this week. I'll keep you posted and let me know how you do; good luck.
The count as of 5/30 is five confirmed and five misses. The five misses were all shooting into the sun, windy, and misjudged distances. Several of the fields that I hunt have planted soybean this season. The soybean has sprouted and is starting to grow, so that should draw the chucks out of their burrows. I have one hillside that has approx. 38 burrows that I have been watching since spring. Many of the burrows are now covered by weeds but I'm hoping the growing soybean lures them to their demise. Now that it is getting hotter, I'll start going out in the evening. I haven't picked up on their rhythm yet as it has been rainy and cool prior to this week. I'll keep you posted and let me know how you do; good luck.
hey not fair you two..i'm stuck up in ct...only got 5 days in april to hunt sw pa...5 the first day me...4 for luke...then two or three each day till friday...went nuts last two days...ended up the week 5 days with 20..about avg on those fields..i cant wait to go back...longest shot was 558 yds...best shot was under a wire fence at 412 yds..no sighter just smack....took one running shot up & across a old corn field 258 yds, the farmer was right behind me"For a city boy you can shoot!"..cool... mike in ct
ARW and mike in ct.,
I went out last night around 5:30 p.m.. It was hot, humid, and approx. 90 degrees F. The first set of fields that I went to were 400 acre+ soybean fields. I spotted a fairly good sized chuck feeding on tender soybean sprouts approx. 15 yards from a treeline. The distance was 335 yds. and I just creased his fur. He made it back to the treeline but he'll be out again as the young soybean is nice and green. I then went to a recently cut alfalfa field and as I was coming up the crest of a tractor path I saw a good sized chuck eating; again close to a treeline. Still smarting from my 335 yd. miss, I parked the Jeep and slowly crept out. I got my rifle and crept on hands and knees until I was in position. The distance was approx. 135 yds. and once I clicked my scope down for the yardage, I dropped him with an 87grn. Hornady V-Max. He went down quickly and cleanly. I then put the .243 A.I. back in the Jeep and grabbed my Savage 93 .17 HMR and decided to do a walk around the perimeter of the alfalfa field and also to check the chuck that I dropped. There was another chuck chomping on alfalfa and I shot offhand, approx. 100 yds., missing all three times. I know where his hole is and I will get him from a different approach and angle. Final count thus far: 6 confirmed, 7 misses. Now the fun begins.
Chino69
I went out last night around 5:30 p.m.. It was hot, humid, and approx. 90 degrees F. The first set of fields that I went to were 400 acre+ soybean fields. I spotted a fairly good sized chuck feeding on tender soybean sprouts approx. 15 yards from a treeline. The distance was 335 yds. and I just creased his fur. He made it back to the treeline but he'll be out again as the young soybean is nice and green. I then went to a recently cut alfalfa field and as I was coming up the crest of a tractor path I saw a good sized chuck eating; again close to a treeline. Still smarting from my 335 yd. miss, I parked the Jeep and slowly crept out. I got my rifle and crept on hands and knees until I was in position. The distance was approx. 135 yds. and once I clicked my scope down for the yardage, I dropped him with an 87grn. Hornady V-Max. He went down quickly and cleanly. I then put the .243 A.I. back in the Jeep and grabbed my Savage 93 .17 HMR and decided to do a walk around the perimeter of the alfalfa field and also to check the chuck that I dropped. There was another chuck chomping on alfalfa and I shot offhand, approx. 100 yds., missing all three times. I know where his hole is and I will get him from a different approach and angle. Final count thus far: 6 confirmed, 7 misses. Now the fun begins.
Chino69
GT Accuracy
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ARW,
Chuck Hunting in Northeastern PA is very Hot right now. With the temperatures above 90 for the past 2 days the chucks are coming out in droves around 6 to 7 PM. My 6 BRX has been busy the past few weeks and I have 28 confirmed Kills on my families farm. You can check out the pictures on my website
http://www.groundgrizzly.com
I have just started the site and am still working on getting some load information up as well as my new 6mm AI info and 20 VarTarg pictures around. Just not enough time in the day.
Feel free to stop by and ad any info you guys may have it would be great to see you guys over there discussing chuck hunting this summer.
Take Care
Greg
Chuck Hunting in Northeastern PA is very Hot right now. With the temperatures above 90 for the past 2 days the chucks are coming out in droves around 6 to 7 PM. My 6 BRX has been busy the past few weeks and I have 28 confirmed Kills on my families farm. You can check out the pictures on my website
http://www.groundgrizzly.com
I have just started the site and am still working on getting some load information up as well as my new 6mm AI info and 20 VarTarg pictures around. Just not enough time in the day.
Feel free to stop by and ad any info you guys may have it would be great to see you guys over there discussing chuck hunting this summer.
Take Care
Greg
Hey guys,
I got 2 phone calls this week asking for chuck control,
,gotta luv it!). The first call was from my sister-in-law down the street, saying she was tired of her dogs dragging her all over their back yard chasing groundhogs. I eliminated 4 of her problems in a matter of minutes w/ my air-rifle,all were head shots @ 20-30 yds). I couldn`t take my 17 HMR because of the close neighbors. Round two @ her place will be soon. The second call was from a farmers wife @ the request of her husband. He just planted soy-beans & needed the chucks taken out along the the woods @ the edge of the field,enter 17 HMR). 3 were removed in 45 mins., 2 young ones,35yds. & 75 yds., both body shots), 3rd/ was a large adult, headshot @ 85yds.,I`ll be making another trip back there soon. I`m keeping my eye on local fields for the farmers to cut what looks like maybe oats or barley, so I can get back out w/ my 6BR. I like shooting chucks w/ my air-rifle & 17 HMR but I LOVE shooting them w/ my 6BR! Hopefully they will cut the fields soon. Good luck & keep posting updates!
I got 2 phone calls this week asking for chuck control,
,gotta luv it!). The first call was from my sister-in-law down the street, saying she was tired of her dogs dragging her all over their back yard chasing groundhogs. I eliminated 4 of her problems in a matter of minutes w/ my air-rifle,all were head shots @ 20-30 yds). I couldn`t take my 17 HMR because of the close neighbors. Round two @ her place will be soon. The second call was from a farmers wife @ the request of her husband. He just planted soy-beans & needed the chucks taken out along the the woods @ the edge of the field,enter 17 HMR). 3 were removed in 45 mins., 2 young ones,35yds. & 75 yds., both body shots), 3rd/ was a large adult, headshot @ 85yds.,I`ll be making another trip back there soon. I`m keeping my eye on local fields for the farmers to cut what looks like maybe oats or barley, so I can get back out w/ my 6BR. I like shooting chucks w/ my air-rifle & 17 HMR but I LOVE shooting them w/ my 6BR! Hopefully they will cut the fields soon. Good luck & keep posting updates!
I just added another two to the chuck count with my .17 HMR the other evening in an alfalfa field that had been 1st cut recently. Both were around 100 yds. with rifle resting on my knee as I sat and it was approx. 5:30 p.m.. The sun was out and it had cooled down to approx. 70 degrees with low humidity. One was a medium sized adult with a head shot and the other was a young one with a shoulder shot. The young ones are weaned and out feeding on their own, so they are fair game. The alfalfa is approx. 5 to 6 inches high and I saw several others standing up a distance from my position. This field has many active burrows and I will be returning this week. The ones that were standing up have some confidence because of the alfalfa and I will use that to my advantage. I just received permission to hunt another field that has alfalfa on one side separated by a treeline wth tender soybean on the other side; a good combination. At any rate, it seems that the chucks are coming out to feed in the evening now and the hunting should be great.
Chino69
Chino69
ARW,
I bagged 4 confirmed chucks monday night,6/5) in an alfalfa field using the .17 HMR. They were shot off-hand, all head shots, from 35 to 75 yards. Practicing in the basement this past winter with the pellet rifle, offhand, has really paid off in timing and accuracy. I also rolled a big one with a body shot but he made it back to his hole. I also bagged another tuesday morning with another head shot. The soybean fields that I've been checking haven't really started to become active which has me puzzled. The soybean has sprouted, is greening nicely, and is several hundred acres bordered by treelines and plenty of burrows which I scouted this spring. The burrows are now covered with weeds and the soybean is approx. 30 to 50 yards away, which should entice the chucks out to feed. I've been using the .243 A.I. for the long shots and haven't used the 6BR yet this season but I'm going to start. I'll be using the 65 grn. V-Max with Varget when I start with the 6BR. I've had good results with several different 68 grn. bullets as well. Alfalfa seems to be the hot ticket for chucks right now and I'll continue to keep you posted. I might venture into the Red Lion area next week.
Chino69
I bagged 4 confirmed chucks monday night,6/5) in an alfalfa field using the .17 HMR. They were shot off-hand, all head shots, from 35 to 75 yards. Practicing in the basement this past winter with the pellet rifle, offhand, has really paid off in timing and accuracy. I also rolled a big one with a body shot but he made it back to his hole. I also bagged another tuesday morning with another head shot. The soybean fields that I've been checking haven't really started to become active which has me puzzled. The soybean has sprouted, is greening nicely, and is several hundred acres bordered by treelines and plenty of burrows which I scouted this spring. The burrows are now covered with weeds and the soybean is approx. 30 to 50 yards away, which should entice the chucks out to feed. I've been using the .243 A.I. for the long shots and haven't used the 6BR yet this season but I'm going to start. I'll be using the 65 grn. V-Max with Varget when I start with the 6BR. I've had good results with several different 68 grn. bullets as well. Alfalfa seems to be the hot ticket for chucks right now and I'll continue to keep you posted. I might venture into the Red Lion area next week.
Chino69
Chino69,
Sounds like you`re on to them pretty good! Let me know what you think about the performance on chucks w/ the 6br compared to the 243ai. If anybody has taken chucks,,especially adult ones), @ 500yds. or beyond w/ 65gr. Vmax in the 6br, I`d really like to hear about it,,my farthest so far has been 375yds.).I haven`t had a chance to get out in a while but I hope to soon. I`ll keep you posted,,I`m still sitting on 16 so far). Good luck & let me know how you`re doing.
Sounds like you`re on to them pretty good! Let me know what you think about the performance on chucks w/ the 6br compared to the 243ai. If anybody has taken chucks,,especially adult ones), @ 500yds. or beyond w/ 65gr. Vmax in the 6br, I`d really like to hear about it,,my farthest so far has been 375yds.).I haven`t had a chance to get out in a while but I hope to soon. I`ll keep you posted,,I`m still sitting on 16 so far). Good luck & let me know how you`re doing.
Here is my backyard solution,got this one at 40 yds on the edge of my yard two weeks ago.
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h194/steveyrock/Picture006.jpg
I enjoy all the posts in this thread,GOOD READING,thanks fellas.
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h194/steveyrock/Picture006.jpg
I enjoy all the posts in this thread,GOOD READING,thanks fellas.
I shot 18 the other day 12 with the hornet and 6 with the 22-250 longest shot was 605 yards that makes 162 so far this year with the longest at 820 yards
mikeinct,
It's 92 degrees with high humidity and miserable as hell. The last two chucks I shot were with a Savage .17 HMR about two weeks ago. A retired friend took me to a farm that he hunts and I could not believe the number of chucks we saw. The area of Pa. we were in is rimfire only, otherwise there would have been more in the tally. I believe we saw 11 or 12 chucks that evening. My buddy said that was a low count night as he usually sees twice that amount. He only hunts this property every other week or so and I could tell by the way the chuck's behaved; as they were not spooked at all by our presence. The long range fields that I hunt, in a nearby centerfire county, has the chucks scattering at distances of several hundred yards when I pull my Jeep up. My strategy will be different next season because I've clearly overhunted certain fields. Most of these fields are soybean and I can't see the chucks now.
Chino69
It's 92 degrees with high humidity and miserable as hell. The last two chucks I shot were with a Savage .17 HMR about two weeks ago. A retired friend took me to a farm that he hunts and I could not believe the number of chucks we saw. The area of Pa. we were in is rimfire only, otherwise there would have been more in the tally. I believe we saw 11 or 12 chucks that evening. My buddy said that was a low count night as he usually sees twice that amount. He only hunts this property every other week or so and I could tell by the way the chuck's behaved; as they were not spooked at all by our presence. The long range fields that I hunt, in a nearby centerfire county, has the chucks scattering at distances of several hundred yards when I pull my Jeep up. My strategy will be different next season because I've clearly overhunted certain fields. Most of these fields are soybean and I can't see the chucks now.
Chino69
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