Observations on a Casual Georgia Hunt

[CaptainMal]

There. My wife behind one of my motorcycles in Plains, Georgia at Billy Carter's gas station. I rode her around all week for marital happiness. Hunting was but a couple mornings and evenings. Now we get serious.

Observations:

Thompson Center muzzeloading 250 gr. Shock Waves in 50 cal. Work well. 5th deer in a row for me to 155 yards. Burris 2-7 with Ballistic Plex IS the ticket. End of discussion.


Used my 6.5 Ackley Improved for the first time on game. Don't YOU make the same mistakes. The barrel is too long. It's 26" but with the brake it goes 28". I took it in my tower and bonked the metal supports near every time I moved it around. Man was I stupid. It was constant "bonk" then cuss..."bonk" and cuss. Going back to my shorter 7MM mag, 270, 338 and 257 Roberts. Mistake.

Forget the Bushnell 4.5 - 30x ... 6500 Elite. I tried on one this rifle and found out it's no Burris, Leupold or Nightforce.

With/without that sunshade, a red sky flared awful in the scope. When the sun came up ... forget it. Flare. Field-of-view is published one thing but sure is way smaller and less distinct than my Burris Black Diamond 4-16's.

As for a 140 SST...One lung and exit through the shoulder at 250 yards did NOT put it down. Tracked a tiny blood trail 150 yards. You are viewing an exit hole.


Fun week. Serious hunting starts in November with the rut. Nuts to this rifle. Accuracy is not always the answer.

 

[savageshooter86]

where in GA where you hunting? I live in south GA and them are pretty deer you got

 

[GSPV]

You can always get the barrel shortened.

I don't think the problem is with the cartridge. It appears to be the terminal performance of the bullet. Southern deer are small and thin-skinned. You need something that expands.

The Berger 130 grain hunting VLD expands very well shot from my son's 260 Remington. It is sensitive to seating depth in my son's rifle.

YMMV,

 

[Raythemanroe]

Some sort of ballistic tip would put them down

 

[CaptainMal]

GSPV, I tried to get Bergers to shoot with no luck at any weight or seating depth. This Krieger did not like them. It liked 130 Sierra Pro Hunters but shoots 1/3 moa with these Hornady 140 SST's. I can hammer gongs at 565 yards and have serious 1/4 min groups at 400. Other calibers I have used SST's showed too much expansion. This may have been just a "one-time" event.

Savageshooter, I'm near Preston Ga. These does were what I wanted for us to eat. I passed up way bigger and all smaller deer for these. During muzzleloader season the "big deer" contest is on weight. I won with a 14 pt. and an 8 pt twice. One year a guy won with a 215 lb. doe. Saw two like that but the contest starts with rifle season. I saw them in muzzleloader. Only hunted that one morning of rifle - last Saturday.

Most always take 4-6 does and two bucks 8 pt. or better each season. After these first two I look at them as horns and targets. One of these I had a processor grind and the second I cut up myself. Wife makes chunks, jerky and we also grind some of that.

Frankly, the processed one is always better but don't tell her that.

Heading back around November 6th and will stay until close to Thanksgiving. That's the rut and some years I pass up over 20 bucks of 8 pt or larger.

You wanna meet or talk? PM and I will give you my cell #. Yes. From that tower I can shoot 1,000 yards. Also have numerous stands near swamps and hardwoods for my short-range carbines and handguns. Usually use a different gun for each deer. This is how I put in all my food plots and the property is only hunted by ME.

 

[CaptainMal]

Forgot another lesson learned. Long action Rem. Tried to put cartridges in the magazine for the first time. Two will go in and the third immediately pops out.

Another issue is feeding. Seated with a long throat the points of the bullets hit the feed ramp and jam unless I move the bolt slowly.

When we rebarrel and go to different cartridges the magazine issue is , well, an issue. I did not check before this hunt.

 

[alf]

Nice scoot....guessin' the exhaust isn't just for looks....

 

[CaptainMal]

Reinhart. Heads flowed by old National #10...Billy Labrie, re-programmed, free-flowing intake but no cam changes. 50,000 miles and been all over.

Now my R model 883 is the one. Flat out Andrews-cammed FIRE. My Moto Guzzi 500 is also trick and fast. Have lots of antique bikes when I want to go slow.