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we've heard a lot of wonderful tales on the internet forums about dropping deer at 984.2 yards with an offhand shot while the critter was running and quartering away, and the animal dropped in his tracks. i'd like to see a little bit of honesty here, so what is your worst screw-up? the one that actually made you re-think your methods and the way you decided whether or not to pull the trigger? for me, it was when i was still in high school, a young whitetail doe at about a hundred yards running broadside right in front of me. i tried to lead the way i was taught to do, but ended up hitting her in the hams. i ended up walking up and finishing her off, and will probably never take a runnning shot on a deer again because of it. how about YOU? | ||
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Tas, I probably put in as much time hunting. And still I amaze myself how easily and how much I can screw up. Heres one instance. I can remember a cold morning a few years ago that a large 10pt walked out in front of me. When I put the scope up to my eye I realized that I had fogged up the scope I was breathing so heavily. So I slowly wiped the eyepiece off and got the deer in my sights. With the crosshairs on the boiler room I pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. In my excitement of cleaning off the scope I forgot I had put the safety back on. Needless to say by than a wall hanger of a buck had just walked out of sight in the thick woods. | |||
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Two does, just off the bean field. Two shots, two tags, three deer. I should have waited, but young and foolish. Landowner came down and tagged the third. | |||
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50 yards, 20 3/4" (inside spread) heavy beamed Buck standing broadside. I shot about 2 feet over his back.  He takes off running, I stand up and hit him at 350, shooting offhand. Please explain that to me, because, obviously, I can not claim skill on that shot. | |||
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Archery fuckup: During a complete lapse of judgement, I launched an arrow at what I thought was a doe. The deer was 72 steps away on a slight downgrade. I had a 40 yard pin. It was my last day in Missouri and I hadn't even seen a deer in 3 days. I got out of my tree after seeing this one and stalked it. Boogered it at the last second, that is when it ran off and stopped to look at me. I said, screw it, she has to be about 75 yards away. I put the 40 yard pin way over it's back and released. Hit it in the last rib slightly angling fwd because after I released the arrow it began to walk. Hitting it was pure coincidence. (fuckup #1) Turned out to be a button buck (fuckup #2 IMO). It was not dead and I had to send another arrow at 18 yards to finish it. Of course I felt like a complete dumbass and was pissed at myself for ever doing it because the deer suffered. That was more than 12 years ago. In Alabama, I was hunting my honey hole (the only hunter ever to hunt this property), had a 140 class whitetail stroll calmly right in front of me. Walking very very slow, I aimed right at the shoulder thinking the arrow would hit right behind it at 15 yards at his pace. Smacked him right in the shoulder. Never found him. Still bugs me to this day. Rifle fuckup: none.  | |||
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First time I'm looking at a buck through a scope with the sun behind him, can't see the crosshairs against the body because it's black on black. Moving the scope around looking for the intersection point(didn't think about lining up the outside part of the reticle before) my brother standing beside me asks "Are you going to shoot or look at it all day". I of course immediately pull the trigger sending a shot over his back. (was a nice tall wide 4x4 Mulie too  | |||
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MY biggest mistake was listening to people at an early age who knew you could never accurately shoot over 200yds. Then I turned 14 and I realized that there as life past 200yds. (I started my reloading then and LOTS more shooting centerfire burners)truthfully, I have NEVER had those "horrible mistakes" happen because I was raised better then that and I have spent pretty much my entire adult life engaged in a job that doesn't tolerate mistakes. (Ghetto street cop for 20 and undercover narcotics for 5 1/2) the idea was driven into me at a very early age to engage brain before doing something stupid, ESPECIALLY with a firearm. | |||
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Quote: Yea, you should have seen my brothers face at the range when he shot clay targets at 200 yards with my handloads. He acted like it was SOOOO far. He'd never shot anything beyond 100 yards. He's really liking that custom 270 with a 25.5" PacNor barrel and 130 B-tips. | |||
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Several years ago I slept in my truck to be in postion on opening morning. Not long after sunrise I spotted a 190 class whitetail coming in off of a wheat field. I set up the perfect ambush and waited for him to come in. He was at 50 yds and didn't know I was there and just as I lined up the cross hairs and was about to pull the trigger the alarm on my digital watch went off. In the blink of an eye he was gone. I threw that watch as far as I could. | |||
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Ok, that screwup deserves a bullet in the big toe.  Just like when I put my cell phone on my hip before a bowhunt (out of habit), needless to say, at the moment of truth, when a nice big doe was feeding at 11 steps, my wife calls wanting to know what I want for dinner. I told her that she just scared dinner off.  | |||
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SHOOTIST, i shouldnt laugh as it must be very pain full to have that happen. but wow that was funny. | |||
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1 doe/fawn tag 4 antelope running left to right aiming at the lead doe buck in back Guess which one I hit with a perfect lung shot. Took him home & did not waste the meat. | |||
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This is in the reloading forum at the moment: http://www.accuratereloading.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=849553&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=21&fpart=1 I thought I made a mistake once but a Democrat told me I wasn't responsible. Oh, sorry, you were asking about screwups! Yes of course I screw up, just ask my wife!  | |||
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Yesterday I walked across a horse pasture to a wonder spot, could see across three huge pastures. Best part I knew six deer layed-up in the tiny patch of cattails just below me, I'd been watching them all summer. I set my five gallon pail down, pushed the horses away that stood all around me and what happens when it's time to sit in postion? Take a leak! I had my back to a doe that got up and trotted off not fifty feet from me. Me holding my repeater not able to shut off the flow, whirl around and lay her out. I got the next one up though. We set my brother on a long row of round bales and told him the deer will run between the bale he was on and the next one, it was set up that way to funnel deer. We drove nine deer to him. We stood across the field and all of us said aloud "why doesn't he shoot them?" WHen we got there he said the 3x9 scope was set at 9x and all he saw was hair. I was hunting in falling snow and rain one morning. We ate lunch and then went hunting again. Six deer ran down a washout and up the other side. I was aiming strait down at them thinking it was like shooting quarter horses (they had big backs and butts) down and then up. The Mossbergs action had frozen solid as the temp had fallen. As hard as I pulled and pushed that shotgun would not function. Luckily our group has more fun laughing at each other so they didn't lynch me. One day I was gutting a deer with several guys, and one beautiful woman, standing around waiting on me (I'm the gutter since they decided I'm the best at it, vote taken by secret ballot). Dad walks up (he's in his 70's and just gotten some brains) and says shouldn't somebody have a shotgun ready? You know deer walk through here all the time. He walked down the draw waiting on me. None of THEM (I was employed) had their shotguns handy as a doe walked down the hill crossed right next to me and ran up the other side. We all agreed to not say anything to Dad. | |||
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A very timely thread friend, I, for one, am ready for a dose of humility and humor. Many years ago, while I was still in highschool, I had a muzzleloader tag for deer. As I was making my way back toward my truck I suddenly spied a smallish 4 point buck standing in an opening in the pinions above me. I kneeled and fired. Looking under the smoke cloud I could see nothing, the deer was not in the opening. I quickly reloaded and darned if that deer didn't step out in the open again just above where I had missed the first time. This time when I looked under the cloud I could see he was down. After dressing him I started dragging him down the hill and sure enough there lay the first buck I had shot at. He was identical to the one I was already dragging. When I shot he must have hit the ground and rolled over into the trees where I couldn't see him. I took the first one home and told dad the story. He was not happy . I chose not to try explaining it to the warden but went back later and brought the deer home. It was in the freezer by morning. That was a lesson I never forgot. Don't assume a miss until it's been confirmed. It can't be confirmed unless one goes and looks, hard. | |||
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Quote: Most of these "450 yard" shots, running or otherwise are probably more like 250 yards. And IF they are actually making shots at that distance they only remember the rare ones they work and conveniently forget the misses and wounds. When I hear a guy claiming he makes 800 yard shots, even 500 yard shots regularly at game, then I turn off as I'm not that interested with wasting time listening to bullshit from wankers. PS I have missed a couple of shots which I could not explain. Was sure I hit were I supposed to and the shot looked good. One of these was a zebra and we eventually finished it off the next evening. | |||
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Quote: Sorry......didn't recognize you without your beard and sandals. GV | |||
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HI, Tasunkawitko, Amen, I screwd up on not only hunting but just about everything.I have heard that a person learns from his mistakes, in that case I should be well learned,Kev | |||
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Last year. Had a doe walk out at about 50 yards almost immediately after I got in my stand. Got the cross hairs on her and squeezed off a round. "CLICK" Having just got up into the stand I had not even had time to chamber a round. She looked at me but I froze and she began to wonder on. I slowly worked the action while watching her. She stepped out in the open again. Lined up again. "CLICK" My follower spring is such that with 3 down it works fine but with 4 down you got to be real careful that it picks up that top round. I of course had 4 down that day. (Fixed by my smith now). She meandered off into the thickets. After about 10 minutes I see her through thick brush now and again in a privet thicket. I make Da%& sure that a round is chambered this time. She stepped into a place where I could make out her outline between trees at about 120 yards. Got on her shoulder and fired. She disappeared and bawled three times. That didn't sound good. I got down and went to look for her. No sign of her and no blood trail where I thought she had been standing. Went back to my stand to try to recreate the shot and figure exactly where she had been standing when the shot occurred. That is when I saw the limb cut cleanly in two between she and I. I went back and found her. She jumped and ran real ragged. I caught up with her and finished her with one in the shoulder. The first shot hit right in the on side ham. Made a real mess. The finisher ruined one shoulder. Not much meat to recover on that one. One little limb can make all the difference in the world. One should not lose the ability to laugh at ones self but I felt sorry for that deer. I like my grandfathers "hunters prayer". It was printed on a round of wood in his office. It read, "Dear Lord, let me hunt clean, and let me kill clean. Dear Lord, if I cannot kill clean, then please Lord let me miss clean." | |||
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Quote:Quote: ROFL!!! I just got that, GV. Perhaps he'll expound the finer points of firing a rifle at a distant animal whilst walking on water... 35W | |||
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I was bowhunting back when a Ben Pearson 80# recurve was a big deal. I had hunted a few days for mule deer near Queens in the Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico. I had one great opportunity. A nice buck stood broadside to me at about 50 yards; trouble was I stuck the arrow in a limb that was at about 25 yards. Not to worry. I kept hunting. Found a flock of turkey. Chased them up and down the mountains for about three hours. I finally decided to launch an arrow at about 100 yards. They had me plumb out of gas. The arrow arched perfectly, looked like it might be a hit, then went straight up in the air for about 50 feet. It appeared the blade missed him but the shaft ricocheted off his back. A few feathers flew, and he ran off with the others. I was back in Carlsbad getting gas later that day and a game department guy was filling up too. He asked me if I had any luck. I told him my whole story. He asked me if I definitely missed the turkey. I told him I was sure. He asked why I didn't keep chasing them. I told him I was wasted. He said that was good, because turkey weren't legal in that zone. Talk about feeling ignorant. If I had nailed that turkey I would have waved him around in everyone's face including the Game Department guy. | |||
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Quote:Quote:Quote: Now that is a fine way to keep your feet dry. | |||
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Quote: If that is the case I should have a PHD by now. | |||
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Folks, The first real guide who I hunted with quite a few years back told me that if you never miss or never wound you haven't hunted much. This is from an Alaska master guide who started guiding in the sixties, personally had shot all but 3 of the worlds' mountain species, most everything in southern Africa as well as most of the NA 27. As for my experience it always seems about the time I get cocky and have dispatched several animals with little difficulty there comes a "How in God's name did I do that" shot. With all the emotion/adrenaline etc. flowing during a hunt I think it is impossible to always make that deliberate perfect shot every time. Even if you only take shots that you are sure of you will mess up some time just because you are human. Regards, Mark | |||
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I got a broadside shot at what would've been the best buck of my hunting career, a 160 class 11 point at about 120 yards, normally an easy shot for me. I hit him low and busted his front leg. I found a little blood, but no deer in the immediate area, so I marked the spot, let him go, and waited an hour before resuming the search. I found him alright, trouble was another guy was dragging him out after having finished him off about 150 yards from where I shot him. I asked if the deer was hit when he found it, and he swore it wasn't, saying he shot it once in the neck. The front leg was very obviously shattered just below the shoulder, but I guess he thought I wanted to take the deer. The forkhorn I took the next day was a bit of a letdown after that bruiser. I've missed lots of times, but that one stings the most. | |||
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Quote:Quote:Quote: Thats water he already turned to wine. | |||
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Quote:Quote:Quote: DON'T WALK on water unless it's frozen. I was raised to be very respectful of ALL firearms and to know the consequences of STUPIDITY. Such as NEVER firing unless you KNOW your background, never firing unless you are sure of your target identity and being sure that bullet pass through will do no harm. you know, basic stuff you would think. I also can't help it if spending over 28years in cop work in one of the worst places on the planet taught me that worse things then wounding animals or missing them can happen if you do dumb shit things while armed. I've sat in on the shooting boards reviewing what should have been a "good" shoot, but the round penetrated through the BG and hit an innocent 2 blocks away(one of the "benefits?" of being the chief of the patrolmans union, sitting in on all the officer involved shootings). THAT puts shooting ANYTHING into a different prospective. I guess I should have left any postings regarding THIS thread topic to YOU people who are so much more quailified, since, I have nothing to contribute. | |||
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About three years back I was using a scout mount on an old Russian M44 carbine to still hunt in a thicket. I was on a short ladder stand and had been there a couple of hours during an ice storm listening to the pines pop. Well these old military rifles have little short stubby bolt handles and as this was a scout it still had the unaltered bolt. Last day of the season in late December. Still have a doe tag and sure enough a doe came out of the snow and walked right toward me. Now I'd been there a while and in the cold had shifted around some. I brought the rifle up and aimed at about 20 yards. Trigger pull-CLICK-doe still there looking-try to work bolt as I thought I'd failed to chamber a round-click/thud shell ejects and falls down wooden ladder-doe frozen still looking-chamber another round but before I could come to bear off she finally went. Come to find out the little bolt had worked partially open as I waited and the first click was the bolt being forced shut by the firing pin spring. Dented the primer a bit, but not enough to fire. Not a highlight of my hunting career. | |||
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Quote: Not at all. I think regaling accounts of infallibility are perfectly appropriate to the thread. GV | |||
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Quote:Quote: NOT INFALLIBLE, just REALLY careful. it's not that difficult, just engage the brain before you engage the other motor functions. I know that may be a "unique" idea to some, but taking all the "what ifs" into consideration you can before acting keeps you pretty accident free, although some may find it removes the "spontineity" and "challenge" of the unexpected. It may remove the "fun." IF you talked to the guys I hunt with you would find I am the most anal retentive preparation freak they know. I take 4 months just to prepare and pack for a week long hunting trip reevaluating equipment and trying to see, predict, figure out ANY surprises, before they become so. I carry gear I have NEVER used, but gives me that warm fuzzy feeling knowing it's there, BUT if what I thought could happen, did, I would be ready to handle it. And when you are 1000 miles from nowhere, it's a long trip to get that life saving or hunt saving critical widget. Same thing with the hunting I do. I try to prepare for everything, and practice for everything, so the actual event itself is quite "uneventful." That isn't infallibility, it's just thought process. | |||
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Well, just this morning. I was in my climbing stand early. Nice cold morning. There is cloud cover so even though it is now 10 minutes into shooting light, its not bright. I am sitting facing thick pines making things even darker. I stand up, I hear snap. I look all around and I can't see anything. I look straight down and ANTLERS! Nice deer, I slowly inch my gun up. I am 20 feet up. Just as the rifle (338-06) reaches my shoulder the deer looks up. I align the scope I can see antlers and brown but no cross hairs. Well the scope is filled with deer and this deer is ready to bolt, how can I miss? Needless to say I got a tuff of hair and no deer  I have been hunting for over 30 yrs. Oh and the reason I was able to hunt this Morning is I am out on short term dissability because I cut a tendon in my left thumb while field dressing an 8pt. I did just order a scope with an Illuminated reticle. That guess work will not happen again. I hope! | |||
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First time deer hunting. I'm walking along in a wash when I hear this skittering noise in the wash next to me. For some reason I'm sure this is a deer and go charging up the side of the wash. Making enough noise to scare a dead rhino. Sure enough, I get to the top of the wash just in time to see a 3x3 mulie go smoking down the wash and out of sight. Looking back, if I'd just creeped up the embankment, I'd have had a buck on my first trip. Still kick myself about that one  | |||
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I shot a nice buck early one rainy morning and when I bolted another round he was still standing in the same spot so, I fired again and he casualy walked away. I could not believe that I had just missed two easy shots w/ a very reliable rifle. When I arrived at the scene there was two nice bucks w/in 25 yards of impact. I was dragging one when I stumbled upon the other. The bad thing was that the Game Warden lived 1/2 mile down the road. I managed to squeek by on that screw up and believe me, I hope it doesn't happen again. I think the dragging and cleaning of two bucks well over 200 pounds was enough punishment for that day. Reloader | |||
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Tas, Back when I was young and knew everything(15 years old) I was hunting with a bunch of friends when we came across a nice 4x4 Blacktail. The range was the problem. He was over 500 yards away and seeing I was the only one there that wasn�t shooting a .30-30 the other guys got me to try a shot( I had been bragging about my custom 7.65 Argentine shooting farther than their �pip squeak� .30-30�s. There was no way to get closer as the buck was in the middle of a pasture. So I had made my brag and now I had to back it up. Got prone and used my hat over a rock for a rest. Did much mental figuring how much drop I was going to need and squeezed the trigger. I scored a hit with my first shot......right in the stomach. We heard the bullet hit and watched as the buck humped up, staggered a bit then ran off. To cut a long story short we didn�t find that buck until late the next day. The meat was ruined, the coyotes had been at it during the night. I cut the horns off that buck, tagged them and that is all we managed to save. I should have taken the tail because that is the trophy I deserved. Taught me to never take another shot where I wasn�t certain that I could put the bullet where it belonged. Lawdog | |||
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That's better than the "weekend warriers" we get around here, at least you took both of them home. They (the City Rambos) shoot anything brown and check to see if it's legal afterwards. It's common to find still warm does laying on there bait piles when they leave the woods. | |||
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Well... As most of you know... I also walk on water and never, ever, screw up... Yeah Right... Worse mistake I ever made. I was walking down a dead end logging road on a piney ridge in North Florida. I knew that deer often crossed that ridge late in the day rather than sticking to the brush at the lower end of the ridge and going around. I was moving at a VERY slow pace and thought I heard rustling like hooves in grass ahead of me. Straining my eyes to see in the rapidly fading light I made out what looked like a log but it was too high above the ground. I, very slowly, pulled my rifle off my shoulder where it had been slung (yeah... I know.. It shoulda been in my hands) and pointed it at the "log"... Voila... A nice buck materialized in the scope. He was frozen broadside and looking at me. I knew that his headgear was respectable but in the low light I couldn't make it out very well. I moved the crosshairs down to where his lungs should be and let one loose. Note that I couldn't see my crosshairs because it was dark so I was centering him in my scope and was sure I had him. At the shot my lightweight 308 recoiled up pretty heavily and I clearly saw a deer run off with my naked eyes. DAMN!!! How could I have missed? Well... I went back to my truck and got my flashlight and looked for about 20 minutes for blood. Nothing... <sigh> I gave up and went home, my confidence was shaken.  Two weeks later I was making the same stalk on the same road but it was much earlier in the day. Guess what?... There was his skeleton and he sure enough had a nice rack. All I can figure was that there was another deer with him which was the one that ran off and he dropped right in his tracks. How I missed him, while searching over and over is still a mystery to me. Nice 6 point rack but the squirrels had pretty much ruined it... I'll always be haunted by that one... $bob$ | |||
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