I will be hunting with a mil-dot and need to know rough height to top of back and depth of body broadside. If anybody has one for a pet, measure it for me will ya.

Heider-it is 15"-16" on the hairline to the hairline. Good luck

"GET TO THE HILL"

Dogz

My records show 15" from hair line to hair line as well on a mature buck.

Daryl

I concur with the other members on body depth and add 36" body length and 8" ear length.

the last one that I measured was a antelope doe.

I measured 18" for the chest cavity with the hair on. Didn't measure leg length.

Hope that helps

I did actual field measurements on two antelope.
Both were just a hair over 15" top of back hair to bottom of chest hair.
Granted that is a pretty small sample but seems to agree with what the other posters have seen for the most part.

It will depend on where and when you are hunting. Yes the animals mentioned that are in the colder climates of Wyoming, Montana and Canada would probably have enough hair to have the 15 to 16 inch measurements, but in the southern states such as Arizona and New Mexico they are not as long haired and will measure in the 13 to 15 inch range through the chest for a mature buck.

The normal body length will run 32 to 35 inches and the ears down here in the south are normally 6 to 7 inches. Hope this helps.

Kirk Kelso

Brent I think you are being kind of hard on the guy.
Bracketing the animal with a known body size is a reliable method of range finding if you have a solid rest.
Some might say much more reliable that "reading the ground" which sounds a lot like giving it your best guess.
If you have a high power scope this method can get you pretty close out to 500 yards.
If you have a good rangefinder that is better of course but bracketing is a good alternative method if you don't have a rangefinder.
A flat shooting rifle is a definite aid.

I have been using this method for rangefinding on deer and antelope for years (well before the advent of affordable rangefinders) out to 500 yards and never missed an animal due to an incorrect yardage estimation.

Reading the ground sounds good but in practical application the conditions are rarely ideal for doing so. Even more rare is the individual who can do so consistently accurately at any distance even under ideal conditions.

Been taking kids out antelope hunting for a few years now. Last weekend we measured 2 12" bucks the boys took here in So. CO. Both were 15" back - brisket, and varied about 2 " from front of brisket to back of hindquarter at 32+34".

Another quick note. we were watching some antelope aways from us. I grabbed one of the guns that i'd worked up some plex calculations for on his 6.5-20 Leu. His scope had to be set on 8.2X for MPBR of 300 yds. post-post of plex. I bracketed a doe that fit exactly between the post + x-hair (calculated to be 450 yds.) My Leica read 446. I've used this system, and i've become a firm believer in its potential (especially as a backup for the laser).

Leupold's Vari X III scopes are specifically deigned for this ranging system (Pentax + Burris use it also), but any 2nd focal plane reticle with at least one additional reference point built into it can easily be calibrated for a std. target measurement for multiple downrange zero's and rangefinding.

[ 10-09-2003, 10:36: Message edited by: sscoyote ]