Dave Hurteau

Field Test: Flextone’s New Thunder Gobble Turkey Call

Sarah Smith — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:48:20 -0400

I know you aren’t stupid, so just think of this as a friendly reminder: It’s a gobble call! Be careful!

There. Now I’ll also point out that in this video, when I say “unlike other mouth-blown gobble calls,” I am referring primarily to a tube call. I can make an okay gobble on a tube, but it took a lot of practice. A number of hunters have told me that they have trouble blowing the new Haint gobble call from Down-N-Dirty Outdoors, but I’ll reserve judgment until I try one. I also need to try Knight and Hale’s new Hale Fire.

For now, what I do know is that this one is a cinch to use, sounds good and is priced right.

Field Test: Flextone’s New Thunder Gobble Turkey Call

Sarah Smith — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:48:20 -0400

I know you aren’t stupid, so just think of this as a friendly reminder: It’s a gobble call! Be careful!

For now, what I do know is that this one is a cinch to use, sounds good and is priced right.

Trivia Question: What Bow Did Bo Duke Shoot?

Dave_Maccar — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:36:21 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

We all have our embarrassing secrets. I’ll spare you mine, for the most part. But for the purposes of this blog, I will admit to one: As much as I would like to trace my interest in archery to the likes of Hill, Bear, Pope, or Young, the truth is that the real greats were all before my time. No, being a product of the television generation (an embarrassing admission itself), my initial fascination with archery was sparked by the exploding arrows of—cringe—Bo and Luke Duke.

Here’s Bo, the handsome devil, in fine form. I have blacked out the name of his bow in Photoshop. Now, can anyone tell me what model he’s shooting? Of course, in doing so, you will be admitting that you are either a hopeless bow geek or a fellow fan of “The Dukes….”

Did You Get a Gun For Christmas, Too?

Sarah Smith — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 15:27:15 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

Actually I got a winter restoration project—a Savage Model 24 in .22LR/.410 with good bores and solid wood but a very rough exterior. As far as I’m concerned, the Model 24 in this configuration is the perfect squirrel gun.

By the way, did you know that squirrel hunting makes excellent practice for hunting whitetail deer, the species about which this blog is solely dedicated?

As I was saying, it’s a fantastic squirrel gun, particularly for small woodlots close to populated areas, because you can use the .22 when your backdrop will stop a bullet and the .410 when it won’t. Plus it’s just a damned cool gun that I’ve always wanted to own.

A peep sight seems the obvious answer, but I’m toying with the idea of a vintage low-power Weaver or Lyman scope. It’s the one type that would not be an abomination on the gun; it would be well suited to close-range squirrels with the .22LR barrel, and (back to whitetails) with the .410 barrel, it would be great practice getting on a moving target through a scope.

Anyway, enough about my Christmas present. Did you get a gun, too? If so, let’s hear about it. On the other hand, if all you got was boxer shorts and a tie, you are more than welcome to talk about my new obsession—I mean, my gun. What do you think about the vintage scope idea? How about staining the wood a darker color? (I think yes.)

Recommendation on blue brands: Wonder Blue, Brownells Oxpho-Blue, Birchwood Casey Perma-Blue? (I’ve only used the last.) Any other thoughts?

On Why I Like Vegetarians (for the Most Part)

Sarah Smith — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 09:24:08 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

I’ve known a lot of vegetarians. I was engaged to one once (technically “pre-engaged,” whatever the hell that means). And you know, I don’t think I’ve ever met one I didn’t like. I’ve met some I thought were full of $#!%, but none I didn’t like. I like some hunters who are also full of $#!%.

It’s fun to bust on vegetarians, and they usually take it well. Especially fun are the easy marks, the ones who say, “I’m a vegetarian but I eat fish.” We had a vegetarian friend over to dinner recently who said, “I’m a vegetarian but I eat fish and chicken,” which made me think of a line from The Princess Bride: “I do not think it means what you think it means.”

No doubt there are vegetarians I wouldn’t like. It stands to reason that many of the nuttiest anti-hunters don’t eat meat that isn’t fish or chicken. But I haven’t met them personally. And besides, I wouldn’t dislike them because of what they don’t eat. I would dislike them because they are nuts.

Anyway, back to the ones I have met: I like them, I think, because even if their logic is not always perfect, they have bothered to think about their food. They—unlike the great chubby mass of Americans who stuff their faces obliviously—have a food ethic. And so we have something in common. Wrote Thomas McGuane, “I decided that unless I become a vegetarian, I’ll get my meat by hunting for it.” That seems about right to me.

How to Tell Good Acorns—And Pick The Right Tree To Hunt Near

Dave_Maccar — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 12:23:29 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

You need to know who to steal from, goes the saying (even though it should go “whom to steal from”), and for this video I have stolen a tip outright from Bestul, who stole it from a logger buddy of his. When you’re hunting an area with lots of oaks and you need to figure out which trees the deer are feeding under, make sure to keep a sharp eye out for acorns that do not have their caps. It’s something a lot of hunters overlook but shouldn’t. Acorns that fall with caps often have rotten or punky flesh; those that fall without caps typically have fine, firm flesh and are therefore preferred by the deer.

It’s a useful bit of knowledge when there are lots of acorns, of course, but also during years like this—at least around here—when there are very few. Before you pat yourself on the back for finding the one tree dropping nuts, check the acorns closely and make sure the flesh is good before you hang a stand.

Graphic Photos: Coyotes Take Down Big Velvet 10-Pointer

Dave_Maccar — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 11:02:48 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

Reader Cole Meadows sent us these incredible, albeit graphic, photos, saying, “These have been going around the Internet. I know the coyote problems here in Ohio are bad. Hopefully you could post these pictures so we can get hunters motivated to start controlling coyote populations.”

You can view all the photos in this series here on Deer & Deer Hunting's website. WARNING: THESE PHOTOS CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES

Making the photos an argument for more predator control may be taking them out of context, seeing that we have no idea what the context is. What’s clear, though, is that at least two coyotes manage to take down a heck of a velvet 10-pointer in August--particularly intersting given the new studies suggesting that coyotes play a larger-than-ever-expected role in deer predation. (See Bestul’s column on same.)

I’ll let you draw your own conculsions.

Beware: Before You Shoot at a Buck From a Ground Blind...

Sarah Smith — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:34:06 -0500

Depending on where you live, it is now, or soon may be too cold to want to spend hours aloft and exposed in a deer stand. And so some of you will likely trade your tree for the comparative coziness of a ground blind. But before you do, take heed of what American Hunter Managing Editor Jeff Johnston told me on a recent whitetail hunt in Wyoming, which he also wrote, in bold, on his BullShooters blog: “If you choose to use expandable broadheads, don't shoot through the mesh, mister!”

Johnston tested expandable and fixed-blade broadheads, as well as rifle and shotgun ammo, through the mesh of a ground blind. Below is a snapshot table of his results. Click here for the full story.

Bushnell Scope Buck-Scoring Contest, Round 2

Sarah Smith — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 10:08:32 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

Okay people, here is another fine-looking whitetail taken on my recent hunt at Wyoming’s Trophy Ridge Outfitters—and the next buck in our scoring contest. Once again, you are playing for a new Bushnell Elite 3-9x40 DOA 600 scope.

If you are just joining us: I will post a total of four bucks photos, one per week, for one month. (Click here if you missed the first one.)

You will guess the gross B&C score of each and keep track of your guesses. Fractionals will count. When I post the final buck, I’ll ask you for your grand total. Whoever is closest wins the scope. If there is a tie, we will have a tiebreaker buck.

Now, have a close look at this buck. What do you think it scores?

Four Steps to Good Bow-Shooting Form

Sarah Smith — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:42:46 -0500

by Dave Hurteau

As I say in this video, we archers are forever trumpeting the importance of “good form,”—too often without bothering to explain just what that means. So here’s a simple breakdown. This is basic stuff, but it goes a long way toward shooting well.

(Sorry about the “that-is-a-dead-jackalope” line; that was the video editor’s idea. Damned editors.)