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Post by dbd870 on Jun 22, 2014 8:22:03 GMT -5
Pretty close! I'm using 29.5" 1916's, Zwicky Eskimos, and 5" feathers. Now with my 28.75 draw I'm only pulling 47# though; 72lbs, Yikes!
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Post by HighCotton on Jun 24, 2014 6:33:02 GMT -5
Well, I got the snow camo mount back. I love how it came out and would definitely recommend it to anyone considering that as an option in the future. It was crazy to put my hands on the horns again and realize how small they were. Some minor details here: Bases less than 5" circumference. Greatest outside spread 19.75" I'll play this game out for a few days...any guesses on score???
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Post by Woody Williams on Jun 24, 2014 6:56:22 GMT -5
99 6/8 gross ?
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Post by Woody Williams on Jun 24, 2014 6:57:36 GMT -5
Pretty close! I'm using 29.5" 1916's, Zwicky Eskimos, and 5" feathers. Now with my 28.75 draw I'm only pulling 47# though; 72lbs, Yikes! "72 lbs"- now you know why I had shoulder problems and went to a crossbow ...
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Post by dbd870 on Jun 24, 2014 8:22:34 GMT -5
Pretty close! I'm using 29.5" 1916's, Zwicky Eskimos, and 5" feathers. Now with my 28.75 draw I'm only pulling 47# though; 72lbs, Yikes! "72 lbs"- now you know why I had shoulder problems and went to a crossbow ... That would do it!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2014 8:29:54 GMT -5
I think Woody is a little high. I'm going to say 99 5/8.
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Post by jager on Jun 24, 2014 16:30:12 GMT -5
I think Woody gave his best guess, no reason to say that you think he is high! LOL
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Post by Woody Williams on Jun 24, 2014 16:32:04 GMT -5
I think Woody gave his best guess, no reason to say that you think he is high! LOL Now THAT is funny!!
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Post by trapperdave on Jun 24, 2014 19:27:59 GMT -5
Its medicinal. For the shoulders
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Post by HighCotton on Jun 26, 2014 5:48:12 GMT -5
Not far off Woody. Antlers scored 101 3/8!
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Post by Woody Williams on Jun 26, 2014 7:59:43 GMT -5
Not far off Woody. Antlers scored 101 3/8! Yeah, but he "scored" a LOT more in meat....
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 19:20:27 GMT -5
Personally I have always thought that Aging Deer by looking at their Teeth is a flawed Science. I think it is very accurate for the first year or two of a Deers' life, but past that there are too many other factors that can alter the teeth of a Deer.
The condition or wear on the teeth of a Deer greatly depend on what the Deer eats, and even genetics. You can have two deer that are the same age, but one deer can have much more worn down teeth than the other deer simply because it eats foods that wear its teeth down at a fast rate.
A good example is this, you have two 4 year old Bucks, one mostly eats Grass, the other mostly eats Nuts, Twigs, Corn, and other hard foods. Well, the Buck that eats the nuts, corn, and other hard food is going to have more wear and decay on his teeth than the Buck that eats softer foods like grass. So when aged, the Buck that eats the hard foods will likely be aged as an older deer, even though both deer are really the same age.
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Post by HighCotton on Jul 6, 2014 19:52:16 GMT -5
Well, the results are in on the bucks age! Based on forensic cementum annuli, he came back as a 5.5 year old buck: It really never mattered much to me whether he was 2.5 or 10.5 yrs old. I just thoroughly enjoyed this process!
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Post by HuntMeister on Jul 6, 2014 20:57:52 GMT -5
Little bird told me about the official results a few days ago...I would have never guessed 5-1/2 yrs old!
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Post by HighCotton on Jul 6, 2014 20:59:17 GMT -5
I'll post some interesting bits of information here as I recall them. One of the most striking moments for me was a discussion with Henry after he informed me via email that results were complete. His first comment was a question. He said, "Something happened on your farm 2 years ago. I can tell from the line on the micro slide from year number 4 (4.5). Anything come to your mind?" I said, "Absolutely, we got hit with a fairly serious drought and blasted again with EHD." He said he could tell right a way that something was different by the slide. The deer had not laid down a typical layer of cementum for that year.
The food source around us is prime with hayfields, cropland and hardwoods (plenty of oak and hickory). The bucks habitat was also close to good muck ground, some gumbo and near river bottoms. Henry agreed that the crests on the deers molars were not very worn and still pointed. He also noted that he has aged bucks of known age at 2.5 and 3.5 yrs down in Texas that would rival the wear of 6.5 yr old bucks in the Midwest. It seems to be a characteristic indicative mostly of habitat and soil types.
The small antlers, and especially the lack of mass baffle me the most. Henry commented that he has seen this before. It is not common, but is possible to have these older bucks with a small set of horns. He hunts a property in central Illinois where hey have trail cam pics of a particular deer. If it makes it through to this season, he will be 6.5 yrs old and sport a set of antlers less than my buck!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2014 21:08:36 GMT -5
Very interesting!
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Post by scrub-buster on Jul 6, 2014 21:09:06 GMT -5
Very interesting. Thanks for posting all of this.
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Post by steve46511 on Jul 6, 2014 22:38:35 GMT -5
The size alone was 90 percent of my basis for a 5 1/2 year old age guess.
I tend to ignore racks when considering age, but the color of his face had me wondering about it later and why I wouldn't have been surprised at younger results, had that been the case. BTW the colors in that buck's face is VERY good and would have made a dandy looking mount (again, IMO).
Like every trait a deer has, much of it is hereditary. Each, however, is an individual in their own right but face hair greying (a lot) in truly mature bucks has been highly probable in my area.
One that old without a gray face, or as gray as I would have expected isn't near the freak that buck would have been IN MY OPINION, if it had hit that weight range much younger. As I said, the number of bucks I have weighed out of over 3000 butchered plus countless checked in that weighed anything close.....was dang few. Maybe 4 or 5.
I would be "pickled tink" as my step Dad used to say, to EVER take a buck that size.
To me, the ones that have bee around to get that size are the real "once in a lifetime" buck.
Again, Congrats!! God Bless Steve
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Post by M4Madness on Jul 7, 2014 17:33:06 GMT -5
Personally I have always thought that Aging Deer by looking at their Teeth is a flawed Science. I think it is very accurate for the first year or two of a Deers' life, but past that there are too many other factors that can alter the teeth of a Deer. I agree 100%, but you have to understand that cementum annuli aging is a far cry from tooth wear aging. Each year, deer get a new layer of cementum on their teeth. An incisor tooth can be sliced and each layer can be counted, much like the rings on a tree stump. highcottonguide, congratulations on a smart, old bruiser. I'll be the first to admit that I under-aged him badly. LOL!
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Post by varmint101 on Jul 7, 2014 18:05:19 GMT -5
That's pretty cool! Mount and againg card!
Woody, I do have the arrows still!
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