... the .270 stole the show this year.
I headed out to a stand this afternoon that offers the potential for some longish shots. Despite not really intending to take a deer today, I took the .270 instead of the 35 Whelen since it lends itself a little better to the ranges expected at this stand. The reason I didn't really plan on trying to take a deer is that I prefer to process one at a time and I still have the one from Monday hanging in the shed. My plan was to see if the deer fed into the field as they have been doing on a somewhat regular basis and to get some video of them if they were cooperative.
I got into the stand around 2:30, strapped the video camera to the shooting rail and waited.
At around the 4:15, the first deer showed up at the far side of the field. I watched and filmed her for a while. Then a fawn fed into the field from the right. I videoed that one as well. Finally a third deer came out from near where the first appeared. The two larger deer moved together to a spot that offered a clear shot. The more I thought about it, the more the temptation to get a kill on film got a grip on me. Finally, I decided to take the shot. I had ranged the edge of the field at around 350 yds and she was maybe 20 yds from the edge. With the 300 yd zero, I knew I could hold right on her.
I settled the the crosshairs on her shoulder and squeezed off the shot, sending the 130 AccuBond on its way.
I saw her fall the instant the bullet arrived. I was pretty pumped knowing I had made a good shot and had caught it on film. I quickly watched what I had caught on camera and sure enough I had video of her going straight down. I ranged her after the shot, she was at 336 yards.
Here's the video, its not the greatest camera and I was zoomed way in (70X) in low light so the quality isn't fantastic but it's the first time I've ever captured a kill. I also haven't really edited it yet, but I was anxious to get it uploaded. Skip to 3:45 if you don't want to watch the deer feeding for a while.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuwkdd1oDKc&feature=youtube_gdata
Here are some pics:
Nosler in:
Nosler out:
I'll get some more autopsy photos when I cut her up. The bullet made about a golf ball size hole in the ribs on the entrance side and a tennis ball size hole in the ribs on the exit side.
I headed out to a stand this afternoon that offers the potential for some longish shots. Despite not really intending to take a deer today, I took the .270 instead of the 35 Whelen since it lends itself a little better to the ranges expected at this stand. The reason I didn't really plan on trying to take a deer is that I prefer to process one at a time and I still have the one from Monday hanging in the shed. My plan was to see if the deer fed into the field as they have been doing on a somewhat regular basis and to get some video of them if they were cooperative.
I got into the stand around 2:30, strapped the video camera to the shooting rail and waited.
At around the 4:15, the first deer showed up at the far side of the field. I watched and filmed her for a while. Then a fawn fed into the field from the right. I videoed that one as well. Finally a third deer came out from near where the first appeared. The two larger deer moved together to a spot that offered a clear shot. The more I thought about it, the more the temptation to get a kill on film got a grip on me. Finally, I decided to take the shot. I had ranged the edge of the field at around 350 yds and she was maybe 20 yds from the edge. With the 300 yd zero, I knew I could hold right on her.
I settled the the crosshairs on her shoulder and squeezed off the shot, sending the 130 AccuBond on its way.
I saw her fall the instant the bullet arrived. I was pretty pumped knowing I had made a good shot and had caught it on film. I quickly watched what I had caught on camera and sure enough I had video of her going straight down. I ranged her after the shot, she was at 336 yards.
Here's the video, its not the greatest camera and I was zoomed way in (70X) in low light so the quality isn't fantastic but it's the first time I've ever captured a kill. I also haven't really edited it yet, but I was anxious to get it uploaded. Skip to 3:45 if you don't want to watch the deer feeding for a while.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuwkdd1oDKc&feature=youtube_gdata
Here are some pics:
Nosler in:
Nosler out:
I'll get some more autopsy photos when I cut her up. The bullet made about a golf ball size hole in the ribs on the entrance side and a tennis ball size hole in the ribs on the exit side.
