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Post by subzero350 on Jan 1, 2015 14:28:02 GMT -5
Habitat is shrinking. Deer habits and behavior will continue to evolve. Fact is, I've seen large groups of deer, 20-30 at a time, this year. Not in the woods though, in towns and subdivision areas where they are not hunted. Maybe the new urban regulations will open up hunting on these urban deer, maybe not. In the past 5 years, I've seen more deer within Fort Wayne city limits that I have ever seen before. The deer are wise to what is going on in their habitat, and they know where they will never be hunted and where there will still be plenty of food. The urban environment offers everything deer could want, except maybe for heavy cover. But I'm sure they will adapt. The IDNR can open up all sorts of urban hunting provisions, but nothing they do is going to make any difference if NOBODY WILL LET YOU HUNT THEIR PROPERTY. I can tell you that even speaking with landowners who own large parcels of land outside city limits (but still within the urban zone here in Allen Co.), most people around here plain refuse to let anybody hunt deer on their property with ANY weapon. List all the excuses you can think of why someone doesn't want to let somebody they don't know hunt their property - I've heard them all. But the No.1 excuse seems to be they are afraid of the liability if someone gets hurt on their property. You can try explaining that the law protects them from such liabilities, but they won't believe you and even if your prove it they just say they don't want the hassle. If you have hunting ground (own, lease, whatever) - hold onto it like it is Unobtainium.
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Post by subzero350 on Jan 1, 2015 14:10:48 GMT -5
What is a Cat? 1) Cats do what they want. 2) They rarely listen to you. 3) They're totally unpredictable. 4) They whine when they are not happy. 5) When you want to play, they want to be alone. 6) When you want to be alone, they want to play. 7) They expect you to cater to their every whim. 8) They're moody. 9) They leave hair everywhere. 10) They drive you nuts and cost an arm and a leg. Conclusion: Cats are tiny women in little fur coats. What is a Dog? 1) Dogs lie around all day, sprawled on the most comfortable piece of furniture in the house. 2) They can hear a package of food opening half a block away, but don't hear you when you're in the same room. 3) They can look dumb and lovable all at the same time. 4) They growl when they are not happy. 5) When you want to play, they want to play. 6) When you want to be alone, they want to play. 7) They are great at begging. 8) They will love you forever if you rub their tummies. 9) They leave their toys everywhere. 10) They do disgusting things with their mouths and then try to give you a kiss. Conclusion: Dogs are men in little fur coats. FYI: My wife agreed with all of this.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 31, 2014 13:56:34 GMT -5
A little history lesson for the cat haters here...
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 27, 2014 0:35:19 GMT -5
What looked like a 10-pointer was running with a 6-pointer southbound on Ardmore Avenue, here in Fort Wayne at about 9:30pm Christmas Eve night. It was dark so I can't be 100% certain how many points these deer had, but the first one definitely had a large rack with multiple points while the second had a basket-sized rack. Here's a link to a map showing exactly where they finally got off the road and went west: mapq.st/1vimLeDSurprised to see deer in this area at all, let alone 2 bucks. It is not uncommon to see deer crossing about 1/2 mile south of this location where there are woods close to the road. Just strange to see them that far north right smack in the middle of a heavily industrialized area. NOTE: The "quarry" looking area to the left of the map pointer on that map page the deer were running toward is actually a very large hill (concrete & quarry debris landfill) that rises up some 200' above street level.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 23, 2014 20:21:21 GMT -5
Why does Amish have anything to do with deer populations, surely they have the same laws and limits as everyone else? Or are they just good at it, heheheheheheheh You asked for that my friend, lol regards Billy hohoho. Some people assume the Amish over-harvest. We have neighbors at the lake who are convinced the fish population in the lake chain has fallen off dramatically over the past decade because of the ever increasing number of Amish families who are fishing our lake chain. Is that true? I don't know - I have no proof of how many fish they actually catch and keep. I do see a lot of boats and pontoons overloaded with Amish finishing the lakes, more so than I did 20 years ago, but that is the extent of my observation. I can tell you that 20 years ago I fished the same lake chain and it was not out of the ordinary to catch 200 - 300 nice sized bluegill in an afternoon on any given summer day. These days, it seems difficult to find them and when you do, you usually only end up with 100 keepers or less. Are the Amish the sole cause of this? I doubt it, as a lot of things have changed on this particular lake chain in the past 20 years. It now has increased drainage from a northern county which has resulted in worse and more frequent flooding; and the amount of fertilizer runoff from surrounding farms has also increased as a result (which increases the amount of underwater plant growth). I'm sure everything has played a part.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 22, 2014 13:12:04 GMT -5
To put it in simple terms, Amish are Christians who live like people did in the 1800's. They don't use electricity, phones, automobiles, tractors, power tools, etc. They ride around in buggies pulled by horses, and light their homes with oil lamps. They plow their fields with horse-drawn plows. There are more modern Amish-like people called "Mennonites" who do ride in vehicles and use electricity. To the uninformed, they basically look and dress the same. Depends on the church leadership and how strict they are about their beliefs and customs. Here in NE Indiana, most Amish have cell phones, electricity (generator powered only - not connected to the grid), drive tractors and earth moving equipment, and also all seem to own boats and pontoons with gasoline outboard motors. However, I have not seen any one of them drive a car or truck. They still do the horse and buggy thing. It cracks me up when I see a horse and buggy towing a fishing boat with an outboard motor on it down to the boat launch... In truth, I honestly don't care what they do or what they believe as long as they play by the same rules as everyone else does (ie: follows the same laws I have to and pays their taxes). That having been said, I can tell you I don't think it is going to be long before there is going to be a major boating accident on our lake chain. The Amish who fish it regularly overload pontoons with people and gear to the point the pontoon floats are almost completely underwater. This problem has been brought up many times with the local DNR, but they say they don't carry scales with them to weigh people and gear. They say as long as the Amish don't put more people on the boat than its tag says it can carry, they let it pass. But the tag also says there is a maximum weight limit and I guarantee you some of these boats and pontoons I see filled to the brim are overloaded. The other issue is speeding. Apparently, the Amish have no concept of speed. We regularly see them speeding thru narrow channels and sometimes driving recklessly on the lakes, yes they even do it with overloaded watercraft! Again, concerns have been brought up with the local DNR but they only have so many CO's for so many lakes and can't be everywhere at once to police the waters.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 19, 2014 13:57:07 GMT -5
The guys who want the opportunity to hunt with spears or Buicks are just SOL. What about the ATLATL?
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 18, 2014 13:24:06 GMT -5
I shoot Triple 7 pre-formed sulfur-free pellets. Smell isn't bad and cleanup in my stainless CVA Optima is a snap. What I really like about using pre-formed pellets is: on my CVA Optima with the finger-unscrewable breech plug, I can remove the breech plug in the field and dump the pellets out in my hand to unload it without firing it.
I have read about the Blackhorn substitute, and some have said it may need a larger primer channel in the breech plug to ignite it. My Optima's breech plug has a VERY SMALL channel for the spark from the primer to travel down. Anyone tried Blackhorn substitute in a CVA Optima or other CVA ML rifles that use the same breech plugs?
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 18, 2014 12:28:55 GMT -5
One buys a semi - auto 5 shot shotgun expecting to use ......5 shots as fast as needed. One buys a singe shot rifle expecting to use one shot only. One buys a semi-auto rifle with a 20-30 round magazine expecting TO USE IT AS SUCH. As said, several times. The AR platform CAN be used the same as any rifle....BUT......... THERE IS NO REASON TO BUY A RIFLE CAPABLE OF FIRING MUILTIPLE SHOTS QUICKLY UNLESS EXPECTING TO DO SO. They are not more accurate They are not cheaper They are not in calibers not found otherwise They ARE bought to shoot multiple shots very quickly and this is the REASON the public has came out in droves to buy them for home defense, AGAIN.........BECAUSE of that capability. All one has to do is see how many rounds someone buys with one to know WHY they CHOSE that style of rifle. It IS the ONLY reason people buy them. This is your OPINION. It sounds like it is based on what the gun-grabbing mass media wants you to think. You're flat out wrong. The AR platform has become well known for being the "erector set" of guns. You can customize it to your particular liking like NO OTHER GUN on the market today. Don't like the factory stock? No problem - there are MANY different ones to choose from. Want to build a featherweight gun that doesn't weigh a ton so it is easier to carry on long hunts? No problem. You can't easily do that with a Remington 870. You do know they sell 5 round magazines for these AR's, right? You can buy those for your long hunts so you don't have to lug a lot of lead around the woods and you can then switch to 20 - 30 round mags if you want to have some fun at the range. <EDIT>
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 17, 2014 18:00:03 GMT -5
That would actually require people to be generous with their resources... Let me know when you find such people. We've got people up here in our neck of the woods who own 100+ acre plots and won't let anyone besides themselves hunt it (not even their own family members!).
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 17, 2014 17:46:17 GMT -5
I hunted with a muzzleloader this year. 50 cents for two Triple 7 pellets 75 cents for a Shockwave bullet/sabot Whatever a 100-round box of T/C #209 primers were, divided by 100. Probably a nickel apiece. Probably $1.30 per shot. 12-gauge sabot slugs can run $2+ though. My dad just bought a Remington 770 Bolt-Action rifle chambered in .308 for $200 (after rebate) - black Friday special. .308 "soft point" cartridges cost around $0.50 each, give or take a few pennies.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 17, 2014 17:30:43 GMT -5
I have to disagree. The areas where the longer-range HPR's have been allowed in other states are areas with more hills and with fewer people per square mile, whether we are speaking of entire states or portions of states... If used correctly, longer range rifles are and have been used in the state for many years for varmints and practice, primarily by the more dedicated enthusiasts who shoot regularly and are more aware of the range of their weaponry and it's danger to anyone a mile or more away if shot in an inappropriate direction. I do recall hearing some of even those dedicated and aware individuals chatting about making crows disappear in a puff of feathers when they were seen sitting on a high limb.....at 300 yards. I'm confused. You first basically make the statement that allowing HPRs for use in "flat" Indiana would be unsafe, but then you counter that yourself by saying they are perfectly safe when being used by responsible hunters here in "flat" Indiana... Which is true? If HPRs are unsafe to use in "flat" Indiana, then why are they allowed for ANY hunting here at all??? Ok, so what you're basically saying is that the only guns 200,000 Indiana deer hunters have ever shot were shotguns and possibly muzzleloaders. And if HPR's are made legal, all of a sudden all of those 200,000 hunters, who it sounds like you assume have only ever fired shotguns and muzzleloaders, are ALL going to go out and buy HPRs and have no idea how to use them safely? 1) Where's the proof that ALL 200,000 Indiana deer hunters are going to hunt with an HPR if they are made legal? 2) And where's the proof that all 200,000 Indiana deer hunters have no idea how to use a HPR safely? Sounds like you are making some pretty big assumptions. Did you hear about the Amish girl in Ohio that was killed a couple of years ago by a muzzleloader bullet fired from 1.5 miles away by a guy just "unloading it before he was going to clean it"? I posted that news story on this forum in a couple of different threads if you haven't seen it. That story proves a muzzleloader can kill from over a mile away. Should we ban them for hunting use in this state because some idiot was careless and because they are clearly lethal at a very long-range? Or do you have a specific idea of a maximum lethal range we should be considering for legal hunting equipment in Indiana? Sounds like you are making many of the same arguments as the gun-grabbers do, which you should know well being a lifetime NRA member. You are basically telling everyone that "you don't NEED this firearm or that firearm" for hunting deer and that we should just be happy with what we have now. With all due respect, who made you king and gave you the authority to decide what I or anyone else "needs" when it comes to what types of tools we can use to hunt with? Are you next going to tell me I don't need a 400hp engine in my car either?
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 17, 2014 17:03:06 GMT -5
If HPR bill passes will it have a dramatic effect in regard's to harvest number's?? I doubt it. Will there be a big surge in number's of new hunter's?? I doubt it. If it passes, it will allow me to use a weapon that shoots much cheaper ammo (that is also more accurate) than what I am using now.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 16, 2014 15:01:25 GMT -5
U sure you want to marry into that family? You not only marry the man but your getting a new family members too. It's all good, he is worth it. I knew what I was getting into pretty early on into the relationship and fiance surrounds himself with good friends to make up for the deficit. The father-in-law isn't going to live forever and he is already having problems walking as it is. Eventually age will catch up with him and he won't be a problem anymore. Fiance is actually very good at dealing with the crap the in-laws and his father try to pull. LOL I have the same problem with my brother-in-law (wife's brother). I'm going to be putting up with him longer than you are going to have to put up with your father-in-law; but my wife is worth it. After all, any wife who is willing to field dress the buck I shot is worth keeping, no?
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 16, 2014 14:29:27 GMT -5
Is it just pure coincidence there are 200 white deer living on a property that used to house radioactive material?
I am curious to know if any biological studies have been done on these white deer to determine if their genome was influenced by radioactive materials.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 16, 2014 14:22:02 GMT -5
I'm sure insurance companies are heard more than the DNR likes to let on. They don't like paying out for accidents anymore than people like hitting deer. This is an interesting topic and I'm not doubting what you are saying. But I think the root of the problem here is the LACK of drivers' attention to the road and surroundings. I have people in my own family I've followed down a road who never see that deer standing 5' off the side of the road as they blaze past it at 60mph. I've grown accustomed to "widening my vision" while driving, and since I started doing that, I've seen a lot more deer AND avoided many accidents. What I would say to the insurance companies is this: I don't think getting rid of the deer population will solve ALL of their problems. Drivers need better education and need to get rid of the distractions and tunnel vision most of them have while driving. Because people don't only hit deer on the roads...
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 16, 2014 14:07:30 GMT -5
The toughest part for each hunter to wrap their head around is just because I DID NOT see a bunch of does one year, does not necessarily mean their number is down. It's not like they are spread evenly, even within one farm, let alone an entire county. God Bless x2 Also, Chub...there is no excuse for not calling the DNR. That dude or family is straight up the definition of Wanton Waste and if nothing else knowing the DNR is on to him may lesson his "idiot" tendencies. x2 And few public hunting lands??...Seriously?? What about Mississinewa, Salamonie, and Roush? I was talking about the NE counties of the state like Steuben, Noble, DeKalb, Allen, Lagrange, and Whitley. Yes, I do hunt a private property in Huntington county and I have hunted the Salamonie area before (many years ago, but no more). That area is the exception to what I was talking about because you have 3 DNR properties in close proximity - all of which you mentioned in your post. But there isn't that much in the 6 northeastern counties I just mentioned in comparison to Mississinewa, Salamonie, and Roush. In contrast, look at the southern half of the state: it has A LOT more public properties than the northern half (see page 44 of the Hunting Guide).
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 15, 2014 18:41:56 GMT -5
I don't want to get in a habit of calling the DNR for things that cannot be proven without hard evidence. They get tired of dealing with people who appear to cry wolf all the time as well. The DNR is aware of the situation, but without hard evidence not much is going to happen until the in-laws really screw up. We of course keep our eyes peeled for the perfect chance. I don't have an answer for your situation except to say if you do nothing, then they'll probably keep on doing what they are doing. If it was me, I would crawl up the DNR's butt until they did something about these poachers. I don't think you should care if the DNR gets annoyed with you calling them about every "little" thing - THAT'S WHAT THEY GET PAID FOR. Sooner or later they might get the point that perhaps there's a real big problem with these guys that warrants further investigation.
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 15, 2014 18:01:12 GMT -5
......and greed by the lawyers.. www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/chapter-105EXEMPTION FROM TORT LIABILITYThe Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act is also commonly referred to as the "Gun Protection Act." The law dismissed all current claims against gun manufacturers in both federal and state courts and pre-empted future claims. The law could not be clearer in stating its purpose: "To prohibit causes of action against manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers of firearms or ammunition products, and their trade associations, for the harm caused solely by the criminal or unlawful misuse of firearm products or ammunition products by others when the product functioned as designed and intended." There are some narrow exceptions for which liability is allowed, such as actions against transferors of firearms who knew the firearm would be used in drug trafficking or a violent crime by a party directly harmed by that conduct. Yea, but we have several laws in this country that are regularly disregarded by activist judges that don't agree with them. Why would this one be any different?
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Post by subzero350 on Dec 15, 2014 17:53:25 GMT -5
My in-laws harvest does. They hunt primarily public land in Brown, Owen, Morgan and Monroe county. Fiance's brother in-law carries lifetime license and uses/abuses to the fullest extent possible. When they hunt they bring 5 kids with guns and will come back with 5-6 does a piece on a good day. They will also invite their idiot neighbors and other friends to go with them and routinely get a party of 7-8 people out in the woods and shoot at every deer they see. Last year they filled the quota for Monroe, Brown, Owen and Morgan County. Based on their Facebook posts and what they had hanging, they killed around 20-30 antlerless deer last year. This year they have slowed down and as far as I know they have only managed to kill 8-9. And just because I know it will get mentioned, no the CO cannot do anything about it and yes they have gotten in trouble in the past. 20-30 antlerless between 8 people sounds a bit extreme (I'm not doubting what you are telling me, but I just can't understand why people would want all that work or pay out all the money for processing). What are they doing with all this meat? Somebody in that party own a slaughterhouse? Or are they just shooting animals for the sake of shooting and killing and not utilizing the meat? If there is illegal activity going on, you have a duty to report it for the sake of all hunters. Ok, so 3 a piece. I don't see anything wrong with that if it is legal AND they are using the meat.
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