Holiday in Texas

[Dave Roelle]

I finally made enough time to spend a few days at the ranch chasin the local critters, everyone was busy so it was a solo 4 day hunting holiday.

The ranch belongs to a friend, its near Goliad Texas, just a really beautiful 2000 acres of deer, hogs,turkeys, blue quail, bobwhites and a scattering of ducks on the tanks.

Shooting my Shiloh with 500 grain paper patched creedmores (40/1) in front of 75 grains of 1 1/2.

The pigs both bit the dust the second evening to one well timed slug at 210 yards across an open pasture. had plenty of time to shoot prone, the pasture was short cropped. there were perhaps 25 pigs feeding in the pasture, the second pig required a finisher.

The spike was shot at 87 steps slightly quartering away, DRT !!!! it looked like a truck hit him, he's a 3 1/2 year old that needed to be out of the gene pool, Its not uncommon to have 150+ class bucks in front of you on this ranch.

Same paper patch load, obviously the slug is somewhere down in the creek bottom.

What a fun hunt, these are the first critters i have pulled the trigger of the sharps on-----they won't be the last, next year its trophy time if i can find one bigger than the one i have on the wall.

The picked up head was from the ranch earlier in year, it was found with a typical 8 point, both were evidently killed fighting not sure of the exact circumstances ---it does give ya something to look forward to.

[Nuclearcricket]

Nice shooting, great sounding hunting. I am guessing that your using a 2.1//45-70. That is a pretty good sized exit hole in that spike buck. That slug take out some bone with it? A 2fer one on the pigs, just don't get any better than that. Looks to me like your in for some tasty eating for the next wile. Great shooting and hunting.
Sam

[Dave Roelle]

Hi Sam-------------yup 45-70-------------yup blew up the off shoulder for sure

just finished precessing everything--backstrap for supper

Dave

[Stephen Borud]

That's awesome Dave. Tell me about the bullet you used, OD, meplate? That exit hole is large for sure.

Stephen

[Don McDowell]

a 2fer on those hogs. WOW
Job well done.

[Dave Roelle]

Hi Stephen---------0.444 baco creedmore with 40/1-----patched with some really thin pattern paper to about 0.449----the accuracy is there so i thought i'd try it on critters

I didn't expect the DRT results however-----hogs are really dense so the slug gets to deliver a pretty good punch, and if you put a 1/2 inch hole in just about anything its gonna lose the contest. The spike was really knocked flat, got the boney part of the off side shoulder --thats probably what did the trick, boom, smoke cleared and 4 feet in the air.

what a hoot

Hi Don:

There are just tons of pigs on this ranch soooooooooooo,
pitch out some range cubes and pick a nice spot to flop and wait em out----------killed the first one in her tracks , the one behid her took a finisher.

i'm not sure a modern rifle with normal bullets would get enough penetration to actually kill two like this-------that creedmore was still going strong out the far side of those pigs-----they aren't very big pigs 60 to 70 pounds i expect.

We will go to eradicate pigs after the deer season ends-------dogs and enough hands to run em till the pups give out----its not uncommon to gather up 10 or 15 in a day that way----no guns just dogs and rope

Dave

[rdnck]

Nice work, Dave! People don't appreciate what a properly loaded 45-70 and paper patched bullets will do on game until they see it for themselves. I promise you that buck didn't know what hit him. Shoot straight, rdnck.

[Dave Roelle]

Hi rdnck:

Your so correct, i had killed a few deer with a 47-70 lever gun and jacketed 405 bullets and it was effective but nothing like this deer----HE LITERALLY DIDN'T TAKE A STEP !!!!!

The paper patch is truly the way to go----------now if i can rig up a good way to deal with fouling shooting silhouetts i'll have under control.

i'll have a government bullet mold on order next time a have business with BACO, for hunting next year.

Have a safe new years

Dave