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Let him walk
- Thread starter ZachMarkus
- Start date
Most of them boys would be shooters for me! Good job holding off if you weren't sure. Looks like some good genetics at ur spot 
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Good luck and hope you see him again
.Good luck and hope you see him again
Good job. It'll pay off.
philsanchez76
Well-Known Member
wow thats a nice looking group! GL with him
You're right about that, I just hope I didn't let a shooter buck walk because I didn't have long to look at him. He just didn't look near as big out of velvet which is normal but don't know if I've ever been fooled this bad. To me in this pic he looks to be 135" plus. Today when I saw him I was thinking 125". At first I thought it was a different deer but the brow tines gave him away.
Agreed he looks bigger from that back pic. I think you did the right thing by passing him knowing the caliber of bucks you hunt. Still a beautiful deer tho.
The biggest I've been fooled on was 2012 season on a 9 point I was dead set would go 140-145". Opening afternoon of rifle I seen him on the edge of a cedar thicket eating acorns. I had several mins to check him out and just couldn't figure out what was wrong or if it was the same deer. I lost sight of him and about 10 mins later my trigger happy brother killed him. Ended up being 127". From pics to seeing him on the hoof he wasn't near as wide and main beams much shorter.
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
He will score right at 130in and is 3.5. A trophy to most
But you can't kill 140in deer if you are killing them at 3.5 and 130. That's just the way it is. You may end up with tag soup this year, but karma may pay you back next year with him being a giant.
But you can't kill 140in deer if you are killing them at 3.5 and 130. That's just the way it is. You may end up with tag soup this year, but karma may pay you back next year with him being a giant.
deerhunter10
Well-Known Member
I've always gone by if I have to think about it, it's not a shooter. Can't shoot giants shooting good deer. Cameras can and have been deceiving.
Good job passing him, I'm not interested in inches of antler. Ive never regretted a deer I've shot. But different strokes for different folks.
DITTO!! You have not hurt a thing letting a nice buck walk. You know what "your buck standards" are, stick to them. You can guarantee he will not ever get any bigger if you kill him. Good luck remainder of the season.
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Volbuck777
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2020
- Messages
- 3,632
That's a shooter all day where I live but I do believe he's 3.5 and it would be hard for me to shoot him also for that reason. I'd imagine from the pics of those deer you have some good genetics in the area. It's early, wait for the big boys. Awesome trigger restraint. I'm not sure I could do it. He's a good deer.
Very nice buck, and those brows should give him away. On the small farm I own, I couldn't have passed him. Just way too much pressure on the deer around us now.
tree_ghost
Well-Known Member
Good hunt and good decision. On to the next one!
bowhunterfanatic
Well-Known Member
Wow. Tough call there. Hopefully it pays off for you and you get to arrow him next year!
dogsled
Well-Known Member
Same here. No way the adjacent lease folks would let those pass. Some of them have the "If it's brown it's down attitude" unfortunately.
JCDEERMAN
Well-Known Member
100% agree. Every one I've shot on hesitation, I've regretted.
I've had a handful I've gone after that looked big on camera, and when I've seen them on the hoof, I just didn't want to shoot them. 2 were 4 1/2's within 20 yards and I just wasn't impressed. One of them I do kind of regret passing - I think he died a couple months later of natural causes. Other than that, I never regret passing good up-and-comer bucks.
If you weren't excited in the tree, you likely wouldn't have been excited when you climbed down to get him. Only you know what you saw. But just for fun I tallied up an estimate score based off other racks I've measured that look similar.
20" beams
6" brows
10" g2
9" g3
4" c1
3.5" c2
3.5" c3
2" c4
That 58" of bone each side. Double it for 116" then add a 16" spread to give a conservative 132". That's based off the one hard horn pic you have so it's quite possible I'm seeing something differently than somebody else, so I tried being conservative. I think his beams are probably more like 22", and right g2 probably 10".
This buck is similar. He measures 131".
20" beams
6" brows
10" g2
9" g3
4" c1
3.5" c2
3.5" c3
2" c4
That 58" of bone each side. Double it for 116" then add a 16" spread to give a conservative 132". That's based off the one hard horn pic you have so it's quite possible I'm seeing something differently than somebody else, so I tried being conservative. I think his beams are probably more like 22", and right g2 probably 10".
This buck is similar. He measures 131".
Make no mistake inches of antler isn't what saved this deer. I mean he is going to score less than what I thought originally but I didn't shoot him because the last few years I've been trying to only shoot older bucks and I really think he's a 3.5 year old deer.
Great looking TN buck, don't blame you a bit for letting him walk.
As I've aged I get satisfaction out of knowing I could have but didn't
As I've aged I get satisfaction out of knowing I could have but didn't
It would be hard to pass an 8 that size with a bow. But if he makes it through the season, he will be one to give you a little buck fever a year from now!!
bowhunterfanatic
Well-Known Member
I've had to force myself to totally stop hunting deer like this. I too am trying not to shoot anything younger than 4.5, but no chance I could make myself pass that much bone with a bow in my hand, regardless of his age. I just haven't killed enough deer that size yet to pass one.
Nothing wrong with that sentiment. Every hunter has his/her own journey unique to them. I've hunted antlers a long time and have always been careful to not set red line strict standards for myself. It's too circumstantial. Older bucks are my thing because they're challenging and they generally have the biggest racks. Where I'm hunting plays a huge role in what I hunt. If I'm hunting my place in southern Ohio that I own & manage for my ability to kill big bucks, then I am very selective. I know from history what lurks, what my odds are of encountering a big one, and I've only got one tag so I have to make it count. Unless I was comfortable that buck was 5+ I'd let him walk, even though a 130"+ 8pt is a stud anywhere regardless of age.
However, here in TN is a different story. I've lived & hunted here for 9yrs and have yet to see on hoof or cam a 130's class buck of any age. I've killed several 5yr+ bucks and the biggest one was low 120's. If I saw a 130's 8pt in bow range he'd be dead and I wouldn't be concerned about age because the deer is an anomoly that given my history with the area know there's a probability I'd never see one like it again. And with two tags it leaves the possibility that I may see an older buck I want to hunt. On a permission farm where I have no cotrol, the decision would be that much easier. Is it high grading if he's young? Of course it is. But it's my tag my decision and special circumstances call for special decisions. Normally I won't shoot a 3.5yr old. But in that buck's case given the circumstances I wouldn't hesitate. This year my target is a 5yr+ 10pt that even though is the biggest deer on the farm, I wouldn't be surprised if he falls short of 120". Perspective and situational awareness matter, IMO. It's for each hunter to decide for themselves.
. That's what I'm trying to do. I run cameras all the time and really study every deer before I shoot. Sometimes I take too long and they're gone, that's ok. The last 3 bucks I've killed were 5.5, 6.5, and 5.5.
You seen his bucks ??? He'll let go what I have on my wall but he kills " biggens" .Most of them boys would be shooters for me! Good job holding off if you weren't sure. Looks like some good genetics at ur spot
Good luck and hope you see him again
Ok Zach…twist my arm and send me the address. When I'm done we'll pull his jaw bone and see how old he is. 
Nice deer but if you're not sure then you did the right thing. These things aren't like fish where we can practice catch and release.
Nice deer but if you're not sure then you did the right thing. These things aren't like fish where we can practice catch and release.
I ain't much of a thinker he'd been shot ....at
DeerCamp
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2020
- Messages
- 4,677
I always feel wierd saying "great job" on passing a buck, because you definitely should have shot it IF you wanted and it would have been the right decision.
But great job on sticking to your management plans!
