Tag Archives: Hunting

It’s growing on me

This is not a Prop from the set of STARGATE.  This is not Admiral Adama’s sniper rifle.  This is not a mock up for the new HALO game.  It’s the TC Dimension hunting rifle.

It’s “Wash Your Eyes Out With Bleach” ugly.  The option of swapping barrels means nothing to me… So why do I like it?

Well, as stupidly hideous as the damn thing looks… it feels awesome when you bring the gun up to your shoulder.  And the trigger… honestly, it’s one of the best “Hunting” triggers I’ve ever felt on a gun intended for actual hunting.  It has some weight to it… but there is no movement and it breaks as crisp as any gunwriter metaphor can equate.  It’s not a Bench Rest Trigger… but you don’t want that on a Field Gun.  Too many people think they do… and those people are terribly wrong.  You want a trigger that has a touch of deliberate intent, and then breaks exactly at the moment you want it to.  Like this trigger.  The height of the comb is perfect for when you mount any reasonable scope.  This allows a good consistent cheek weld, consistent aim through the scope… and combine with that trigger… this is going to let you make those once in a life time shots all the time.

Less than ideal

.300 RUM, Elk, 225 yards, perfect side shot, well placed hit, Hornady GMX. Complete pass through with evidently no expansion.
I would say this is a perfect example of too much gun for the game/range. Well, specifically too much bullet.  Animal was tracked over a mile before it was located laying down… still breathing, still bleeding. The bullet had torn through both lungs and a ventricle of the heart, but not much actual damage. Without expansion, there was very little shock effect… almost no blood-shot tissues internally, and the exit wound looked like maybe a .40 caliber hole.  The hit was observed, clean, and animal was able to run away without so much as a limp.
Take the same situation, same animal, same range, same gun… and load the SST bullet instead of the solid, or a classic Sierra Game King, and I bet that beast would have been dead right there… because that’s what I’ve witnessed before. Bullets that open up faster will deliver more shock, and that is what’s going to put the animal on the ground. Roy Weatherby discovered this many decades ago, and evidently this is a lesson we are still learning.

Almost a whole hour?

Some customers at Basin Sports… You just want to say “Get Out.”  Guy wanted some new arrows cut to length of his old arrows.  Okay, fine.  No problem.

But then the guy starts running is mouth… “Yeah this is my last arrow.”  Alright, not really caring about what you do with your splinters, but fine.  “I shot this big old Buck this morning… nailed it.  High shoulder hit. Blood was pumping out like a fire hose.  Those Grim Reaper heads really cut them open, you know.  But the critter ran off.  The blood trail ran out about a hundred yards.  Searched for that sucker for almost a whole hour.  Gunna go back out and get another one.  Gotta fill the tag you know.”

I chewed on my tongue as I cut the arrows.  I had a lot I wanted to say… but instead I just did my job and kept my mouth shut.

 

Hunting Guy or Tactical Guy.

A big chunk of the shooting community seems to be in two camps. Hunting Guys and Tactical Guys and I’ve heard arguments between the two about who is better and all that nonsense. I know guys on both sides of that line in the sand.

One side buys long brown guns and fire rounds never used by the Military. They will also use pointy sticks and strings to bring down big game. These guys can load their guns backwards and then kill an Elk with it. They camo up and blend in with their surroundings like the Predator and will mimic their prey and get within spitting distance.

The other guys buy guns that are Black or Coyote Tan and they fire rounds by the bucket loads and practice shooting their Semi’s with speed and accuracy that is unprecedented in Military History. They will rip into a target like a hurricane, dominate a situation, and counter any threat they come across. Both sides have strong points. Continue reading Hunting Guy or Tactical Guy.