***Antlers86 LIVE 2018***

[Gladesgator]

Congrats,Jason!

[Muskles]

Well done, Jason! Persistence payed off.

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[bps3040]

Congrats

[Antlers86]

Not a bow kill but probably one of the most meaningful hunts for me. Sorry for the long read.

I purchased this property 2 years ago. Prior to I had a friend who is a member here hunt the place. He actually gave me the heads up of it going up for sale. We hunted the same deer since I lived next door but at the time I only had a small 6 acre thicket set up for bowhunting. We watched this deer and believe he was 3.5 the season of 2016/2017. For his age he had excellent eye guards and good mass that carried. I closed on the property in May 2017 and started running cams. Late September I got 1 pic of him and that was it. He gained a little tine length and still same mass all the way through. Wasn't the biggest or oldest buck on cam but something about him was special.

Every October he would disappear and not return until Thanksgiving. My FIL actually shot him twice last season Thanksgiving morning. He disappeared for 2 wks and I was afraid he died somewhere. 2nd week of December rolled around and he showed back up limping on cam over a hand corn pile. I sat with both my kids Dec 11 and he came in as expected. While waiting for him to turn broadside my daughter loudly told me he was there. He quickly left and went nocturnal the rest of December. Muzzleloader season rolled around and mid January I had him 50 yds I'm front of me clear shot but I decided not to take him. Not 5 minutes before he showed up my wife had called and told me her grandmother's had passed so I was packing up to head home and be with her. 2017/2018 season would come to an end tag soup.

I had learned a lot about this deer throughout the season and did a little pre season changes this past summer. Working a lot I really couldn't do much more other than keep hand corn going every 3 days and check cams. I went from getting just a couple pics in one year of him to multiple pics a day. August he started growing massive G2s that looked as if they were going to split. By mid August he broke off his right G2 and that hurt seeing but didn't take the feeling away of wanting to get him. Opening week of bow season rolled around and I had him 10yds at the base of my tree but behind me. Not a week later he disappeared as usual. November comes and still no sightings of him. I began to think someone else shot him but stayed positive. 2nd week of November I had drove through the property and decided to check my gate cam for trespassers. 2nd to last pic was him returning chasing a doe. Had a couple very quick encounters during the rut but no shot opportunities. December came and I felt like I had him figured out. This joker was smart and had me figured out better. I would walk in and he would have been there 5-10 minutes prior or 5-10 min after I would leave. It didn't matter what time of day. This past week he had hit the corn really hard all hours. I knew he was back and bedding nearby. Every day he was hitting the corn 2-3 times majority being mid/late morning or noon/2pm. Occasionally evening the last 15 min of light for a good 45 min. I had a run in with him last week pouring corn and again yesterday morning getting to my stand. Both times no shot opportunity. I figured it was just a matter of time.

I decided to sit out yesterday evening and this morning. Made some errands in Tyler and birthday party in Longview. Rain forecasted for tomorrow so we headed back and I was able to get in the stand by 3pm. I knew if he came it would be the last few minutes. Doe and nubbin showed up 3:30-4:20 and left out headed east where he normally comes from. From that point on to 5:30 not a single bit of movement. I decided to glass the thick cedar and caught movement coming my way. Quickly realized it was him and stayed on him waiting for a broadside shot. He hops in the pen, I settle and squeeze off a round *CLICK*. He looks up, jumps out of the pen and stands there looking my way. I slowly eject the bullet and slide another in. He jumped back in with another buck and went back to feeding. I settle and squeeze *CLICK*. At this point I start shaking. He didn't hear anything the second time. I have 1 bullet left so I eject and slide the last one in. Settle, squeeze and *BOOM*. It was over. He dropped right there on the spot. 30-06 went right through the shoulder and heart. Many encounters with this deer. Looking back some are funny and some are frustrating to even think about. Pretty cool watching a deer mature year after year.

Not my biggest buck but by far very meaningful. First buck off this property and plan to do a shoulder mount.

I'll get a tape on him here in a bit and post the numbers. As a 7pt looking really close to P&Y. Age 5.5 minimum

[Muskles]

Why are you calling him a 7 point? His G2 is still over an inch.

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[Antlers86]

Why are you calling him a 7 point? His G2 is still over an inch.

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He's an 8. Broke G2 in velvet and just considered him a 7. Still has a good 2"-3" though.

[tazhunter0]

Congrats!!! You worked hard for him.

[Antlers86]

Congrats!!! You worked hard for him.

I appreciate your help this evening! Thank You

[Muskles]

He's an 8. Broke G2 in velvet and just considered him a 7. Still has a good 2"-3" though.

Gotcha. Didn't know if I was missing some kind of scoring rule. Good looking buck either way.

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[Pstraw]

Congratulations man! That's a good looking heavy 8. You got rewarded for the work you put in.

[tazhunter0]

I appreciate your help this evening! Thank You

Anytime

[Sleepy]

Atta boy Jason! Glad youve taken me along for the ride! I know this is a big kill for you!

[Swampa]

Congrats! What’s up with the misfires?


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[Antlers86]

Atta boy Jason! Glad youve taken me along for the ride! I know this is a big kill for you!

Thanks Logan! I'm ready for you to kill your buck.

Looking forward to seeing what moves in next season and takes this bucks place.

Congrats! What’s up with the misfires?


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I have no idea. Could be the ammo or could be firing pin in the gun. I have never had any issues with the gun prior. The bullet that did fire is out of a new box. The others were from a box from last season.

[Antlers86]

G1 5 4/8 - 4 4/8
G2 2 4/8 - 9
G3 8 - 9 1/8
Mass 32 3/8
Spread 13 3/8 I said 14+ all day.
Main Beams 20 4/8 - 19 7/8

124 6/8"