The fox pages

[brinny]

Youve upset me Brinny...upset me because ive already told you its same as yours--a Sako 85 Varmint in 204... i thought we had a connection...thought we were fox 204 brothers...

Well you're dropped...!!...

Couldnt help myself...sorry...

Mate, its same as yours with a laminate stock...i had all sorts of troubles & ended up getting the rifle swapped over...& another cheer for Beretta Aust for that--they did the right thing & looked after me, giving me what i payed for...

Anyway, it loves Nosler Varmegeddon 32's--well so far--but i bought it for a Long range Bunny rig so want to use 40's in it...
Ive tried 40 Vamx & 39 Sper HP's but doesnt seem to like either...well, sub inch out of the Speers,& shotgun with the Vmax...

Put a new Bushnell Scope on it & its faulty. ..my Zeiss 5-25 which i'll mount on it permanently is also faulty.. .along with 2 other Bushnells.. .
So i did a big scope swap around today...
So i lashed out & bought a pack of Sierra Blitz's 39's...first 3 shots today in same hole with 26.6 of 8208...
Then thought id go straight out to 200m...aaannnddd...it was a fukn abortion...

Tried the next load (26.9) & one case wouldnt chamber...(PITA because i loose my rythm & the wind had picked up a bit so i had to wait for the lull, as well as stand up & fiddle to see WTF's going on... )...

Went back to another group of the 26.6 & it sprayed them across the page...

I also bought a set of Burris Signature Zee's for my go to 204 to mount a different scope (stole this scope for the Sako) & have realised i bought too high rings... ...no use to me & cant swap them...just a waste of money i desperately need ATM...

So i feel our pain with the faulty gear mate...
I literrally have 3 faulty scopes here, & have had 2 others already replaced in the last year...these are all new(ish) scopes purchased in the last 3 or so years & have not been thrown about...
Ive wasted so much ammo sighting in & resighting in...not to mention fuel.....then blow the back leg off a bunny at 250...resight it then gut shot or miss fox at 200...only to check them & they be out of wack again...

Anyway...Good stuff on the foxes...wish i could get on properties like that...

Hadnt forgotten your a Sako man mate.....But you could have been road testing loads for a different rifle and cal....
Unusual to have so many day scopes faulty like that....You hear of the odd one from time to time......at least they are warranty claims and can be replaced easily....
I spent $500 in postage returning the 4 faulty Pulsars back to Extravision....and like you ...countless rounds of ammo and time....but im kinda lucky as i have my own range set up at the back of my property and can go there at the drop of a hat when i feel like it...

There is nothing more frustrating than have your rifle shooting here one day..



Then here the next...


and thats at 100m....
I shoot a hell of a lot out to 2-250m so double this and more at those ranges and its a miss every time...or a gut shot....
Funny how some rifles will like different projectiles and others not....Mine loves the 40 grn V-Maxes....Tackholes with them...
One of the downsides to the new GSCI S675 thermal scope im running now is that it sits up so high....and thats due to the 75mm lens it has....Can be a tad uncomfortable shooting it ....My cheek doesnt even touch the stock...Price you pay for the having the bigger lens i guess....Starting to get used to it though....Been a few get away but on a whole getting better...
Im not fond of missing but at least i know its me thats at fault now and not the damn scope shifting zero itself.....

[AJB]

Wish i had a thermal scope then the red coats would be in real trouble out my way

[brinny]

Good to hear from you again brinny , Always good to be able to share thermal tips and tricks

Cheers mate....

[bigpete]

Got this one from 30m this morning with a load of BBs from my AyA

Screenshot_20200202-065140_Gallery.jpg (394.77 KiB) Viewed 4497 times

[AJB]

[AJB]

[Stix]

Hey AJB...nice lookin fox...
Nice tail...

Couple things...

Dont mean to sound picky... ...but can you crop the pics you post...?
Its just a big lot of black nothing that comes with a little lot of picture...

Also...you still keeping & tanning the furs...?

If so, if you keep them, how do you stroe them all...?

[AJB]

No probs stix it would only let me submit screen shots ill try and sort it and yes i still keep good furs i salt them heavily and roll em up put in plastic shopping bag then in the chest freezer out back they last for ever but make sure it is a cool day when ya defrost em then flesh pin out resalt for a day then wash with dish soap then into pickle for 3 days rewash with soap then clean water into washing machine for a good sin peg out in shade let dry slowly then a good lube on warm or hot days dont bother you will get hair slip in ears mouth snout and it really s**ts ya after all that effort the missus aint to keen on me spin furs in machine but it works great i usually wait till shes out

[AJB]

Also make sure ya really check foxes for mange and wear gloves there is a lot of mangey ones around at the moment look on back legs and tail i dont skin any that even have a tiny patch of fur missing not worth it

[Blr243]

I rarely touch a shot fox but if I do it’s to reposition it’s body for a more ethical photo ...so I just try to use the tip of my boot. If mange is a mite , then in regards to transfer does a mite have to jump on my leg , and stay with me as I walk back to my dog and then jump on my dog ?

[AJB]

Not sure how it transfers blr but i no they get it from wombats would be a real pain if ya dog got it sends foxes mad they even seem to be really keen to come to whistle when mangey probably cause there starving hungry ive seen them eating cow pats and after i shot it and had a look it had no teeth so must of only been able to eat s**t

[Stix]

Im no scientist BLR...but these "mites" are microscopic to the best of my knowledge...i dont think you'll see them leaping from boot to dog...

I did some reading a while back & seem to remember there being a few different types...as well as that it is everywhere, however some genetic lines in dogs/(affected animals) the mite has a bad effect on the immune system of some (thats the result we see), & not on others...

Anyway...id research it a little given you take your dog out with you.

An old bloke around the corner from me has a Staffie that has skin issues--the vet has told him its a mite & that the only cure is hundreds of dollars of drugs every 3 months...the poor bloke is beside himself because he cant afford it being on a pension, he's just about in tears every time i see him because of the trauma seeing his dog in distress, but happy, & his missus wont let him put her down...

He's thinking of going to the vet & having her put to sleep & telling his wife she just got sick & died...

I find it hard to believe they dont have a cure, or something less expensive...i mean they dip sheep for pete'e sake...& i cant remember a time ever having seen or heard a farmer having had to put a dog down for mange...

Anyway...babbling on here...

[Stix]

AJB...

So...how do you store all the furs once tanned...?

[AJB]

I store them in my granny flat have heaps on the wall on floor etc not sure what ill do with em but the more the merry i reackon i love the nice winter coats its a shame to waste a good fur

[Blr243]

Assuming I’m too lazy to tan a hide , what happens to a skin if I throughly clean it salt it and peg it out. I know it will b dry and stiff as a board but will it b adequate ly preserved?

[AJB]

Blr yes it will last for a few months and become stiff as a board better to store in freezer as long as ya salt em straight away they last a few days before freezer

[Stix]

Thanks AJB...
But HOW do you store them...i mean the ones that arent on show...?

Or are they all on show & its an acre sized granny flat...?...cos you must have eeeps'n'eeeps of''em...

Meaning, do you hang them...lay them on top of one another...?...just buy more furniture to put them on...?

[AJB]

Yeah mate just lay em on top of each other and yeah got a few good piles of fur

[AJB]

Stix tell ya mate to try putting a thick layer of manuka honey on effected area on his dog ive heard it works for all sorts of thingsbut it might be hard to stop it licking it off

[Stix]

Ok cheers AJB...
Ive found the fur goes flat if layed on top of one another...
Ive got a fur or 2 twhere the fur seems to have created it own 'memory" & is now permanently a little skewed in a couple of places...
Thats why i thought id ask...

Stix tell ya mate to try putting a thick layer of manuka honey on effected area on his dog ive heard it works for all sorts of thingsbut it might be hard to stop it licking it off

As for the mites...
Ill mention the honey to him...but think better served to ask a few seasoned sheep farmers...im sure plenty of farm dogs have killed plenty of foxes during white fella's time here...

Thanks for the tip...it'd be interesting to hear anyone elses experience with mange & their dogs...

[Oldbloke]

Stix, bit of info here regarding treatment.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mange

[mchughcb]

Here's a fox from yesterdat at about 8m. Only had half a second to either turn camera on or shoot so i shot and didn't film it being shredded by the 20g. I always get difficult positions.

https://youtu.be/_i2jmVJvMKc

[AJB]

[brinny]

Quick look on 200 acres i havent been to for a while saw these 5 bite the deck....and a number of others seen but in next doo0rs place....
Sako 85 204 with a GSCI S675 thermal scope....

[Blr243]

Brinny the great strikes again

[AJB]

[AJB]

[marksman]

the cute little bugger is having a snooze

[Tilb004]

Hi Bent arrow

Nice shooting .
Off topic , noticed you have a hawke scope .
how do you find it , im looking at getting one to put my pard 007on .
what model and magnification is it .

cheers tilbs

[Blr243]

AJB. I compliment you on your fox presentation photo skills. I don’t like to see any unnecessary gore. With pigs I tend to kick dirt across it if I can. And I’ll mostly use my boot to shuffle a fox around a bit into a better position if I have to