What did you do today?

[Wm.Traynor]

Ordered some body dies today. The man at the other end of the phone worried that nothing would fit my Simplex Master. His superior thought nothing would fit and anyway, he had never heard of Simplex. I was able to educate him a bit, I think, I hope☺

[bigpete]

Tracked some deer. Hopefully get one soon. Interesting predicament, lots of small blocks and only one small area they hang out in that I can hunt.

[Wm.Traynor]

Good Hunting bigpete

[bigpete]

Cheers mate. I know what I need to do to get one,and that's sit and wait. Which I'm terrible at. But I'd better get used to it as that's how I'll be hunting hog deer in April

[Oldbloke]

Best I can do waiting is about 3 hrs.

[JohnV]

Ordered some body dies today. The man at the other end of the phone worried that nothing would fit my Simplex Master. His superior thought nothing would fit and anyway, he had never heard of Simplex. I was able to educate him a bit, I think, I hope☺

Very happy to hear that , if you have not used a body die before you will be surprised how good they work . A Simplex Master O frame or Turret has a 7/8 x 14 thread and will take standard 7/8 x 14 Redding body dies .
The guy was probably thinking the small Super Simplex Turret press with a 5/8 thread .

[JohnV]

Tracked some deer. Hopefully get one soon. Interesting predicament, lots of small blocks and only one small area they hang out in that I can hunt.

In that situation you could put down some feed to attract them . Nice bail of first cut lucerne or bag of corn . Something like that .

[Wm.Traynor]

Ordered some body dies today. The man at the other end of the phone worried that nothing would fit my Simplex Master. His superior thought nothing would fit and anyway, he had never heard of Simplex. I was able to educate him a bit, I think, I hope☺

Very happy to hear that , if you have not used a body die before you will be surprised how good they work . A Simplex Master O frame or Turret has a 7/8 x 14 thread and will take standard 7/8 x 14 Redding body dies .


The guy was probably thinking the small Super Simplex Turret press with a 5/8 thread .

It is an even older Simplex product and it surprises me that he had heard of it.
I used a body die for my 223 range rifle, eight years ago. That rifle is still in my safe and after having a lens made last year, I can see pretty well. Might try them both off a bench when I can manage it.

[Oldbloke]

Tracked some deer. Hopefully get one soon. Interesting predicament, lots of small blocks and only one small area they hang out in that I can hunt.

In that situation you could put down some feed to attract them . Nice bail of first cut lucerne or bag of corn . Something like that .

So, is that legal in NSW?

I have NFI about S.A.

Last time i looked, not legal to bait "game" in Vic.

[bigpete]

Don't need to bait,I know where the rutting area is and nearest water source,just need to actually go there and sit and wait.

[wanneroo]

It's snowing and cold so I spent yesterday and this morning working on updating descriptions on some of my old Youtube videos. Also got awarded into the "Influencer" program on Amazon, so I have been setting up my store on there for my Youtube channel with all my favorite products. Youtube only allows limited monetization on firearms videos so I use Amazon sales and the small commissions they give you from your sales to help support the channel.

The Youtube channel has over 2000 subscribers now and grew 300% last year so I keep doing more videos and I enjoy the creative side. Also got a new camera which I think will be a big help and working on getting my new studio space set up.

[bladeracer]

Tracked some deer. Hopefully get one soon. Interesting predicament, lots of small blocks and only one small area they hang out in that I can hunt.

In that situation you could put down some feed to attract them . Nice bail of first cut lucerne or bag of corn . Something like that .

So, is that legal in NSW?

I have NFI about S.A.

Last time i looked, not legal to bait "game" in Vic.

Lucerne is what we use to bring the cows up to the yard for AI. Never thought of trying it on the deer. My neighbour got video of a small deer running along his back fence last month, by this time next year we might have them on our own properties.

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Generally baiting is not allowed for game animals, but deer are pests in other states so I imagine it would be legal. In the US they use dummy deer and scents to attract bucks, I wonder if that would be legal here?

If you're lucky you can find where they hang out, find some places that have some decent lines of sight to the position, then you can sit and wait. I tried it a few times only to discover the deer were up behind me wondering what I was doing out there.

[Oldbloke]

Blade, is that a Hog deer?


"If you're lucky you can find where they hang out, find some places that have some decent lines of sight to the position, then you can sit and wait. I tried it a few times only to discover the deer were up behind me wondering what I was doing out there"

Do that all the time. Seeing them, but getting off a well aimes shot is a different matter.

[Flyonline]

Nice Pete! Hog deer are something I've become interested in, but won't be happening anytime soon for me.

Went for a walk through hunt yesterday afternoon - first time I've walked the full length of this gully from end to end. Have walked into half way from the top and bottom, but never the whole length. This was a goat hunt with a bit of sambar scouting as the opportunity arose as the extended family are coming later in the week and the goat levels in the freezer are nil (again).

Dropped one car at the bottom and then the wife and daughter dropped me at the top to walk down. On the walk into the top of the gully along an old service road (to a a slate mine), I glassed the opposite face for any white/black dots and sure enough after a bit of time I saw two white dots that didn't require glass to see they were a pair of goats on a path that I thought I could intercept them. The only problem would be the few hours with meat in the heat. Still, gotta shoot them first!

Dropping off the little track I bushed my way down to and across a small creek that is always flowing and up to the top where the gully opens out a bit into some steep country. This is the spot I shot the pair of nannys a month or so ago, but I was heading downhill this time, not back out. Pushing through I kept up high again, using the warm updraft and my nose to pick any goats below me and my eyes and ears for everywhere I could see and hear. The carpet of dry leaves was very crunchy, but in the loose gravel and dirt I could pick up a number of freshish tracks, both goat and deer. Being so soft, it was impossible to tell how old they were other than more than a few hours as the dirt was completely dry with no sign of moisture being exposed.

Sliding along the face of the steep country was hard work, but I was able to get along the whole length of the finger ridge without any further sign of the goats. Hmmm, perhaps they'd climbed up to a tiny little feeder gully that drops into the side of the face, or dropped down to the creek below but I hadn't heard nor smelt anything that made me think there were any goats in the area (it'd taken me about 1hr to get into the same area). I did consider heading up another creek that joins the main one, but a quick bo-peep up didn't give me any good vibes so I crossed back into the main gully and found large numbers of goat tracks in the gravel, almost in exactly the same spot that I shot the pair of nannies, but again, no fresh sign made me seriously think they were around close by.

Turning down hill, I paused for a quick dinner on the point of the ridge where the two creeks met before slowly sidling my way down about 20-30m above the creek bed and out of the thick blackberry/bracken coated bottom. I was on the North facing slope, so I was sure that there was a fair chance of putting up a deer bedded in the brush on the darker/cooler south facing slope. Sure enough after a couple of hundred meters a pair of deer jumped up from the edge of the creek and moved uphill. Four or five quick blasts on the reed call made them stop and I was able to drop down into the top of some bracken and could just make out the rump of a sambar on the far side, maybe 70-80m away. Through the glass I could see it looking in my direction, not fully happy but not seriously worried either. After about 5-10min, it lowered it's head and began to feed so I slowly eased my way a little further along the slope, using a large standing tree that covered the head of the hind as cover to move into a better spot. As there had been two deer, I was pretty confident that there was also a calf/yearling with the hind, so glassed through the trees on the opposite face trying to pick it up. As is so often the case, the hind suddenly disappeared but a bit of glassing and I was able to pick up the half grown calf a little above it's mother. I wasn't completely convinced on the shot through the tree tops, and in any case I wasn't entirely sure I wanted to shoot it so far from the car in the heat.

For the next 15-20min I glassed both the hind and the calf, running a few simulation shots for practice and still trying to decide if I wanted to pull the trigger. The decision ended up being taken away from me as they both moved off further up the hill and I wasn't able to reacquire them.

Easing my way downhill I made sure to keep out of sight as much as possible, before continuing down further with the possibility of the same thing happening again in my mind, but I was able to walk the last 500m or so back to the bush track that marks the edge of the hunting area without seeing anything further. Turning to cross the creek and facing the steep trek back to the car I was pleased not to be carrying any extra weight. Then I remembered that my brother in law had asked about venison never having had it. A pair of young backstraps would have been the perfect introduction! Ahh well, there's always next time.

[Wm.Traynor]

This morning we went to see a movie called, "Force of Nature" and it was Damn Good.
Never mind the actors names, lest it misleads you with preconceived notions. Suffice it to say that every single one was Damn Good.
Go and see it

[bladeracer]

We're not doing much today, at least not until it cools down, still 34C under the veranda here.
Neighbour moved back to Gold Coast last year but was down last week cutting and baling hay. They shedded 1500 small squares and 60-odd big round bales but ran out of shed space and time. He left a few hundred small squares and seven rounds out in the paddock and asked us to grab them rather than have them rot. So we've been carting hay the last two days.

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If it starts to cool down we'll go and grab the last twenty-odd smalls and four rounds tonight. The rounds are deep in a gully, which is why he left them. Might have to put a chain around them and drag them out before I can spike them with the tractor.

[wanneroo]

I'm in another state working, stopped at a Cabela's big box store. Plenty of primers of all types.

CCI, Remington, Winchester, Federal, all sizes, all types. They also had some powder at reasonable prices so got some Accurate 1680 and Accurate #2. And picked up some more Berry's Bullets 220g for 300 Blackout.

I got two types of Federal and one Winchester to do a primer test on my Youtube channel. I started a running test of different small pistol primers with the same load to see how they compare and work.

[bigpete]

Today I ordered a Regenyei montante no.4 sharp with custom green grip....

[Flyonline]

Cut up the hind I shot last weekend. First time aging in a fridge and for that long (7 days) so will be interested to see how it compares to the other two. Took a bit of a loss as I'd had to squeeze them into the fridge and had some frozen bits and air drying to cut off, but was able to get 2 back legs and 1 shoulder processed in about 3hrs. Colour of the meat was variable, from very light pink veal to deep dark red - probably varying degrees of air exposure, and there was some fat, something the other 2 haven't had.

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For those that butcher at home, what setup do you have? Kitchen bench, foldway plastic table like above etc.
Thinking I'd like to get something a little better than a wobbly ikea table, don't really have the space to do a full bench with sink and water, but I'm open to ideas.

[gunderson]

Im limping around with crippling sciatic pain

[bigpete]

Cut up the hind I shot last weekend. First time aging in a fridge and for that long (7 days) so will be interested to see how it compares to the other two. Took a bit of a loss as I'd had to squeeze them into the fridge and had some frozen bits and air drying to cut off, but was able to get 2 back legs and 1 shoulder processed in about 3hrs. Colour of the meat was variable, from very light pink veal to deep dark red - probably varying degrees of air exposure, and there was some fat, something the other 2 haven't had.

IMG_5338.jpg

For those that butcher at home, what setup do you have? Kitchen bench, foldway plastic table like above etc.
Thinking I'd like to get something a little better than a wobbly ikea table, don't really have the space to do a full bench with sink and water, but I'm open to ideas.

I often break down on the tailgate of my ute then do the rest on the bench inside

[bigpete]

Today I slept in a bit,then went out and tagged and ringed 3 new calves,checked my game cameras, and dragged some old furniture out of dads sheds for the burn pile.

[Oldbloke]

Kitchen bench

[bigpete]

Today I trimmed back a heap of trees to clear room for the harvester,then went and set up my game cameras. My hopes are high......

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[Flyonline]

I often break down on the tailgate of my ute then do the rest on the bench inside

Don't have a tailgate to open

Today I trimmed back a heap of trees to clear room for the harvester,then went and set up my game cameras. My hopes are high......

Screenshot_20240219-123325_Gallery.jpg

Look forward to the conclusion.

Kitchen bench

Might have to keep an eye open for a kitchen reno being chucked out and install in the shed for extra storage space at the same time

[bigpete]

I often break down on the tailgate of my ute then do the rest on the bench inside

Don't have a tailgate to open

Today I trimmed back a heap of trees to clear room for the harvester,then went and set up my game cameras. My hopes are high......

Screenshot_20240219-123325_Gallery.jpg

Look forward to the conclusion.

Kitchen bench

Might have to keep an eye open for a kitchen reno being chucked out and install in the shed for extra storage space at the same time

Hes been in my sights twice.....

[Oldbloke]

You really only need a solid table and a fridge.

[Wm.Traynor]

Ripped in to the CD player for most of the day. "Player" is a misnomer as it would not play . Then it would not eject Nothing on the web was helpful, so most of the pm was spent disassembling and I still haven't got to the CD. Meanwhile, time's a wastin' and chores aren't getting done' It was a used Panasonic when I bought it Donkey's years ago. A Yt video predicted that the drive belt was stuffed. We'll see.
Hey. Guess what? It's got a tiny fan in there

[Oldbloke]

Bloody hot here. 38c

Sooo, two hours of Andr'e Rieu in the Sydney Town Hall with the A/C as company.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Rieu

[bladeracer]

Bloody hot here. 38c

Sooo, two hours of Andr'e Rieu in the Sydney Town Hall with the A/C as company.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Rieu

Yep, was 38C under the verandah when I went out to check the cows. Really felt it in the open paddocks but down in the trees where the girls are hanging out it's very pleasant, despite zero breeze. Down to 37.3 when I got back.