What Score Is “Good” for a Typical Whitetail? A good typical whitetail score is 120 inches for most hunters, 130 inches is a legit bragging buck, and 140+ is a hammer almost anywhere. If you are on public land in
Pick Bibs That Stop Wind First, Then Worry About Warmth. The best cold weather hunting bibs are the ones that block wind, stay quiet, and let you walk a half mile without sweating through your base layers. I have frozen
Pick a Broadhead That Punches Two Holes, Not Just a Big One The best broadhead for pass through shots is a sharp, tough fixed blade in the 100 to 125 grain range, like the QAD Exodus, Magnus Black Hornet, or
Pick Your Stabilizer Length Based on Where You Hunt, Not What Looks Cool The best stabilizer length for most hunting bows is a 10-inch front bar. If you hunt tight timber or a hang-on stand, I like 8 to 10
How Long I Wait Before Tracking a Liver Shot Deer I wait 4 to 6 hours on a liver-shot deer before I take the first step on the track. If it is the last hour of daylight, I back out
Start With the Hard Truth and Make a Choice. If your deer only move at night, you are either hunting the wrong spot, hunting it at the wrong time, or walking in like you own the place. My fix is
Pick One: My Honest Answer After Watching Both Work For most deer hunters, I would pick the 350 Legend. I pick the 450 Bushmaster only if you want a bigger hole, more blood, and you are fine with more recoil
Decide If You Are Using the ATV To Hunt, Or Just To Get There I hunt deer from an ATV or UTV only when I can keep it boring, quiet, and predictable. If I need to “drive and spot” like
Pick the winch based on deer weight and where you hunt. The best winch for loading a deer on an ATV is a 2,000 to 2,500-pound synthetic-rope winch with a handlebar switch and a simple snatch block. If you are
Stop Guessing, Start Measuring, And Don’t Lie To Yourself. The biggest mistakes guys make scoring their own buck are measuring too soon, using the wrong tape, and “rounding up” when nobody is watching. If you want a score you can
Make the Call Fast. Inside Spread Is Simple If You Measure It the Same Way Every Time. To measure inside spread on deer antlers, I measure the widest point between the inside edges of the main beams, at a right
Which Scoring System Should You Use? The difference is simple. Boone and Crockett is for rifle, muzzleloader, and handgun kills, and Pope and Young is for vertical bow kills. Both use the same basic measurements on whitetails, but the entry
Pick a Peroxide Strength and Stop Guessing For deer skull bleaching, I use 12% hydrogen peroxide “developer” for most euro mounts, and I avoid straight household 3% unless I have all week to mess with it. If I have a
How Long Until You Get Your Mount Back, Really. Most shoulder mounts take 6 to 12 months. If you drop it off in November, do not be shocked if you get it back the next summer or even the next
Decide Your Goal Before You Cut Anything The best way to cape a deer in the field is to do a clean shoulder cape with long cuts, keep hair out of meat, keep blood off the hide, and stop your
Pick Your Humidity Window and Hunt It Hard The humidity level I like best for deer hunting is 40% to 70%. Below 40% I focus on slow, quiet entry and early sits, and above 70% I hunt closer to bedding
Pick Your Goal Before You Open the App I use OnX Maps for one thing. I use it to cut time off my scouting and put my boots in the right 200 yards. If you try to make it do
Pick a Wind Checker That Shows Micro Swirls, Not Just “Windy” The best wind checker for bow hunting is a simple powder bottle you can puff anytime, like the HME Scent Slammer Wind Detector or the Code Blue Wind Detector.
Pick the Pioneer if you want simple and tough, and pick the Ranger if you want comfort and speed. If I had to buy one UTV today for whitetail hunting, I would buy a Honda Pioneer for rough public land
How Deep of Water Can a Hunting UTV Cross Without Wrecking It Most hunting UTVs can safely cross about 12 to 18 inches of moving water, and maybe 18 to 24 inches of slow water, if the bottom is firm
The Fast Answer If You’re Alone and It’s Heavy I load a deer on an ATV alone by getting the deer on a plastic sled, using a short ramp, and pulling it up with a winch or a rope-and-pulley tied
How Long After a Shot Can a Dog Track? A good tracking dog can follow a wounded deer for 24 to 48 hours after the shot, and I have seen solid dogs work sign past 72 hours if the weather
How Far Can a Dog Track a Wounded Deer Before You Should Back Out? A good blood tracking dog can follow a wounded deer anywhere from 300 yards to 2 miles, and I have seen them go farther on the
Decide If You Even Need an Oxygen Tank in the Woods If you need an oxygen tank to breathe, you can still hunt, but you have to hunt slower, hunt closer, and build your whole plan around safety first. I