Do you carry while bow hunting?

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Grizzly
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#31 Post by Grizzly »

Unless you are a Jeff Cooper type and shoot until your body won't let you, most folks get old and their training and practice levels drop off significantly. In my case, my ears started getting so bad that I wondered why I ever played with handguns at all, when bows were so much fun and soo much quieter.

All, or some portion of the skills and training you have now and are maintaining will surprisingly fall away if and when you find yourself only going to the range on occasion. Protecting what's left of your hearing can do that; injuries can do it; sickness; caring for a partner as we age or simply other interests that take over that old love of shooting. It can happen and does to many. I was as active a handgun shooter in my early 30's thru late 50's as anyone. I ran and entered many events along with being pres and pistol chairman for years of a local club. Then as the years went by, I'd shoot when my brother came by, or when I took the kids out or before hunting season. Never thought that would happen, but it does to many of us.

When I took my ccw class at 70, I was amazed at how rusty and a bit awkward some of the old skills were. Then too, I was not being trained by some club or shop commando, but by active and retired law enforcement officers, and they put an entirely different element into the training. I've continued taking more, being intelligent enough to realize how important it is - but most folks probably don't. I'm pretty leary of "most folks" with guns, having run matches for years and reading the yearly accident reports our conservation dept handed out to safety instructors. Just watch them at the gun counter for a while. Yet, surprisingly, when you come across a published list of ccw incidents, there are amazingly very few - which is a very good thing.

Now to my way of thinking, picking out your carry gun is much like being fitted for a shotgun. it had better point perfectly when you pick it up or draw it. You don't want one that you have to adjust your grip in order for the sights to line up; and that also applies to a followup shot. Will that thin single stack auto shift in your grip and no longer be pointing on target? Is that double stack too thick for your small hands? I personally like the small grip that you can get a Sig Sauer P320 with. The 3.6" sub compact comes that way. They also are available in med and lge. The poly grip frame is modular and you can interchange the different sizes for about $40. I could probably live with a striker P320, but instead bought a P250 dao. The smaller grip allowed me to comfortably use a double stack, where as most of them are too thick for me. The Glocks are alot like the old .22 Ruger Mk 1 and 2's for me. The angled grip always causes it to point high and I know that at my age and with the limited amount of shooting left in me, I will not overcome that - and I don't want to have to pause and adjust that grip, like I might do on the range.

So, the gun with all the best features on paper or for someone else, may not fit you. When you find one that has a good reliability record and feels great in your hand, find the money.
Jesus replaces the old covenant and speaks to the believer the moral code of God by His Spirit directly to the heart. He is the eternal, everlasting revelation of God to mankind. In Him is both the knowledge of righteousness and the power to live right.

Captainkirk
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#32 Post by Captainkirk »

The reason I asked, Clay:
When I gun shop, there is a protocol I follow. First item is: Intent and choice of cartridge.
I would personally consider the 9mm adequate for defense against humans at close range. Humans. Not bears, big cats, or wolves. Which is why I selected the .44 Remington Magnum cartridge for protection against aggressive animals. My .380 is small, light and compact, but I'm much less worried about a human giving me a life-or-death issue in the middle of the north woods than say, an angry momma bear, if you get my drift. The .380 would probably get Mother Ursa really cross with me even if I'd emptied all seven into her.
Cartridge and load first, followed by choices of firearms that are chambered in that cartridge.
Aim small, miss small!

Longtrad
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#33 Post by Longtrad »

Lots of good food for thought guys!


Well Kirk I guess worst case scenario would be people or mountain lions, we have some black bears here but few and far between.

Captainkirk
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#34 Post by Captainkirk »

Longtrad wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 7:51 pm Lots of good food for thought guys!


Well Kirk I guess worst case scenario would be people or mountain lions, we have some black bears here but few and far between.
.357M would handle either one with ease. .38+P *might* be adequate. Any of the .44s, .44RM, .44 Spl or .44 Russian. Naturally .45LC or .45ACP, if you are into autos...
.40 S&W or 10mm are usually only available in auto platform.
Aim small, miss small!

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Grizzly
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#35 Post by Grizzly »

Flemish Dave wrote: Thu Oct 18, 2018 6:41 am I have carried the LCR for years and can truly say it’s a great piece. I used to carry the 38 spl version which is half polymer and half aluminum. Now I carry the .357 version that is half polymer and half steel. At various points I have carried s and w j frames but unless they have the performance center tune or a trigger job they have a terrible trigger pull. The lcr is cheaper for the .357 or 22 and has the best revolver trigger out the box.
Dave, I'm thinking of trading that Taurus in on a LCRx with a hammer.38 which is listed around $350. A .357 LCR hammerless is somewhere in the $500 + range, and I don't really want to spend that much. The gun would probably never see a magnum cartridge anyway. In your opinion,

how much practical accuracy did you gain with the extra weight of the .357?

Did your qualifying scores change much?

Using only .38+p's, how different would you rate the two different guns? I've noticed that the hammer guns seem to be about a pound or so heavier in their double action pull.

Did both revolvers shoot to point of aim for you? I'm hoping that by Ruger having the barrel inside of the metal upper, that they avoid all the misaligned barrel and then "sight" problems the others are having by either not tightening the barrels enough, or by over rotating them. I sure miss Smith's pinned barrel days.
Jesus replaces the old covenant and speaks to the believer the moral code of God by His Spirit directly to the heart. He is the eternal, everlasting revelation of God to mankind. In Him is both the knowledge of righteousness and the power to live right.

stumper
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#36 Post by stumper »

Scores didn’t change much. The only thing I would look at is the weight of the gun itself. The 38 weights 13 oz and can be a good bit of recoil with a +p cartridge but not unmanageable. The 357 is 17oz and is a sweet heart with 38 ammo. On paper the 38 hits a tinch lower. I still shot a 98/100 the last time with the 357 and the same with the 38 the year before that. The 4 oz doesn’t really matter too much to me.

I’m actually not sure if the trigger pull is heavier on the x but I think they are close if not the same. Both revolvers have great combat accuracy and shoot basically point of aim. Oh and I would totally own an x but we can only shoot double action during quals so the hammerless makes sense.
Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

joe harrod1945
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#37 Post by joe harrod1945 »

no it does not feel right for me.my grandson does.

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Grizzly
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#38 Post by Grizzly »

Longtrad wrote: Wed Oct 17, 2018 7:09 pm What do you guys like to carry? I have some full sized pistols but I am in the market for something smaller and easier to carry.
Taurus has reintroduced their old 6 shot .38 Special snub nose in their awful (seems nice at first) dull black and their version of stainless. Prices are around $270 - $300. Already, my model 85 in flat black, with minimal handling, is taking on thin lines or scratches through the finish. This certainly isn't the same finish that is on my black Spyderco - which is much stronger and harder. When I cleaned it yesterday, I noticed a thin line of rust already forming along the front sight. It is very similar to their model 85 5 shot, 2". In fact, it is called 856.

I had my almost new model 85 5 shot looked at locally yesterday. I had thought the barrel had just been underturned just a bit causing the barrel to be offset from the frame and causing it to shoot 3" left at 10 yards. Not so lucky. A gunsmith with an eye for guns could see that either the barrel or the frame had not been drilled and threaded straight - so one of them is off center or "crooked". Do I want another Taurus? Some are lemons and some give a lifetime of good service. Having scanned many warranty discussions on line, I'm not sure I want to go through the hassle of getting them to fix it - especially if it falls within "their" specs - which is 3" off of point of aim at 10 yards - or so a lady told me in the service dept.

They have also changed their lifetime warranty to one year. So if you buy one, shoot it alot while new just in case. Better still, order through Davidson's and use their warranty.
Jesus replaces the old covenant and speaks to the believer the moral code of God by His Spirit directly to the heart. He is the eternal, everlasting revelation of God to mankind. In Him is both the knowledge of righteousness and the power to live right.

Longtrad
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#39 Post by Longtrad »

Thanks for the info Grizzly. I don't see a Taurus in my future. I like the ruger wheel guns too much. I haven't tried an lcr model but the gp100 and sp101 models I have tried have all been excelent shooters. I have a 4" model 66 smith and the stock triggers on the rugers are much nicer in my expirence. The barrel on my smith is also slightly crooked. Not enough that I notice it throws off the aiming but just a sad laps in fit and finish quality.


That being said I am leaning toward a small 9mm auto, but if a good deal on a lcr fell into my lap i might take that as a sign.

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Grizzly
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Re: Do you carry while bow hunting?

#40 Post by Grizzly »

Taurus would not pay shipping on a gun with the barrel threads drilled crooked; soo, I took it to the pawn shop yesterday. End result? It cost me $20. to sort of rent this Taurus for a little over a year. I was lucky when I bought it - well almost. It was on sale and also there was a rebate running. They are definitely a budget gun for someone trying to pinch those pennys, but you can get hurt if you buy full retail, then have problems and then have to pay shipping each time they try to fix a, or the problem.

These rebates turn up from time to time, as well as sales. Right now at our local farm store there is a Walther for 300 and the Ruger small 9 for 250. No rebates though. There sure are alot of small 9's to choose from. Hope you find one that fits you perfectly, lasts forever and rips out the 10 ring every time.

I like the older Smiths, before they got all stiff and gritty. I get my pinned barrel model 14 out once in a while to remember what a revolver should feel like; all smooth with nice bluing. I can't imagine having a nice Python laying around. I was talking to the guys at a local gun shop yesterday, and my eye fell on one in the cabinet. It looked like it had a 3" barrel with adj sights. I had no idea what it was. Turned out it is an Interarms Rossi 720 .44 spc 5 shot about the size of a K frame Smith from the 90's. Great, another Brazilian gun, but this one has a good reputation and sort of a cult following- and is very, very smooth. Do I really want to spend 400 on something I can't get parts for? Bad thing is I've wanted a 3" K frame for a very long time. I miss my wife's old pinned barrel Smith 3" 36 from years ago. It's a bit of a chunk at 30 ounces, but would be neat for winter carry when my hearts desire is for something without a plastic frame.
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Jesus replaces the old covenant and speaks to the believer the moral code of God by His Spirit directly to the heart. He is the eternal, everlasting revelation of God to mankind. In Him is both the knowledge of righteousness and the power to live right.

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