Thank you Terry. I'm trying not to take anything personal, but it's not easy...especially when my honesty and integrity is called into question over confronting easily disprovable claims...but the one who made the claims has his words taken at face value? Because he claimed "empirical evidence"?
I haven't posted about it before, because I don't like talking about screwing up...but I have one EXPERIENCE while ACTUALLY HUNTING that is contrary to just about every claim made in that post. I'm going off memory (of the post), so forgive me if I missed something.
Last season I wanted to kill a deer with primitive gear...at least with a primitive bow and arrow. I have a 54@30 hickory selfbow I made at the TN Classic several years ago. I actually competed in, and won, the "Selfbow Challenge" with it. Later on I took it to Mr. Eric Krewson's and we further refined it. It's a shooter.
I'm no flint knapper, but I know a few. One of the better ones is James Parker. Survival expert, bowyer, primitive bow hunter...he's got skills. We did some trading, and for my end of the bargain I got a dozen Tonkin cane arrows with flint heads.
I took this dozen arrows (the shafts had been spined and sorted before being made into arrows) and I shot them...and shot them...and shot them. I have a dense foam target that wouldn't dull the (very sharp) stone points, and would show impact. I chose three arrows from the dozen, for (perfect) flight and sharpness. I was getting a good 7" of penetration into the dense foam. Should blow through a whitetail like a paper sack.
After several days of ACTUAL HUNTING, the PERFECT opportunity presented itself. A great big old doe was diving nearly to her eyeballs in pine straw (evidently something grows under the straw and the deer love it). I watched and waited. She was maybe 8 yds, perfectly broadside, head down behind a tree, totally relaxed (or as relaxed as a MS whitetail ever gets). She had no clue I was in the world.
One thing I love about self bows...a mouse fart seems loud compared to mine. I had chartreuse marribou feather "tracers" glued to the back of my arrow so I could see it in flight. Looked like a tennis ball. Shot was absolutely perfect. She didn't even flinch until the arrow struck.
I'm thinking "dead deer". Long story short, after getting a buddy and looking...and looking...and looking...finally found my arrow. Blood showed just under 2" penetration. Best we could figure the head hit perfectly horizontal between two ribs and the ribs gave just enough to kill penetration. Deer got sore ribs out of the deal.
Now, to get to the point.
I didn't go with "good enough".
I put a lot of time and work into getting everything right. I didn't have on heavy clothes (early bow season in MS...if I remember correctly I was wearing shorts). I wasn't in an odd position. I didn't rush the shot (had plenty of time). I'd practiced the shot (seated) over and over and over. I wasn't "cold" (I shot before I went to the blind and wasn't there very long, and it wasn't even cool weather). I sure didn't "grip it and rip it".
Absolutely none of that so-called "empiricle evidence" applied to me or my situation. Even though I went way above and beyond "good enough", it wasn't good enough.
THAT is the difference in actual experience vs. phony imagination and pretending. That is why that "good enough is good enough" and all the excuses to try and justify it is some of the worst "advice" I've ever seen. That is why I strongly suggest you take the "advice" given by someone who has ZERO experience with a grain of salt.
Topic: Hunting Advice: Questions and Comments (Read 5910 times)
