Shooters ?

wytex · Aug 15, 2017

Thought I would post some smaller , younger bucks for those to see maybe what not to harvest if possible.
Not judging if you take one in these age classes just want to show some not "trophies".
And yes I do believe a trophy is in the eyes of the beholder.
Some of these are mature bucks but taken early in the growing season.
These types of bucks can be found pretty easily so take some time and look over a bunch.

JosephBrown · Aug 15, 2017

So when looking for a "trophy", is it mostly look at the prongs?

Topgun 30-06 · Aug 15, 2017

JosephBrown said:
So when looking for a "trophy", is it mostly look at the prongs?

IMHO it's mass first, then height, and then the prongs! There are four mass measurements on each side and that is really where the score adds up on a decent length (14" or better) buck with decent prongs. Those pictures are of nice bucks that need a lot of growing yet if you're looking for a trophy. Notice how low on the horns the prongs are compared to the ear lengths on them, as well as the lengths that probably aren't twice the length of the ears.

MiStickSlinger · Aug 15, 2017

Would these bucks warrant a pass in one of the leftover units?

JosephBrown · Aug 15, 2017

Topgun 30-06 said:
. Notice how low on the horns the prongs are compared to the ear lengths on them, as well as the lengths that probably aren't twice the length of the ears.

I did notice that. I'm trying to get better at judging before I go on my first hunt, which will hopefully be next year. About how high above the ears do you want them. And I'm guessing those horns are 14" in length or am I off?

406LIFE · Aug 15, 2017

If you are defining "trophy" as getting into B&C or P&Y, then you really need all three measurments (total horn length, mass on 4 measurements, and length of prong). If you are off in one, then you will probably not get to the minimum score. I have measured plenty of bucks that had 2 and missed one of the three. Usually its the prong that causes it to fall short, since the mass makes it appear like its big enough, but its the length, not width of the prong that matters. As you can see in the link, that 13% of the score, not a small amount. http://www.boone-crockett.org/bgRecords/records_fieldjudging_pronghorn.asp?area=bgRecords

Also, I agree that the bucks above are younger, but since I will do dang near anything to eat antelope, I probably wouldn't have the discipline to hold off.

Topgun 30-06 · Aug 15, 2017

JosephBrown said:
I did notice that. I'm trying to get better at judging before I go on my first hunt, which will hopefully be next year. About how high above the ears do you want them. And I'm guessing those horns are 14" in length or am I off?

The higher the better as far as where the prongs are on the horns. If you're talking about the length of the horns themselves, none of those bucks are near 14". To get to 14" or better they usually need to be over twice the length of their ear with a good curl to add some length to them to hit 14" or better. I do agree with 406LIFE in that to make book you do need good scores from all the measurements.

Topgun 30-06 · Aug 15, 2017

MiStickSlinger said:
Would these bucks warrant a pass in one of the leftover units?

That would depend on the person that has the leftover tag and what he really wants to take home or have mounted. There are generally always some good bucks in every unit, but you have to look a lot of them over and hold off on ones like these if you want one in the mid 70s or better.

cgarner · Aug 15, 2017

Thanks for posting these pictures. They are a big help. I've seen a lot of bucks similar to the ones in the pictures and although they are not the biggest I would be happy with one. That being I've never harvested a buck antelope. I drew my first buck antelope tag this year and depending on hunting pressure I may or may not be able to pass up one similar to the ones in the picture.

The Hedgehog · Aug 15, 2017

If you're looking for a big one, the prongs gots to be big too, and farther up the horn so you can get those measurements under the prong I've read. This one has stunted prongs and they're way too low on the horn, by trophy standards.

The Hedgehog · Aug 15, 2017

Also, you want one that "curls" for the extra length. This one doesn't have much curl, so he's likely shorter than he appears. His prongs are also somewhat weak. He also appears somewhat small in stature, so he's likely young.

wytex · Aug 15, 2017

When I mentioned "trophy" I was talking in context of score . Like I said trophy can mean many things to many people. The buck by himself has decent to nice prongs but only goes 12-13".
A nice mature buck's horns should make his head look a little top heavy. More horns than head size.
Here's little better buck, probably about 13 1/2" with decent prongs, not much curl though. Curl that goes back instead of in, is hard to judge on a frontal look.
This buck wouldn't be a bad taker for any NR, but with our ability to hunt almost all of the season I would pass him until the last minute. He'll probably be in that low, maybe mid 70's range for score.

tjones · Aug 15, 2017

JosephBrown said:
So when looking for a "trophy", is it mostly look at the prongs?

Best advice on here is from greenhorn, in a greenhorn sort of way. Look close at his pics and pay attention to his words. Especially the small in stature buck. Uffda!

The Hedgehog · Aug 15, 2017

The first buck I posted had take your breath away mass from the front, good curl, crap prong.

wide flare and round horns can be deceiving in a good way. The second buck I posted, had great mass, fair prong, not much curl. Neither were young, and both "stood out" among the hundreds of bucks I looked at for a couple weeks in a good Wyoming antelope unit.

I took those photos while hunting last year in Wyoming, in a unit the same time a friend who runs a good pronghorn guide service was looking around for a client. He sent me pics of this buck, and I thought pretty good. What do you folks think? A "shooter?"

Topgun 30-06 · Aug 15, 2017

I'm not seeing any pictures in your posts on this thread Greenhorn! I know you've taken a lot of good ones and are the expert when it comes to antelope, so the guys should definitely listen to what you're saying like tjones stated!

wytex · Aug 15, 2017

Great mass, prongs eh but with the mass they will be deceiving in length, length is hard one due to the mass but I would give him 13-14". That pic shows how hard they can be to judge from a frontal shot, one horns curls back and the length can only be judged from the side view for him.

One point I was trying to make is the group pic are bucks you can find in any area without much work.

Greenhorn has some great pics, enjoy your posts.

The Hedgehog · Aug 15, 2017

Dang TopGun, it was your evaluation I was hoping for.

wytex, is it the bottom one you think is 13-14"? you can see length from both pictures, but don't let the small head size fool you.

wytex · Aug 16, 2017

He's definitely a looker but yea I think the bottom pic is about 13-14 ", but like you said the head does not look to be a mature buck, short nose, but that mass is awesome. Hard to tell without seeing him on the hoof.
I based that on a ratio of ears to horns, his horns look an inch or so longer than twice the ears, maybe more though. I have also found from the bottom of the jaw to the top of the eye is about 7 inches more or less on mature bucks, that is why I think about 14 inches. Hopefully if someone harvests him we can all find out, don't mind at all being proven wrong.
Great pic to show how mass can affect the overall look of the horns.

Season is getting close for all of us. Nice rains have greened up the plains around here so hopefully the rest of the state is the same..

The Hedgehog · Aug 16, 2017

wytex, somebody did kill that buck, the bottom one, shortly after that photo was taken. He's 15.5 tall and scores 88.5b&c. I had guessed he was 85 prior to him being taken. That's likely one of the largest (top 3-5) pronghorns killed in WY last year. I killed the top one last year (of the 3 photos I posted), and he made the all time B&C book with several inches to spare. He's the smallest of the 3, just a hair under 17" length after the 60day dray, and super mass. His stunted prongs are still over 5"

The Hedgehog · Aug 16, 2017

And the head size on all 3 bucks is giganto

Shooters ?

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