Off Season Lets Talk Guns, Part 2

[HonestChieffan]

Been a while since we had a guns n' ammo discussion.


Some of you are AR shooters Im sure. Im looking at a Colt 6920. Will be my first AR. Picked up a Glock this fall and really enjoy shooting it. Any feedback on that weapon?



Anyone else been in a buy/sell/trade mood with hardware?

[DenverChief]

Originally Posted by LiveSteam

You could come Nebraska for 8 days and take this class and build your own custom 1911. And when you're done. You'll be able to build custom 1911s for others, if you so wish?
https://www.nelsoncustomguns.com/bobschool/

That is really cool! Thank you for sharing!

[Fish]

So... it's officially bird season in the midwest. I've cleaned my old inherited Remington 1100 Trap series, and it's hitting clay flawlessly. Gotten some good practice over the last few weeks. This gun has a short barrel, so it's super easy to manipulate. My 870 Mag pump is just backup, but it has a mod choke that hits just about similar to the 1100, enough to make it a decent match backup.



Supposedly the Kansas pheasant and quail is going to suck this year though. Again...

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by Fish

So... it's officially bird season in the midwest. I've cleaned my old inherited Remington 1100 Trap series, and it's hitting clay flawlessly. Gotten some good practice over the last few weeks. This gun has a short barrel, so it's super easy to manipulate. My 870 Mag pump is just backup, but it has a mod choke that hits just about similar to the 1100, enough to make it a decent match backup.



Supposedly the Kansas pheasant and quail is going to suck this year though. Again...

Yeah. I’ve barely seen any birds. Even where there is a water source. But it might be local. We had a bunch of ****ing swift fox move in and as I understand they are hard on pheasant.

[Raiderhater]

Originally Posted by Fish

So... it's officially bird season in the midwest. I've cleaned my old inherited Remington 1100 Trap series, and it's hitting clay flawlessly. Gotten some good practice over the last few weeks. This gun has a short barrel, so it's super easy to manipulate. My 870 Mag pump is just backup, but it has a mod choke that hits just about similar to the 1100, enough to make it a decent match backup.



Supposedly the Kansas pheasant and quail is going to suck this year though. Again...

Dad and I aren’t even planning on going out west for pheasant this year, we’re just going to try for quail in the eastern half of the state. And they do tend to handle dry conditions a bit better BUT, when the drought map looks like this -

https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Curre...onitor.aspx?KS

I’m not super hopeful.

[Fish]

KS pheasant season first 2 opening weekends were pretty abysmal this year. About what I expected though. The drought this year was particularly bad, on top of multiple years of moderate drought. The midwest desperately needs a few really wet years to get the bird population back to meaningful numbers. The last 3 years have been really terrible. Nothing but dust. We got 3 birds the entire weekend. I was lucky enough to bag one. That's between about 10 people. Compared to the old days, that's really sad.

[Raiderhater]

Originally Posted by Fish

KS pheasant season first 2 opening weekends were pretty abysmal this year. About what I expected though. The drought this year was particularly bad, on top of multiple years of moderate drought. The midwest desperately needs a few really wet years to get the bird population back to meaningful numbers. The last 3 years have been really terrible. Nothing but dust. We got 3 birds the entire weekend. I was lucky enough to bag one. That's between about 10 people. Compared to the old days, that's really sad.

That’s about what I have been hearing and reading over all. I am curious though, did you see any quail? From what I’m hearing they have been, not great but, fair to middling’.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by Raiderhater

That’s about what I have been hearing and reading over all. I am curious though, did you see any quail? From what I’m hearing they have been, not great but, fair to middling’.

Afraid not. I've also heard that the quail population is supposed to be rebounding. I saw several last year, but didn't see a single one this year.

Back in high school in the midwest, around 1993-1994, I used to see hundreds of them...

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by Fish

KS pheasant season first 2 opening weekends were pretty abysmal this year. About what I expected though. The drought this year was particularly bad, on top of multiple years of moderate drought. The midwest desperately needs a few really wet years to get the bird population back to meaningful numbers. The last 3 years have been really terrible. Nothing but dust. We got 3 birds the entire weekend. I was lucky enough to bag one. That's between about 10 people. Compared to the old days, that's really sad.

Yeah I’ve barely seen any pheasant at all. My nephew was all excited he had some scouted out, but isn’t telling anyone where.

It’s bad, folks.

Originally Posted by Raiderhater

That’s about what I have been hearing and reading over all. I am curious though, did you see any quail? From what I’m hearing they have been, not great but, fair to middling’.

Quail are more susceptible to drought than pheasant. It can’t be good for them out and about.

[Raiderhater]

Originally Posted by Fish

Afraid not. I've also heard that the quail population is supposed to be rebounding. I saw several last year, but didn't see a single one this year.

Back in high school in the midwest, around 1993-1994, I used to see hundreds of them...

I’m sure some areas are going to be better/worse than others.

But yeah, when I was kid around that same time frame we typically didn’t to go very far to find a covey or more when we went out with dad.

[Raiderhater]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

Yeah I’ve barely seen any pheasant at all. My nephew was all excited he had some scouted out, but isn’t telling anyone where.

It’s bad, folks.


Quail are more susceptible to drought than pheasant. It can’t be good for them out and about.

See now, that’s always been my understanding as well but, lately I’ve been hearing the opposite and people reporting an over all better experience in finding quail than with pheasant. So, hell, I don’t know what to believe at this point.

[notorious]

Originally Posted by Fish

KS pheasant season first 2 opening weekends were pretty abysmal this year. About what I expected though. The drought this year was particularly bad, on top of multiple years of moderate drought. The midwest desperately needs a few really wet years to get the bird population back to meaningful numbers. The last 3 years have been really terrible. Nothing but dust. We got 3 birds the entire weekend. I was lucky enough to bag one. That's between about 10 people. Compared to the old days, that's really sad.

We are in year 4 of the 7 year drought cycle in SW Kansas. If history is any indication it should start to get slowly better the next 3-4 years.

And yes, visiting hunters from all over the US that I talked to said it was absolutely pathetic. Hell, I haven't seen more than 5 pheasants the last 6 months, and I live 15 miles from the nearest town.

[LiveSteam]

I can't remember the last time we spooked a covey of quail while out pheasant hunting. Been years.
Back in the late 70s through 90s. You knew you may not flush any Pheasants but you'd flush plenty of quail on a day's hunt.
I've always preferred quail to pheasant at the dinner table.

We still have plenty of cotton tails. Fried Rabbit with a little lemon pepper is dam good eating IMO. So go bust some bunnies

[srvy]

Originally Posted by LiveSteam

I can't remember the last time we spooked a covey of quail while out pheasant hunting. Been years.
Back in the late 70s through 90s. You knew you may not flush any Pheasants but you'd flush plenty of quail on a day's hunt.
I've always preferred quail to pheasant at the dinner table.

We still have plenty of cotton tails. Fried Rabbit with a little lemon pepper is dam good eating IMO. So go bust some bunnies

You cook good rabbit, Pilgram.

[George Liquor]

Originally Posted by LiveSteam

I can't remember the last time we spooked a covey of quail while out pheasant hunting. Been years.
Back in the late 70s through 90s. You knew you may not flush any Pheasants but you'd flush plenty of quail on a day's hunt.
I've always preferred quail to pheasant at the dinner table.

We still have plenty of cotton tails. Fried Rabbit with a little lemon pepper is dam good eating IMO. So go bust some bunnies

I remember pheasant hunting with my dad in my elementary school days and them getting tons of quail. Last couple of times I went in my 20s nobody even cared to shoot them.

I miss bird hunting with the old man. Looking forward to opening weekend was one of the biggest joys of my childhood. It was up there with Christmas, the 4th of July and my birthday.

[LiveSteam]

Those 1st few hunts with your Pops.
Just nothing else like it when you're a young kid.
My 1st hunts were out at Camp Ashland Nebraska along the banks of the Platte River hunting rabbits with a 1916 single shot Iver Johnson 16 gauge.
I can still remember missing the first half dozen bunnies.
And him. "Lynn-Boy,You're not leading them enough"
Next bunny I led just enough to clip a back leg. That little rabbit was like shooting an Elk at 8 or 9 years old..
The memory is as fresh today as it was the moment it happened.