Just lovely! I hunt around the Speed and Logan area. Couldn't have dead centered it any more than that. It ain't been good for 3 or 4 years and this couldn't have helped any.
I had Mike Orlen open up a full choke on a Model 12 in 16 gauge about two
months ago. Total cost for opening it up to improved and lengthening the forcing cone was $110. Turnaround time was one week from Tulsa and back.
For some reason the harder the wind is blowing the more they like the wheat stubble. And it doesn't have to be thick. I think they feel better because they can see since they can't hear. Not sure but it holds true, especially when its really cold.
Hunted opening weekend West of Phillipsburg. All private ground. Normally kill around 50 to 60 birds. Last year we killed 35. This year we killed 3. Only thing that changed was the bird population. Sorry for the bad news. Really sad. Hunted some good cover, just no birds.
Most always a SxS. Sometimes 16 ga., sometimes 12 ga. Bought an 1100 12 ga. After shooting old doubles my whole life I'm never really sure if that light kickin 1100 actually went off or not. The older I get it seems to be a 16 ga. SxS more and more often.
My first shotgun was a Fox 16 gauge SxS. I was probably 6 or 7. All we had at our house was double guns so if I wanted to shoot, that was what it was gonna be. I know those old Fox and Savage 311's kicked the crap out of me but I didn't know any better. We shot almost every day and reloaded...
I believe your buddy retiredguy is right. The old farmer we hunt on talks about how good a winter they are having and then rags me for all the birds we left after opening weekend. He says he is seeing big bunches of roosters. I fish for info from these guys that have lived and farmed in this...
We've got a lot of thick wheat stubble and crp. We hunted some milo stubble on opening weekend and it didn't hold many birds. Wasn't sure if the limited amount of cold weather had them bunched up or if they were scattered all over. Probably be similar to the opener. Any advice is appreciated.
Headed back out this Friday-Sunday. Hunting private ground East of Hill City. Temps in the 40s and 50s. Have you fortunate to hunt alot been finding the birds in the wheat or milo stubble at these temps or mainly in the cover? Appreciate any suggestions.