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Father/Son MS Hog Hunt

2K views 2 replies 2 participants last post by  sjpi 
#1 ·
All of us seem to have those hunting stories that either make us laugh or make us cry or cause our hearts to swell with pride at how much joy a successful hunt can bring. You decide which one this is for you.

During the last weekend in Feb 2004, 7 days ago, my son and I went on our first ever dedicated private ranch hog hunt in Pachuta, MS. We arrived at 1330hrs on a Friday and left at 1130hrs on Sunday. Total cost of the hunt, including, according to the outfitter, an unnecessary MS Non-Resident 7 day large game license, was $1,029.

I had spent the day before at our range fine tuning our rifles. I was shooting my Weatherby Vanguard w/30-06 handloads using Hornady 150gr BTSPs with IMR 3031 pushing the bullets at 2800fps. I had consistent 2" groups (my shooting) at all ranges out to 200 yds with a 200 yard boresight.

My young son Michael shoots a H&R .223 bull barrel with factory 55gr ammo. We chose FMJs for this particular hunt with every intention of NECK shots only. He had taken his first button buck at 150 yds 30 days earlier with Remington 55gr SPs. Michael was also shooting 2" groups at all ranges out to 200 yds with his weapon.

We thought, according to the 'hog holes with corn', that all of our shots from enclosed or open two man stands, would be within 100 yards. Perfect planning for both weapons...or so I thought...

Michael and I have the exact same optics...2003 model Simmons Whitetail Expedition 4x12x42 with AO from Midway USA. Excellent optics and superior in every category to the Leupold Rifleman I had compared it with.

All of our transport to the selected stands was accomplished in either a 4x4 F250 Crew Cab or an 89 Suburban. Neither of the vehicles had a gun rack to hold our weapons. We had to place the butt of the rifles under the drivers seat and the barrels resting on the left rear passenger seat. We would spend anywhere from 20-35 minutes one way on very rough roads.

Micheal and I sighted his .223 at the sight in range before our first hunt on Friday afternoon. We set him at 3" high at 100yds and right at zero for 200. Since I had sighted the night before and transported both weapons in hardshell cases I did NOT check sight in on my Weatherby.

Needless to say the rifles got knocked around in the trucks. I asked the outfitter to stop by the 100 yard sight in range, for the second time, on the way out for our Sat afternoon/evening hunt (our last PM period hunt) since I had concerns about our boresight and just wanted to double check.

The outfitter advised my son and I that since he had another father/son bow hunter in place some unknown distance away he did not think using the sight in range was safe. In hindsight, I should have stopped the hunt right then and there IF we could not have gone somewhere else to check our boresight. Shame on me...

At 1700hrs, Michael and I saw a 200-250lb boar walk across the flooded road at our 12 o'clock position and about 200 yards. Since he was down in the swamp area we got ready for what we thought would happen. We thought the boar would come up through the heavy cover and step out at about 75 yards in front of us to munch on some corn in the hog hole.

Never happened. After 10 minutes of no visual contact the boar stepped back out into the flooded road and went to his wallow hole and proceeded to give himself a mud bath. I was not happy about the distance for Michael's sake. He knew that his MPBR was 150 yards. We carefully studied the boar in our Simmons Expeditions for a few minutes.

I told him that I was going to take the boar with a neck shot...one shot one kill. Eight shots later, with two definite misses, we had dropped the boar 3 times with both 30-06 and .223 shots. The boar crawled off into the swamp before we could finish him and was never to be seen again. The guides lost the blood trail in a scrub pine clearing in the dark and lost it again the next day in heavy cover.

I knew from my first shot and from Michael's first shot that both of our bullets were NOT hitting where we aimed. On the way home I stopped by our range in Alabama and checked both of our rifles. My boresight was now 9" high and 2" right. Michael's was 7" high and 1" right. I shot both rifles 3 times with a mutual 2" group with the same ammo we hunted with. Both rifles were shooting high and right.

The father/son bow hunters that put a dent in our ability to re-check our boresight also lost their boar in the Ranch Swamplands. Two lost leap year boars...

I have tried my best to figure out what happenend and the only thing I can come up with is the fact that the rifles got banged up a little too much. I am not ready to condemn the scopes because they have proven their ability to handle normal transport boresight retainability in the past.

We learned some lessons on this hunt that will impact who we choose for an outfitter the next time. We also learned some important communication lessons...when in doubt shout it out!!! We also learned some important gear lessons. We also learned that regardless of what you 'think' will be your ranges on a shot, plan for the worst case and overpower.

Michael and I will both be carrying 30-06 Weatherbys the next time we hunt hogs. I will also handload some 180gr BTSPs. Anchoring power is critical and even though the Muzzle Energy difference between a 150gr round and a 180gr round is 200ft/lbs I want the extra margin in my favor.

Shot placement is everything. Michael and I learned that we will not hesitate to aim for the head the next time. We prefer the neck but will aim for a hog's head.

I think we have all at one time or another lost an animal after shooting it and felt awful. I know I do. I consider myself an ethical hunter that tries for the one shot one kill philosophy. My son believes as I do.

Both father/son teams lost their hogs on 29 Feb 2004. I deeply regretted that the outfitter would not use any of his penned up dogs to help track the wounded boars. That is not my call. What is my call is repeat business.

One Shot One Kill,

JP
 
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#2 ·
That's a tough hunt! Sorry to hear of the problems.

Not much you can do if the rifle takes a beating while in transport. Get the stoutest mounts and attach them firmly is about the only thing to suggest, if you believe the scopes held up to the shaking.

I've taken wild hogs with a .243 and a .44 Mag carbine in the past. These days, it's something between a 6.5 Swede to a 45-70. The heavier the slug the better.
 
#3 ·
Scope Mounting...

Kdub,

I agree completely with you. I mounted both of these scopes using Locktite 242, like I always do, and over the past month of usage they had held their own.

Michael had even used the same package 45 days earlier in Alabama with a dead on one shot kill from 150 yards.

I double checked everything after the hunt and the mounts and rings were solid. Torque was the same on all studs.

I will probably skull that hunt for years to come because all things being equal I can only isolate the optics.

We had a very steady rest. Handloaded and proven ammo. Quality rifles that have been boresighted, fine tuned, and double checked. The wind was almost nonexistent.

I have had other guys that I know say the same thing that you said...'Your rifles SHOULD have held the boresight after being bumped around..

Identical internal optical problems? I'd find that hard to believe...what are the odds? This is the exact same scope as the Nikon Buckmaster 4x12x40AO. The Expedition gets a 42mm AO on assembly from the same plant in the Phillipines. The quality is exceptional.

Ah, the mysteries of life....

One Shot, One Kill,

JP
 
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