2015 Firearms Season Deer Thread

[Hookeye]

You need time, the temp, and room to work. I've cut several deer myself.
Looks like I'll be clearing out the garage to cut one up next weekend.
Told the old lady her crap is going bye bye, I won't go through this type of disappointment again.
Hard to express...........what a waste of a deer.
Id rather have it eaten by coyotes than ground into friggin burger.

 

[Hookeye]

Processors do offer specialty cuts, like brats, jerky, snack sticks, summer sausage.
Yeah, proly comes from the general burger donor pile.
Some places do better snack sticks than others, some better brats or summer sausage.
Old place long since gone, Buckskin..............his snack sticks were awesome.
He smoked a wild turkey I shot once........it was great.


I liked Ortmans in Winamac yrs ago. Owner was a bit rough, but his wife was a sweety. Price and quality fine.


Had an old timer local that did some before them...........he's long since died. He was a decent butcher and a blast to visit.
I'd drive out just to hang out and chat........he was a character.


Hate to say it...........the old timers were better at their craft, and better people.

 

[mom45]

Processors do offer specialty cuts, like brats, jerky, snack sticks, summer sausage.
Yeah, proly comes from the general burger donor pile.
Some places do better snack sticks than others, some better brats or summer sausage.
Old place long since gone, Buckskin..............his snack sticks were awesome.
He smoked a wild turkey I shot once........it was great.


I liked Ortmans in Winamac yrs ago. Owner was a bit rough, but his wife was a sweety. Price and quality fine.


Had an old timer local that did some before them...........he's long since died. He was a decent butcher and a blast to visit.
I'd drive out just to hang out and chat........he was a character.


Hate to say it...........the old timers were better at their craft, and better people.

I think Ortmans is closed now. The husband died and his wife gave up I think. The last time we had stuff done there, I was not impressed.


We have always processed our own deer. It is much better when you take the time to get the fat and silver skin off of it and the processors just don't do that. When we do it, we completely debone everything and nothing is wasted. Whatever can't be made into a roast, steaks or stew meat is made into burger but as little of the fat as possible goes into that. That is where the gamey taste comes from. We ended up buying an electric grinder last year that worked GREAT. We had been using a hand crank grinder for years and then borrowed an electric one a couple of times. We finally invested in our own last year.

 

[jblomenberg16]

Well, against my normal thinking, I will be taking rifle out for a doe.

Just picked up my deer, got home and..........miscommunication at processors.
No steaks or loin, they ground it all into burger, or left it out.
Whatever, I will not go back or even call.
Am beyond pissed. They kinda dicked up a few yrs back, so I went someplace else the last few. Tolerable, but I liked the way the old place did packaging better.
Gave them one more try..........quantity and cuts...........not what they should be.

You want it done right, as with damn near everything else............you gotta do it yourself.

Hate to hear that. I've always had great luck with our local place, and its the same one that does our custom beef each time we butcher. I assume most houses do something similar in that when you bring in the animal, you specify what you want on an order form. Did they do it that way or just word of mouth?

 

[Hookeye]

I went to Ortmans a long time ago. Good job back then.
His wife was a sweet lady too.

Heard the owner had died, but that was a few yrs after I started using a closer place.

I've done deer myself. Amazing how many more steaks I end up with. Electric grinder works well.
Not a fan of burger though, so would cut as much into stew chunks as possible and let some buddies that like the burger work the grinder

 

[mom45]

I went to Ortmans a long time ago. Good job back then.
His wife was a sweet lady too.

Heard the owner had died, but that was a few yrs after I started using a closer place.

I've done deer myself. Amazing how many more steaks I end up with. Electric grinder works well.
Not a fan of burger though, so would cut as much into stew chunks as possible and let some buddies that like the burger work the grinder

I agree on the burger. I use it mainly for spaghetti, chili, etc. Things that are seasoned.

I would have to wonder if those loins and such were truly ground up or if you just didn't get them. My husband took his to be processed before we met and the place he went to never seemed to give him the backstraps and tenderloins. The last time he went, he told them he wanted those cut out for him to take home with him when he dropped the deer off as he planned to have them for dinner that night. The butcher was rather angry and got rude about it. That was the last deer he took to be processed anywhere.

 

[Hookeye]

Doesn't matter now. I'll never take a deer there again.
In fact, I'll pull the straps off every deer at home now, and then take the rest to be made into summer sausage/brats.
Someplace else of course.

 

[Hookeye]

With online check, there's just another reason to not go to the processor.
Good processors, and check in lines.............used to be fun.
Now everything sucks.
Shoot it, go online, pull straps and roasts and then decide if the yotes, trashman or processor gets the rest.

 

[dusty88]

Funny hunting story here today.

Sooo.... we've been seeing about zero deer since firearms season started and it was cold this moring, about 10 degrees. So neither of us went out at sunrise. B (husband) slept in. I did coffee, finances, etc in my robe. By habit, I put my rifle by the back door early on the remote possibility a deer came within range.


10 am: I decided to change clothes for hunting. While in the bathroom, I see 2 deer crossing the field downhill and about 100 yards from the house. B is a better shot than I am plus has a pump shotgun whereas I've only practiced with my single-shot rifle. So I yell "B... ! Deer!" He's all casual like "oh where". I said "GET YOUR GUN!" (for purposes of this story it should say "git yer gun"


He was naked in bed but pulled on sweatpants, ran to the backdoor while putting shells in his shotgun, and opened the door (which caused the deer to look at him but freeze rather than run). The lead deer started walking into the woods, but he dropped the rear one.


Then the 1st deer turns around and walks back into the field and I hear B say "my gun jammed!" Which is weird, because it's a Remington 870. So I run to the back door, grab my rifle I had set there, look and see it's unloaded. But then I remember the bullet is in my pocket (of the bathrobe I'm still wearing). I load the gun, drop the second deer.



All of this took about 2 minutes. Then we were cracking up. Barefoot, 1 in sweats, 1 in a bathrobe. And the teenagers wake up to gunshots below their bedroom window. The only thing that could make this a perfect family story is if B had ran out on the deck nekked.

 

[bwframe]

Funny hunting story here today.

Sooo.... we've been seeing about zero deer since firearms season started and it was cold this moring, about 10 degrees. So neither of us went out at sunrise. B (husband) slept in. I did coffee, finances, etc in my robe. By habit, I put my rifle by the back door early on the remote possibility a deer came within range.


10 am: I decided to change clothes for hunting. While in the bathroom, I see 2 deer crossing the field downhill and about 100 yards from the house. B is a better shot than I am plus has a pump shotgun whereas I've only practiced with my single-shot rifle. So I yell "B... ! Deer!" He's all casual like "oh where". I said "GET YOUR GUN!" (for purposes of this story it should say "git yer gun"


He was naked in bed but pulled on sweatpants, ran to the backdoor while putting shells in his shotgun, and opened the door (which caused the deer to look at him but freeze rather than run). The lead deer started walking into the woods, but he dropped the rear one.


Then the 1st deer turns around and walks back into the field and I hear B say "my gun jammed!" Which is weird, because it's a Remington 870. So I run to the back door, grab my rifle I had set there, look and see it's unloaded. But then I remember the bullet is in my pocket (of the bathrobe I'm still wearing). I load the gun, drop the second deer.



All of this took about 2 minutes. Then we were cracking up. Barefoot, 1 in sweats, 1 in a bathrobe. And the teenagers wake up to gunshots below their bedroom window. The only thing that could make this a perfect family story is if B had ran out on the deck nekked.

Great story!

 

[Fargo]

Well, against my normal thinking, I will be taking rifle out for a doe.

Just picked up my deer, got home and..........miscommunication at processors.
No steaks or loin, they ground it all into burger, or left it out.
Whatever, I will not go back or even call.
Am beyond pissed. They kinda dicked up a few yrs back, so I went someplace else the last few. Tolerable, but I liked the way the old place did packaging better.
Gave them one more try..........quantity and cuts...........not what they should be.

You want it done right, as with damn near everything else............you gotta do it yourself.

I came to the conclusion a long time ago that going to a processor was a last resort.

I learned to process deer from my dad and extended family. It was a big event with 6-12 deer being processed at a a time complete with sausage being mixed and ground etc. It is something I intend to pass on to my kids.

I've seen way too much missing meat, rancid meat, and meat from a different animal come back to my friends to consider doing anything other than cutting up my own.

Ill occasionally have a pig slaughtered at a processor, but even then I only have them block it out and do the rest of the cutting myself. It is hard to have missing meat on a six way block.

 

[DarkRose]

Jennings County Saturday morning 8:45

Remington 870, CopperSolids, 70 yards, straight through, one lung, bottom of heart... 22" outside to outside spread at the widest point, 9 point atypical, field dressed 160-170lbs (didn't have enough room to get his head all the way off the floor with the scale on the hoist, heh.)


Brother-in-law and family friend went out today (Sunday), same property (ours), 9 am...

12 ga. and .357 (was still kicking) through both front shoulders. 10 point atypical, field dressed the same, with the same issue.

We got a hot spot this year!

So Today (Sunday) we skinned, butchered, and packaged from about 1pm until almost midnight... Both heads dropped off for mounts...

 

[cncswiss1]

Jefferson county, very close to Switzerland county, Sat 11/21 7:20 am
123 yards 458 socom




nice morning hunt with my son- buck came running after we hit the doe estrus can call.

4 deer taken from the same spot this year (box tower blind)
1:youth season afternoon of day 1

2: youth season evening of day 2

3: opening weekend of firearm- the hank Daddy

4: the one pictured above- the white tuft in the distance

 

[jbell_64]

Finally had a nice buck walk out in front of me today. And then I saw the giant tumor hanging from his chest. Ugh

 

[BigMatt]

Finally had a nice buck walk out in front of me today. And then I saw the giant tumor hanging from his chest. Ugh

You should have shot it off...

 

[jbell_64]

You should have shot it off...

I considered wasting my buck tag just to put him down.

 

[ChrisK1977]

Double lung at 175 yards with my .450 Bushmaster. He was a tank of a body. His neck was fairly large. I shot him opening day.

 

[sugarcreekbrass]

Darkrose- I have the same problem with the hoist in my garage. I just took some rope, tied it around the rack, and ties it up to the gambrel. That will get the entire body off the floor. Congrats!

 

[jagee]

Friday after letting a 4 pointer walk and not getting a shot on some does my cousin and I decide to walk the woods across the road and see what's over there. We jump 2 does and a buck.

Saturday, I decide to ground hunt on the top of the hill where we jumped the does and the buck. Watching the radar, it looks like it will rain any second so I decide to stand for a few mins and then slowly walk out. Standing about 3 mins and here comes the buck down the hill. He gets distracted by a doe in the field and I think he's gone. Nope. Turns around and heads back down the hill. BANG! Hits the ground and flops around then jumps back to his feet and heads right at me. About 15 or so feet from me I shoot him again. He heads up the hill and falls. Dies quickly. It was rough field dressing in the rain and dragging him out up the hill but it was worth it. Biggest I've killed!

8 pointer, shot with a Remington 1187 12g with a Vortex Crossfire II scope in Knox Co on 11/21/15 about 8:30am.

(INGO and/or photobucket isn't liking me tonight. Pics to come soon hopefully.)

Thanks chez

Here, let me and the iPhone hold your hand through this.

 

[ghitch75]

Darkrose- I have the same problem with the hoist in my garage. I just took some rope, tied it around the rack, and ties it up to the gambrel. That will get the entire body off the floor. Congrats!

to each his own....but i have never understood why anyone hangs the deer by the neck/antlers?????........why would you run all the blood into the best part of the animal....loins and back legs....


congrats on the deer......