Antler scoring

[iccyman001]

Ok, so I asked about aging, but now I am interested in scoring on the fly.
What rules of thumbs do you all use to judge whether it\'s a shooter or not?

Do you have things that can help someone identify whether it\'s a 200\" 300\" 400\"?

For example: anytime I see a WT buck whose horns go out beyond his ears, there is a very good chance he\'s getting my arrow.

 

[F M]

Some of the other guys that have shot some bigger one can answer better the me. The only thing I have heard before is if the 3rds are good its usually a good bull. Don\'t know if its true or not.

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

1st, 4ths, and overall length. Just my 2-cents!

 

[Swede]

Brow tines, thirds and overall length. If the brow tines are as long as the nose. the thirds are long, and the bull can scratch his tail with his antlers he is a shooter. He is also a shooter for me if he does not have thirds or even brow tines. OK, he can even be a she and be a shooter in my book.

 

[cnelk]

In Colorado we have a point restriction in all OTC units.
A bull has to have 4 points on one side OR a 5 inch brow tine.

When a bull is coming in thru the timber, the first thing I look for is the dagger (4th) point.
If I see one more point I know it\'s a 5 point. If I see 2 more I know it\'s a six point.
This works well when time is limited.

If its a junior bull, like a Raghorn, it takes a bit more discretion to be sure it is legal, and that when I look for the brow tines.
If it has ONE brow tine that is 5 inch long, I know he is legal.
Then I look to the 4th point and then whale tail is he has them

But now if a bull is coming in and he has to swing his head side to side to get thru the trees, I don\'t count count points, I don\'t even look at the rack,
I am looking for the first and best opportunity to shoot him.

 

[otcWill]

Like the rest of you, I look at main beam length, royals (4ths) and whale tails. For the most part, if he has big (8in or better) whale tails then he is big (300+). If its a good 5pt or a 6pt, I\'m shooting always.

 

[iccyman001]

Will,
If you don\'t mind me asking, what is a whale tale?

 

[AndyJ]

I\'m not Will, but iccyman a whale\'s tail is when the fifth tine and the end of the main beam branch apart and form a \"Y\" or whale\'s tail shape. Big 5s tend to have a huge whale\'s tail as well.

When I am looking at antler size, I look for overall beam length, width and thirds. Thirds always seem to be the make or break tines. Mass plays a huge role in scoring but can be difficult to judge. Heavy or not heavy is how I look at that one. Beam length I think is the most telling indicator. Some bulls have the perfect shape of big antlers but actually have sort of scaled down big antlers and you can see this when you look at where their beam ends end in relation to their bodies. A lot of times these huge looking bulls will have beams that end in front of their shoulders when they put their heads back to bugle. On the other hand, if it looks like they are scratching their butts when they bugle...those are BIG bulls.

I think I have a decent first glance \"shooter meter\". If I hesitate a little he is probably 260-290. If I know I want to shoot him right away but don\'t immediately think OMG!!!, 290-320. If I instantly think \"WHAT A GIANT!!!\", he\'s big.

A little disclaimer here: If you read the above post and thought,\"This guy must kill tons of huge bulls\" you would be wrong. I have killed a handfull of bulls. All have been decent to good, but by no means am I a giant slayer...but I do hold out for big ones.

 

[Swede]

It occurred to me that most of you may wonder about considering the thirds as a factor. In Oregon the thirds are notoriously short, so if the thirds are good, you have an excellent bull. I believe it is a genetic issue, but a few elk have good thirds as well as sword tines.

 

[iccyman001]

Andy,

That\'s helps a lot! Thank you for clearing it up.

 

[cnelk]

Dan
Here is a pic of a nice 5x6 with a \'whale tale\'
BTO member \'herb\' took this bull a couple years ago

 

[otcWill]

Here\'s a little practice. Guess the score. This bull has an enormous body so most of you will guess low. I don\'t know his exact score as I was tagged out when I took this, but I took this and a few other pics from about 5 feet or less so I\'ve got a darn good (within 10in) of what he\'d score.

 

[iccyman001]

285\"?

 

[otcWill]

Here\'s one that gives a MUCH better look at beam length. Be sure to click on the photos as you\'ll get a far better idea.

 

[iccyman001]

If you took these picures, they are fantastic!!!

I feel like I will be able to score better when I get my hands and tape on a rack. I\'ve never scored one, so I have nothing to reference it off of. I\'m a hands on guy.

I\'ll tell you what, you tell me where that bull is, I\'ll go kill him, and then we can measure him. :upthumb:

I\'ll guess again though. 330\"

 

[colorado russ]

I\'d be guessing somewhere between Dan\'s 2 so around 300\" but can\'t see it much bigger - based solely on mass of antler bases. Granted, the brow tines look to be 12\" or more and it\'s got a good spread so 300 may be low so changing my guess to 305\".

 

[Swede]

Unless you brought down the bull, there is no way to be positive, but I think Russ is pretty close.

 

[otcWill]

Yep, like I said, I\'ve got a pretty good idea from having walked up on him asleep with his face in the dirt before I woke him and called him in. I\'ll post my guess after giving a few others a chance to guess.

 

[AndyJ]

I\'d guess 290-300.

 

[cnelk]

You guys can also score this bull. Some may remember me posting the score (gross score)