Category Archives: Uncategorized

China Sporting Goods Dollars Sold in USA – Is China an Adversary? Yes! Updated

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We all love a great deal, don’t we! What has been happening in the sporting goods market for accessories, is that there are billions of dollars to be made in archery and gun and hiking/camping accessories like knives and flashlights etc. and all the seemingly small items we need.

 We the sporting goods buyers, me included, have bought many China-Made goods in the past because our government for decades believed that China would become Westernized and see the benefits of a free society. This is clearly not the case.

China is now an Adversary not a competitor says the Center for Security Policy. https://centerforsecuritypolicy.org/treat-china-as-an-adversary-not-a-competitor/

Peter Hoekstra Center for Security Policy – https://centerforsecuritypolicy.org/predicting-2022-chinas-year-of-the-tiger/

says quote:

“According to the Chinese calendar, 2022 is the Year of the Tiger. 2022 is the year where America finally goes big against China. China will also go big against the U.S. and Taiwan. Here are the developments that will push America to confront China’s malign and dangerous behavior and, in an upcoming article, those that will push China to go big.”  end quote.

Outdoor folks, I have written the following letter I will use as a foundation to write to USA run businesses and corporations to refrain from selling China goods: You may use it too. When I receive a response from those I write, I will let you know.

 

Dear Business Name,

Re: Your Business Sells Manufactured Goods from China

It was not long ago that China was seen as a competitor.

Today, many, like me, believe China has crossed the threshold from competitor to adversary say many Military and Strategic Studies.

There is ample evidence that they use the profits from your sales for purposes of world-wide domination and subjugation.   

What are you doing about it? 

It has been reported around the world that Uyghurs, (populations of humans) in the Xinjiang region of China are working in forced labor camps, where systemic torture and rape etc. are common. Sales from these labor camps are reaching the USA.

In fact, Walmart was just threatened by China if they stop selling China goods.

Today, Taiwan is being threatened with China bomber overflights of their country and soon, predicted to use military force if needed to force them back into China’s sphere of influence. And we in the USA are on their target list.

If we in the USA don’t care, then we are China’s future target.

I urge you to seek alternatives to China Manufactured Goods Today! And encourage sportsmen and women to stop buying them, if possible.

Sincerely,

Your Name and USA address

####

Please use any and or all of this letter as you see fit in writing your own letters to business leaders.

 

 

 

Outdoor Purchases On-Line- How to avoid purchases from adversaries?

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Ever since Covid, I made some of my hunting purchases on Amazon. You will find “answered questions” that often include where the product was made. 

I also buy from Midway USA who now has a very wide selection of sporting goods, hunting and fishing gear by USA and Europe brand names. My Archery gear is from 3Rivers on-line. 3Rivers Archery posts a USA flag with the sale item to indicate where it’s made.

Lots of cheap goods at many big outdoor retailers from Asia so look out and ask.  I some cases you cant avoid it, but at least you know.

I was looking for Ice Cleats/Crampons on Amazon and found most were made in China after reading the “answered questions” including those that are not shown. But this Amazon Cleat below is from Maine!

STABILicers Walk Traction Cleat for Walking on Snow and Ice are made in Maine, USA.

Check these Cleats out and consider to avoid buying or supporting countries that are our adversaries! Like China and Russia for example.

Sometimes, it is not possible thanks to Washington  Bureaucrats.

Walmart as you  know is largely imported goods and China stuff so beware!

 

 

Wild Turkey Thanksgiving

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This fall I harvested a small young wild turkey.  I gutted, skinned and froze the bird for a fall treat. Kids weren’t coming for Thanksgiving dinner but came over later.  Accordingly, I thawed and cooked the turkey for my wife and I. I stuffed the bird with carrots, celery and granny smith apple bits mixed with Bells seasoned butter and bacon fat for adding flavor only. 

I like using hickory smoked bacon to replace the skin of the bird when roasting. It does a great job holding in the moisture. I baked the bird at 350F for 1 hour and checked the temp with a power thermometer at 140 so I kept the bird in till it reached 160 and it coasted up to 165 F. Done! The bird was on the slender side. So, I found some wood skewer sticks to help prop the bird as it cooks. 

I added 2 cups water to the pan as I began to cook the bird. And was able to make a thick gravy from the pan drippings. Oooh La La!

 

 

I was amazed how much meat this young turkey produced. Enough to feed 5 people. What was special is that the legs and thighs were tender too. Besides the breast meat.

OMG sooo moist, tender and flavorful! The bird was killed with a broadhead, so no pellets to look for.

 

Is a smaller bird more tender? Maybe so!

Good Hunting!

© 2021 Copyright

 

 

 

Adventure Hunting Expedition: Allagash Whitetail Soon – Alone in Deep Woods

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There aren’t lots of deer in Northern most Maine, along the Canadian border, but it is a place where bucks grow really large, like say 300 pounds or more and have never seen a human.

I will be hunting with Rifle in tree stands and ground blinds far-off the beaten track where the struggle of life unfolds between deer and coyotes as winter approaches.

Alone in the Deep Woods, with my tinnitus (i can hear my ears ring in the silence), the wind, trees and wildlife… An Adventurous Hunting Expedition for sure…

Will write and show pic’s when I get back next week. This hunt is not for everyone… It is perhaps a test of your woodsmanship and survival skills as well. There is no phone service so I’d better be prepared.

I do have a Garmin Satellite In-Reach Explorer with me and can communicate with my Outfitter/Registered Guide and even email family and friends while out there. The great feature of the Garmin is that it has a SOS feature for dire circumstances and can  pinpoint my position.

Be Safe!

Good Hunting!

.375 Ruger Reduced Load – Bullet Track in Ballistic Gel

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This ballistics get test is for those hand-loaders that are considering owning a .375 Ruger or already own one as I do.

Questions You May Ask

Can a .375 Ruger cartridge be easily hand loaded down for deer and bear? 

Is this bullet fast enough, powerful enough at a reduced speed for the New England deer and bear hunter?

To test these questions, I shot a reduced load 235 grain Speer Hot Core Semi-spitzer (almost a round nose) into 10% FBI Ballistic Gel at 2138 fps at point blank range to simulate animal tissue damage. See the video’s below. 

Recoil is similar to a muzzleloader, but perhaps the ballistic gel didn’t think so. Check it out!

 

Further examination of the gel in my kitchen sink below. My wife had just finished a batch of mustard pickle preserves as it is a very active kitchen. Note: No mustard pickles, onions or cauliflower were injured during this exam!

I was very impressed, after seeing the cavity expansion in the 235 grain bullet track in the first 10 inches on entrance.  The track was straight, actually exited all 32 inches of the block suggesting that the bullet easily held together.  No bullet fragments were observed. Black gel burn marks were observed in the first 10 to 15 inches of the bullet path. 

Because mushrooming of lead occurs as low as 1800 fps I would not exceed 125 yard shots. Great for mixed hardwood and softwood terrain. Most shots are taken at around 50 yards in New England North Woods.

Velocity and Energy Table Below

Calculated Table
Range Drop Drop Windage Windage Velocity Mach Energy Time Lead Lead
(yd) (in) (MOA) (in) (MOA) (ft/s) (none) (ft•lbs) (s) (in) (MOA)
0 -1.5 *** 0.0 *** 2138.0 1.991 2384.8 0.000 0.0 ***
25 -0.3 -1.3 0.1 0.4 2069.6 1.928 2234.6 0.036 1.3 4.8
50 0.3 0.6 0.4 0.8 2002.4 1.865 2091.8 0.072 2.6 4.9
75 0.5 0.6 0.9 1.2 1936.5 1.804 1956.4 0.111 3.9 5.0
100 -0.0 -0.0 1.7 1.6 1871.9 1.743 1828.0 0.150 5.3 5.0
125 -1.1 -0.8 2.7 2.1 1808.6 1.685 1706.6 0.191 6.7 5.1
150 -2.8 -1.8 4.0 2.5 1746.8 1.627 1591.9 0.233 8.2 5.2

Great deer and bear round for sure and likely moose too, even with reduced loads. Accurate? 1 inch or less at 100 yards..

 

Reduced Loads here.

More 375 Ruger Reduced Load data for Deer and Black Bear – Updated

Good Hunting!

©Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved

Northern NH and Maine Deer, Bear and Moose Woods-Be Prepared Where is your checklist?

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Each big game animal hunt in far off place has its own check list. Common to all hunts is clothing, safety, communication, hunting laws, and tools to care for game meat and a way to get your game back to your car or truck.

Getting lost or turned around in the north woods happens every day even by experienced hunters like you and me. 

Clothing

Clothing is perhaps the most overlooked area. Camo or Orange depends on laws and timing of the hunt. Dress in layers so that after the sun comes out and you climb a hill you don’t sweat. In the deer woods, wearing a white or a tan colored shirt as an under garment should be avoided. Folks over the years have been killed or wounded as a novice hunter thinks its a deer tail or even a deer. I like green and darker colors so that if I have to change a layer, I am color safe. Today there are many choices of jackets and pants. You want them to keep you warm but able to breath and wick moisture away as well as have some water repellency. Socks should be thick enough to keep feet warm yet fit not too tightly in boots. Boots are vital so spend money and get the best for your feet. Water Proof and Warm. Hats are essential in cold weather as much of your body heat is lost via your head and neck. I was able to harvest a moose in Newfoundland just because I paid attention to clothing and a thermal head and face mask. The wind was blowing at least 20 mph every day and gusts to 30 mph making it feel below zero. It was only October!

Safety & Survival

Safety is having piece of mind that you have covered all the bases. Maine Hunter Ed Offer a checklist that is comprehensive. See the websites below.

https://www.hunter-ed.com/maine/studyGuide/Survival-Kit-Requirements-for-Maine/20102201_150873/

Click to access maine-survival-kit.pdf

Grey Squirrel Stew- Sooo Good!

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I must admit that I hunt big game more often than I squirrel hunt. But when I do, i recall my youth and get out my sharp shooter skills with .22 rimfire, it feels good. Years back when my kids were learning to hunt, squirrel was on the menu all the time. A chest shot is fine to take them down but a head shot is better. Accordingly, the head shot is what we strive for, but it doesn’t always happen. Missing a shot at a squirrel is easy to do.

I am fortunate to have recently bagged three grey squirrels and was going to make a stew for  my grandkids. But, alas we were having difficulty with family schedules as they live an hour away and are homeschooling.

Skinning a squirrel is a straight forward proposition but the skin takes work to pull away from the meat. Once complete everything else is easy. I use a small knife and sharp small game shears. 

I decided to cook all three for my wife and I , besides I thought it was best for my son to take one of his children hunting for their own full experience from field to frying pan.

I separated the legs from the body and halved the body for browning all parts together.

I dusted them with flour and browned the meat in a large skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Then, on to pressure cook the meat for 14 minutes with 2 cups beef broth or bullion infused water with some salt and pepper, garlic powder, thyme and a bay leaf. It was perfect time, 14 minutes, as the meat was very tender. Some folks debone the meat after cooking. I like it on the bone. 

 

I chopped stew veggies like carrot, celery, onion and potato and pressure cooked those for 7 minutes. Mixing the cooked meat and veggies allowed the flour to help thicken the stew. Below is a small tasty meal.

OMG it tastes like leg or thigh chicken meat and no hint of wild to it. One squirrel makes a meal but I would cook more for leftovers.

Happy Hunting and Cooking.

©Copyright 2021

Kendall Jones on Hunting

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Turning Point USA Kendall Jones writes:

https://www.tpusa.com/live/exotic-hunting-is-essential-around-the-world

“Most of y’all know I have hunted around the world for a lot of different species. I have seen different cultures and the way of life in other countries. It has truly been life-changing, and I am forever thankful for these experiences. It’s something you can’t really fathom until you experience it for yourself.

One of the most common questions I get in regards to hunting “exotic” species is, “Do people really eat that?”

I can assure you, people in rural third-world countries eat EVERYTHING! For us, in America, it’s hard to understand that people really do eat elephants and lions instead of just going to a local grocery store down the road and grabbing beef. It’s important to realize that not everyone has access to places like that and/or can’t afford it.

Hunting in countries like South Africa or Zimbabwe, locals rely on hunters to get meat and protein. For those people, it’s their way of life.

I have seen firsthand local village tribes showing up once an elephant is killed to help skin the animal so that they can take some of the meat back to their village. When I harvested an elephant, I witnessed over 300 villagers show up to do their part and get the reward of the animal’s meat.

I came across this post from blood origins that is very powerful:”

See the website above for the post:

I responded with these comments:

Kendall, Your a brave woman to write this article. It is much needed to thwart the crazy lefts idea that we are
killing just for fun. Conservation of the species allows us to hunt the excess or land damaging population and connect with the local culture with money, gifts and friendship. As a lifelong deer hunter and one time hunter of Africa, I saw first hand the 100% utilization of game meat. The dollars spent go toward supporting those animals. Without those huge hunter funds, these animals an the land languish and wither. Here at home we have a family rule, if you kill it, you eat it unless it is a pest animal. In Africa we cannot bring the meat home but rest assured, it is hugely welcome by villagers. My wife is a non-hunter and over 50 years she is very supportive of hunting, cooking and consuming delicious organic game meat.

Good Hunting!

 

Value of Hunting Bullet Tests in Ballistic Gel

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Today hunting bullet designs are changing rapidly especially rifle bullets.  Accordingly, a mechanism of ballistic gel is used to see the potential terminal ballistic damage done to the gel as it simulates wild game body parts and fluids. One can see the track voids left in the gel to signify the radial damage to surrounding tissue. Historically, water or  melon like a water melon, or containers of water was used to demonstrate the power of the round but had difficulty capturing the bullet damage track or level of penetration. Thus standards and gel formulas were created.

Below was a pistol bullet track in gel. Note the larger track damage at the entrance.

From www.gundigest.com

The gel often made of either clear 10% silicone gel like the FBI uses or a 10% amber gelatin to track and recover the bullet. If you look at my last article, you can see the tremendous and violent track done in the first 10 inches and often throws the 20 pound gel block in the air and in slow motion it wants to explode with very high velocity rounds. That is a lot of bruised meat!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mjiqGPwrIwA

On entrance to the gel the bullet may encounter bone thus experiments are performed at different speeds and different bone-skin or skin and no bone. Most of todays bonded bullets will mushroom.  Monolithic copper bullets, on the other hand, are designed to open and flare like a banana peel into petals. And some of the peels flare like an aircraft propeller while others fold to either make a mushroom or some are designed to peel and detach to make a mother bullet that peels off the smaller copper petals to radiate additional bullet damage. 

Those of us that see faster bullets, see gel blocks correspondingly explode thus giving the impression that faster is better. That is partially true, but if your deer meat is all bruised and blood shot from your super fast bullet, then it won’t look or taste well after cooking. Will it? Thus ideally we want it all, a fast (dead right there) kill, but less blood shot meat and more edible deer meat to eat. Right? A compromise is needed and that means you need to try the bullet on game too. 

Gel test to simulate a long range hit is also important. What does the wound track look like at slower long range velocities like 1800 fps. Did the bullet mushroom or flare as advertised? What about bone? All this needs experimentation and examination to reach an edible conclusion if we are going to cook it.

Good Hunting!

©Copyright 2021

 

Coming Soon: Hammer Bullet Advanced Technology Bullet Tests and Reviews

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New Hampshire Rifleman Magazine will soon be testing hunting bullets for the 6.5 Creedmoor made by Hammer Bullets Advanced Technology. Check out their website by clicking on the logo.

Hammer Bullets

 

As I wrote in a recent article, copper bullets are aren’t just for California. They have no lead and have penetration and weight retention features even for their so called light bullets e.g. 85 grain bullets clocking 3400 fps and seemingly drop big game as if hit by lightning.  Yes, and we all like that!

My cleaning issue has historically been that some brands of copper bullets smear the barrel. This patented design offers more than reduced fouling of the barrel. It offers;

Higher and consistent velocity

Superior accuracy

Less engraving pressure

Less barrel heat and erosion

Minimal game waste

 

I look forward to testing a range of bullets for my 6.5 Creedmoor soon and sharing the results with you. Who knows, it may turn your thinking more towards copper for hunting… We shall see!

Good Hunting!