Petersen's Hunting June - July 2017

In the archives of Petersen’s Hunting and Guns & Ammo, there are hundreds of manila envelopes stuffed full of letters from readers. Dating back to the 1960s and ’70s, they are a treasure trove of information—a sort of time capsule. What I found even more interesting than the letters themselves were the responses. Elmer Keith, long-time Guns & Ammo contributor, typed responses to (apparently) every reader letter, which numbered in the dozens each month. I was thumbing through these letters the other day, and a thought struck me: Almost all the letters contained questions of substance. The questions ranged from “What double rifle should I take on safari?” to “What powder gives the best results in a .44 Magnum?” and everything in between. How that differs from today. At Petersen’s Hunting we…

Tried, Tested & Proven! YOUR RECIPE FOR ELK STEAK TARTARE (“FARE GAME,” MARCH) WAS RIGHT ON. WHILE STAYING AT BANGS RANCH IN FREDERICKSBURG, TEXAS, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT OUR RECENT HUNT AND AN IDEA OF FRESH TARTARE USING DEER BACKSTRAP CAME UP. JERRY AND CARRIE BANGS RUN AN INCREDIBLE RANCH, AND BESIDES GREAT WORLD-CLASS DEER HUNTING, THERE IS A GREAT CHEF ON-SITE. THEIR CHEF CONSENTED TO DO IT.MY OH MY, DID HE EVER! BEST TARTARE WE HAVE EVER HAD. THAT WILL BE A STAPLE FOR US WHEN WE GO BACK. AL AND JENNIFER PRAUSEV Via email FORGET SOMETHING? Your “Guns & Loads” column (March) by Keith Wood is missing probably the most important step in cartridge case preparation for accurate handloads. While separating cases by weight, deburring flash holes, and uniforming primer pockets are…

Back in January, Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R) introduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that sought to “offer for disposal by competitive sale” 3.3 million acres of federally managed land across the West. Hunters and outdoor advocates took up torches and pitchforks, with rallies, social media campaigns, op-ed letters, and coordinated outreach to members of Congress. It worked. Days later, Chaffetz posted an Instagram photo of himself, dressed in camo, saying the bill was dropped. Then, a few weeks later, the Outdoor Retailer show dropped Utah altogether. One of the largest industry trade shows in the country, Outdoor Retailer has been held in Salt Lake City twice a year for nearly two decades. It’s contributed $45 million to the state economy each year, but organizers took issue with the state’s…

BULLET BASICS Engineered for use over 200 grains of Pyrodex in Remington’s new high-performance Model 700 Ultimate Muzzleloader, the TMZ is an all-copper projectile built by Barnes Bullets. To prevent the bullet from “slipping” inside the plastic sabot under the acceleration caused when the powder ignites, it’s got a slot swaged across its base. The plastic sabot grips the base of the bullet via the slot and spins it consistently. A polymer tip resists deformation, aids aerodynamics, and initiates reliable expansion. TESTING GROUND The two mushroomed bullets shown were recovered from two different public-land bull elk. The bullet at right impacted at 90 yards; the bullet at left impacted at 330 yards. FIELD PERFORMANCE Each bull was shot broadside through both shoulders, and the bullet was recovered against the hide on the far side of…

HISTORY The .300 AAC Blackout is a refined version of J.D. Jones’s .300 Whisper wildcat cartridge. Designed to provide 7.62x39 performance levels in AR-15 firearms, it earned SAAMI approval in 2011. It offers full capacity in standard AR-type magazines and easy conversion (only a new barrel is needed to convert an existing 5.56 AR-15 to .300 BLK). Superbly well suited for suppressed use, the short, efficient cartridge has rocketed to stardom in the short years since its introduction. It is currently second only to the 5.56/.223 in popularity among AR-15 aficionados. APPLICATION The .300 BLK is one of the finest choices available for wild hog control and performs admirably on deer-size game inside 200 yards. For all-around use, choose a supersonic, deep-penetrating homogeneous 110- or 125-grain Barnes bullet. For clandestine work where discretion…

Shortly after Outdoor Retailer (OR) pulled out of Salt Lake City, the doors opened on the Western Hunting & Conservation Expo, an annual sportsmen’s show where high-dollar hunting tags are auctioned off to the highest bidder. No one even suggested that Hunt Expo follow OR’s path and blackball Utah. Instead, it was one of the biggest shows to date. The auctions raised more than $4 million, including $280,000 for the Arizona statewide mule deer tag and $250,000 for the Antelope Island Mule Deer Permit. Yet critics say the Hunt Expo—run by Sportsmen for Fish & Wildlife (SFW) and the Mule Deer Foundation—has pushed trophy-caliber animals out of reach for average Joe hunters. They contend states like Utah have put more and more tags on the block, to the detriment of public…