$350 Challenge

[Pigspitter]

As a new year approaches, I've decided to bring over a challenge from the bowcountry forums. The point is to show new and interested hunters (and the old guys) that you don't need a $1000 setup to take game; in fact, a basic hunting setup can be very cheap and effective.

Here are the rules:
1: The weapon and everything attached to it (optics, bases, rings, slings, etc.) must not have been bought for more than $350 total.
2: While any legal, in season game can be taken, only game taken with a setup costing $350 or less can be submitted for scoring.
3: Results must be posted to this thread and should include: Game species, weight, shot distance, shooting stance used, ammo used, and a description of the gun and all attached hardware, including total cost, used.
4: Pictures of the weapon/game are highly recommended but not necessary.
5: Scoring is as follows: ((game scale value)x(350-total cost))/10. Pictures of the gun will add a bonus 5 points and pictures of the game taken will add another 5 points.
6: Hunters may submit a score for every animal taken and the hunter with the highest total score as of December 31, 2011 wins.
Here is the game scale
Small Game(Below 5lbs): 1 point
Small Game (At and above 5lbs):1.5points
Birds: 1.5 points
Waterfowl: 2 points
Wild Boar: 2 points
Coyotes: 2 points
Deer (all species): 5 points
Turkey: 7 points
Elk: 8 points

All legal hunting weapons can be used for this challenge including bows.

 

[mr.trooper]

Um...

* $120, 50 year old Stevens single shot .410
* 5lb female Cottontail
* 20 yards
* Offhand
* 3" Winchester 'Super-X' #6 shot
* Street cloths

Sorry, no pics... the bunny was made into stew that was long ago passed, and the hide is already tanned.

Score would be: (((5x20) / 120)) /10) = .083

I think your formula is messed up, because even if you shot a 200lb deer at 200 yards, your score would only be 16...

If your trying to prove a point about hunting on the cheap, then I suggest you devise a formula that doesn't derive 90% of its points from game weight and distance.

 

[Pigspitter]

Yeah, that old formula wasn't the best. I think this new formula puts a little more weight on the price. By the new scale you scored a 19.5. With an identical setup, a deer would have netted you 65 points.

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

No way I can compete with some old elephant shooter armed with a .303 he bought with shillings after the war.

 

[Pigspitter]

Yeah, that's why I took out the weight scale. This way it's a fair progression of points instead of massive differences.

 

[janobles14]

do bows count? i have turkeys and deer with both firearms and arrows but wasnt sure

 

[Pigspitter]

Yes, anything that is legal to hunt with can be used.

 

[wankerjake]

Does the 243 rifle I bought for $5 from my grandpa count?

 

[Pigspitter]

Yes. Not that I'd trust a $5 rifle. Remember that you have to add the price of any added hardware.

 

[wankerjake]

I paid $95 for my Marlin 25M(?) in 22mag and paid $30-$35 for the Tasco scope. So say $140 total. I've killed about 5 squirrels with it, I think 3 jackrabbits (easily 5lbs each, 1 coyote...I think that's it. I'll see if I have any pics of the rifle, I have no pics of the animals.

 

[Pigspitter]

Well, the official count is going to start on January 1st. But it looks like you're on track to be a contender.

 

[wankerjake]

Yes. Not that I'd trust a $5 rifle. Remember that you have to add the price of any added hardware.

I "bought" it for $5 when I was like 12 years old from my Grandpa. It's a Winchester Model 70, came mounted with a 4x Weaver scope, reloading dies, and several boxes of ammunition. With that exact setup I've taken:
1 Coues whitetail buck
2 Muley bucks
1 cow elk
1 Javelina

A few years ago I replaced the Weaver with a Cabela's Pine ridge 4-12x scope. They are on sale for $90 but I paid full price, don't remember what that was at the time. The regular price online right now is $140 plus tax:http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Optics/Riflescopes%7C/pc/104792580/c/104752080/sc/104535180/Cabelas-Pine-Ridge174-Riflescopes/720663.uts?destination=/catalog/browse/shooting-optics-riflescopes/cabelas/_/N-1100246%2B4294967225/Ne-4294967225/Ns-CATEGORY_SEQ_104535180%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNU

With that $145 setup I killed:
1 Coues buck
10 (maybe 12 but let's be conservative) coyotes
1 jackrabbit

It's kind of a shame, we didn;t take a whole lot of hunting pics until a few years ago. I don't have any pics of animals I've taken with the Weaver setup, but I do with the Pine Ridge setup. Here's a few:
Coues Buck:


Coyote:


Two more coyotes:


Now I have a Nikon Monarch on it and it would not qualify for this contest. I wouldn't blame you if you don't count it since I "bought" it from my Grandpa, but I did in fact give him a five dollar bill for it. It is also my opinion that $350-$400 is a more reasonable low estimate for a good rig. At $250 you are severely limited and aren't likely to get something you want, unless all you want is a 22 rifle or single-shot shotgun. Maybe a used Marlin 30-30 in some parts of the country (not in AZ without A LOT of looking). Anything else you are gonna be buying used and are going to have to search for a great deal for months before you find something.

Unless you're Caribou, who kills an ungodly amount of huge animals with his Mosin!!! Where you at Caribou, you can win this thing!!!

 

[Pigspitter]

I bumped it up to $350. I think that's pretty reasonable. I saw a number of 30 30's today scoped and slinged for $300ish.

 

[CoRoMo]

$331.50 - elk

• $208.00 H&R Handi-Rifle .270 Win from Bud'sGunShop, delivered, transfered, OTD.
• $103.50 Nikon Buckmasters 4x40mm from ebay, NIB, delivered.
• $15.00??? Uncle Mike's sling swivels.
• $5.00 ??? Cheap Walmart padded sling. It's my favorite, most comfortable too!!
• Cow elk, unknown approx. weight. Maybe 300lbs? She wasn't too big.
• Fifteen, twenty yards.
• Offhand
• My handloads [130gr. Hornady Interlok, 56.5gr. H4831]
• No pictures. I had to cut her up and hiker her out.

 

[Mudinyeri]

I killed two deer this fall with a Savage 110 .30-06 that a guy traded to me for some Toyota truck parts. I'd already sold enough off of the truck to make back my purchase price so I guess you could say the rifle (and scope) were free.

I have pictures of the gun and both deer that I can post later (can't get to Photobucket at work).

Game Species: Whitetail Deer
Weight: Approx. 150 lbs each
Shot Distance: ~60 yards & ~100 yards
Shooting Stance: Seated, Off Hand
Ammo Used: Federal 155 grain .30-06
Description of the Gun and Attached Hardware: Savage 110 .30-06 with 3-9X40 Scope

So, I guess my initial score would be (10X350)/10 = 35. Add in the 15 points for photos when I post them and I'm at 50 points, right?

Rifle (in foreground)


Buck


Doe

 

[CoRoMo]

The first two elk that I ever killed, were taken with a rifle and ammo that I borrowed.

Each of them were very nice sized cows; 400lbs pretty easily. Both from about 100 yards.

 

[Pigspitter]

Here are the scores as of now (actual scoring begins January 1st 2011, but this is an example of how they will work.
CoRoMo: 16
Mudinyeri: 50

 

[bang_bang]

I killed a turkey, doe, and 4-pointer with a Stevens model 200 in 300 Win Mag with a cheap Tasco scope. Gun, ammo, sling, scope, etc was about $330-ish from what I could remember. Guy threw in a free box of shells for it, and I used an old sling off of my other rifle that season. Bought the gun new from a shop too.

No pics, no idea on weights either. Just some good times!

 

[shaggy430]

Is this supposed to be just 2010?

 

[CoRoMo]

When I was a kid, I was out at the horse pens and stirred up a rabbit. I chased that thing down and killed it with my two bare hands.

 

[heeler]

Pigspitter,this whole idea grabbed me yesterday after reading your post.
I started looking on GB at some cheap rifles and suddenly remembered that since I still own my old original first rifle that was bought for me by my late Mother in 1973 I could easily use it as a qualifier.
Brand new in 1973 that old Mossberg 810 in 30-06 was less than $140.00.
All I need to do is rescope.
I have not even fired that rifle in over ten years now.

 

[Mudinyeri]

Is this supposed to be just 2010?

That was how I took it.

 

[Pigspitter]

It's actually supposed to be 2011. I did the scores for you and CroMag just as an example of how to score.

 

[wombat13]

This competition has a significant bias toward hunters using weapons they have owned for a long time. If you want this competition to show that new hunters don't need to spend a fortune, then you should limit it to weapons with a current market value of under $350.

Take wankerjake's post for example. No one is going to sell a Win M70 in working condition for $5. A quick check on gunbroker suggest that used M70s are running $400 and up. So where is a new hunter on a budget going to buy one for less than $350 including scope and all accessories?

Using this criterion would essentially limit the competition to .22lr, low-end centerfire rifles like Stevens (note I did not write low quality), surplus centerfires such as mosin-nagants, etc.

 

[wankerjake]

Using this criterion would essentially limit the competition to .22lr, low-end centerfire rifles like Stevens (note I did not write low quality), surplus centerfires such as mosin-nagants, etc.

There are more than a few variables to consider. My example admittedly is not what somebody getting into hunting can expect. If they have to foot the bill themselves $5 ain't gonna cut it obviously. But there other good rigs that can be had for $350 or less, depending on the deal you find and what your hunting conditions may be. You can buy a used Marlin 30-30 and put an old Weaver k4 on it for under $350 all day long and that is certainly an acceptable deer rig.

You can buy a Remington 870 (or Mossberg) for less than $350 too, which will do a lot for you.

Also if you have time to wait you can find good deals. I bought a Winchester Model 70 chambered in 270wsm at the last gun show I was at for $335. It's in perfect condition, came with Leupold rings/base and a Pentax 3-9x scope. Most people aren't interested in that caliber, but if you really are on a budget you need to kinda take what you can get. I would have preferred a 7mm mag myself, but for the price I took it. I'm gonna handload for it either way so the 270wsm caliber is not a big deal. Now do these deals come up every day? Heck no. You gotta waste a bunch of time online or on backpage.com or gun shows or whatever until you find one. IF you are willing to do all of that then you can find a good rig for the money.

$350 can scrape you by, but you probably aren't buying new and your optics are gonna be low end. It depends on how bad you wanna go I guess.

Then you have all the other expenses; ammunition, range time, binoculars, gas, camping gear, knife...there's more than just the rifle to worry about