What is a big bull in your book??

[AZ402]

To me.........

300" is a fine bull
330" is a big bull
350" is a huge bull
anything 370+ is in the monster catagory...........

If you AZ players draw a tag what do you hold out for? Are you willing to go home empty handed?

 

[schmalts]

ditto, your about right but subtract 20 points if it is a bow kill.

 

[danr55]

I always thought monsters started at around 400. 300 to 325 is an average bull. 325 to 350 is a big bull. 350 to 400 is an exceptional bull and over 400 is a monster bull.

I don't subtract for archery. I figure the advantages of hunting during the rut offset any disadvantage of having to get closer.

 

[A-con]

My "field scoring" system goes something like this.

Dink, or small bull, scores under 260

Decent bull, or good bull, 260 to 310

Big bull is 310 to 350

Giant bull is 350 to 390

Anything over 390 falls under "Holy crap, your not gonna belive this"

Last year I passed on a couple of dinks, and came home empty handed.

What I hold out for will depend a lot on what I see, and what advise I get and what tag I draw, but I'm willing to go home empty, I've done it before.

 

[noharleyyet]

I passed on a dink my first year...didn't see any my second...so for my third (this coming season), a dink will be fine.
Dink...legal
Decent to Big (for me)..anything over 260
In my dreams...anything over 300

 

[ELKCHSR]

I think any thing gotten legal is a great bull or even a cow for that matter...

 

[Larry Landgren]

any bull over 350 is a big bull and a 400+ bull is a toad.
If I get a Elk tag again it has to be atleast 300+ to shoot.

 

[AZ402]

I also put archery and rifle in the same catagory..

 

[Delw]

Az.
now you tell me a 300 is a fine bull..... LOL

hey did you ever get that vid tape working? I want to see how big that close one really was.

I would still do the same thing I did last year pass up any bull thats under 325-350 knowing there is a bigger one in the same area.

Delw

 

[wapiti2]

well....i shoot the first legal bull i see.....i look at it more as feeding my family than the "BIG RACK". so my little 250 bull works just fine for me........

 

[BuzzH]

With a premium tag in AZ, MT, or WY...I'd kill any bull over 340...and I'd rather go without than shoot something less than that.

General tags...depends on the area and mood I'm in. Typically any legal bull will probably catch bullets/broadheads.

As to how I classify bulls:

Anything over 300 is a damn nice bull...I dont care who you are.
Anything over 340...you're an idiot for not shooting, in any state, IMO.

I'd believe the Vanilla Gorilla if he said he saw a bull over 370...but most people throwing around 390 this and 400 that...are most likely assclowns who wouldnt know a 400 bull if one was poking them in the ass.

 

[AZ402]

Delw, my camera has never worked the same since last Sept(will have a new one for 05). I looked at the video a few times. You can tell it's a decent bull. I just had us set up so bad, I couldn't get good video. For opening day of that hunt it was a good pass. As the hunt went on he looked better and better huh...........I never heard of any big bulls taken on that hunt. My buddies client missed that big one (on video) and that's about all I heard of, or saw on that hunt that was good.

My buddies wife took a 374 on the late hunt. It was missing about four or five inches off of it's 5th point.

 

[WHT_MTNMAN]

It depends on if I have a tag or my wife does.
My wife shot a 300 bull last year and it was a GREAT bull. I haven't drawn a tag since 1993 shot a "dink" If I get drawn for my "home" unit won't shoot anything less than 350. Rifle or bow doesn't matter

 

[Elkgunner]

Depends on the potential of the area.

If there aren't any 300+ bulls in an area, than a 280 is a trophy. If the area has more potential, then a 330-350 is huge. A bull that might get whacked in one area might walk in another area. I doubt I ever see a 350+ bull in Idaho, so I can't offer much insight on them. And I do agree with Buzz, I would bet most people are off by 30-40 inches on big bulls.

 

[The Hedgehog]

"Big" depends on where you hunt. If I had a special permit or some amazing private property to hunt, I would probably be much pickier, enough to chance going home empty handed. Just how picky would depend on where, the circumstances of the hunt, and my mood I suppose. I expect there to be hunts where I"ll be darn excited about a cow or young bull.. not this year though.

Using a bow has never made one bigger that I know of. When I hear somebody say an "average" bull scores 325 I have to wonder what's mixed in with the crack cocaine is they smoke. I agree with Elkgunner and Buzz, best to have a bullshitometer along when 99% of people start throwing elk scores around.

 

[Lv2hnt]

Papa 402:

I agree with your evaluation, but then we're in Arizona, aren't we? In your particular case --- well, that's something else again (LOL); heck, you've seen more 370-class bulls than I've dreamed of ...

And yep, I foolishly passed "e-a-s-y" shots at mature bulls in years past, then came home empty-handed (BTW, learned something over the years about "a bird in the hand ..."). Although I'm still waiting to tag out on a 350-plus bull (I've been close), with today's draw odds, ANY bull in bow range the last few days of the season had better have said his prayers (last tag I had, couldn't put it together on one particular 360-class 7x7, killed a sub-300 O-L-D 5x6 2 nights before season's end, then had a 330 6x6 herd bull at 20 yards the next night [of course!]) ...

Lv2hnt

 

[BOHNTR]

Well, I'd agree with Stan's "trophy scale", especially for Arizona. I've been fortunate enough to arrow a couple in the "big to huge" bull range (340"), so I'm after something bigger next time.....Heck, in AZ my 340" bull was actually a satellite bull!

I don't mind going home empty handed also.....been there, done that. When all you do is chase critters with a bow, you sometimes get used to it. I'll find out this year when I get drawn. hump (positive wishing helps)

 

[Calif. Hunter]

I know nothing about scoring - I've been told this bull is "about" 300. I will shoot one like this any day.

Here is another view, along with Moe's 5x5 -

 

[T Bone]

I've never drawn a premium tag and I like elk meat on the table. In Idaho, general season units, any mature bull is a beauty. Anything over 300 is a pig. Most of the time the first branch antler bull I see is gonna be in danger. Towards the end of the season, anything legal is going down.

In Nevada, if I ever pull one of the good tags, I'll try and hold for a 325+.

I don't have a clue what quality of elk my new state of SD holds. But I just submitted for the draws yesterday.

Rick your NM muzz bull is a fine animal which I'd pull the trigger on too. I'd guestimate him around 255.

 

[Calif. Hunter]

T-bone - I don't think there are as many people here who would not pull the trigger on a bull like that, as there are here that have claimed that they would not shoot anything less than 300.