A Kimber Montana Story

[ianpadron]

My shorty 308 Montana will be the last gun I ever sell. Lately it's been slaying white tails but I think this year it will get back in the mountains for elk. It's a great shooter with 175 Terminal ascents.
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Fantastic....call me a Fudd but I think Kimbers are the most aesthetic rifles ever built. So svelte, but utilitarian. Never gets old seeing one laid on top of the latest critter(s) it's stacked.

 

[Antares]

Just for you @ianpadron

 

[Antares]

Looks like a great time. The 6CM is saying, “Why’d you spend an hour hiking around a bowl when I coulda done the job perfectly fine from 500 yards”

I mean… I had the same thought at the time, but I was going to have to walk over there either way…

I took the 6CM out for the next one and let it get in on the fun.

 

[wildmek]

awesome hunt with some cool rifles

What bag is that on your seek frame?

 

[thinhorn_AK]

awesome hunt with some cool rifles

What bag is that on your seek frame?

that's a molinator.....rokslide edition.

THE MOLINATOR SHOOTING BAG - Rokslide

Our newest soft product, the Molinator shooting bag, is inspired by the tooth fairy. This shooting bag checks all the hunting boxes at 4.5 ounces. Reflective paneling is sewn into the handles so you can see it after you drop an animal. Sets up on the ground sloped or flat, on a fence, on a...

www.rokslide.com

 

[Antares]

awesome hunt with some cool rifles

What bag is that on your seek frame?

Kuiu Pro LT 4000.

I have a 2200 and 5500 also. I just pick the one that’s the right size for the trip I’m doing. Works good for me.

 

[hydroyeti]

Nice rifle! Why do sitka deer always look like baby deer? Every harvest picture I've seen looks like a two year old deer at best to my untrained eyes. Do the grizzley bears keep them from growing old or something?

 

[Couescrazy33]

Just the size of the deer. Coues deer are the same way. They are just smaller deer.

 

[BreechFace]

Nice rifle! Why do sitka deer always look like baby deer? Every harvest picture I've seen looks like a two year old deer at best to my untrained eyes. Do the grizzley bears keep them from growing old or something?

Genetics

 

[Antares]

Nice rifle! Why do sitka deer always look like baby deer? Every harvest picture I've seen looks like a two year old deer at best to my untrained eyes. Do the grizzley bears keep them from growing old or something?

That’s just how they are. They have small, stocky bodies and compact antlers. Google “record Sitka blacktail” or similar and when looking at those pics keep in mind that those are the biggest examples of the species. Not very big…

Yes, bears eat a lot blacktails, but only newborn fawns, not mature deer.

Further, It’s not uncommon for old deer to regress to forked antler configuration and aging coastal deer by tooth wear is unreliable due to teeth being prematurely worn from eating sandy kelp on the beaches during big snow winters. All that to say, aging Sitka blacktail can be tricky.

For me, looking at the width of a bucks antlers compared to his ears is the easiest way to field judge. In my opinion, a “good” buck will be well outside the ears, the farther the better.

Here’s a few examples of young blacktail bucks from this year.

1 yo bucks will generally be a spike or a very weak fork and will keep their velvet longer than older bucks. Like this:



2 yo bucks will generally be forks or weak 3x3s, with very little mass. Like these:



Here’s an older deer from two seasons ago. He’s “good” by my standards, but not very impressive unless you’re a Sitka blacktail enthusiast. Well outside the ears, gray muzzle, blind in one eye.

 

[Antares]

Question for the Kimber enthusiasts on here:

What’s the “go to” scope/ring combo for the 84M?

I’ve seen some guys put big scopes (20+ oz) on these rifles but I’d like something lighter, more proportional to the weight of the rifle.

I had the Leupold 2.5-8x36 on there for a few years but sold it when I purged all my Leupolds due to wandering zero issues. I have the SWFA UL 2.5-10x32 on there now but I am in impressed. It works fine at the range, but in poor light (heavy overcast) with a busy background, it really falls apart. I’m just finding the image to be really dark and unclear, to the point where I’ve looked at some deer at 200-300 yards through it and not wanted to take the shot.

So what’s relatively lightweight and durable? I’m thinking of trying a 3-90x40 Accupoint. Also thinking of switching from Talley LW rings to Leupold Backcountry rings.

Your thoughts are appreciated!

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Question for the Kimber enthusiasts on here:

What’s the “go to” scope/ring combo for the 84M?

I’ve seen some guys put big scopes (20+ oz) on these rifles but I’d like something lighter, more proportional to the weight of the rifle.

I had the Leupold 2.5-8x36 on there for a few years but sold it when I purged all my Leupolds due to wandering zero issues. I have the SWFA UL 2.5-10x32 on there now but I am in impressed. It works fine at the range, but in poor light (heavy overcast) with a busy background, it really falls apart. I’m just finding the image to be really dark and unclear, to the point where I’ve looked at some deer at 200-300 yards through it and not wanted to take the shot.

So what’s relatively lightweight and durable? I’m thinking of trying a 3-90x40 Accupoint. Also thinking of switching from Talley LW rings to Leupold Backcountry rings.

Your thoughts are appreciated!

I’ve got a trijicon accupoint 3-9 on mine, I went back and forth with scope rings but sort of settled on a DNZ one piece mount, it seemed like the best bent of weight and durability.

I didn’t want to go to heavy and I figured that rifle gets hiked around a bunch so weight matters. My rifle/scope/rings and silencer comes in right around 6.5lbs.

 

[Antares]

I’ve got a trijicon accupoint 3-9 on mine, I went back and forth with scope rings but sort of settled on a DNZ one piece mount, it seemed like the best bent of weight and durability.

I didn’t want to go to heavy and I figured that rifle gets hiked around a bunch so weight matters. My rifle/scope/rings and silencer comes in right around 6.5lbs.

Thanks! What height DNZ are you using with that Accupoint? Have a pic of it you can share?

 

[thinhorn_AK]

The rings are low, I’ve sort of been against the DNZ with the connecting bar in the past but I’ve never heard of it causing any issues and so far it hasn’t for me either. According to DNZ you could just cut it out if you really wanted to.

It’s been a great black bear/balcktail rifle over the years.

 

[BreechFace]

Question for the Kimber enthusiasts on here:

What’s the “go to” scope/ring combo for the 84M?

I’ve seen some guys put big scopes (20+ oz) on these rifles but I’d like something lighter, more proportional to the weight of the rifle.

I had the Leupold 2.5-8x36 on there for a few years but sold it when I purged all my Leupolds due to wandering zero issues. I have the SWFA UL 2.5-10x32 on there now but I am in impressed. It works fine at the range, but in poor light (heavy overcast) with a busy background, it really falls apart. I’m just finding the image to be really dark and unclear, to the point where I’ve looked at some deer at 200-300 yards through it and not wanted to take the shot.

So what’s relatively lightweight and durable? I’m thinking of trying a 3-90x40 Accupoint. Also thinking of switching from Talley LW rings to Leupold Backcountry rings.

Your thoughts are appreciated!

I would in a heartbeat put a Leupold VX3HD 2.5-8x on a Kimber, about the best combo I could think of.

A TRUE wandering zero should have been sent back to Leupold.