Field Judge Practice

[Ken Swenson]

Just for fun. Was out glassing over the weekend while on a camping trip and saw this buck.

Being relatively new to field judging, it could be helpful to hear what your guesses would be.

My guess is 178 gross. Adding the two “trash points” I’d guess 184”

What do you think?

 

[MallardSX2]

Not even close....

That deer might be a 150" deer.....

The one in my AVATAR is only 160"......

 

[KurtR]

Maybe 150 the velvet makes them look bigger.

 

[Mykolaivka887]

Absolutely NO WAY that's a 185" muley. I'd say 160" with whatever extras he might have.

 

[ElDiablito]

I agree - he’s not as big as you think. I’d keep looking for a big one.

 

[willfrye027]

Hard to tell for sure..the ear width can be really deceptive. Assuming he’s not a giant bodied sucker I’d put him at 160ish gross.

But if he had a giant mule of a head, could be bigger. Typically are hard to judge for me.

 

[Dos Perros]

I think he's at least 150, I would guess in the 165 gross range with the extras.

 

[Ken Swenson]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Looks like this FNG needs to shave about 25” off his estimates

 

[KurtR]

For reference this was 188 gross

 

[Aerosith]

I'd put that buck in the 160-163" range, he looks like younger deer with potential.

 

[Mykolaivka887]

I'd put that ..... like younger deer with potential.

Yep, looks like a 3 yr old. He's going to explode at 5 years of age and top out at 7 years of age, if he lives that long.

 

[Aerosith]

Yep, looks like a 3 yr old. He's going to explode at 5 years of age and top out at 7 years of age, if he lives that long.

Yeah, one thing I've noticed is that young deer with big potential usually look bigger than reality at the younger age. That deer will be a monster if he lives another 2-4 years... 190"+.

 

[Ken Swenson]

Here’s a look at him standing. I agree with the 3-4 year old range, that sounds about right

 

[Maverick1]

I'd put that buck in the 160-163" range, he looks like younger deer with potential.

163? What? No way. Probably should revise your post to say the 160-162" range. LOL. Down to 3". Why don't we just call it 160-162 and 13/16"?

 

[Mykolaivka887]

In that photo of him standing, I'm now thinking 150-ish gross. But, he might go 160", maybe.

 

[PNWGATOR]

I’ve always thought this was a good resource for identifying mature animals. Pretty simplistic, but establishes some basic characteristics to look for.

What makes a 160 inch Mule Deer? Basic field judging. - Flat Tops Wilderness Guides

Do you really care if you can tell the difference between a 190″ and a 215″ deer? Me neither. In those situations, I just shoot it! It is more useful when hunting public land to know how to judge a 2-3 year old deer from a 4+ year old mature deer. This is usually the […]

www.flattopswildernessguides.com

 

[voltage]

Thanks for sharing some velvet pics!

 

[fishslap]

Low 150 maybe. He’s not very wide and his forks are not real deep all the way around. Good deer to me but not a high score.

 

[Ken Swenson]

I’ve always thought this was a good resource for identifying mature animals. Pretty simplistic, but establishes some basic characteristics to look for.

What makes a 160 inch Mule Deer? Basic field judging. - Flat Tops Wilderness Guides

Do you really care if you can tell the difference between a 190″ and a 215″ deer? Me neither. In those situations, I just shoot it! It is more useful when hunting public land to know how to judge a 2-3 year old deer from a 4+ year old mature deer. This is usually the […]

www.flattopswildernessguides.com

Thanks for the share. This is a great read

 

[Rich M]

I've only shot a decent buck 4 seasons ago and it was 160, all I ever wanted for a muley.

If he makes you happy, have at him. You could do lots worse.