Discuss Antonio's Semi-Live Buff Hunt!
General Topic
Contributors to this thread:
Sounds like it was an awesome first day! I am really looking forward to following this thread. If you are monitoring this thread Antonio please tell us a little about your equipment ... bow make, draw weight, arrow material and weight and broadhead make and weight. I would love to do that hunt with traditional equipment and wonder what you feel is the right overall setup.
Looks like it will be an interesting week of hunting but the 100 plus temps could be a pain in the butt. Good luck fellows.
would like to know more about how you got licenses etc for the DIY hunt. thought you had to go through an outfitter>awesome story so far.
millsy
Hi all and thanks for following along. I will try and answer all questions as they come up and please do not hesitate to ask any questions about the trip or htuning down here in general.
bohuntr: There will beb mentions of gear in the thread as things happen. One of us is using a Black Widow recurve though. Will fill you in with mroe detail so as to not spoil the report.
millsy: We were hunting a privately owned station that was not on Aboriginal land. There were no licenses required due to this, just permission from the landowner. If you do get access to Aboriginal land, then yes you do need to have a permit and permission from the traditional owners and in many places in the Northern Territory now, you do have to use an outfitter.
There are still some good places out there and also some reasonably priced outfitters also. Logistically it is a massive place, so you either need local knowledge or a contact, or you are best of using an outfitter
First days hunt was great. Looking forward to the rest of the week.
Good stuff Antwan, I'll be following along here.
I'm headed to the huge beasts this july/august coming - cannot wait!
Nice boar Antonio!!!! Share the videos they are great too!
Thanks for sharing it with us,
Take care!!
Pedro Ampuero
I was in Arnhemland a few years back hunting buffs and I didn't take near enough pictures so this is a great reminder of the awesome hunt and adventure I had. If you haven't gone, consider going even if it's guided, you are in for a treat. Oh and find a partner, sharing the hunt with somebody else doubles the pleasure of the adventure. Now back to the show. Cheers.
Great stories and pictures Antonio ... keep um coming!!!
This is going to be great!! I am surprised that you have much wind at such warm temperatures.
Great job so far Antonio, love the photo of your buddy at full trad draw on that buff.
Very interested in this hunt, I spent quite some time this past weekend at the Sheep Show in Reno visiting with an outfitter who offers hog and buff hunts in the NT and I am seriously considering giving this a go.
What broadhead are you using there? The chiseled (tanto?) point is reminiscent of an old model of the famous bear razorhead I shot back in the '80's.
Thanks for taking the time to bring this to us, I'm looking forward to the rest of the story.
And that hog was a tank!
Way to leave us hanging!!! Ugh.
Cool adventure, thanks!!!
No he did not! Dang it man!
At least they know how to get us coming back for tomorrow! The pic with him at full draw is priceless.
Loved day three story and pictures! Also curious about that broadhead with the tanto point - what was it...? This is an adventure I'd like to do.
This hunt is turning into a classic. Great stuff!!
Way to go!! On my Bucket list for sure and now climbing!!
Wow, what a picture! Antonio sure has a great way with words.
Did I tell ya'll I hate cliff hangers? LOL, great story. Mike
What an awesome picture Antonio!!! Can't wait to read tomorrows installment!
Sorry for the suspense guys, but I wrote it all up as it happened and that was how it went down.
Jake, when we hunted it was very late for a buff hunt, right in the middle of the build up to the wet season. It was very hot and the humidity was a killer and there was a steady breeze each day that was quite consistent except at last light. I guess the breeze was being generated by all the storm activity a little further north as it moves in off the coast.
The broadhead in the picture with the tanto is called a Blackstump broadhead. They are made here in Australia and are very popular out here. They have been around for many years and are very tough.
The rest of us used different heads with varying degrees of success. They will pop up in the rest of the hunt.
A hunt in the north of Australia is certainly an adventure to savour. Just the sheer vastness of the place is enough to bring you back, let alone staring angry 1 tonne beasts and huge hogs. We were away from the coast somewhat, but if you do hunt near the coast, the fishing is world class also.
Antonio,
I am still somewhat unclear about what the tanto is. Is it a part of the broadhead?....Is any two blade broadhead called a tanto?
What is the fighting pad of a pig? Where is it located? I have shot my share of pigs, but that phrase is new to me.
Jake
Jake, I could be wrong but the only difference I saw in the photo between the two broadheads was that one had the tip filed to a chisel point. So I'm assuming the "tanto" is the chiseled tip.
Yes Jake, the guys are correct, the tanto is the same as a chisel point.
The fighting pad on a pig is where the skin on the shoulder thickens right up, and is almost cartilage like, from years of fighting. This is to protect the flanks of a boar when they go head to head and slug it out with tyusks trying to rip open chest cavities along the rib cage. The pigs here in Australia have fighting pads as we refer to them as thye have a lot pure boar in them and also have quite big tusks in general.
Combined with mud, I have heard of fighting pads being able to absorb pretty solid caliber bullets. They have also stopped many an undergunned arrow and broken or blocked inferior broadheads.
Jake, I speak Australian...hee,hee,hee. Fighting pad = shield. Great story, thanks!
You are a fine interpreter INbowdude. We will make an honorary Aussie out of you yet
Great show guys. Excellent buff kill and great video! C
+1 Charlie, that video is very cool. Well done.
Nice write up. Especially liked the video. Looking forward to the rest of it.
Beautiful pics ! What are the specs of the recurve bow? (weight @ draw-length?)
Congrats on that fantastic hunt!
Black Widow PSR 58# @ 28". I do believe this bow weight to be on the light side for such game and next time intend to shoot a heavier bow in the 68# to 70# range.
Thanks for the info. Despite the medium low poundage it seems to work nicely ! Thanks for sharing the video with us.
That video was really cool!!! Can you tell us more about the weight and other specs of the arrow and broadhead used on that Buff.
In the latest update, day 5, there is also the information on Paul's set up along with mine. Although Paul took his buff with his 58lb bow, the shot, as you saw, was quartering away and he got in behind the last rib and just caught the back of the lung.
I would recommend a little bit higher poundage after seeing the penetration tests we did on rib, although more of that I would contribute to the broadhead and not the bow. When he switched heads on the testing, he did get good penetration through rib and deep into the chest cavity, so it remains to be seen on how it would go on a live one.
Buffalo really are a massive beast, with huge ribs and plenty of muscle to get through before getting into the boiler room. It is better to be over gunned rather than under. Good solid broadheads are paramount also.
I like the thread but think some of us like myself need a bit of information on the buff? I am familiar with cape buff and their reputation but not one down under. Is this a native species or is it an introduced asiatic buff like you see in rice fields of Vietnam? Not trying to create a stir here, just no nothing about these critters. habu john
Hello John. Yes the buffalo were introduced into the top end of Australia in the 19th century as food for the settlers. They are also the Asiatic species. There were to species brought in at the time, one a woodland type from west asia and the other a a swamp dwelling species from east asia. They have never been used for domestic use in Australia and have roamed free over the flood plain plains of Northern Territory since their release.
They are quite a dangerous creature and will charge you. They have killed several people over the years and it is highly recommended that you carry a very heavy calibre rifle as a back up. We were to hunt another place with a friend who had a back up, but plans changed at the last minute and we didn't have access to a gun. It is not something I would do again to be honest after seeing them do what they do when annoyed.
Buffalo in Australia, as with every huntable species out here, are introduced animals and as such, our governments would like to see them wiped out. There have been government funded culls in the past and of l;ate the pet food industry gas embarked on taking out whole mobs of buff in their thousands, which is a damn shame. I know of one outfitter who be losing his hunting this year to them, so if you are keen to get after them, I would do it sooner rather than later as they will become rarer.
atarcher I appreciate your explanation of the buff in Aussie land. They do look like a cool animal to put a stalk on and of course the country they are in is just awesome. habu john
Great story, hunt and pics!! Now you have a lot of pork and beef down so I am wondering how you handle all the meat?
I was wondering about the meat myself. I haven't seen a word on meat care. Do you eat it...leave it in the bush...is it inedible?
We did not collect the meat of these animals. I know this is a bit of a freak out, and believe me I always collect all my meat from the deer that I have taken and various other game in the southern parts of the country, but in the top end in these remote areas, it is virtually impossible to get the meat out and keep it cool as it is 40 deg C and there is no refrigeration around. Just carrying it a couple of km's to the car is enough for it to go off.
The pet food cullers have chiller trucks that they drag around to the kill sites in order to get it cooled down as soon as possible. Logistically for the common hunter, this is an impossible task to undertake.
The buffalo in the top end have also had epidemics of tuberculosis and the government have carried out many culls in the past trying eradicate it and them. The meat of an old bull is also tougher than leather and the only buffalo that I hear of being eaten for human consumption is very young animals.
A lot of the property owners want the buffalo shot out on their land and some do give access to earn a little extra coin in trophy fees and get the culling done by others. A carcass does not last long up there as the flies and the pigs clean them up in a short few days.
The pigs in the top end also eat heaps of carrion and are loaded with worms and parasites, so we didn't eat them either.
Over here, all of our huntable species are introduced, as we are not allowed to hunt our natives at all with the bow and only kangaroos can be culled by rifle under a tag system for property owners and professional shooters. The governments view is that all introduced species, often referred to as feral, are to be culled, so the attitude towards hunting out here is very different to that in the States, something that I wish would change.
Awesome Antonio. Nothing like buff hunting to get the heart going. Especially that stare down at close range hey?!
Benno for some reason I really enjoy getting real close to game, more than shooting them. I love the look they get in their eyes when they know your too close and their in trouble. I'm sure you know what I mean :)
Antarcher, what was the problem with the Ashby broadheads? I use the Ashby's for most game, so I'm wondering what issues were encountered with them. Great writeup and pictures by the way! I'm planning on heading Down Under in 2014 for Buff and this Semi-Live hunt really strengthened my resolve to get the deposit saved up. Thanks! Sean
The Ashby heads seem to be a a little too hard making them brittle. A few of them chipped and broke on impact with rib, thus taking a lot of energy out of the arrow and limiting penetration.
Looking forward to the thrilling conclusion tomorrow. This had been a really awesome thread!!!
In regards to the meat, do you just keep the skull/horns and then let nature take it's course on the rest of the animal?
ANtonio - best of luck on your last day! Or half day as it is!!!!
Great job on the thread and the work involved, I for one have enjoyed it....
>>>>---------->
What a great thread Antonio!!! Way to get it done at the last minute! I have always wanted to do a buffalo hunt in Australia and your thread has definitely fueled the fire further. Thanks for sharing this with us!
Sticking in their pays off -- way cool last day hunt. Thanks for sharing your hunts with us here, very enjoyable. Congrats!! to all.
Really liked following along on this one....thank you and congratulations to all.
Rayzor's Link
Great video Antonio! We were happy to hear the performance on our little 150 2 blade on those big animals.
Nice video! Nice trophies! Congratulations to all!
Rayzor, the 250grn performed extremely well also, I started off with the Ashby but lost confidence in them really quickly so switched to the 250gnr VPA head. I was surprised by the performance of the 150grn head used by Antonio. Although it looked small to me it blasted straight through the Buff!!
Great to see someone making top quality heads at a reasonable price
Really cool thread! Some interesting stuff on broadhead performance. I shoot the compact 3 blade models out of my compound, but this just confirms my confidence in VPA's too.
Great job, Antonio, and congrats on knocking down your own buff!
That line about asking the donkey if he liked parfait was one of the funniest I've ever read on the Bowsite!!!
I hope I can make it over for a hunt one day.
Awesome hunt... can someone tell me how to post the hunt on my facebook page.