CALLSHOT & FERMINATOR BULLETS

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sixshot

Buckeye
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
1,835
Location
soda springs, idaho
We had a heavy rain this afternoon & I told Callshot if the rain stopped before dark we should find some critters out looking for some supper. The first 30 minutes it just kept raining, I took some pretty nice photo's of the thousands of acres of barley with a rainbow in the background.
In this part of Idaho the farmers grow hundreds of thousands of acres of barley, a large part of it goes to Budweiser, but the rock chucks also get their share of it! A rock chuck will go a long ways for a belly full of barley.

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These fields run for miles & there are many lava reefs scattered throughout the area, some of the reefs are 100 feet tall & you can't see them until you get right to the edge.

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This is very remote country from Soda Springs north, clear to Yellowstone.

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As the weather started to clear up I told Callshot to drive through a farmer friends place, hoping to scare up a badger. When we got next to his equiptment shed we had a long lava reef running between 2 large barley fields, perfect! We immediately saw some real hog rock chucks running out of the fields towards the safety of the rocks.
Our main problem was, neither of us had a scoped sixgun on board, we had left them home! I was packing a Bisley 45 with a 260 gr Keith seated over 9 grs of Unique, Callshot had his flattop 44 special stoked with 220 gr Ferminator GC slugs fueled with 7.5 grs of Unique.
We could spot the dark colored rock chucks with the binoculars but couldn't pick them out went we pulled down on the iron sights, wow, it was frustrating! It was like staring into a closet, we just couldn't pick them out.
We both took several shots but couldn't connect, finally one peeked one eye ball around a sharply pointed rock & I could see his head, neck & perhaps an inch or so of his shoulder, the barely gave me a little bit of a background & I light the switch, the shot felt good but the chuck was gone when the 45 came down out of recoil. I walked down the road 100yds & found a way below the reef.
Throughout most of Idaho the chucks have been down for several weeks, its only in these higher elevations that any are still out feeding. This area is around 6,000 ft elevation & as you can see its still plenty green. The chucks that are still out are huge, they almost look deformed. Very large bodies & no neck........I know a guy like that!
I had left my holster home, also my Barranti & Rob Leahy cartridge slides & speed strips, yikes! I was traveling light & fast, just me, the 45 & a fast pair of Croc's. Climbing up on a lava rock I spotted a very fat & dead rock chuck. Stepping it off the best I could it was 103 yds, hard to get it perfect but probably within 10 yds plus or minus.
This barley munching bandit was stuffed right to his lips, we had saved the farmer a lot of barley. A local rancer drove though & obliged by taking our picture together.

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This thing had some chompers like a Utah cheerleader.

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One very well fed rock chuck, Ruger Bisley 45 with a set of Cocobolo stocks.

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Five minutes after the guy left we spotted a old pot belly sneaking out into the barely, I told Callshot to hold some front sight & tickle the trigger, standing with his butt against the truck it broke the shot offhand & the old chap jackknifed & stuck all 4 feet in the air, I was stunned, the shot was much farther than mine. I told Steve to walk down to where I had whacked mine & then start stepping off the shot, he went another 78 steps, making the offhand shot 181 yds, for sure one of the finest shots I've ever seen with a sixgun. Always has that big smile on his mug!

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That little black dot down in the barely field is Callshot walking back to the truck carrying his rock chuck. Mine was huge, his was much bigger.

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Two very large rock chucks held up by 2 old fat guys.

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Dick
 

doccash

Buckeye
Joined
Nov 10, 2008
Messages
1,459
Location
Texas Panhandle
Beautiful rainbow / barley picture. I can only imagine anything that green, I envy you. Two fat pistoleros ruin the rest of the images. :lol: Dr.C
 

contender

Ruger Guru
Joined
Sep 18, 2002
Messages
25,588
Location
Lake Lure NC USA
I call that last pic a "Well rounded shot." All four of y'all seem a bit on the larger size! :D
Once again, another tease making me want to head west again!
 

callshot

Blackhawk
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
Messages
965
Location
Pocatello, Idaho
FUN! FUN :!: "If you don't go, you can't get them". That is a quote from Dick. I didn't think we would see anything or get much shooting if any. We did chew enough seeds and when it came time to lite off the hand cannons, we were ready. One that did get away almost lost his tail. It was close enough to shooting off his tail that we both laughed. We topped this adventure off with a huckleberry shake so we would have some more memories for our old age. Can't you just see us two sitting on the porch with our worn out pistols talking about past hunts. When I got back to the truck with my chuck, Dick said that it had a mouth full of barley. He was right. It did still have a mouth full of fresh barley. When I got home I found that the sprinkler had filled my basement window well. This has happened a couple times before in the last 35 years. Cement floor and only about a gallon of water got in. Just a minor inconvenience. I might go for the rest of my life and never duplicate that shot. No matter. I will have fun on many other shots. They are all different in some way or another. I feel a nap coming on now, so pleasant dreams. Steve
 

KWYJIBO

Blackhawk
Joined
Nov 19, 2007
Messages
609
Location
Utah
That is some really fine shooting! I don't think I could hit a barn at that distance. Looks like another great day afield for Sixshot and Callshot. If I didn't have responsibilities with work, family, and a hundred other things, I'd love to cruise up there and join you guys. Maybe some day...
 

Jeff Hoover

Blackhawk
Joined
Feb 25, 2009
Messages
919
Way to to go Callshot ! That Rock chuck just might be worthy of being mounted, so your badger don't get lonely ! :lol: Heck of a shot, Buddy !

Great story and pictures Dick ! Thanks for sharing, and good shot also, Buddy ! Just doesn't seem fair all the fun you 2 have ! :lol:
 

sixshot

Buckeye
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
1,835
Location
soda springs, idaho
Steve's chuck still had a big mouthful of barley sticking out of his mug when he brought him back up to the truck.
I forgot another shot he almost made. One chuck came out on a big flat rock & laid down as flat as a lizard, we could make him out with the 10X glasses but couldn't see anything but lava rock over the iron sights. I'm sure Callshot was just holding somewhere in the middle of the rock when he touched off the shot. When the 220 gr. Ferminator whacked the rock the tail on the old boy almost got shot off, the fragments flipped his tail.
I'm guessing the shot was 135-140 yds, no way to really step this one off as this lava reef was very open on top & it would be very dangerous to try & climb around on it without falling down in a crater.
You can see the mouthful of fresh barley.

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Dick
 

c.r.

Single-Sixer
Joined
Apr 23, 2008
Messages
436
Location
Texas
you two youngsters have some of the greatest times. Good for y'all.

those fields sure look healthy

~c.r.
 

mraywi

Single-Sixer
Joined
Mar 30, 2009
Messages
339
Location
KCMO
Beautiful pictures.You two old farts make more great shots by accident than I could hope to on purpose. Damn,you guys CANSHOOT! :D
 

twobisquit

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 8, 2006
Messages
318
Location
Rock Ridge, Wyoming
If I understand correctly, the farmers over there fatten up those chucks just so you boys will have 100 yard targets :) They better keep them out of the cow pasture or they will be breeding the heifers. Good thing that you guys are keeping their numbers low. Good shooting.

If you run into any of the Roberts Clann over there, let them know there are a few of us over here on this side of the border too.
Chris
 

sixshot

Buckeye
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
1,835
Location
soda springs, idaho
We went back today for a rematch with the surviving chucks from yesterday, only this time I had my scoped 357 Maxie & Callshot had his scoped 41 Redhawk.
As expected they were waiting for us.......at the very far end of the reef, we could see 5 of them at the same time. Two were real hogs & the other 3 were this years pups & all 3 of them were perched in a line, maybe the only time I've ever seen the possibility of a triple play with one shot.
Someone with a good long range rifle or handgun might have pulled it off, very unusual lineup. This time I had my rangefinder also & the first one I tried was at 143 yds, I gave him what I thought was 10" of elevation & broke the shot, big cloud of dust! He came boiling out of the dust cloud & jumped for the lava reef. I had came up just a bit short, dang it!
Shot #2 was about 195 yds, can't remember, smacked the rock he was sitting on. Shot #3 was at 219, Callshot said, you got him, we walked down the reef but it is broken & dangerous to walk on we couldn't locate him.
Headed home & what did we see........badger! right on the side of the road, when I got right to him he whirled & faced me, I drove on past & went around a bend in the road, we bailed out, me with me Bisley 45 & Callshot with his Bisley 44 flattop.
We hot footed it back down the road but I was worried about the wind, they have a real good nose & I'm sure they smelled Callshot! I started up through the sagebrush & eased over towards the last place I"d seen him, Callshot kept walking down the road.
Peeking over some brush I saw him run & then he jumped, twice he did it, I've never seen a badger jump, they usually run low to the ground & then raise up for a look around. At about 40 yds he faced me through the brush, I broke the shot & it felt good, walking over there I found a hole & it was very dark inside.
I asked Steve if he could see anything down in there, I was hoping he'd kneel down & I could let out a yell, he's getting smarter.
We couldn't tell & didn't have a shovel so we left for home. More scenery shots from todays ride.

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You can see how the lava reefs are stair stepped, the country looks flat from a distance but then you drive up on one of the reefs that might be 15 miles long with barley on both sides, a rock chuck buffet!
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Dick
 

Bkat

Blackhawk
Joined
Jan 26, 2008
Messages
577
Location
Spring, Texas
Wow! Steve's shot sounds like one of Elmer Keith's stories. Ol' Elmer woulda been proud of that one!

Bkat
 
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