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Equipment Failure Thread

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Equipment Failure Thread

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 06 03, 2019 •  [Post 1]

Ever had a piece of gear on one of your shooting rigs "fail" that resulted in a complete miss or even something worse? I have a few stories of woe but will start our "equipment failure thread" with this one:


I hunted a remote, gated Washington State area for 6 days on mountain bikes with my hunting buddy Duke in early September 2014. We were into elk daily but the first good shot opportunity presented itself the afternoon of day 3 in an unexpected way. My buddy and I were walking down a cat road that splits two newer, pretty large clear cuts. We were heading for an area at the bottom of the cuts that has a patch of mature trees (we’d seen elk there before on our scout trip a few weeks ago, and, earlier during our hunt). Before we made it down through the cuts and to our destination, we saw 4 cows feeding left to right, across the road we were traveling on at the bottom of the cut, probably 350 yards ahead (75 degree temp; mid-afternoon; wind blowing right to left across the road). Silly elk, they were supposed to bedded right now. Out of a ravine came a very pretty 4X4 feeding behind the cows. Cows went across the road and the bull continued to feed behind them. We were pretty much pinned down on the road, in the open, I figured we’d wait till the small group moved out of sight to the right and then move down and plan a stalk where the wind would be in our favour. This bull obviously wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer as he curiously left his cows, went back across the road, and started feeding below the road, moving back in our direction. He obviously wasn’t rut tweaking too hard yet and was not concerned about leaving his group of cows. I couldn’t move (way too open and very noisy on the gravel road) so I sat right on the edge of the road between two 3 foot saplings to see how things would develop (Duke actually just laid down on the uphill side of the road as I has the only cover available). Bull moved to 90, 80, 74, 60, and then a bit over 50 yards below me and continued to feed, dropping his head and coming up occasionally with a mouth full of salad. Quartering to me, quartering to me, quartering to me, then a bit closer and yes, broadside with head down in the salad bowl! I touched off an arrow and my arrow flew his back by several feet! The Ripcord Code Red arrow rest failed to drop and caused my arrow to sail the bull! Wait, it gets better. Two more shots with the same result (dumb bull wouldn’t leave; he appeared to be very hungry)….closest shot was 48 yards with same end result with my normally very accurate projectiles flying feet over Bullwinkle’s back. The bull finally figured something was not right and left the scene. Prior to the second, and third shots, I manually worked the rest arm up, down, up, down trying to work out the issue. Put me into a state of ticked off like you’ve never seen (ever heard of a conniption fit?). Duke couldn’t see the bull but could see me launching arrows and figured I was putting “insurance” shots in whatever the hell I was shooting at. Here’s the clincher. I took my bow to a local archery shop twice over the previous month because the rest seemed sticky and not dropping properly all the time after this same shop had installed a new string for me. Each time he tinkered with it a bit and said it was fine even after I told him the cord seemed to be sticking inside and the rest wasn’t dropping all the time. At one point, a week before I headed out to hunt, I actually asked this shop/guy to put another rest on the bow and he tinkered with it again and said “it’ll be fine Rory, don’t worry”. Two things happened after that hunt. 1. I never did business with that shop again (gave me a reason to start working on my own bows for the most part), and 2. I never put a Code Red rest on another bow. I’m a big Trophy Taker fan nowadays.

Come on, let's hear your tales of woe :(
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby Swede » 06 03, 2019 •  [Post 2]

I drew a quality deer tag for the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. Early in the hunt I discovered my range finder was not functioning right. The LEDs were not displaying the range. It cost me a nice buck. Before I got back Elknut had a new Vortex at my son's home and he brought it to me in time for the start of my elk hunt. The Vortex has been a very good instrument. The Bushnell was junk.
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby >>>---WW----> » 06 03, 2019 •  [Post 3]

I can think of a couple. I had called a 5x5 bull in to about 20 yards broadside. I had an arrow on the string and as his head went behind a tree, I started my draw. All of a sudden, my arrow launched off the string and landed about 5 feet in front of me. The elk didn't spook and his head was still hidden from view. So I slowly picked up my arrow and started the draw for the second time. This time I started to draw back slowly and before I even got it back 4-5 inches the arrow took off again. This time it went about 20 feet and it was enough to spook my elk off.

I always wear jersey gloves to camo my hand movement. And I cut the finger tips off on my release hand. On this particular day, I was wearing a new pair of gloves and I had cut the tips of the fingers about the first joint of my hand. As I started my draw, I always lay my trigger finger along the side on the release. And unknowingly the end of the glove engaged the trigger.

From that day on I have always cut the fingers of the gloves off at the second joint!!!!!!! :shock: :roll:


Another time we were on a hog hunt in Texas. When we unpacked I found out I had left my arrows at home. DUH!!! My buddy loaned me a few of his spares and I ended up shooting the biggest hog I have ever taken with my bow and his arrow. I know I'll probably never hear the end of that one :lol:
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 06 03, 2019 •  [Post 4]

Glad I’m not the sole recipient of equipment failures :?
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby Swede » 06 04, 2019 •  [Post 5]

I have had other equipment failures over the years, but in reality they were mostly my failures. I can say the range finder problem was on the manufacturer, but it was a Bushnell, and that name on a product should be enough warning to steer a person in a different direction.
Arrows were a big problem at first. I did not understand what it took to make an arrow fly the same with a broadhead or a field point. My broadheads were inconsistent and would plane on me. That cost me a few critters before I was told how to solve the mystery. I did kill an elk with a poor flying arrow and I got a second when I found one arrow that flew better than the others, but at best it was trial and error at first and mostly error.
In case anyone reading tis does not know: Arrows with broadheads need a helical fletch or offset, plus proper spine and balance. Some people rave about cut to the tip broadheads, but they don't tune as easy as shorter broadheads like the Slick Tricks. The cut to the tip broadheads have a large flat surface that acts like a sail which works to steer the arrow differently than your vanes or fletch.
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby VT Sasquatch » 06 05, 2019 •  [Post 6]

That sounds like a cool hunt, RJ, except for the misses.

I have been lucky with equipment for the most part. I did have an engine of a Ford 150 have a timing chain issue that risked stranding me on a National Forest in Colorado. The truck limped home but died shortly thereafter. (A 4 1/2 year old truck with 80k miles.) I swore off Ford after that.

I have had plenty of brain failures where I have gotten myself stranded. I even accidentally fired a 6.5 Creedmoor round out of a 308 Winchester a few weeks back.
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby Lefty » 06 05, 2019 •  [Post 7]

I’ve shared these sad stories
The last big failure the range finder said 45 yards the arrow barely cleared the bulls back I stepped of and it was 21 yards
The bullseemed closer

A neighbors words kept in my mind
Trust your range finder

My worst was the two Redfield scopes both failed the same year the lenses became loose.
Missed a huge mule with one scope. Same rifle other scope deep snow missed a 357 ( green) bull in Montana , was killed by the guys above me

I had been shooting my wife’s Browning 06
I got a new rifle and scope for Christmas

Overall most failures are my fault
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 06 05, 2019 •  [Post 8]

Redfield scopes Lefty? Ahh, that brought up another bad memory, thanks :lol:. While in the Army in the early 90s, went back to Montana to hunt with my younger brother for a handful of days to hunt (elk and deer). Rewinding a bit, I did not own a rifle at the time so I borrowed a REM 7MM Mag from a Warrant Officer friend in our brigade. He'd shot an elk the previous year with it in CO so I figured it would work fine. Drove the 10 hours to my brothers place in Kalispell, spent the night, then went out hunting solo the next day (brother had finish a job the next day so he couldn't go out). Soo, I drove up Hungry Horse reservoir, and found a safe spot to check out the 7MM. Stuck a paper plate on a tree 80ish yards out, walked back to the truck, and took two shots. They grouped pretty well, albeit a bit high but good enough. Off to hunting the rest of the day with no luck/shots. The next day, brother and I headed over towards a spot off Wolf Creek (towards Libby) that I'd gotten into elk before a handful of years ago. Long story short, as we were driving into a spot we would walk in on a gated road, down the bank/sidehill above us (on my side of the truck) came a raggedly little bull and a few cows. I jumped out, picked an opening in the trees and that silly little bull stopped right there, broadside no more than 75 yards away. BOOM! I honestly didn't even look to see him drop as I knew I'd nailed him clean, probably shattering the off shoulder. Told brother "let's grab the pack", we're got some work to do. Probably 10 inches of snow on the ground so this will be easy tracking (if necessary), and, the bull should be an easy drag down to the road and in the back of the truck ;). No blood, no nothing.... I had missed the bull completely. We searched for an hour or so but I knew I'd missed him clean...... somehow. We went back down the mountain, set up a target 75 yards out against a huge dirty stump and we both took a few shots.... One shot would be on paper, the next a foot up to the left, the next above the target, the next touching the lower right of the target. Got back to town and called pops. He said "damn Redfields", I bet that reticle is "floating". When I got back to WA, I told the buddy I borrowed the rifle from about what happened and he said "ya, that makes sense.... it took me three shots to hit that elk in CO last year". Umm, thanks buddy. He did send the scope in to Redfield and they either fixed it or sent him a new one, can't remember. Moral of the story? Don't be a dumb bunny and not ensure the weapon you're using isn't firing on all cylinders (so to speak).
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Re: Equipment Failure Thread

Postby saddlesore » 06 07, 2019 •  [Post 9]

I can't remember any equipment failure,but I sure have had quite a few operator failures
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