SHORT BLASTS
Jake Fife with the Washington state record non-typical archery mule deer .
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Washington ’ s Non-typical Archery State Record
Jake Fife from Selah , Wash ., notched his name into the record book with his 229 inch non-typical mule deer . It is now the record non-typical archery mule deer record for Washington state .
This was Fife ’ s first animal killed with a bow . “ I ’ m afraid it ’ s all downhill from here ,” he joked .
Fife , a teacher at Naches Valley High School , killed this buck during the 2017 archery season in Central Washington . It took him 10 days before he was in a position to get a shot . After spotting the buck , it bedded down in a patch of sage brush . Fife got within 40 yards of it after a one-hour stalk that included walking in his stocking feet and crawling on his belly . When the buck stood up , Fife placed his arrow behind the deer ’ s front shoulder . After waiting for an hour , he found the buck laying in the sagebrush . The buck had a 45 ½ inch mass , and green scored 234 7 / 8 . After the 60-day drying period Fife ’ s buck officially scored 229 inches eclipsing the previous state record of 203 3 / 8 held by David Hollingsworth .
Officially a 14x12 , the antlers have four main beams on each side with 18 kickers and drop tines . The antlers are 5 6 / 8 inches at the base and each brow tine splits into forks . Fife hunted with a Bowtech Carbon Knight bow , 300 Spine Black Eagle Spartan arrows , and Radical Archery Design Ti Con 125 broadheads . jake fife photo
The rifle that a hunter carries often tells a story about who they are and how they pursue their game . Some shoulder a firearm that should be on the wall of an art gallery or a museum , others carry an old and tattered piece of family history . The backcountry crowd stuff lightweight carbon fiber wrapped barrels and synthetic stocked firearms that are precision machined into their backpacks . The scopes on any given of these rifles vary as much as the weapon themselves . But it is what we put into the firearm of choice that makes the biggest difference .
You can have the finest CNC machined custom-made rifle and have it shoot horrible groups while the next guy on the bench is shooting sub-inch holes with a sloppy actioned and well-worn gun . Ammunition is the key component to accurate shooting . If you walk down the ammo aisle at your local sporting goods store you will find hundreds of varieties of rounds . A quick glance at the price tag and too many hunters will start to overlook what they really need to pay attention to . I would rather buy one box of quality ammo than three boxes of lesser ammunition .
A round of ammunition is made up of four components : the bullet , casing , powder and primer . The case and primer are pretty standard but the powder and the bullet is what you are paying for when it comes to precision ammo . How all four parts are put together also makes a big difference in accuracy .
The bullet design for the hunter is the most important part of the hunt . If you have ever used a thin jacketed bullet that “ blewup ” upon impact and wounded an animal , then you know that a failed bullet can ruin
It makes a difference .
your hunt . Hunters need to keep bullet design in mind when it comes to the hunt and which game you are pursuing . Nosler has the partition which was designed after John Nosler had a bullet fail on him during a moose hunt . The partition in the middle of the bullet retains weight which is needed to produce energy . The many polymer tipped bullets such as the Accubond , Scirocco , SST , and others keep their pointed tip and aerodynamic design and increase their accuracy .
Powders are what propel the bullet when ignited by the primer . Two major factors for accuracy are the consistency in powder measurement and the burn rate of the powder . Most accurate or “ precision ” ammunition use proprietary powders that the re-loader can ’ t obtain as well as a very tight tolerance in measurement . Those who hand-load can establish great accuracy because of the precise measuring of their powders .
Costs is a result of all four of the components and how they are put together . With premium primers that are seated and sealed in brass cases that are perfectly sized both in length and headspace the tight tolerances take time and that increases the cost . The use of special blended powders and extensive testing also increases the cost . And lastly the bullet that has been designed by engineers and loaded into the casing at an exact length makes the completed round very precise and accurate . So the next time you walk down the ammo aisle look for the quality components of the ammunition you plan to take afield . The few extra dollars spent for ammo that you chamber into your rifle can determine whether your hunt is a success . JASON BROOKS
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WESTERN HUNTING JOURNAL