I have a pasture where we rotate animals, but there are a couple centrally shared areas where fixed structures have developed a rat problem that our dogs and cats seem to have lost interest in. So while Wife Number Last attempts to live trap them (for me to drown) I decided to replace my old Springer and Pump with a new Avenge X Classic. I ordered in .25 cal mainly 'cuz it was the only option in stock anywhere, and added the .22 cal. conversion as a backup, just in case the .25 proved to be overkill (or the spring/regulator balance becomes a real issue for me.
I'm older, with a weird issue where my dominant eye's pupil stays dilated, so my eyeglass prescription is a bit unusual to say the least, but added light and magnification is always a help. Fortunately, I suppose, our rats are pretty bold, and with all of the rain that we've been experiencing they seem to be in search of dryer digs. Just by chance I have a deer stand that's only about 8' off of the ground and that gives a commanding view of half of their runs from distances from about 3 meters out to about 35. Rats being rats, if ya see one or two in broad daylight, there's usually hundreds out feeding at night, but for right now I'll be day hunting out of doors within 100'. I've no real down range hazards beyond our own critters, and them I can move at will. It does get deathly quiet out here this time of year, but in another week or two, when the frogs and owls are mating it turns into a veritable anvil chorus, so once that happens at least I needn't worry about being stealthy in my night hunts. I actually think that the seemingly large number of owls in our nearby woods may be another reason that the rats are out foraging in daylight, but whatever the case, their population is clearly beyond that of our natural predators' appetites. Can't wait for my black snakes to come out of the ground.
Meanwhile, I've read through dozens of posts here and have gotten some great ideas, so first let me say thanks for that. A couple of budget options in particular were the WestHunter and CVLife optics. I do like the the Hawke offerings, but my hunting future is likely going to be limited to nighttime ratting and an occasional trip to south Florida lizard lands. That said, da wife didn't object to the new rifle's arrival, so I'm also trying to be mindful that some sort of low light optics may be a necessary part of my near future, so I don't wanna push my marital bliss credit too far with that possible expense on the horizon. With the WestHunter and CVLife scopes I figure they're cheap enough that they won't hurt too bad if they turn out to be an epic fail, but what say yee?
I
I'm older, with a weird issue where my dominant eye's pupil stays dilated, so my eyeglass prescription is a bit unusual to say the least, but added light and magnification is always a help. Fortunately, I suppose, our rats are pretty bold, and with all of the rain that we've been experiencing they seem to be in search of dryer digs. Just by chance I have a deer stand that's only about 8' off of the ground and that gives a commanding view of half of their runs from distances from about 3 meters out to about 35. Rats being rats, if ya see one or two in broad daylight, there's usually hundreds out feeding at night, but for right now I'll be day hunting out of doors within 100'. I've no real down range hazards beyond our own critters, and them I can move at will. It does get deathly quiet out here this time of year, but in another week or two, when the frogs and owls are mating it turns into a veritable anvil chorus, so once that happens at least I needn't worry about being stealthy in my night hunts. I actually think that the seemingly large number of owls in our nearby woods may be another reason that the rats are out foraging in daylight, but whatever the case, their population is clearly beyond that of our natural predators' appetites. Can't wait for my black snakes to come out of the ground.
Meanwhile, I've read through dozens of posts here and have gotten some great ideas, so first let me say thanks for that. A couple of budget options in particular were the WestHunter and CVLife optics. I do like the the Hawke offerings, but my hunting future is likely going to be limited to nighttime ratting and an occasional trip to south Florida lizard lands. That said, da wife didn't object to the new rifle's arrival, so I'm also trying to be mindful that some sort of low light optics may be a necessary part of my near future, so I don't wanna push my marital bliss credit too far with that possible expense on the horizon. With the WestHunter and CVLife scopes I figure they're cheap enough that they won't hurt too bad if they turn out to be an epic fail, but what say yee?
I
