Just-Hunt a Blog

Gift ideas for the hunter or huntress in your life!

Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way!  Ho! Ho! Ho!

Well, the most exciting and heartwarming holiday season is upon us and Christmas is just down the road a piece. Most of us know the Truth that is Christmas yet we also happily partake of the commercial side as well; it’s simply a great time to let people know you care about them through the giving of gifts; don’t try to make it more than that; it just is what it is. I love seeing my wife and sons open presents in as much as it adds to the magic of Christmas and promotes the heart of giving, at least it does to me.  It’s in that spirit that I hope to oblige you with some gift ideas I know your family of hunters will love!

1.  His/Hers Bowtech Compound Bows - Destroyer 350 for Him and a Heartbreaker for Her!

 Nothing says I love you like the new Bowtech 350 Destroyer or Heartbreaker! The 350 Destroyer was not designed for speed; it was designed to be a silent killer, void of buzz, hand-shock or vibration; as a bonus, with an IBO speed of 350 feet per second, it happens to be ridiculously fast, too! In keeping with Bowtech’s zero-defect approach to design and manufacturing quality, the Destroyer 350 is the new standard by which all trailing bow manufacturers should hold themselves. The Heartbreaker features the same level of innovation and premium quality but is specifically geared towards the lady huntress with a knack for the stick and string. Locally, these bows can be found at your one-stop archery shop, Rednek Booda Outdoors in Kerens; call Jerry Reeves for availability at 903-229-7750. You can also purchase archery gear directly from his website. Visit the Bowtech Archery website at www.BowtechArchery.com to learn more about these bows and other great gift ideas!

MSRP Heartbreaker $649    MSRP Destroyer 350 $949

2.  His/Hers Alpen Optics Binoculars - Rainier 10 x 42’s for Him and Pink Series 10 x 42’s for Her!

 Alpen Optics prides itself on providing premium level optics at blue-collared pricing. I’m pretty proud of them for offering that level of integrity which is why they made my Christmas list! Whether they are the Rainier Series, the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) Pink Series or any other Alpen Optics product offerings, you can expect the same uncompromising, award-winning quality and features that make them one of the premier optics companies today. The best reason to look at Alpen Optics for your optics enthusiast is simply because this company is led from the top down by hunters and outdoor enthusiasts who want to offer you the best optics possible at half the price (or more) of their competitors! They made a believer out of me! Alpen offers their Pink series of binoculars for the Huntress in your life that wants to give a little back; Alpen makes a donation to NBCF every time Pink Series binoculars are sold. Alpen has coined the term “Focus on a Cure” as a uniting battle with NBCF in their fight against this terrible disease.  See Alpen Optics’ entire line of products at www.AlpenOptics.com.

MSRP Rainier 10×42’s $1,276   MSRP Pink 393P 10×42’s $230   MSRP range $22 – $1,276

3.  Hawglite Marauder Lighting Systems

 Anyone who knows me knows I’m simply nuts about hog hunting! Few animals match the intelligence of hogs and few experiences match the excitement of hunting those Texas Grizzlies! Best of all, in Texas, we get to chase them when they’re most active, in the depths of night! “Hunt the night” with a Hawglite Marauder System. Marauder boasts between 80 – 110 lumens, depending on LED color, of highly focused light. Hawglite introduced the Marauder as a bowhunting tool but quickly designed other mounting hardware to make the Marauder the premier hunting and tactical lighting system on the market for virtually all firearms, bows and crossbows. The Marauder comes with red, white and green LED heads; these are colored LED’s not lenses – this ensures a full and focused throw of all available lumens. An adjustatble mount, remote switch tail-cap and clickie tail-cap, to convert the Marauder to a tactical flashlight, also are included. The Marauder runs on three AAA batteries. The Marauder is also great for bowfishing and predator hunting! Check out www.Hawglite.com to learn more about the Marauder or other Hawglite products that your hunters will love!

MSRP Marauder Lighting Systems $89.99 – $129.99

4.  TruGlo Archery and Firearm Sights

 While TruGlo’s Tru-Site Super Slam archery sight is the best I’ve ever owned, TruGlo boasts the greatest array of archery sights and pricing I’ve ever seen. TruGlo leads the pack when it comes to quality, fiber optic/pin brightness, ease of use and their focus on low-light hunting! If your hunter already has a TruGlo archery sight, consider upgrading or simply accessorizing. TruGlo has the best rheostat sight-lights on the market today! Whether you would prefer to gift a bowhunting sight or a target-shooting sight, multi-pin, single pin or pendulum sight, TruGlo’s got your solution! TruGlo also leads the pack in Red Dot Scopes and fiber optic sights for shotguns, rifles and handguns.  Your hunters are about to get a glimpse of TruGlo’s performance on Mossy Oak’s Turkey Thugs TV show coming to Pursuit Channel. If the most extreme turkey hunters in the country can trust TruGlo, we can too! Check out all of TruGlo’s product offerings at www.TruGlo.com!

MSRP Archery Sights $35 – $177  MSRP Red Dot Scopes $68 – $364  MSRP Fiber Optic Sights $17 – $60

 

5.  Ameristep Ground Blinds

Ameristep rolls out the welcome mat for unassuming prey with my favorite selections of their ground blinds! Both the Intimidator2 and Dominator2 offer an incredible 360-degree field of view, silence, scent containment, ease of use and functionality that has kept Ameristep users coming back season after season. No matter whether your hunter goes it alone, with you or with a buddy, the roomy, black interior fits the bill for both comfort and concealment. The DS-Technology, carbon-enhanced system helps to eliminate scent, shine and noise and the Dominator2 blind boasts a whopping 82-inches of height; Perfect for the tallest hunter in your family and a great match for longbow hunters!  You can find these blinds just about anywhere groundblinds are sold and online. Visit www.Ameristep.com to learn more about these and other great products including treestands, accessories and more!

MSRP Intimidator2  $299   MSRP Dominator2 $309.99

 

6.  BruzerGear Backpacks and Fanny Packs

BruzerGear backpacks and fanny packs offer the perfect solution for you most extreme hunters! From fanny packs to all-out backpacks with frame systems and hydration bladders, BruzerGear’s got the answer. BruzerGear packs come in both Graywolf Concealment and M2D Camouflage and are compatible with a wealth of backpack accessories, including attachments to make carrying a bow or rifle a snap! Whether your hunter likes to slip out to his favorite hunting spot or trek across the Continental Divide, BruzerGear has his style of pack. Chris Stack and his BruzerGear crew promise nothing less than customer satisfaction and they’ve delivered for me on more than one occasion! BruzerGear stands behind everything they offer with a commitment to keep your hunter coming back for more. Visit www.BruzerGear.com for more information on some great packs!

MSRP Fanny Pack $110   MSRP Backpacks $130 – $150

 

7.  Inverter Broadheads

These innovative new broadheads have stood up to the harshest tests imaginable and passed with flying colors! Watch the series of broadhead tests in the Equipment Review section of www.Just-Hunt.com. Jerry Reeves, owner of Rednek Booda Outdoors puts them through a train wreck of a test by shooting through ¾-inch angled plywood. The results were amazing! There was virtually no damage to the steel-tipped ferrule or even the blades; you could just about use that broadhead again on a real hunt!  Stephen Ward, owner of Inverter Broadheads and Arizona big game guide for Ward’s Outfitters, designed these hybrid broadheads to not only stand up to the roughest of surfaces but to be completely fail-safe as well. Closed, Inverter broadheads boast a respectable (and legal) 7/8-inch fixed cutting diameter but when they open they expand to a bone-smashing, cartilage ripping, vessel exploding 1 ½-inch cutting diameter! Blood trails are incredibly impressive and reminiscent of Rage broadheads without the possibility of failure. My friend, award winning outdoor writer and radio personality Luke Clayton would agree, these broadheads offer incredibly efficient penetration, catastrophic tissue damage and field point accuracy that rivals any big name broadhead company out there. My money is on Inverter Broadheads this winter – just ask my arrows! Watching a couple of quick videos and perusing the trophy gallery at www.inverterbroadheads.com will surely make a believer out of you and the bowhunter in your life!

MSRP 3-pack $29.99

8.  Caldwell Lead Sled

The most recognized name in the shooting equipment industry has released a shooting rest so innovative that I can sight in a rifle with one hand! The FCX is the Cadillac of the Lead Sled line and boasts as much as 95-percent recoil elimination! With the FCX, windage and elevation adjustments can be made with a single movement. While the Lead Sled is the clear leader in bench shooting, the FCX incorporates the proven history of Lead Sled with the most shooting rest improvement to blindside the industry, the Fire Control Mechanism. Fire Control allows you to make micro adjustments to get crosshairs precisely on target with one hand! If there’s a hunter or target shooter in your midst, the Lead Sled may be the answer to their prayers. Check out www.BattenfeldTechnologies.com to see the full line of Caldwell Lead Sleds and other shooting accessories!

MSRP Caldwell Shooting Rests $34.99 – $399.99  MSRP Caldwell Lead Sled FCX $399.99

9.  Spittler’s Custom Turkey Calls

In my opinion, Adam Spittler makes the best pot calls money can buy. His calls are based on various types of top surfaces including slate and glass and his sound board options are versatile as well. His vast array of wood choices, under-the-glass options and strikers is exceptional. Adam turns and builds each call personally and affixes his signature Turkey track brand to the bottom of each call. Beyond the obvious – incredible quality and sound- another great option Adam uses is his under-the-glass option. You don’t have to be satisfied with a generic gray slate or glass option with nothing underneath. How about a picture of your hunter with his biggest turkey or company logo under that glass? Sending Adam the right picture or logo to place under the glass may get you more than a call; it just might get you a family heirloom that will be cherished for generations to come. Visit Adam’s website at www.SpittlersGameCalls.com to see all of his turkey calls. Be sure to E-mail Adam at SpittlersGameCalls@Gmail.com to discuss his inventory of exotic woods, custom work and lead times. In my opinion, Spittler Custom Game Calls rank among the absolute best calls this country has to offer your turkey hunting addicts.

MSRP:  $10 – $40

10. Big Game Drag Gloves

If you’re like me you think a lot of the fun ends when you find the animal you’ve just knocked down. Field dressing and dragging are probably my least favorite activities in the woods but I’ve heard it said and I believe it, “If you’re gonna’ put ‘em down, you’re gonna’ do the work, too!” After attending my Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) Conference last August and spending time with Dean Toth, owner of Big Game Drag Glove, I’ve found out that dirty work doesn’t have to be so bad at all! Dragging deer and hogs out of the thickets can plum wear a hunter out! Dean’s gloves are leather with webbed strapping sewn into the palms. Simply Wrap the strapping around the legs and pull the gloves through, slip them on and your ready. Wrap the webbing through the palm and begin dragging. The gloves and the angle in which the straps are sewn into the palms ensure there is no binding or pinching of the hands or fingers. I literally don’t have to grip the straps at all. I simply relax my grip over the straps and begin pulling, letting my body leverage the drag out to where I can reach the animal with a vehicle; then the gloves are great for lifting! I have since used my gloves for various household chores and outdoor duties involving dragging or lifting. There is no shortage of ways these gloves can be useful at home or in the woods! Your hunter will thank you the first time he has to slip them on!  Notice the gloves on the back end of this large hog I harvested! Take a look at www.BigGameDragGlove.com to see Dean’s offerings. He even has them in pink for the huntress in your life!

MSRP $19.99

Remember the REAL reason for the season and make the Birthday Song the centerpiece of your CHRISTmas morning magic!

Kevin may be reached for questions, comments, product and outfitter reviews via e-mail at Kevinr@just-Hunt.com.

Russell Lynch, a personal friend of mine, wrote this uplifting, downright motivating article commemorating the birth of a brotherhood that will forever unite us with scores of other Americans, past, present and future. Thanks for sending out this article, brother.

Happy Birthday Leatherneck!  Semper Fidelis.

Original Post by Russell Lynch, MaxMuzzleloader.com Blog, Posted: 09 Nov 2010 09:48 PM PST

Forever A Marine

On this date, 235 years ago, in a small tavern in Philadelphia, a man by the name of Samuel Nichols gathered a group of dedicated men who stood ready to serve their country.  On that night, the very first man was enlisted into what is now known as the Worlds Finest Fighting Force: the United States Marine Corps.  Led by Nichols, they had no idea what they had begun.

To become a U.S. Marine the test is hard; everything you’ve heard about USMC boot camp is true.  Without experiencing it yourself, you can’t really understand it and I can’t really explain it.  But the rewards are worth the blood, sweat and tears it takes to pass.  And you will never be the same.  Never.

After my enlistment as an active Marine was over in 1988, my “Prior Marine” status had just begun.  It’s where I am now, it will continue until my earthly enlistment has ended.

To become a U.S. Marine requires that a person make a life-long commitment to something bigger than themselves.  Most of us don’t get that going in.  It requires commitment to God, Country and Corps.  And then the day comes when we join the ranks of “Prior Marine”, and now we add service to family and community to our list of commitments.  We have influence over everyone we come in contact with, no matter where, no matter what age.

For we are Marines for life.  We are accountable for our actions, or lack thereof, for life and beyond.  The Marine Corps doesn’t expect you to quit being a Marine once your enlistment is complete, Marines are ingrained from the first day of boot camp into a special brotherhood with a special bond, they are trained with integrity and are expected to carry on as trained, forever.

The Marine Corps expects it’s men and women to carry on after their enlistment is complete, to become leaders in society, to continue to be first to help, first to assist and first to fight, only now in our own communities instead of on foreign soil.

For those who have not been a Marine, always remember this: for 235 years, the Marine Corps has not only provided the world with the “Finest Fighting Force”, they have made a difference in countless walks of life, in the past, now and forever.

They are proud, but humble and each and every Marine since 1775 is a true American hero.

For those of you that have earned the title of U.S. Marine, you know what is expected of you, so get to it.  It’s in you to continue to serve as a Marine, now and until your death. And when your time on this earth is done, another Marine will be taking on the title of “Prior” and he/she will take it from there, and forever and beyond.  Our duty to service, our fellow Marines and all Americans is never ending.

There has never been a better time in world history to serve this great country than now.  Our country is wounded and torn and needs our service now like never before.  Remember to commit yourself to a cause bigger than yourself, and this country is just that.  America is and always will be, bigger and more important than any one person.  We have the skills and the dedication to make a difference, so reach down inside yourself and get it done.

As our USMC history has shown, there is not problem or situation that a dedicated, committed, organized group of Marines can’t get control of.

I would suggest we start at a place that we know best:  right where we are.  Show every American to your north, south, east and west to see America like a Marine does.  Let them see America through your eyes.  By doing this one thing, you have committed yourself to a cause bigger than yourself.  Just imagine an American with the same pride and integrity as they instill in Marines from day one of boot camp; an American that is proud of this country; an American that is dedicated to getting it straightened out.  And we will come through these trying times we find ourselves in, stronger and wiser.

Our country has a lot of problems right now, but nothing that Americans can’t handle.  If we look at these problems as a battle, through the eyes of a Marine, it is the perfect battle to fight and as always, one with victory on the other side.

First, we won’t be on foreign soil and we won’t be fighting a foreign enemy.  We’ll be fighting with Americans.  Secondly, we already have Marines embedded with Americans (ourselves).  As Marines, we come from all walks of life, religions, and races; we are everywhere.  Third, we the Marines, know better than anyone how to fight battles that politicians from one country or another start, but we can finish.

Although the perfect battle, it will still be a hard and long one.  Americans need jobs, healthcare, food, housing, ….the one thing that the Marines can provide to all Americans, is pride and hope.  And the best way to continue is to serve our fellow Americans is to simply let them see this country we love, through our eyes.  It costs nothing but time; we are Expert Americans, Professional Americans, and we have much to share.

As for the war we are fighting on foreign soil, every Marine needs to thank our civilian Americans for their support and prayers for ALL service members that have fought and are fighting, and those that gave their all.

To all other branches of the US Military, thank you.  Thank you for all you’ve done, thank you for all you continue do.  And please help us to continue to serve, now and forever, for you have the same great love for this country as we do.

Let the 235th Birthday of the “Worlds Finest Fighting Force” be the day we recommit ourselves to serve our country and fellow Americans.  Help one American a day, every day.  Instill in them, as it was ingrained in us, to remain faithful to the mission: don’t just be a good American, be a dedicated, pride-filled and committed one.

Happy Birthday, Semper Fi!

Forever a Marine,

Russell Lynch
Active Prior Service Marine
10 Nov 2010