gutless method
- brancher147
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gutless method
I am new to this site and have found a lot of good information and like minded people to my hunting style. Lots of good info for hunting smarter not harder. One thing that has made my hunting style so much easier is learning to process a deer gutless method in the woods and pack meat and head/hide out. I am now able to hunt any area without worrying how to get a deer out by myself, and once I get my deer home I have clean de-boned meat ready to easily process further. It has gotten so easy that even if I kill a deer in sight of my vehicle I will still process this way. Just wondering, how many other folks use this technique (where legal), and anybody need or have any advice to add?
Some do. Some don't. I just might...
- CarolinaKid
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Re: gutless method
Go into more detail of your process for me
- Mountain Man
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Re: gutless method
I use it out west for antelope and deer.
Here is a good video from Randy Newburg where he does it on a whitetail.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbnp82DWMCE
Here is a good video from Randy Newburg where he does it on a whitetail.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbnp82DWMCE
- Kraftd
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Re: gutless method
AS some of the res have changed we have touched base on that on here from time to time. Issue is on many midwestern states, where a lot of us hunt, it isn't allowed. Many states still require you to bring all the bones and hide out. Also some states have a maximum number of pieces the deer can be broken into (WI is five for instance). Certainly can help though where it is allowed. Personally I'm kind of a fanatic about getting as much off the animal is possible and like having the carcass hanging where possible to do that. Also, don't sleep on organ meat and caul fat!
- hunter_mike
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Re: gutless method
I used it on my antelope i shot a couple weeks ago. Deboned the meat and put in game bags, picked that carcass clean and got pretty much all the meat off that I could. Not much to an antelope once it is deboned. Made my 1.2 mile walk back to camp relatively easy with the whole thing on my back. One thing I would have liked to improve on was the amount of hair and grass and a little dirt I got on the meat, other than a little more trimming than normal, I liked it. Seemed like the most practical way to do it.
For keeping hair/dirt/grass off the meat, I saw on youtube some guy brought just a small piece of tyvek with him to lay meat out on. I thought that looked like a smart idea and will hopefully remember to bring something like that next time.
It would be useful to do on a whitetail in some instances but it is mostly illegal/gray area in WI. I do like the idea of removing the big buck rib cage from the hot spot that you killed him in though, so as not to give away your killing spot.
For keeping hair/dirt/grass off the meat, I saw on youtube some guy brought just a small piece of tyvek with him to lay meat out on. I thought that looked like a smart idea and will hopefully remember to bring something like that next time.
It would be useful to do on a whitetail in some instances but it is mostly illegal/gray area in WI. I do like the idea of removing the big buck rib cage from the hot spot that you killed him in though, so as not to give away your killing spot.
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- bowfreak8
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Re: gutless method
I have packed out a couple deer to avoid long drags.
- stash59
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Re: gutless method
hunter_mike wrote:I used it on my antelope i shot a couple weeks ago. Deboned the meat and put in game bags, picked that carcass clean and got pretty much all the meat off that I could. Not much to an antelope once it is deboned. Made my 1.2 mile walk back to camp relatively easy with the whole thing on my back. One thing I would have liked to improve on was the amount of hair and grass and a little dirt I got on the meat, other than a little more trimming than normal, I liked it. Seemed like the most practical way to do it.
For keeping hair/dirt/grass off the meat, I saw on youtube some guy brought just a small piece of tyvek with him to lay meat out on. I thought that looked like a smart idea and will hopefully remember to bring something like that next time.
It would be useful to do on a whitetail in some instances but it is mostly illegal/gray area in WI. I do like the idea of removing the big buck rib cage from the hot spot that you killed him in though, so as not to give away your killing spot.
Yeah something to lay the meat on is a must. Especially bigger pieces. You often need to pull the game bags over and around those if your solo. If your going into hilly country. Doubling over the Tyvek edges. Then sewing it with a rope in the fold will be a plus. Maybe even some grommets. So you can stake it in place. So it won't slide on you.
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Re: gutless method
You can do gutless on a deer on a gimbal or hung by it's horns. Nothing real fancy - you can reach in under the shortribs and grab the tenderloins.
We only gut 'em when we have to drag them.
We only gut 'em when we have to drag them.
- Lockdown
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Re: gutless method
I would love to be able to do that. I inquired to the DNR last year and they require us to take everything out with us. Head, bones, hide. Everything but guts. "We consider it littering"
- tgreeno
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Re: gutless method
It looks like a great option for out west or in the mountains.
I don't ever see myself doing it other than those situations. It only takes 15 minutes to gut them.
I don't ever see myself doing it other than those situations. It only takes 15 minutes to gut them.
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- john1984
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Re: gutless method
In 2015 I cut my buck in halves. Last year I quartered my buck and hauled it out in 3 separate trips.
- pewpewpew
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Re: gutless method
I've done it. The only tricky part is getting the tenderloins. Takes 15 mins tops. No saw needed.
It's almost impossible to drag a deer in the terrain I hunt. A mile drag in hills to the closest road is suicide.
It's almost impossible to drag a deer in the terrain I hunt. A mile drag in hills to the closest road is suicide.
- elk yinzer
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Re: gutless method
I've done it for 6 deer now and it's the way to go. Any drag longer than 400 yards or involving a steep hill, out come the backpack and game bags.
One thing I will really emphasize is it takes practice. Like anything in life. The first couple deer you do, until you get the movements down, expect to see a little more dirt and hair than usual. Once you practice it a few times it becomes second nature. The ones I do now are just as clean as if it were hanging at home. And I take no tarps along, only need those if you debone the meat.
One thing I especially like about it is not having to gut them. Anyone who has killed a lot of deer with a bow knows how thoroughly pleasant it is to cut into one that's been laying dead a few hours or overnight. With the gutless method you don't go into the guts until the very end to grab the tenderloins, heart and liver. It's wonderful.
One thing I will really emphasize is it takes practice. Like anything in life. The first couple deer you do, until you get the movements down, expect to see a little more dirt and hair than usual. Once you practice it a few times it becomes second nature. The ones I do now are just as clean as if it were hanging at home. And I take no tarps along, only need those if you debone the meat.
One thing I especially like about it is not having to gut them. Anyone who has killed a lot of deer with a bow knows how thoroughly pleasant it is to cut into one that's been laying dead a few hours or overnight. With the gutless method you don't go into the guts until the very end to grab the tenderloins, heart and liver. It's wonderful.
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- brancher147
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Re: gutless method
CarolinaKid wrote:Go into more detail of your process for me
My process is pretty simple. First try to get the deer to a flat spot (not easy to do in mountains I hunt). Then I cut the hide directly on the spine from the tail to the neck/shoulders (obviously more care needs to be taken to cape out a trophy to get mounted). You can then start to skin back the hide on the hams or the shoulders on half of the deer that is exposed. The backstrap on that side can then be removed and with a little more skinning I de-bone meat off the hams and shoulders. After backstrap is removed, you can reach below the spine and work the inner loins out-sometimes this requires some cutting with a knife. Then I flip the deer over and repeat on the other side. I am careful not to get hair on the meat, and depending on what I am doing with the meat I may cut ham/shoulder meat directly into large roasts when de-boning. As I am taking meat off the deer I place it directly in 2 gallon ziploc bags, then load the bags in my backpack leaving the bag top open to let heat leave the bags. I have never used game bags and they may work better, IDK. If I can drive to the deer and have a truck and can easily load deer I will load it in the bed and skin gutless method on the tailgate just to save my back and keep from bending over. A whole deer takes me about half an hour using this method, and I never have to gut a deer unless I want the heart (which occasionally I do). So much quicker and easier than gutting, dragging, loading in truck, unloading, hanging, skinning, cutting meat off bone-Is for me anyway...
Some do. Some don't. I just might...
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Re: gutless method
When I skin a deer hanging by its head/horns - I ring the neck and then use a knife with a hook and cut down the spine and the front. Peel it like a banana.
Works even better on pigs.
Works even better on pigs.
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