Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

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Sam Ubl
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Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby Sam Ubl » Thu Aug 23, 2018 3:21 am

Whoa, tug the reigns before you go off...

Opinions aren't kept quiet anymore, not since social media and forum websites were deployed. The hype around public land has grown louder and louder over the last several years, however, so have misguided assumptions that killing big bucks on private land is suddenly easy. As if private land is a "gimme," and the nature of mature bucks is of a different IQ than those of public lands.

I have my opinions, but I want to hear yours before I chime in. So... Is hunting private land easier than hunting public land? Do private land hunters lose credibility for their successes, at least compared to public land bucks?


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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby BradC36 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 3:40 am

I've killed 1 good buck on public, lost 1 good buck on public, 3 on private. There's public that is better hunting than private and private that is better hunting than public. I think it's asinine when guys take credibility away from those hunting private ground. Some of the private I've hunted over the years is TOUGH, and you're bound by property lines, sharing with other hunters in a closer vicinity, etc.

As far as credibility of hunters, there's a lot of guys out there that just plain old have a good spot, or are in a good location/situation. I don't take enough time to know or care how other guys do what they do. There's only a small handful of people I talk hunting with, bounce ideas off of, or take advice that they may have for me. Some hunt public, some private, some both, and not all are what most people would define as "successful".
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby kripp53 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 3:56 am

I think a lot of it depends on the situation. If you're hunting on permission on private land with 20 other random guys that also got permission...that could be a tough hunt. Do you own 300 acres of land that you can put food plots wherever you want and you're the only one hunting....still tough but you can control pressure and habitat, I would say you have better opportunity there.

Either way it is hard to kill a mature buck, I think it comes down to opportunity. You can have good opportunity on public and private.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby Primetime41 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:03 am

If you took a piece of land, and in one scenario made it public, and in the other scenario made it private, the hunting would likely be more difficult in the public land scenario. That being said, no two pieces are the same in real life. And there are too many factors to make blanket statements that private is easier.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby MOBIGBUCKS » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:04 am

I wouldn't say killing big bucks is easy anywhere..

It's still a very small percentage of guys that actually kill most of the bigger deer. Public or private setups
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby Josh_S » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:05 am

killing big bucks in private land is NOT EASY, but I do believe it is EASIER than public if pressure is minimal. I have a small piece of private I hunt with some very good potential, but the land owner lets anybody hunt here. Because of this it gets over hunted, so outside of opening day and a couple rut evenings when does are feeding, I don't even waste my time here.

Assuming you at least have some good bedding, It's all about pressure.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby thwack16 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:08 am

I'm with MOBIGBUCKS... It isn't easy anywhere. But, private certainly has conveniences that allow bucks to grow older and potentially feel safer to move further distances in daylight.

By the same token, there is a lot of private that is 1000x times more pressured than certain chunks of public. Public being able to limit access to chunks and restrict seasons, can certainly create pockets where deer are less pressured than many private pieces.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby elk yinzer » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:09 am

Managed private land is easier, absolutely no doubt, but then it becomes about setting higher goals, letting deer get mature, etc. And I acknowledge it's a ton of work, managing and farming deer that frankly I have zero desire to take on. It's not really a matter of credibility, or respect, just frankly I could care less about that style of hunting. It's a whole difference world, like the NBA being an NHL fan, it's out there, but it's a totally different sport I could give two chits about. I respect Lebron as the best baller in the land, but I could really care less about him in the same way I respect what Lee and Tiff do, but I could really care less about their hunting and accomplishments. Good for them, it's not hate or jealousy, but it's not on my radar because we are not playing the same game. Do I think that style of hunting is good for our lifestyle or in the spirit of the North American Conservation Model? No, I do not, but that's another story.

That said I am talking about large parcels of managed private land. Most private land in my neck of the woods gets just as much pressure as the public, oftentimes more pressure. Like I said in the sister thread, I grew up hunting those places but now I have too much good public to deal with the associated hassles and headaches at those type private parcels.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby Chuck B » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:38 am

Good question. Looking forward to reading more replies.

As others have stated, some public is better than private and visa versa. I can tell you one thing from my personal observation, I see more pressure around our private land (neighbors and my family) than I've experienced with some of the public I have started hunting.

Also, another note, is that a lot of guys don't even have the option for public near where they live (that is the case for me). Its fine for me, as I hunt both my private and public 2 hours from my house and I am lucky enough to have a flexible job and supporting (usually :D ) wife and a cabin to stay at, that allows me to travel and hunt 2 hours away. But, for a lot of my buddies that live near me, that's not even an option. So, to diss on them for hunting private versus public would be a unfair assessment.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby Dewey » Thu Aug 23, 2018 4:54 am

Never hunted on private so I can't really say but my thinking is not all private is equal. Some private land is probably very heavily pressured worse than any public. On that land I'm betting bucks are extremely hard to kill. A huge tract of managed private that is hunted lightly would a night and day difference. Can't say the bucks would be easier to kill but you cannot argue the highly increased opportunities that would exist compared to just about any public land would up your odds dramatically.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby headgear » Thu Aug 23, 2018 5:05 am

Sam Ubl wrote:Is hunting private land easier than hunting public land?


On average the answer is yes, you can control pressure to a degree and than can be huge. With that said I will echo what others have brought up, you need to take it on a case by case basis, not all private is equal and not all public is equal. I hunt plenty of public that is better than the private next door because they pressure is too great and they never set foot on the wet public land.

Sam Ubl wrote:Do private land hunters lose credibility for their successes, at least compared to public land bucks?


I wouldn't see why anyone would lose credibility, mature bucks are hard to take anywhere. I might appreciate the struggles on public land a bit more because I live them and understand the challenges better but I still plenty respect and cheer for the private land guys on this site. We are all hunters doing the thing we love and that is more important than any public vs private debate.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby Jeff25 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 5:42 am

I think the image of hunting private land is associated with the tv hunters and their 500-1000 acre deer hunting paradises that have very little pressure, but that is not reallity for 90% of hunters. I sometimes think hunting private is more difficult in my instance. The largest tract I have is 60 acres, the other 3 are under 30, so there is only so much I can do to get on deer. It would be more luck than anything for me to kill a big deer on them because I’m just sitting and hoping one will come to me.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby brancher147 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 5:45 am

I don't think either one is easier or harder, just different. And I don't really get why people want to label one or the other as easier or harder. Both have advantages and disadvantages based on many, many factors, and take time to learn, and no two are exactly the same. Killing a big buck anywhere is not easy, unless it is just dumb luck which can happen anywhere. Different people have different skills, and are better adapted to different scenarios that are presented on different landscapes no matter what the land ownership is. I have killed every big buck on my wall on public and never killed a big buck on private and I hunt more private than public now. But I kill a ton of does on private, and have had a lot of close encounters with big bucks on private. It just depends....

I think to suggest a hunter could lose credibility for killing big bucks on one or the other is ridiculous.
Last edited by brancher147 on Thu Aug 23, 2018 5:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby PK_ » Thu Aug 23, 2018 5:45 am

It can be easy on either.

It can be next to impossible on either as well.
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Re: Killing Big Bucks on Private is Easy

Unread postby blackwidow » Thu Aug 23, 2018 6:00 am

Big mature bucks are never easy....not for me anyways. Everything is situation dependent. Tract size, pressure, time of year, habitat, state, access, etc. Just because a big buck spends time on private ground, that doesn't make it any less of an accomplishment to put your tag on him.


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