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Spaulding Smails

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Everything posted by Spaulding Smails

  1. So, we officially cancelled our goose trip that was scheduled for next week. I talked to our guide, and he hasn't seen a goose from El Campo to Port Lavaca in the last two weeks. He said this has been the worst goose season he's ever seen (been hunting there for 30+ years).
  2. @crimsonlonghorn I like that setup. Especially if you're moving it around. How much does it weigh?
  3. I did build it myself. And I thought I could get it done in one weekend. WRONG. Three weekends later and several trips to the hardware store, and I finally finished. I spent about double what I was planning too. It was actually a lot of fun, though. I did access panels in the back so you don't need to go into the coop to get the eggs. All cedar with a screw-down galvanized metal roof. Should be good to go for many moons.
  4. Check out Hal Higdon's programs if you haven't already. Great for race prep, but also nice if you just want some variety in your routine while maintaining a consistent program. I'm not training for anything in particular right now (which is why I need to lose about 15 lbs and I'm slower than I've been in 10 years), but I still mix in tempo runs, hill work and intervals. I've found that the variety helps a ton mentally and keeps me at a respectable pace even though I'm only running 3-4 times/week. https://www.halhigdon.com
  5. I believe the dark brown egg is from the maran. I'll have to check with my son. He's the one that checks for eggs and seems to know who's laying what and where. She seems to be our most consistent layer. The americanas were slow to lay, but I love the blue eggs. Those lights were some cheap battery-powered LED lights. Three strands at like $15/ea. Perfect ambiance. They have a little remote, so when you walk out to the coop at night, you just take the remote with you from the house and hit it as you're walking up. Makes counting chickens much easier.
  6. Here's our setup. It was our first go-round with chickens, but my wife and kids absolutely love it. For the most part, ours stay put, and they head back to the coop after dusk. Really low maintenance. The coop is varmint-tight. Buried metal flashing 12" below grade to keep critters from digging under. Our only real threat is something during the day while they browse or if we forget to close the door to the coop. We started with a dozen pullets and two straight-run ducks this spring. The ten chickens and two ducks came from Callahan's, and they were great. We lost one chick to pasty butt early on. The other two chickens we got from Triple S Feed here in Dripping. They were in the pullet cage, but seeing that we ended up with two roosters, they were obviously straight run. They were our two favorites (Brahma and blue laced red wyandotte), but we had to give them away. No roosters allowed in our neighborhood. Kept both ducks though we ended up with one hen and one drake. My lab got two more chickens (one buff orpington, one maran). So, we're down to seven chickens and two ducks. Duck eggs are awesome, BTW. Other than the ducks, we still have two salmon faverolles, one Jersey giant, one maran, one buff orpington, and two americanas). it's interesting to watch their personalities. Some are passive. Others aggressive. Heck, the buff orpington will jump in your lap if you feed her dried mealworms. We'll be getting 6-8 more this spring. The eggs are so damn good. Hard to go back to store bought after having fresh eggs in the backyard.
  7. Where in South Texas? I hunted down there for 10+ years and shot a few like this. But, this one is more straight-up than I've seen. Very strange. My uncle still hunts in that area (Live Oak / Duval border). He shot this guy earlier this year. They aged him at 5.5. Nickname was "Super Freak".
  8. <50 lb, and I'm going full poacher's quarter. >50 lb, and I'm dragging it into the woods to feed the buzzards. We killed two little sows (35 lb each) right before Christmas. Those were some of the most tender backstraps I've ever had. My entire family loved them, including my wife who usually steers away from wild game. Conversely, I shot a 100 lb boar at the start of deer season and his ass was nasty. Covered in ticks and I could smell him from 20 ft away. I wasn't about to touch that meat.
  9. Depends on the set up of the ranch. If they're just dropping you in a blind, then I would hope they have been watching movements or have some idea of location, etc. Pigs get wise and get nocturnal if you whack em under the feeder hunt after hunt. From my experience, even when they're not nocturnal, they're moving right at first light and last light. Get in the blind plenty early in the morning and stay plenty late in the evening. If you're shooting a semi-automatic rifle, take dead aim on the first one, but see if you can pop a few more once they start to run. Also, eat steaks and drink whiskey and have fun.
  10. We had a pretty awesome week last week. Headed out to the ranch late Christmas Day. We're just getting everything buttoned up, so it was the first time I took my wife and all three kids to stay the night. My mom and dad came up as well and brought my 85 year old grandmother. She grew up in Knippa on a ranch, so she loved being out there. It was nice to not work our asses off and actually sit back and enjoy the place. My dad hunted Christmas evening and saw a cull buck that we've had our eye on. So, my son and I went to that stand Wednesday morning. He came out to the feeder shortly after the timer went off. We watched him for a bit with another small buck. It took him a while to clear the feeder and the other deer, but my son put a decent shot on him. He pulled it a bit and missed the vitals, but I knew he hit him solidly. He limped back into the brush and we watched him just stand there for a good 30 min. He started to move and was walking towards the back fence line, so I decided to hop out of the blind and head around his flank in the hopes of pushing him back away from the fence line. The strategy worked, and he moved back behind the feeder. I lost sight of him, so I headed back to the feeder. My son did a great job of keeping the binoculars on him and saw him tucked back in a little clearing at about 150 yds. He put a good shot on him that time and dropped him. It's his first buck and the first deer taken on our new ranch. Nothing special, but a good cull buck for a 10 year old. About 140 lb on the hoof and we aged him at 3.5 years. He was stoked. We enjoyed the morning together skinning and quartering him, ate a big late breakfast, then went out and popped a few dove that afternoon. Just a damn fine day. Followed that up with my annual duck hunt this weekend. Much slower than in years past. We think it was the fact that there's so many ponds full right now. One bird shy of two 5-man limits, but those took two hours instead of 30 minutes. Had to work harder than in years past and had some long shots on occasion, but we made it work. Also didn't have the variety that we've had in the past. Lots of teal, a few gadwall and widgeon, and too many ring necks. But, it was still a blast. We're just spoiled.
  11. That dude had been scrapping this year! Love wide racks that don't kick back in at the end of the main beam. Nice job!
  12. My company seems to work on a ton of projects that fit into this motif from an architectural standpoint. It's one of the styles (along with true modern) that I don't care for personally, but have a true appreciation of from a stylistic and craftsmanship perspective. It's so simple, sleek and elegant, but hard to pull off properly. It accentuates space and compliments it instead of dominating it. Really a tough design concept to do well, but when done so properly, it makes a space. And, it's a really great feeling to see the true MCM architecture complimented by true MCM furnishings.
  13. Depends on how you are going to hunt. If from dry land and someone else is putting out decoys and retrieving dead ducks, then just warm clothes and gloves. If you and boy will be getting in the water, then waders will be needed. Other than that, a facemask, license, waterfowl stamp, steel shotgun shells and your shotgun. This is exactly right. When I duck hunt with a guide, it's pretty simple. Be warm, have license / stamp, shotgun / shells. If I'm hunting for myself, my list grows by 3X. 5X if you factor in my dog and his stuff. We're headed out tomorrow, and my buddy has decoys galore. It's going to be chilly, so my list for the blind is as follows: Waders + boots, long johns, wool socks, base layer, fleece shirt, heavy jacket, gloves with removable fingers, camo beanie with built-in headlamp, face mask, neoprene shell belt, duck straps, shotgun, 3" #4 steel shot, ziplock bags, game shears, knife, calls, dog's neoprene vest, eCollar and a big thermos for coffee
  14. Great point. Totally different ballgame if I had a little one or my dog in the truck. Funny enough, I talked to my uncle last night and told him the story. He said the same damn thing happened at his ranch about a month ago. Except it was raining and cold and he's 60 and his truck has 150,000 miles, so it took him 45 minutes of screwing with the door before he decided to break a back window with a piece of angle iron.
  15. Echoing what others have said, Fine Lumber and Dakota are the best for finish grade plywood and lumber in Austin. Houston Hardwoods and Mason's Mill in H-Town are legit. We actually buy a ton from Mason's Mill and have it shipped in for larger projects. They're cheaper even when factoring in delivery on larger orders, plus they have more knifing capabilities than most.
  16. So, we had a tale of two weekends at the ranch. Part 1 Got up to the ranch Saturday afternoon. Weather was perfect. Had a great hunt Saturday night with my son. Lots of deer, but no shooters. We're trying to put him on a cull buck at our place before we head to my uncle's ranch in South Texas. Got back to the cabin and enjoyed steaks and some good company with by BIL and my nephew around the campfire. Watched the stars and turned in at a decent hour. Another great hunt Sunday morning. Several doe and a small axis buck. My BIL had a big group of pigs come in to the stand just before shooting light. They bolted when the feeder went off, but he was able to knock down two perfect sows before they cleared the area. We got out of the stand early and processed the pigs. Had a breakfast beer and listened to Townes Van Zandt while we quartered them. Just a really nice morning. Part 2 My BIL had to head back at a decent hour to get my nephew to a birthday party. They left about 9:30. I wanted to push the timers back on the feeders a bit and I needed to clean up camp, so we stayed around. I have a new truck (maybe two weeks old... that part is important), and I turned it on, threw my phone on the charger and started loading up. I shut the drivers side door and went back to the house to grab our bags. Got back to the truck, and it was locked. You may say, "Spaulding, don't you have keyless entry?" And the answer is yes. BUT, Ford somehow neglected to put the card with the code in the owners manual. Going back to the dealership to get that code was on my to-do list this week. As was mounting a spare under the body. So, here I am. Truck running. Keys on the console. Phone on the console. I'm in the middle-of-nowhere Kimble County. I don't know the neighbors yet. Nobody else around. No phone at the cabin. Nada. Fuck. At least I have beer. So, I start to think. What do I have in my toolbox and in the shop? I find my dad's plastic speed square. And some felt pads we were using for the bottom of the furniture. And an electrician's fish tape. I'm in business. So, I'm able to wedge open the door using the speed square and the felt pads without scratching the paint just enough to get the fish tape in the cabin. This takes me about 25 minutes (that's an important piece of information). I'm dangling this fish tape around, trying to push the unlock button, the windows, the moon roof, the sliding window in the back. ANYTHING. I just can't get any leverage to press hard enough. The handles are reverse of an old style truck in that you push down instead of lifting up. As I'm reaching to try and open the moon roof, the fish tape is sort of bobbing in the middle of the cabin and somehow taps the screen in the middle of the dash. My favorites contact list was up on the screen and I managed to dial my business partner. He answers. I'm yelling at him through glass. He's confused and says he can barely hear me. I'm thinking "No shit. I'm outside of a running truck standing on a step stool." I tell him to call my wife to have her call my BIL to have him turn around and come back to the ranch. He hangs up, and thirty seconds later, the truck shuts off. There's an auto-idle shut-off that kicks in after 30 minutes if you don't put it in gear. So, now my phone is blowing up. My wife, my BIL, my business partner. And, of course, I can't answer it. I'm hoping my message got through, but I knew my BIL had to get home. I'm not sure if my wife would try to drive up and bring me the spare key, or if my dad would drive up, or if my BIL would turn around or if we were stuck. Since the truck is no longer running, I can't try to use the power windows to get it open. My only option is the unlock button... or the keys. After about 30 minutes, I'm finally able to grab the keys with the fish tape. All I have on the key ring is the truck keyless start (no actual truck key) and a Yeti bottle opener. Very carefully, I bring the fish tape back to the door with out falling. I start pulling them gently through the opening. I get the bottle opener through. I'm on cloud nine! I pull gently... and the key ring pulls apart. I have a bottle opener in hand, and the keys fall to the floor board next to the door. Fuck me. So, I try a myriad of other options. I try to grab the lock on the back door, try to access from the other side across the cabin. I just can't get any leverage with the fish tape. I can't push hard enough on anything to get it to open. It's 1:30 now. I've been at this for 3.5 hours. I'm mentally exhausted and getting frustrated. My son and his buddy are getting bored, but they've patiently stayed away. I figure we'll go for a walk and adjust the feeders and I can clear my head. The next options are to walk to the neighboring ranch to see if anyone is home. Option 2 is stay the night again and wait for my dad who's coming up Monday morning to meet the electrician. Option 3 is break a window. I write a little sign on a piece of cardboard and stick it on the back of the truck saying we're out for a walk. Just as we leave, I hear a truck pulling up. It's my BIL. With a locksmith right behind him. He gets us unlocked in less than 5 minutes. So, I guess all's well that ends well. We got home much later than anticipated. My nephew missed a birthday party. But, other than that, we just have a good story to tell.
  17. Cross post in one of the hunting threads. This is Murphy. Murphy is my right hand man. Goes to work with me. Hunts with me. Plays with the kids. Watches the house. He's a good dude. He is also a bad ass. And a bird retrieving machine.
  18. I've refrained from chiming in on this thread for a while, but the dog thing struck a chord. I love to bird hunt. Dove, duck, goose, quail, pheasant. All of it. I absolutely prefer wild birds, but I also like to work my dog, and we'll buy a few dozen quail 2-3 time a year so he can work. Dove, duck and goose hunting lends more control to your dog, but the first time I took my dog quail hunting, I was a nervous wreck. Hell, I was afraid I'd do something stupid. I can't tell you how protective I am of my dog and how belligerent I am on gun safety with my son (at all times) and with my guests when my dog is around. There are no second chances when you pull the trigger. I won't let anyone shoot quail anywhere near my dog until I've had a chance to watch them. Regardless of the cost or the training, that's my best friend, dammit. I have no idea how I'd react if someone blasted my dog. Dude doesn't point, but is a flushing / retrieving machine. He's a great family dog, but flips the switch when the gun comes out of the safe. With my kids, it's all about repetition. I love the idea of the laser pointer. I'll ask them 20-30 times while we're hunting, "where is your barrel pointed." We check and re-check the chamber, we talk about crossing fences and climbing stands. Hell, we took my six year old daughter out to the ranch a few weeks ago. I laid down the laws to her the same way I did with my son at that age, and she was too freaked out to shoot the BB gun that afternoon.
  19. In a time crunch, I've used honey instead of sugar. Tends to give it a nice golden color much quicker.
  20. This is awesome. You should start a new thread when you're ready so we can track / ridicule / judge / appreciate / applaud / be envious of you without getting side tracked on all of our other day trips.
  21. Friday party for my employees (approx 60) at the office: Shrimp boil to include taters, onions, cauliflower, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, sausage Sunday evening (first night of guests): Blackened redfish, shrimp & grits with andouille sausage, collard greens, homemade French bread and bread pudding with homemade ice cream and bourbon sauce Christmas Eve: Beef tenderloin, béarnaise sauce, mushrooms, asparagus, loaded mashed potatoes, rosemary bread with olive oil, and pumpkin cheesecake / chocolate pecan pie for dessert Christmas Morning: Homemade cinnamon buns and breakfast casserole Christmas Day: Beer-belly turkey on the smoker, venison sausage, pinto beans, German potato salad and cookie cake a la mode for dessert Needless to say, I need to up my run mileage to offset this pending caloric onslaught.
  22. Spam Buffalo Vienna Sausages Fritos spicy bean dip Chef Boyardee ravioli And, if we're going with just stuff that is pre-packaged, give me V&V smoked sausage all day long.
  23. May have to change plans this coming weekend. I was going to take my son out to our place to shoot a doe. We haven't had any bucks that I'm terribly excited about taking, but we're heavy on the doe side of the equation. We haven't done a formal survey yet, but the numbers seem to indicate that we need to thin out the female side of the equation. We finally got the A-frame set up, so we have a decent cleaning station as of last week. We had been holding off on shooting anything other than hogs for the simple fact that quartering a deer is infinitely easier when you have the right set up. My uncle called Sunday and invited my son and I down to his place. He said he's heavy on management bucks and needs to take a few out. May be this weekend or may be some time in January. Waiting for schedules to sync up. Regardless, one of these guys would make a great first buck for the boy.
  24. It certainly does. I opted for the F350 solely based on increased gooseneck towing capacity. We need a larger (heavier) dump trailer and I'm upgrading to a gooseneck flatbed so I can haul both our Bobcats on the same load. Price difference between F250 and F350 was relatively negligible and gave more versatility.
  25. @Anastasis I think that's just internal decay. Pretty common among Red Oaks. Half my Red Oaks have similar voids. Cue @cactusflinthead to either confirm my statement or tell me I'm full of shit.
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