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Evergreen Rubdown
By Wesley J. Cagle
One of my personal favorite tips is something I’ve done for a long time, and it really works for tricking a deer’s nose. I’m almost never winded, and have had countless deer walk within feet of me. It’s become a routine now. All I do is take fresh pine needles — preferably from a young tree — and break them ever... READ MORE
De-stinkify Your Hands
By Tim H. Martin
When I think back to the time I shot and field dressed my first buck, I can still remember the frustrations of trying to get the stink off my hands. That was nearly 40 years ago. Mind you, these were extra funky rutty hands, because I’d somehow managed to grab the buck’s hock glands while dragging it out of the woods — the classic... READ MORE
Give the Most to Your Host
By Rob ‘Buck Rub’ Cyr
If you are blessed enough to have access to hunting on private land, be thankful, but also, get to know your hosts. Think about things from the perspective of the landowner and ask yourself these questions: Are you the type of hunter YOU would enjoy having on your property? Would you enjoy having YOU around? Hopefully, your host perceives you as a ... READ MORE
Thanks, Pop! And All Hunting Mentors
By Tim H. Martin
This Thanksgiving, take a minute to thank the person who introduced you to hunting. If they have since passed, please use that minute to remember them. I am thanking my father, Larry K. Martin. Thanksgiving Day 2017 will mark exactly 40 years since he took me on my first white-tailed deer hunt. FORTY YEARS! On Thursday, November 24, 1977, I had no ... READ MORE
Three Outside-the-Box Tips
By Amy Young
Buckmasters fan Amy Young sent us three unusual tips that have helped in her hunting career. She definitely thinks outside the box!Tip One: Local Ingredient Sponges To make my own natural-scent sponges, I take local ingredients: dirt, leaves and materials from around my stand, then mix with water and strain. Next, I place the water in a sealable co... READ MORE
Bowhunting Mentality for Gun Season
By Bryan Smith
I am a 56-year-old hunter who has been chasing whitetails for 35 of those years. Bowhunting is a passion, and early in my career I learned to work hard to stay undetected by deer within spitting distance. Like most serious bowhunters, I shower with scent-free soap/shampoo, wash every item of my clothes in scent-free detergent, avoid smoke or perfu... READ MORE
The Mock Intruder Trick
By Ed Rogers
Every hunter has his or her own method of convincing big bucks to come to their stand. Here is my favorite method of luring them in. Whenever I take a buck, I remove the tarsal glands. These are the dark, smelly patches of fur located inside the big bend of each hind leg. Some hunters call them hock glands. I scrape off any meat tissue, rub a littl... READ MORE
Living Buck Sensors: Other Deer
By Tim H. Martin
When a deer approaches a treestand or steps onto a food plot, the inexperienced hunter’s instinct is to shoot it as soon as possible, or before it gets away. There’s nothing wrong with that if the only goal is to quickly fill a tag and head to the processor, but it robs beginners of important learning experiences that will serve them w... READ MORE
Of Scope Cuts and Inner Voices
By Tim H. Martin
The lone feral boar rooted in the open field 220 yards away. It was completely unaware of my presence as it swished its tail, seemingly taking pleasure in turning my friend’s pasture in to a crater field. With the winds from the remnants of Hurricane Nate swirling at the back of my neck, I knew I needed to shoot now or risk being smelled. Th... READ MORE
Buck Whispering
By Jimmy Little (as told to Tim H. Martin)
When my friend and former coworker Jimmy Little first described his favorite deer-calling tactic, I thought he was pranking me. “I talk to deer,” he said, with a completely sincere face. “And not just deer, but any animal I’m after — bears, turkey, elk . . . even fish.” I scratched my head and asked, “You m... READ MORE
Looking Past Buck Fever
By G. Frank Ridings and Tim H. Martin
Every hunter seems to have a buck fever story. Who hasn’t developed a good case of the shakes at some point in their career? This usually happens to newbie hunters, but it often affects old timers, too. I’ve discovered something about controlling buck fever I’d like to share with Buckmasters fans. Once I’ve spotted a deer a... READ MORE
For Luck or For Fun, Name Your Gun
By Tim H. Martin
Recently, I watched the movie "Full Metal Jacket." There's a scene in boot camp where one private asks another if he'd named his rifle yet, for good luck. I had to laugh, because I'd given my firearms a girl's name for as long as I could remember.Until watching the movie, I didn't know it was a Marine Corps tradition, and I didn't know it was cons... READ MORE
Taming Hoist Rope Coils
By Bryan Lewis
There are several things that annoy me when it comes to cords we use to hoist and lower our bows, backpacks, guns and gear from the treestand. Strings often get tangled and twisted in saplings, noisy leaves, sticks and clutter on the ground, and I’ve never liked the way pull cords flap in the breeze when they are hanging free. Also, once you&... READ MORE
Raking in the Bucks
By Lee Hutcherson
Hunting is my new passion, but my wife would probably say it’s my new obsession. I took up the sport three short years ago at age 43, and I’ve loved chasing whitetails in my home state of Mississippi, as well as at my club in Tennessee. Although fairly new at it, I’m learning fast, and I’m having great success. As a newbie, ... READ MORE
The School of Loose Nocks
By Scott Stricker
Last season, I learned a valuable lesson about not paying attention to nock tightness, and what can happen if you don’t re-snap your arrow to the string after drawing your bow. It might seem like small detail, but it could have big consequences. Here’s how a nock that lost its gripping power caused me to miss the buck of a lifetime as w... READ MORE
Hailing a Taxi (dermist)
By Tim H. Martin
Taxidermy has improved since the days of neck mounted, bug-eyed bucks with ears pointed straight ahead, fading fast and hair falling out in clumps. The subject of preserving your trophy is often overlooked. These tips will allow you to admire your mounts 20, 30, 40 years from now, or longer. Many hunters are not aware of what’s available to ... READ MORE
Open Field Yardage Markers
By Neal Gagner
Open fields always seem to be my favorite places to hunt. Where I live, the deer appear at the woods edge, then enter the hay or cornfields where I then have to figure out the yardage. In the deep woods, I can use my rangefinder to mark objects such as trees, rocks and stumps. But open fields rarely have distinguishing features to mark with a rang... READ MORE
Eliminate Tree-hugger Stands
By Mike Stamp
Have you ever tried to stand up and draw your bow in a fixed-position stand that had been set up crookedly? It can be scary and dangerous. When I set up my stands, I like to get them comfortably level from the get-go. That’s why I bring a 6-inch level with me on treestand setup day. First, I lay the level on the foot platform, making sure it ... READ MORE
Set BIG PICTURE Goals
By Krissy Jean Marrall
As a female who has been hunting since 1995, I've found that setting reasonable goals prior to each season has helped me develop my passion for hunting over the years. Looking back, if someone had told me to make shooting a monster buck my biggest pre-season goal, I would have become disenchanted with hunting before my career even got off the groun... READ MORE
Clamped Tail? Better Go Trail!
By Tim H. Martin
We all know the telltale signs of a deer being hit with a bullet. The obvious reactions are a hunching of the back, a bronco-like kick, stumbling, and a changing of the deer’s gait or even the animal being completely knocked down. But one important sign is much more subtle. While hunting with an outfitter in Ohio several autumns ago, I learne... READ MORE