Beretta M9A1 vs Beretta 92A1: Is One Better? Is There Even A Difference?

If you’re looking for a big double-stack but won’t have a darn thing to do with tactical Tupperware, two guns you might wind up considering are the Beretta 92A1 vs. M9A1. You might further ponder just what the heck the difference actually is…and if it’s worth paying for.

There are some differences, but they’re subtle; there’s nothing overwhelmingly different about one compared to the other. However, the differences that are there might add up for some people.

Beretta 92A1 Is Actually A Detuned 96

What you don’t know from looking at the two pistols is that the Beretta 92A1 is not an upgraded trim level of the Beretta 92FS, Beretta’s classic Wonder Nine. It’s actually a toned-down Beretta 96.

The Beretta 96 is a Beretta 92 that’s been overbuilt a bit in order to accommodate the .40 S&W round instead of 9mm Parabellum, the typical chambering. If you were to look at the internals of the slide, you’d see a buffer in the frame (it’ll run +P without issue) and a thicker nose in the 92A1 compared to the 92FS or the M9 family. Essentially, a Beretta 96A1 converted to 9mm.

Another difference from the standard 92FS is the 92A1 is railed, with a Picatinny rail machined into the dust cover. It has a fully rounded trigger guard in lieu of the classic Beretta trigger guard shape and comes with white 3-dot sights as standard, though you can swap them for night sights or fiber optics as both front and rear sights are dovetailed. The recoil spring, for those who get hung up on this aspect, is fully captured.

As for the measurements, you get 4.9 inches of falling-block barrel. The gun stands 5.4 inches tall, 8.5 inches long and 1.5 inches wide, weighing 33.3 ounces unloaded…but then again you knew this thing was a brick. One of the party pieces is that it accepts 17-round magazines, two more than the standard 92.

So…it’s big, it’s bulky, but it capacity is substantial, the gun is if anything overbuilt. This is a gun you can count on to save your bacon, anywhere and everywhere, all day every day, with a bit of care. MSRP is $775, which isn’t terrible considering this gun will probably last the rest of your life.

Beretta M9A1: Marine Corps Cooked Up A Classic

The Beretta M9A1 is an upgraded Beretta M9. The upgrade came about after the US Marine Corps found a number of shortcomings with the standard issue M9 and told Beretta what they’d like changed.

First was adding a mil-standard Picatinny rail, with a longitudinal channel cut through the middle of the rail. The magazine well is beveled, for more reliable reloads. The frontstrap and backstrap of the grips are checkered, for a better grip, and a thinner trigger guard for easier one-handed operation.

Sights are three dot, and the controls are ambidextrous decocking safety levers. The standard magazines are coated with physical vapor deposits (PVD) for more reliable operation in desert environments, though the M9A1 ships with 15-round boxes rather than 17. The M9A3, however, does come with the 17-round magazines. The recoil spring is not, however, fully captured.

The tale of the tape? The only differences are the M9A1 weighs 33.9 ounces, and lists for $750 MSRP. Otherwise, everything else is the same.

Beretta 92A1 vs M9A1: Do The Differences Matter That Much?

There are only a few differences between the Beretta 92A1 vs M9A1. First, the 92A1 is built a little thicker in places. The 92A1 has a rounded trigger guard, almost reminiscent of the 1911. The M9A1 has the classic Beretta trigger guard, albeit a touch thinner.

The rail on the 92A1 is different, in that it doesn’t have the longitudinal channel through the middle of the rail. The 92A1 lacks the beveled magazine well and ships with 17-round magazines. The M9A1, however, has more aggressive grip texturing. You can upgrade front and rear sights on the 92A1, but only the rear sights on the M9A1 without needing a machine shop.

Thing about the 92 platform is that it isn’t the best carry gun compared to most other popular pistols for that purpose like, say, a Glock 19 or M&P Shield. You can, of course, and some do…but most people wouldn’t. Really, a person gets a 92-platform pistol as a home defense gun, truck gun or something like that. Either gun will excel. They are accurate, they are reliable and plenty of people have and currently do bet their lives on them.

That said, the 92A1 has a bit more in terms of features. If you’re the sort that upgrades sights as a matter of course…it’s the gun for you, but carry holsters will be a little rarer because of the rounded trigger guard. Either way…you get an absolute hoss of a gun.

Have you shot these firearms? What did you like, and what didn’t you?Let us know in the comments below!

So you’re heading out on your big elk hunt and considering which caliber to use. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced hunter, choosing the right one for the job is essential. After all, your success depends on it! To help make this decision easier, we’ve compiled a comprehensive guide outlining some of our favorite — and the best — calibers for elk hunting.

How we determined the best caliber for elk hunting.

There’s not a single rifle cartridge that can be called the “best” for elk hunting. The perfect rifle cartridge for the hunt depends on various factors, including the terrain, the type of game hunting, and personal preference. However, after much research and discussion, we’ve identified a few top categories that stand out from the crowd regarding elk hunting.

• Best caliber overall. This one is a bit of an all-rounder caliber and can be used in various hunting scenarios. We wanted to find an elk cartridge that could cover everything, so we focused on several calibers widely accepted and proven to work well in different scenarios.
• Best caliber for long-range elk hunting. Long-range shooting is a popular way of taking down game from a distance. We had to consider bullet drop, wind drift, and the effective range of the cartridge.
• Best caliber for brush hunting. Brush hunting requires staying essentially relatively close to your prey while stalking them. As such, recoil becomes an important factor when selecting a cartridge. We prioritized calibers offering minimal recoil and fast follow-up shots.
• Best lightweight caliber. One of the most important things to consider when elk hunting is weight. You’ll carry your rifle for extended periods, and a light caliber can make all the difference in how much you enjoy the hunt. We looked at calibers that offered good power without the extra bulk.
• Best caliber for take-down power. If you’re hunting elk, especially in the western states with large herds, you want a caliber that will pack enough punch to take down a big bull. We looked at calibers with proven knockdown power and deep penetration capabilities.

Now that we’ve established what we were looking for in these categories let’s discuss why finding an elk cartridge that is perfect for you is crucial.

The importance of finding the right caliber for your elk hunt.

For elk hunting, accuracy and consistency are king. You need a cartridge to do the job without being overly powerful or cumbersome. An elk cartridge that is too slow will leave you with meat damage, while one that’s too fast can cause excessive recoil and shoot through the animal instead of stopping it in its tracks.

The right caliber for you depends on the type of terrain and game you’re hunting, your budget and preferences, and your shooting skills.

Range.

One of the most critical aspects of elk hunting is the range you will shoot. If you’re hunting in an open field, a long-range cartridge like the .308 Winchester or 6.5 Creedmoor might be your best bet. Not only is the bullet weight important, but you’ll also need to consider an optic for your elk rifle.

Environment.

Another important factor to consider is the environment in which you’ll be hunting. A light caliber might be best if you’re hunting in dense brush or woods since you won’t have to lug around a heavy rifle all day. If you hunt in open country, a heavier caliber will give you more power at longer ranges.

Take-down power.

When it comes to elk hunting, take-down power is key. The right cartridge should offer enough energy to penetrate the animal deeply and cause an instant kill. Bullet construction is also important here; some cartridges are designed with controlled expansion to penetrate deeper without damaging too much meat (this is called a controlled expansion bullet).

Weight.

Finally, you’ll want to consider the overall weight of your rifle. If you carry a gun all day, you’ll want something lightweight but still packs enough punch to finish the job. If you’re patiently waiting in a stand or a blind, a heavier rifle might not be an issue.

Breaking down the best elk cartridge.

With all that out, let’s get into our top picks for the best elk cartridges. We think you’ll find something that fits your hunting needs here.

Best caliber overall — .338 Winchester Magnum.

For the best overall elk cartridge, we selected the .338 Winchester Magnum. This powerful magnum packs a serious punch and can take down large game at long distances. It offers great accuracy and consistency, making it an excellent choice for hunting in open fields and brush. Plus, with its recoil-taming features, the .338 Win Mag is still relatively easy to shoot accurately.

What we love the most about the .338 Winchester Magnum is its versatility. This big-game cartridge is suitable for elk and moose, giving you plenty of options for hunting large game. Whether you’re taking down the biggest bull elk you’ve ever seen or even going deer hunting, the .338 Winchester Magnum is up to the task.

Best caliber for long-range elk hunting — .300 Winchester Magnum.

Easily one of the most popular cartridges for long-range elk hunting, the .300 Winchester Magnum is an ideal choice. This classic magnum cartridge offers power and great accuracy at extended ranges. It’s also relatively easy to control in various shooting positions, making it a top pick for experienced hunters who want to take their shots from a distance.

Its ability to handle strong winds sets the 300 Win Mag apart from other long-range cartridges. It’s high ballistic coefficient and flat trajectory make it an excellent option for hunting in windy conditions. And with its controlled expansion bullets, you can expect deep penetration and minimal meat damage.

Best caliber for brush hunting — .30-06 Springfield.

Sometimes, elk hunting in the brush can be a challenge. You need a powerful cartridge to take down your prey but still lightweight and easy to maneuver in tight quarters. That’s where the .30-06 Springfield comes in. This classic deer and elk cartridge is an excellent choice for brush hunting due to its moderate power and low recoil. Plus, with its flat trajectory and controlled expansion bullets, you can expect good accuracy and deep penetration in tight spots.

Our favorite thing about the .30-06 Springfield is its affordability. The factory ammo offers great performance at a reasonable price, and it’s also widely available and easy to find in most gun shops.

Best lightweight caliber — .270 Winchester.

The .270 Winchester is a great choice for hunters who need a lightweight cartridge with plenty of power. This classic deer and elk cartridge offers moderate recoil and excellent accuracy at extended ranges. It’s also quite versatile, as it can be used for various game animals, including elk and deer.

The thing we love the most about the .270 Winchester is its recoil. Compared to other elk rifles, a rifle chambered in .270 Winchester has mild recoil. Hunters of all experience levels can accurately shoot their target with manageable recoil. And with its excellent accuracy, you can be sure to take down your elk in one shot.

Best caliber for take-down power — 7mm Remington Magnum.

Finally, we have the 7mm Remington Magnum. This popular elk cartridge is known for its unmatched take-down power and flat trajectory, making it an excellent choice for long-range hunting. It has superior ballistics and offers excellent accuracy, allowing you to take down your target precisely.

With the high muzzle velocity of the 7mm Rem Mag, this wouldn’t be a good choice for close-range hunting. But if you’re looking for a cartridge that can easily take down a big bull elk at extended ranges, then the 7mm rem mag is your best bet.

Pro tips for finding the perfect elk hunting rifle.

Finding good elk cartridges is only half the battle; you must also find the perfect elk hunting rifle. Here are some pro tips for finding the right setup:

• Understand Your Hunting Environment: The terrain and environment where you’ll be hunting can significantly impact the type of rifle you need. For instance, a lighter, more maneuverable rifle might be your best bet if you’re hunting in dense forests with shorter sight lines. On the other hand, if you’re hunting in open spaces where longer shots are expected, a heavier, more stable rifle that’s accurate at long distances would be ideal.
• Consider the Caliber: As discussed earlier; some calibers are better suited for elk hunting than others. Powerful rounds like the .338 Win Mag, .270 Winchester, and .300 Winchester Magnum are all good choices. Consider what you feel comfortable shooting and what will effectively take down an elk.
• Choose the Right Action: Bolt action rifles are popular among elk hunters because they’re reliable, accurate, and can handle powerful rounds. However, lever action and semi-automatic rifles can also be suitable, especially if you anticipate needing quick follow-up shots.
• Check the Weight: Remember that you’ll likely carry your rifle for a long while hunting. Balance the need for a powerful, stable gun with the practicality of hauling it around all day. Lightweight rifles are easier to carry but might have more recoil.
• Look for Quality Optics: A good scope can make a huge difference in successful elk hunting. Look for optics with clear, bright images and a good magnification range. A quality scope can help you make accurate shots at various distances.

Our hunting experts have bought countless rifles over the years and agree that following these tips can help you pick the perfect elk hunting rifle. You’ll be ready to hit the woods and bag your next big bull with the right setup.

FAQs for elk hunting Calibers.

To round off our comprehensive guide to elk hunting calibers, here are some frequently asked questions—

What is the best caliber for elk hunting?

The best elk hunting calibers depend on your hunting style and environment, but some of the most popular options include .300 Winchester Magnum, .30-06 Springfield, .270 Winchester, and 7mm Remington Magnum. These are all great choices for taking down an elk at extended ranges.

What is the most accurate caliber for elk hunting?

The .300 Winchester Magnum is widely considered one of the most accurate cartridges for elk hunting due to its flat trajectory and high ballistic coefficient. It’s also a powerful round that can effectively take down large game animals.

How far can you accurately shoot an elk?

The effective range for taking down an elk will vary depending on the caliber, shooter experience, and environmental conditions. As a general rule of thumb, most elk hunters should have no problem making accurate shots out to 500 yards with the right rifle and optics. Of course, it’s always best to practice shooting at various distances to develop good shooting habits and accuracy.

Is a .308 big enough for elk?

A .308 Winchester is generally considered big enough for elk hunting. The rule of thumb for the minimum amount of kinetic energy needed to kill a mature elk is 1500 ft-lbs, which a .308 can deliver. However, it’s important to consider shot placement and the hunter’s ability to shoot accurately.

Is 6.5 Creedmoor or 308 better for elk?

The debate between 6.5 Creedmoor and .308 Winchester for elk hunting is a topic of much discussion among hunters. Both bullet weights have strengths and weaknesses, and their choice largely depends on your needs and circumstances. The 6.5 Creedmoor has a slightly flatter trajectory, less wind drift, and less recoil than the .308 Winchester, making it easier to shoot accurately, particularly at longer ranges. However, it’s worth noting that some hunters consider the 6.5 Creedmoor too light for elk, with most suggesting a minimum of 1,500 ft-lbs of energy for a clean kill. On the other hand, the .308 Winchester is known for its superior frontal surface area and wound channel creation, which can lead to more effective kills. Its ammunition is also more widely available and typically cheaper, making it a more economical choice for many hunters.

What is the preferred rifle shot for elk?

The preferred shot on an elk is a broadside shot. This shot placement affords the best chance of striking the animal’s vital organs while still allowing for maximum penetration. Ideally, you should aim for the highest point of the shoulder to ensure a clean kill.

Can you shoot a bedded elk?

Yes, you can shoot a bedded elk, but it is important to ensure an ethical shot. This means considering the wind direction, background noise, and the animal’s position. If you doubt whether your shot will be ethical, it’s best to wait until the elk stands before taking the shot.

What is the best follow-up shot for elk?

The best follow-up shot for an elk depends on the initial hit placement and the circumstances of your hunt. If you’ve made a clean kill, there’s no need to take additional shots. However, if you haven’t achieved a clean kill with your initial shot, you’ll want to take another shot as soon as possible. A quick follow-up shot can help ensure the animal is taken down humanely and quickly.

Finding the right caliber.

The quest for the perfect elk hunting rifle and caliber is a personal journey heavily influenced by your unique hunting style, environment, and comfort level.

Whether it’s the .338 Win Mag with its sheer stopping power, the .30-06 Springfield’s brush hunting prowess, the .270 Winchester’s light recoil, or the 7mm Remington Magnum’s exceptional take-down ability, each caliber offers unique advantages.

Remember, a critical part of your success in the field is not just the rifle and its caliber but also understanding your hunting environment, the rifle’s action type, weight, and optics quality. And never underestimate the power of trying before buying.

Armed with these insights, you’re on your way to finding the perfect partner for your next elk-hunting adventure.

Are Slugs edible? What about Snails?

There is only one rule you have to remember: When it comes to land snails, land slugs, and fresh water mollusks you must cook them thoroughly or they can kill you. Got that? Taste is a secondary consideration.

Okay, why cook them? People do eat slugs raw on a dare, and the Indians used live slugs to numb gums, tongues and toothache. These common little creatures aren’t too bad unto themselves, but some of the land crawlers especially in warmer areas have parasites, one of which they can get from rat feces. That parasite, normally infecting a rat’s lung, goes from your stomach to your brain, crawling there over time — yes, crawling there — and causes your brain to swell. That big head folks have accused you of having will come to pass and kill you. Thorough cooking will kill the parasites.

Some of the freshwater mollusks (clams, snails et cetera) are in water with bacterial waste, be it beavers’ or Butt Head’s. Cooking thoroughly kills all bacteria and parasites. It is recommended you collect said, especially slugs and land snails, while wearing gloves and or be careful, have no cuts on your hands, and wash your hands immediately and until then keep them away from your eyes, nose and mouth… the same precautions you would do if you handling raw chicken. The chances of you getting the disease are really low should you eat a slug raw. A few have been sickened that way, but the possibility is there: Avoid it.

Now what about taste? Some taste good, like escargot, some taste bad regardless of preparation, some have no taste. But there are no truly poisonous slugs or snails. Once cleaned and cooked, or cooked and cleaned, it is a matter or preparation and personal taste. Slugs are just snails with no shells, and snails are really just specialized clams that moved from water to land. By the way, all of this applies only to land slugs, land snails and freshwater mollusks, not slugs and snails and mollusks in salt water. (Salt water slugs tend to be toxic.)

Here in central Florida we’ve had a gourmet invasion of Apple Snails. Thirty years ago they were introduced to such places as Taiwan and Japan as delicacies. They were also favored among aquarium owners because of their looks and speed of growth. They never caught on big with Asian gourmets and some how got released into Florida lakes. One lake near here, Lake Brantley, went from no Apple Snails in 2003 to being overwhelmed in 2004. The battle has been on going since and the fear is from that lake the snails will invade the Weikva River, just a few wet miles away. And the Weikiva leads to virtually half the state. Personally, I haven’t seen any non-native Apple Snail eggs in the Weikiva basin but it’s like having an open gallon of gasoline next to a roaring fireplace. It only takes one bird to drop one uneaten snail in the river.

Let’s hear from an expert on the edibility of snails, Dr. Tim Pearce, Assistant Curator and Head, section of Mollusks, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania:

“As far as I know, any land snail is edible. Although I don’t know any land snails that are poisonous, I do know one species that tastes very bad (Anguispira alternata, the tiger snail). Most species of land snails are very small (less than 1/8 inch or 3 mm), so eating them would be a challenge. But (despite being a vegetarian) I have eaten some of the native snails with shells 3/4 inch (20 mm) diameter. Maybe you want to know where to find the snails that are commonly eaten as escargots. Those species are from Europe. Some of them have been introduced into the United States, but most of them are considered pests. For example, Helix aspersa, one of the most commonly eaten land snail species, is a very abundant garden and agricultural pest in California. I think Cepaea nemoralis is also eaten; it is another introduced species and not generally considered a garden pest. There are populations of C. nemoralis in eastern New York, and a few populations in Pennsylvania in the Philadelphia area. Be sure to get permission from the land owner. Note also that transporting living land snails is now regulated by the federal government . Also, if you collect the native species, be careful not to over collect. The native species generally reproduce more slowly than the introduced species, so over collecting could wipe out a population.”

Locally, the easiest way to identify snails in a given body of water is to look at their eggs, their size and color, usually found on stems of water plants above the water line. You can also find their empty shells on shore where they’ve been dinner already. Native Florida Apple Snails lay white eggs on the large size, like peas. Island Apple Snails lay small pink eggs that turn white. The Skipped Topped Apple Snail lays salmon colored eggs and the Titian Apple Snail lays eggs that are pastel green or sea foam green.

How do you get the snails? You can noodle around for them or use a trap. There are commercial traps or you can make one out of an oil drain pan.

So snails are edible, you’ve got that. You’ve heard of escargot, but what about slugs? Dr. Pearce again.

According to Dr. Pearce, counting all gastropods in the sea, freshwater, and land, a good estimate is that there are about 80,000 species. For just the land snails, they estimate about 35,000 species in the whole world. In North America north of Mexico, there are about 1,000 species of land snails. Pearce says he can almost guarantee that in eastern North America, all the slugs in your garden are non-native species from Europe. Incidentally, the gigantic land snails native to Africa and now found in Florida are edible.

“Species that are successful invaders tend to have fast reproductive rates, probably explaining why there are so many of them in your garden. For some reason, slugs seem to be better invaders than snails do,” he said.

So, we know slugs are edible, unless they been feeding on some poisonous plant. Ray Mears, best known of the professional bush crafters, does not recommend eating slugs because they often feed on mushrooms, and most of them are toxic, and Mears is an expert on edible mushrooms.

To avoid getting mushroom poison from a slug it is usual to either starve the slug before eating or feed them for several days before serving them up. The Romans used to fatten their snails with meal and wine until they got huge and tasty. In Italy they are sometimes kept in bran for several days before eating. In many places in Europe people have home-made snail-preserves, or escargotieres, little corners of gardens enclosed with boards and netted over the top. In these enclosures hundreds of snails are kept and fed vegetables and herbs to flavor them. The same could be done with slugs.

Before I move on to cooking snails, how do you collect them, other than snorkeling? Do what those who capture snails to get rid of them do: Trap them. There are two simple traps. Take a small crayfish trap and either lay it in the water/reeds half in the water, half out. Or in deeper water arrange the tap vertically half in, half out of the water. Surprisingly traps work with or without bait. The second trap looks like an old tire with a grate in the middle and a stake through it. Imagine the grate slightly smaller than the opening and set a couple of inches lower as well. The snail crawls over the tire, on to the grate then off the grate into the trap below. This should be done in water just reaching the top of the tire. An inexpensive alternative is a plastic oil drip pan with the grate cut smaller than the opening and a piece of PVC put through it and the pan to hold it at the right height.

Cooking snails: Put some water into a saucepan, and when it begins to boil throw in the snails and let them boil a quarter of an hour; then take them out of their shells, wash them several times, clean them thoroughly, place them in clean water, and boil them again for a quarter of an hour. Then take them out, rinse them, dry them, and place them with a little butter in a frying-pan, and fry them gently for a few minutes sufficient to brown them.

To cook snails the French way crack the shells and throw them into boiling water, with a little salt and herbs, sufficient to make the whole lot savory. In 15 minutes take them out, pick the snails from the shells, and boil them again; then put them into a saucepan, with butter, parsley, pepper, thyme, a bay-leaf and a little flour. When sufficiently done, add the yolk of an egg well beaten, and the juice of a lemon or some vinegar. Snails have about 90 calories per 100 grams of meat. They are high in protein (12 to 16 percent) and rich in minerals.

Cooking slugs: Slugs, far more than snails, eat toxic mushrooms. If it is the season of toxic mushrooms the slugs should be kept for many days and fed meal or brand or lettuce to purge them. Put pre-fed slugs into a 50/50 mixture of water and vinegar. This will kill the slugs and force them to release mucus. Simmer five minutes it boiling water. Change the water and boil again for ten minutes. Change the water a third time and boil again for fifteen minutes (so you have three changes of water and a total of 30 minutes boiling time.) If the slug has a foul tasting digestive organ remove and rinse. The cooked slug is now ready to eat or use in other dishes.

Another way to cook snails is to put them upside down next to your fire and leave them there until they bubble vigorously.

Slug Fritters

Ingredients

10 cooked and cleaned large slugs

1/2 cup of cornmeal

1/2 cup of flour

3 eggs

1/4 cup of heavy cream

4 tbs. Of butter

4tsp.of sour cream

Instructions

First chop the slugs into fine mince, then beat the eggs with the heavy cream together. Sift the dry ingredients and then cut two tablespoons of butter into that mixture. Add the egg and cream mixture to the dry ingredients and whip with a whisk vigorously for one to two minutes. Melt one tablespoon of butter in a sauté pan and pure the batter into 2 1/2 inch cakes in two batches. Serve warm with a dollop of sour cream. Yields four servings.

Slugs that are still in palatable after boiling can be fried until crisp and tried, or ground into a flour and added to other meals for nutrition.

According to the Journal of Experimental Biology, August 2006, slugs are 5.1% carbohydrates, 0.5% fat, 7.1% protein and 85% moisture. When cooked they are probably lower in carbs because that is contained in the mucus which is lost in cooking. Slugs were on the diet of many Native Americans in the northwest US, where they have some 27 different kinds. German immigrants to that area gutted them and fried them in batter.

Incidentally, freshwater clams can make “pearls” and they command a high price. When I was a kid I use to use freshwater clams for bait and collected a few black pearls at the same time. I had a girlfriend at the time who was quite fond of them… probably still is, and she didn’t have to get wet to get them.

Also, check with your local authorities and do not collect endangered species or exceed harvesting limits. Many exotic species have no limit.

Australian doctors issued a warning in October 2003 about eating slugs after a Sydney college student contracted a potentially fatal brain disease when he swallowed some slugs on a dare. Tests found the man’s meningitis was caused by a worm normally seen in rat lungs but carried as larvae in slugs and snails. The worm caused the brain lining to swell, forcing doctors to drain fluid from inside the man’s skull. He was hospitalized for 17 days with brain lesions. It was five months before he could resume his studies. A friend of the student also ate some raw slugs as part of the dare but threw them up, losing the bet.

The doctors said there had been numerous cases of meningitis since 1971 caused by people eating garden snails or slugs. One child died after eating snails and one patient contracted meningitis after eating lettuce covered with snail slime, according to a report in the Medical Journal of Australia.

To watch a video on eating slugs, go here.

What’s the best knife for self-defense purposes in 2024? The evidence points to – not using a knife for self-defense in the first place. The legal ramifications for drawing a knife in a self-defense situation are tenuous at best even in knife-friendly locales. The combination of luck and skill required to successfully use a knife as a self-defense tool is daunting. The likelihood of injuring yourself versus who is attacking you must also be considered. Did we also mention that a knife that’s good as a self-defense tool is typically dramatically impractical for day to day tasks.

So, with all that common sense stuff, why bother creating a list of self-defense knives in the first place? Two reasons. One, it’s better to be prepared for something that won’t happen than be surprised by something that does – and something is better than nothing. Two, some of these knives are cool. It’s OK to like cool things because they’re cool. You’re among friends here.

SPYDERCO MATRIARCH 2

The Spyderco Matriarch is an offshoot of the larger Spyderco Civilian, which is probably the most ironically named product since the Ford Aspire, as there is nothing civil about it at all. According to Spyderco, the Civilian was a result of a request from “A government agency” for a knife to be used in last-ditch situations as a defensive tool for people not trained in knife fighting or close quarters combat in general. So it’s the closest a knife gets to a being an idiot-proof self-defense tool, being designed to be used in a forward-facing “claw” motion.

The Matriarch is the same concept as the Civilian, but scaled down and sharing its bones with the Endura 4 to lower costs and weight, and it also offers the advantage of an available Emerson Wave opener. For those not familiar, it works in the tip-up carry position – a hook cut into the spine of the blade catches on the edge of your pocket as you draw the knife, pulling the blade open and into the locked position as soon as it’s free of your pocket.

Like the Civilian, the Matriarch has a unique blade shape – a reverse “S” shape with a dramatic recurve to the belly, and a sharp downward-pointed tip. The grind is a very stout low saber grind for strength, and the whole length of the blade is serrated. An “EDC” knife this is not – even according to Spyderco, who says “Because of its distinctly specialized features it is not intended or designed for general utility or everyday use.” We appreciate the honesty.

FOX KNIVES FOLDING KARAMBIT

The Karambit is a knife style designed expressly for fighting and generally regarded as one of the best knives for self defense. It has almost no useful value as a day to day cutting tool. Opening your boxes from Amazon or bags of dog food with a Karambit is harder than using your finger. But it is a devastatingly effective self-defense tool, provided you know how to use it properly. There are a number of brands that make folding Karambit knives besides Fox, including Brous Blades, Emerson, Medford, Boker, Bastinelli, Spyderco/Byrd, QTRMSTR, Cold Steel and others – but the Fox Folding Karambit from Italy is probably the most well-known and purpose-designed among them.

If you want a basic guide to defensive Karambit use, this video by Blade HQ does a good job of explaining how to utilize this unique knife. There are a number of identifying characteristics to a Karambit. The “chapter ring” on the end of the handle is one, and the steep hawkbill profile to the blade (an inward curve) is another. The chapter ring serves two purposes – it allows you to pass your finger through it when you draw the knife from your pocket making retrieval easier, and it also serves as a means of securing the knife in your hand when the karambit is held in a reverse (“ice pick”) grip as it’s intended.

Once deployed, a Karambit’s primary purpose is slicing cuts – not jabbing, obviously. The design of the knife favors a reverse grip and allows you to use the blade in a swinging rather than a thrusting motion.

Fox’s Karambits are well regarded among the defense community, and also don’t break the bank like pricier ones from Brous or Emerson. The wave opener gives it the benefit of self-opening when it’s drawn from the pocket, and sturdy G10 scales with a stainless liner lock serve the purpose of a self-defense knife. There’s also an aluminum handled version if you like the feel better.

KA-BAR TDI

The Ka-Bar TDI has been around unchanged for quite a long time, because it serves a very specific purpose and doesn’t require constant updates to remain relevant. Designed by John Brenner of the Tactical Defense Institute (TDI), the TDI is designed primarily for law enforcement as a back-up knife to a handgun, an easy-to-access secondary option if your primary defense tool can’t be reached or doesn’t work. To that end the TDI is designed around compatibility with gross motor skills rather than fine techniques.

It’s a modified karambit shape – the nearly 90 degree angle of the handle to the blade makes that much obvious – but it’s designed to be used in a forward grip, cross-drawn from a belt holster on your non-dominant side to quickly and effectively cut at close range with a straight wrist. The angle to the handle isn’t a coincidence: it’s designed to be drawn from a holster in a similar manner to a pistol.

It’s an extremely specialized knife design, but it does still hold some day to day practicality that a traditional karambit doesn’t. AUS-8 steel is a reliable choice, black coated here, and contoured polymer handles give you a solid grip with a deep finger choil right behind the bend for control. There’s also a partially serrated variant as well as a large size (3.6”) if you want something bigger.

SPYDERCO P’KAL

The P’Kal is one of the most unique Spyderco’s, and like the Matriarch it has a decidedly impractical MO. It’s designed around the Filipino martial art of Pikal. Pikal uses a knife held in a reversed ice pick grip to make cuts in a tearing motion using the strength of your upper arm. That explains the rather unusual appearance of the P’Kal, which is designed to be held in a reverse grip with the sharpened edge facing in to make pulling cuts. The deep groove along the spine above the lock is actually a finger choil to anchor your hand when you’re clenching it. Once drawn, the P’Kal makes a powerful and agile defense tool as a natural extension of your arm – good for concise, short movements as well as a defense technique for someone attacking you.

The P’Kal uses the caged ball bearing lock, similar to the system in the Manix 2 lineup, as a way to squeeze a strong lock into a small space as well as making the knife easier to close one-handed. It also has a unique implementation of the Emerson Wave opener, a protrusion from the spine of the blade that catches on your pocket on the way out to pull the knife open. On the P’Kal the wave opener is actually a removable post that threads into the spine of the blade. S30V blade steel and textured G10 handles with nested stainless liners should be familiar to Spyderco aficionados.

COLD STEEL URBAN EDGE

Here’s a budget option for those with slim wallets. The Urban Edge is a series of push daggers from Cold Steel that straddle the line between the enormous 4.5” Safe Maker and the miniscule 1” Mini Pal, balancing out usability with portability. At only 1.42 ounces the Urban Edge is light enough to be forgotten, with the sheath designed to be used in a neck knife setup – although a series of rivets on the sheath means it could be adapted to belt carry or just shoved into a pocket, since it’s only 4” long total. Blade steel is AUS-8A, in a broad dagger shape with a hollow grind and flat on the back. The handle has a molded rubberized grip. You have three choices for the grind – plain edge, 50/50 serrated (serrated on one side, plain on the other) or fully serrated.

The push dagger is designed to be held in a closed fist, with the blade protruding through your ring and middle fingers away from your knuckles, in a defensive situation for use in a pushing/punching/thrusting motion rather than swung in arcs like the karambit or TDI mentioned above. At only 2.5” it’s not an outrageously large knife, which gives it the benefit of being easy to carry and conceal but it’s long enough to make a difference. A push dagger is even more reliant on gross motor skill than the TDI, and probably less useful for day to day tasks – a real single-use self-defense tool.

EMERSON CQC-13

Ernest Emerson is one of the most well-known names when it comes to tactical knives. He’s been making knives that appeal to “operators” (real and imagined) under the brand of his own name since 1996, and well before that as customs. Emerson is the progenitor and patent holder of the Wave device, a deceptively simple feature that when used correctly will open a knife into the fully locked position as you pull out of your pocket using a small protrusion on the spine.

A knife that opens itself is about as tactical as it gets, and his innovation has spread to many other brands including a broad collaboration with Kershaw. But if you want the most tactical of Emersons, it has to be a Bowie, doesn’t it? The combination of Ernie’s expertise in all things tactical and the traditional fighting-knife shape of a Bowie (or recurve clip point if you want to be picky about it) makes for one intimidating piece of equipment. It’s got all the things that make an Emerson an Emerson, of course: black G10 scales, normal fasteners (the pivot screw is a flathead! Imagine that!), the thumb “disc” opener, and a chisel ground blade in 154CM with a unique dual-texture finish: satin on the grinds, stonewashed flats. At 3.85” it’s on the large side giving you extra reach, and like all Emersons it has excellent ergonomics. The ZT Emerson collaborations are now discontinued but are worth an honorable mention.

CRKT TECPATL

How cool is the Tecpatl? Aside from its function as a self-defense tool, it’s a neat knife to look at. The Tecpatl is part of CRKT’s Forged by War series, knives and tools designed by military veterans with 10% of proceeds going to charities of the designer’s choice. In the case of the Tecpatl, it’s designed by Michael Rodridguez, an Army vet with proceeds going to the Special Operations Care Fund and the George W Bush Institute.

It’s a unique knife to be sure, a push dagger with two finger guards – one complete, one partial – that’s designed to be clenched in your fist facing outwards. The blade shape is a modified wharncliffe, with a full length swedge that switches over to a sort of reverse-tanto shape towards the tip, while the belly has a long continuous curve up to the tip. This is all designed to give the Tecpatl strong piercing abilities while retaining enough material behind the tip to give it strength to penetrate without breaking off. The steel is SK5 high-carbon non-stainless steel, so a black powder coat is applied to prevent corrosion. This is the canvas for the unique “Sugar Skull” (Calavera) markings and a host of other Easter eggs. The Kydex sheath is Molle compatible too.

AL MAR SERE 2000

The SERE 2000 was the brainchild of the late Al Mar and Nick Rowe in the 1980’s as a knife designed for use in the Army SERE training course – Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape – which prepares soldiers for unexpected occurrences in the field. To this goal, the SERE 2000 was designed to be a knife that can be relied on in any situation to do what’s needed. It’s not a complicated knife, but it is a tough one – arguably one of the strongest tactical folders around.

A 3.6” (or a 3” on the Mini-SERE) VG-10 blade has a spear point shape with a pronounced swedge and opens with dual thumb studs. A beefy liner lock and flow-through construction makes this knife simple, reliable, and easy to disassemble and clean. The handles flare out at the hilt to help keep your hand from slipping forward in rough situations, as do the textured G-10 handle scales. A deep carry clip mounted to the butt of the handle helps keep a low profile. The SERE 2000 series is available in a variety of configurations: satin finish or black ceramic coated blades, and black, digicam or olive drab handle scales. Solid self defense option.

MICROTECH COMBAT TROODON

It can be argued that part of self-defense is mental over physical, and a giant powerful OTF knife popping open is the blade equivalent of the unmistakable sound of a 12-gauge pump shotgun being racked. Microtech’s are impractical, expensive, overly ornate, needlessly aggressive knives – that will scare the &!#% out of anyone with bad intentions who picked the wrong guy. Theoretically, anyway.

The Combat Troodon is Microtech’s biggeset, baddest OTF. It features a dual action slider on the spine of the handle that both deploys and retracts the blade under spring pressure. Blade steel is Bohler Elmax powdered stainless as standard, although there are a staggering array of variations available: six blade shapes, serrations or no, three different hardware sets, seven finishes, and fifteen colors – including the fairly offensive Zombie Splatter. Aluminum handles keep it light, and a glass breaker on the butt of the handle also serves as the anchor point for the pocket clip – as well as a makeshift kubotan if you’re so inclined.

CHRIS REEVE PROFESSIONAL SOLDIER

Most people are familiar with Chris Reeve Knives for the iconic Sebenza folder – maybe the newer Inkosi or Umnumzaan folders too. But a lot of people aren’t even aware that CRK makes fixed blades. The Professional Soldier is designed by Bill Harsey (yeah, that Bill Harsey!) in collaboration with the professionalsoldiers.com forum for the Special Forces. It’s a minimalist fixed blade made of – what else? – CPM S35VN stainless steel, PVD coated black as well as some in flat dark earth, with your choice of three blade shapes: a traditional drop point, a modified tanto, or the Inkosi – CRK’s take on a modified wharncliffe.

Designed to be a versatile carry, the Professional Soldier comes with a kydex sheath that’s Molle compatible, and has some hidden features you wouldn’t notice at first glance. The void in the handle is actually a shackle key to loosen shackle bolts up to 5/8”, and the paracord that’s threaded through the two holes in the rear of the handle has been carefully placed so the knife doesn’t make noise when it’s set down.

It’s arguable that above all else a good self-defense tool doesn’t make itself difficult to carry or use, and that’s what earns the Professional Soldier a spot on this list. It’s slim, simple, easy to carry and conceal, and it has the kind of basic but correct ergonomics you need in an emergency situation. Also, CRK’s build quality is second to none and the Professional Soldier can be reliably passed on to your grandkid’s children assuming it isn’t lost.

BONUS: Medford Marauder

No, not to cut things or slash things. The Medford Marauder, ringing in at around $800 retail, weighs over 11 ounces. The blade is more than a quarter-inch thick. Cut things? Why bother? Just throw it at your attacker – overhand, like a baseball. Knock them clean out, steal their wallet and buy a real knife.

As a fuzz-cheeked sports reporter many years ago in Martinsville, I asked the sports editor if I might write about outdoors events in Bulletin Country.

Anxious to keep me around because of a paltry salary, he agreed (and I needed the writing experience). That fall and winter I was stunned by the wall-hanger bucks local deer hunters brought to the office on Broad Street.

Because Commonwealth whitetails weren’t publicized and almost none lived where I was raised in central North Carolina (the Dixie Deer Classic wouldn’t appear for eight years), southern Virginia’s Blue Ridge bucks looked like they’d stepped out of Midwest hunting magazines.

The lack of trophy-deer publicity may have held back its reputation, but it’s been rising each year, currently rated 20th to 27th by national hunting magazines.

With 1 million deer and just 75,000 hunters, Virginia today leads the Southeast in impressive whitetails.

The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries helps by wisely managing the state’s herd for quality rather than quantity, with two distinct regulations areas (east and west) and different bag limits at each region.

Challenges remain, from deer diseases (chronic wasting disease has crept into a few northwest counties and EHD outbreaks that periodically occur) to decreasing habitat and coyote predation. But three monster bucks from 2016 show the overall state of deer affairs is healthy in the Old Dominion.

BEAUTY OF A BEAST

Brent Boney, 42, works for Greensville County Water and Sewer near Emporia and belongs to the Round Hill Hunting Club of Skipper.

“We’ve got 15 members and 20 Walker hounds,” he said. “We lease 600 acres where we still- and dog-hunt. We take more deer while dog-hunting, but still-hunters kill bigger bucks.”

He should have added “usually” because that didn’t happen Nov. 16, 2016, when Boney dropped a 210 6/8-inch 25-pointer, the top-scoring southern rack at the 2017 Dixie Deer Classic and a Boone & Crockett qualifier.

“We use dogs exclusively during the two big winter holidays, Thanksgiving and Christmas,” Boney said.

The club has an agreement with an adjoining landowner, who only allows still-hunting.

“The deer know they’d be safe if they can make it to his land,” Boney said. “The ones we jumped always went to a certain section near the back of our lease (to enter the de facto sanctuary).”

Club members draw for stand sites. In 2015 Boney picked a zone near the sanctuary because he’d seen a handful of small trees destroyed by a big buck’s rubs. During November 2016 the hounds jumped a rocking-chair rack deer, and it ran within 40 yards of him, but Boney couldn’t get a clear shot in the thick 6- to 7-year-old cutover. Unluckily, a holly bush absorbed most of the 00 buckshot.

“I told the other club members what happened, and they laughed,” he said. “I don’t know if they believed me. No one had seen a deer like that.”

In February 2016, Boney returned to the area and brought a machete. He used it to clear several shooting lanes off a main trail he walked to reach his spot.

“I was gonna be ready if I got a chance at him again,” he said.

Opening day of 2016 gun season Boney once again pulled a number that allowed him to hunt the same region. His 18-year-old daughter, McKaley Boney, was one of several designated dog handlers.

“I sat and listened to dogs for two hours and was about to give up when she called me (with a cell phone),” he said. “She told me to sit tight because she’d just caught four hounds crossing a road onto someone else’s property. She planned to drive near me and release the dogs.”

A minute or two later, Boney heard the hounds open up on a deer that seemed headed straight for him.

“He was about 100 yards in front of the dogs when he came through one of the shooting lanes,” the hunter said.

Boney put his Remington 870 Magnum Wingmaster shotgun, loaded with 00 buckshot, to his shoulder and fired when the buck trotted into a shooting lane. The deer stumbled, fell, and didn’t get up.

“When I walked to him and saw his antlers, I said, ‘Oh, my Lord,'” Boney said. “I had never seen anything like this deer.”

Its 5×5 mainframe rack had 25 scoreable tines and points, including nine abnormals on the right main beam and six on the left beam. Officially scored after 60 days, it had a right main beam of 26 6/8 inches and the left taped 26 3/8 inches. Brow tines were 5 3/8 and 7 0/8 while G2s were 11 6/8 and 11 7/8. G3s were 10 4/8 and 11 7/8 inches with G4s at 2 5/8 and 6 4/8 inches. The circumference numbers ranged from 5 0/8 (H1) to 3 1/8 (H4) inches. The inside spread totaled 18 1/8 inches while the outside spread was 21 4/8 inches.

The Virginia record non-typical buck, a 31-pointer killed by muzzle-loader hunter Jim Smith of Chilhowie in Warren County during 1992, taped 257 4/8 inches.

BATTERY-POWERED BUCK

Rodney Wingfield barely contained his excitement Oct. 1, 2016, the first day of archery season in Virginia.

“A trail camera I had put up near a Franklin County field got some pictures of a big buck before the season opened,” said the 42-year-old Martinsville resident, who put a crossbow bolt through a B&C qualifier (177 7/8 net typical inches) that day.

Henry County, with Martinsville at the center, borders Franklin County on its northern boundary.

Wingfield, 42, and a self-employed IT technician for a Greensboro (N.C.) company, had secured a Leaner Deluxe two-person 18-foot ladder tree stand against an oak beside a 10-acre field.

“It’s a big grassy field out in the middle of nowhere and is too big to hunt with a regular bow, which is how my dad, Raymond, and my brother, Elan, hunt,” he said. “But the field, ringed by some hardwoods and pines, is considered a high-traffic (deer) area.”

Wingfield admitted he’s not a hard-core hunter, but he was confident in his ability to shoot a Barnett Quad 400 crossbow he’d purchased from a friend seven or eight years earlier.

“I can hit a (dinner) plate (target) at 50 yards pretty regular,” he said. “The crossbow shoots flat, out to 50 yards. It has a red-dot scope on top. But I didn’t get up early on opening day to hunt in the morning and that afternoon I wore blue jeans, a camouflage t-shirt and didn’t use an scent-blocker or face paint.”

Wingfield, who had two crossbow whitetails to his credit, had hunted from the tree stand in the past and knew where deer likely would enter the field.

“They always seemed to come from off my right shoulder, so that’s where I was watching,” he said.

But he discovered when he picked up the crossbow that its battery-powered scope had been left in the “on” position and might lack power.

“I wasn’t too worried because I got into the stand about 4:45 p.m., and there should be plenty of daylight,” Wingfield said. “But if deer didn’t move until available light got low, I turned the scope off and hoped I could put it on high power and maybe make the dot glow when I needed it. Otherwise I’d guess about an aim point.”

Farms surrounding the Wingfields’ land had been leased and planted in soybeans, so the field was a crossing area for whitetails.

He’d already decided he wouldn’t take a chancy shot because he’d learned during preseason practice that 50 yards was his accuracy limit.

After a few minutes passed, a small six-pointer walked into the field and began sniffing the ground about 40 yards from Wingfield’s stand.

“He came from behind me,” he said. “No deer ever had come from that direction. Then I heard something else back there and figured it was a coyote.”

But the sound wasn’t a coyote. Instead the buck with 189 4/8 gross antler inches appeared 20 yards to Wingfield’s right. He put the faint red dot on the deer’s left shoulder and squeezed the crossbow’s trigger.

The deer never knew what hit it as the broadhead, pushed at 345 feet per second, sizzled through both lungs.

“He took five steps and fell over,” said Wingfield, who waited until dark before climbing down from his stand.

“I got my truck and drove to him, but I couldn’t lift him into the bed,” he said. “I had to drive home and get my brother and his girlfriend. They helped load the deer.”

The buck only weighed 120 pounds, but the experience — and seeing the massive headgear — drained Wingfield.

“My dad said he’d never seen a buck like this one in 40 years,” the hunter said. “All my brother could do was shake his head.”

Virginia’s non-typical deer archery record is shared by Clifton Forge’s John Feazell, who downed a 22-point Botetourt County trophy in 2009 that totaled 221 2/8 Pope&Young inches while Jimmy “Bo” Sturgill of Pound shot a 27-point, 221 2/8 buck in Wise County during November 2011.

BROOMSTRAW BOOMER

Jason Hazelwood, who drives a cement truck for Felton Brothers Transit Mixes of South Hill, put his fingerprints in Old Dominion hunting records Nov. 6, 2016.

That’s when his .50-caliber CVA in-line muzzleloader rifle dropped a Mecklenburg County buck with a nearly perfect rack that totaled 165 net Boone & Crockett inches, 5 inches shy of qualifying as an all-time B&C buck. It earned entry into the organization’s Awards category and its gross score totaled 172 6/8 inches.

It was likely Virginia’s top typical muzzleloader buck of 2016.

“We were hunting a farm with 270 acres that had a 3-acre broomstraw field,” he said.

“It was a spur-of-the-moment thing (to hunt for the field). It had a stand that had been there a couple of years before, a 12-foot-tall buddy stand.”

Although Hazelwood hadn’t seen the big whitetail and had no trail-cam photos, he was confident through second-hand information a large buck lived in the area.

“Some other people had photographs of him,” he said. “I knew there was a possibility he was there.”

The 37-year-old had hunted unsuccessfully during archery season, but those excursions gave him confidence he wasn’t wasting his time.

“I didn’t see him during bow season, but I did find scrapes along the edge of the field and some nice (tree) rubs.”

Virginia allowed Sunday hunting in 2014 when Governor Terry McAuliffe signed a bill that gave property-owners the right to hunt big game, including deer, on their own land. It also gave visitors the right to hunt with a landowner’s permission.

Certainly that ruling helped Hazelwood bag his trophy Oct. 1, 2016, which was a Sunday.

“I got into the stand about 4:15 p.m.,” he said. “It was on the edge of the broomstraw field.”

After he waited a few minutes, three does came into view.

“A little while later, another doe ran into the field, chased by the buck,” Hazelwood said. “The rut was on, and he had his neck stretched out and his nose down. Then he must have scented one of the other does and started to chase her.”

When the hunter saw the buck’s rack, he admitted he caught a case of buck fever.

It helped to settle his muzzle-loader’s barrel, holding 100 grains of black powder and seated underneath a 280-grain Sabot bullet, on a rail around the stand.

“I watched him chase that doe for 3 minutes and felt like he was going to run her out of the field, so I took the shot at about 75 yards,” he said. “I was looking through a 3x9x50 scope, aimed at his front shoulder but hit him a little farther back.”

When the buck left the field, the hunter burned the spot in his memory. Hazelwood couldn’t find any blood sign but walked to his last sighting of the wall-hanger and found the beautiful deer piled up a few steps into the woods.

The rack’s main beams were 24 3/8 and 25 3/8 inches, with G2s of 10 3/8 and 10 6/8 and G3s of 9 4/8 and 10 4/8 inches. Only one 2-inch abnormal point, 3 inches of total asymmetrical tine length and 5/8 inch of circumference difference marred its 5×5 main frame antlers.

2017 Southern Deer Forecast

If you’re thinking about live trapping a raccoon, choosing the right raccoon bait is important.

For starters, trapping a raccoon in a live trap is not very difficult, and it’s one of the best ways to get rid of a raccoon that’s getting into your garbage or pet food.

Raccoons are curious animals that will venture into a trap without much hesitation.

However, the real problem arrises when you want to catch just a raccoon and not a lot of other non targeted animals like your neighbors cat, opossums or worse, a skunk.

Raccoons are not picky eaters.

Cat food, sardines, canned dog food and various table scraps will all work to lure just about any raccoon into a trap.

The problem is other animals like them too!

So, to trap a raccoon and only a raccoon, it’s important to choose a bait that’s not as appealing to other animals.

This doesn’t guarantee you won’t catch an opossum since you never know what a wild animal will do, but choosing the correct bait will make a big difference.

Choosing A Raccoon Bait

When live trapping a raccoon, trap placement and setup is important, but it’s the bait that actually lures the animal into the trap.

I’ve trapped a lot of raccoons in a live trap over the years and I’ve found a couple of baits that work really well for raccoons, but limit the amount of non targeted animals caught in the trap.

Here are some of the best raccoon bait choices for a live trap:

Marshmallows

Raccoons love marshmallows and they’re one of the best baits you can use in a live trap because they don’t attract a lot of unwanted species.

You can use large or small marshmallows, but I like to use the large ones because it’s harder for the raccoon to pull them through the side of the trap.

Clean Tin Foil

Hang a crumbled piece of clean tin foil in the back of the trap behind the trigger pan.

Suspend the piece of tin foil by tying it with a string to the top of the trap.

Since raccoons are curious animals, the shinny dangling tin foil alone is enough to lure them into the trap.

By using clean tin foil it eliminates the rotten smell that could attract unwanted animals.

I know, it sounds unbelievable but it actually works!

The tin foil attractant is the best way to trap a raccoon if you don’t want to catch your neighbors cat or any other unwanted animal.

A Single Whole Egg

A whole, un-cracked fresh egg is also a good bait for a raccoon but decreases the chances of catching an unwanted animal.

Place the egg in the back of the trap behind the trigger pan and you’re done.

Since raccoons commonly raid nests and steal eggs from animals in the wild, a whole chicken egg is a great raccoon bait to use.

Overall

There’s a lot of different baits you can use to trap a raccoon.

So, if you want to trap a raccoon and drastically reduce the chance of catching anything else, try using one of the baits we described above.

There’s always a chance of catching a different animal especially if they’re really hungry, but that’s the great thing about using a live trap instead of a snare or foothold trap to catch a raccoon.

The non-targeted animal won’t be injured if it gets caught inside the trap, and you can easily release them unharmed back into the wild.

The best coyote light is going to play to the few disadvantages nature’s premier predator has. Coyotes have great eye sight, hearing, smell, and agility which makes it very difficult for coyote hunters to see them long enough to pull a shot off. Many times coyotes will come and go while the night hunter is not aware of their presence. It is important that your coyote hunting lights are designed to light up dogs before they’re senses tell them you’re in the area. Hunting lights for coyotes are few and far between, but some of the best coyote hunting lights can be the difference in getting busted or having a successful set while calling coyotes.

Coyote Hunting Light Discussion Topics

• Coyote Weaknesses
• 5 Features Every Coyote Light Should Have
  • The Best Color Light for Coyote Hunting
  • Adjustable Hunting Light Intensity
  • Long Range Spot and Flood Combination
  • Mounting Versatility for all Hunting Vehicles
  • Strong & Non-Reflective Light Housing
• Recommendation for the Best Coyote Hunting Light

Before we ask ourselves what the 5 must have features are of coyote hunting lights, let’s dive into a coyotes weak points. If you don’t want to read the background information on a coyotes weak points (to better understand the 5 features we choose), scroll down to the bottom to see the 5 Features Your Coyote Hunting Light Must Have.

Coyote Weaknesses

THEIR VISION

While it is true that coyotes have good vision, they have a hard time seeing higher wavelength colors. The approximate high end of the wavelength spectrum they can see is near 540 nm, which is very close to green in color. Red is near 660 nm wavelength, which is why coyotes have a very hard time seeing it. Separate from colorations, coyotes do have better night vision and sensitivity to movement compared to humans. We humans are able to level the playing field by utilizing our gadgets and accessories. To compare coyotes vision to human vision, SC Psychological LTD. has done a great job at putting together a color spectrum graph:As shown in the graph above, a coyote can see two primary colors: yellow and blue. This is common vision for deer, hogs, and other dichromate vision mammals as well, so it doesn’t just apply to coyote hunting lights. This is also one reason why it is best to not wear blue jeans when going deer hunting or coyote hunting as they tend to stick out like a sore thumb. If they are covered by a high rack or deer blind, of course then they are an ok option.While coyotes don’t have the greatest color vision, another weakness is that they are not able to see as far as most humans can. Humans (some cases require glasses or contacts) can see 20/20 vision. Coyotes vision is closer to 20/70 vision and some may have even worse vision. This basically means a coyote can see at 20 feet what a human can see at 70 feet. The one vision strength coyotes have over humans is their peripheral vision. This is what can make it very hard to sneak up on a coyote. A human has 180 degree peripheral vision while coyotes have 260 degree peripheral vision. This is due to the shape of their head and location of their eyes. This is ultimately why coyote hunters should stay as still as possible, because any small bit of movement can be detected fairly easily if a coyote is in range. Here’s more information about the science behind a coyote’s vision and how to determine what color coyote hunting light works best for night hunting.

THEY LET EVERYONE KNOW WHERE THEY ARE

If you’ve ever been in coyote territory at night, you’ve most likely heard their high pitched yipping and howling they make prior to going on their nightly hunt. If you’re calling in a dominant male coyote’s territory – you may hear the dominant male howling or even barking at you from a distance. These yips and howl have a variety of behavioral purposes, all of them are related to communicating to other coyotes in the surrounding area. One purpose is to call the pack back together after a period of individual hunting, which is behavior you may hear in the early hours of the morning.

Another purpose, which is commonly heard as the sun goes down, is to warn other coyotes in the surrounding area of their presence and to not trespass on their territorial boundaries. These coyote packs may sound like there are 10-20 coyotes howling together, but in most cases it is one male, one female, and their offspring. Most packs are sized in the range of 3-5 coyotes. The howling can make your skin crawl if it’s the first time you’ve been exposed to it, but the best coyote hunters are able to use this to their advantage. The coyotes are telling you exactly where they are, leaving it up to you to move in close and find them. A Utah State Professor conducted a study which sought out to understand the behavioral attributes of coyotes and ultimately determine the meaning behind different types of barks and howls. You can learn more about this in our article Callin’ all Coyotes: Proven Tips for a Successful Coyote Hunt Across the United States.

THEY LOOK BACK WHEN THEY RETREAT

If you’re a quick, sharp shooter – this can play to your advantage. They have a habit of always looking back when they retreat, which gives a coyote hunter eye shine to go off of in attempting to take a shot. Using your coyote hunting light to quickly scan your surroundings can give you the best opportunity at picking up a retreating coyote. If the coyote located you and you are the reason it was spooked, then it may be time to move on to a different hunting spot. However, if the coyote was uncomfortable or unknowingly spooked, you may be able to save your stand by changing spots (even if it’s only 50 ft away) and calling again using a different call. It’s important to be aware that spooked coyotes and pressured coyotes are both very difficult to bring in. If you know the coyotes around you are spooked or pressured, it’s best to keep your coyote hunting light on a dim setting to minimize the opportunity for them to pick up any small changes in their surroundings.Another common scenario we’ve seen is if you call in a double or a triple but you are only able to take one coyote down – don’t give up. After the first shot, say you are running on a rabbit distress, switch to a pup distress-like high pitch sound and sometimes a coyote who hasn’t been heavily pressured will turn around and come back. We’ve had success with this tactic on coyotes that haven’t been heavily pressured. If a coyote is heavily pressured, they may not return for a long time.

HEAVY SLEEPER

Coyotes are very heavy sleepers, which is why it’s not always a complete shock for someone to stumble upon a sleeping coyote in a field or pasture. The flip side is that they typically sleep during the day as they are more active at night.If you’re night hunting, you have pretty slim chances to come across a sleeping coyote. Coyotes are nocturnal animals and they will easily travel 5 miles in one night searching for food. On the flip side, if you happen to locate a sleeping coyote, that lets you know they are spending time on your property and are comfortable enough with it to stay there during the day time. This is one indicator that you should break out your coyote hunting light at night to see if you can call in the entire pack.

5 Features Every Coyote Light Should Have

We’ve managed to compile some of the coyote’s weak points, now how can we take advantage of these weak points when looking for a quality predator hunting light for coyotes?

The Best Color Lights for Coyote Hunting

Coyotes are color blind by nature and because of this, the best color light for coyote hunting is red. They have a hard time seeing green as well, but red is a better color because it is a higher wavelength and gives you some “buffer” from the cut off of what wavelength light their eyes are able to see. Put this to your advantage by utilizing red coyote hunting lights in your arsenal.

It is important to realize that red is a very difficult color for many manufacturers to perfect. Due to the nature of the color, the company you choose must be one capable of engineering a beam that can truly throw the high wavelength color down range. There are very few predator hunting lights we have seen that are capable of doing this, with the Predator Cannon Hunting Light being one of the best we have ever seen. It is very rare to have a coyote hunting light that can literally light up an entire field in red.

Adjustable Hunting Light Intensity

Take advantage of coyotes telling us where they are. You can sneak into their territory with your light dimmed down until you locate them, then turn up the heat!Coyotes have great peripheral vision and they are able to pick up on the smallest movements and even shadows coming from light beams. The best way to locate and keep tabs on a shy coyote is to be capable of adjusting the intensity of the coyote light prior to illuminating the coyote without spooking it. It’s always good practice to increase intensity of your coyote hunting light to full intensity right before you take the shot. This gives the coyote hunter the best opportunity at an accurate shot.If you have a hard time getting a coyote to stop for an accurate shot, we’ve found making a loud kissing sound with your lips will often cause them to halt in their place. This is referred to by some coyote hunters as the “kiss of death”. It is also commonly used if a coyote appears to be disinterested, because it can spark their attention and sometimes cause them to start coming towards you. If they are fast approaching, you can increase the intensity of your coyote hunting light and get ready to take a shot.

Long Range Spot and Flood Combination

Next time the coyote looks back after a missed shot, get redemption with a coyote hunting light that is still lighting them up while you’re reloading!A study once found that coyotes will circle their prey within a large area, in attempt to validate what is going on with all of their senses prior to committing to the prey. Predator hunters lure them in with calls, pretending to be the coyote’s prey. Thus, coyotes will do the same to predator hunters. When choosing hunting lights for coyotes, it is important to have a wide flood light capable of lighting up coyote eyes across a large area. It is equally important that your lights for coyote hunting have the ability to reach out long range to spotlight coyotes before they commit. There are very few lights capable of doing both of these features, and the Predator Cannon Hunting Light is one of the best coyote huntings lights there are at lighting up an entire field.

Mounting Versatility for all Hunting Vehicles

You may be tracking through fields on foot, riding your side by side through the woods, or hunting from the high rack on back of your truck. Regardless of where you are chasing coyotes, your light needs to be versatile for all of these scenarios. A quality light for coyote hunting must be capable of lighting up large areas, spotlighting down range, and have versatile mounting capabilities. These features are hard to find but essential. We’ve managed to design a coyote hunting light fully compatible with these qualities. The Predator Cannon Hunting Light comes with a variety of mounting choices. The standard option is the side-mounted brackets which are great for mounting the light to your side by side, high rack, car or truck. An added option is the bottom-mounted brackets which give you more flexibility to get creative with the hunting light and even mount it to your own tripod or hand grip. Over 200 watts of red coyote light illuminating an entire field in the grips of your hands is second to none.

Strong & Non-Reflective Light Housing

You’ve found a piece of land to hunt, located the coyote, made it to the right spot, set up your hunting rig, and the last thing you need to ruin your night of calling is moonlight reflecting off the housing of your scan light while hunting those pesky animals. Another common one I’ve heard of is dropping the light from a high rack which many times can end up breaking. Now you’ve got a gun that works but no way to see the coyotes.

I would recommend going with a flat black, strong aluminum housing such as what is on the Predator Cannon Hunting Light. A predator hunting light designed for these instances will not only give you more confidence in a successful trip, but it will hold up to the out of the ordinary accidents that seem to always happen at the most inconvenient times.

Recommendation for the Best Coyote Hunting Light

The Predator Cannon Hunting Light is one of the best lights for coyote hunting available on the market today. It easily mounts to high racks, ATVs, trucks, and more while discretely lighting up more area.

What makes it the best light for coyote hunting?

The high intensity, dimmable LEDs are engineered to maintain your night vision while also staying at the optimal wavelength for color blindness in coyotes. Unlike any other long range light, this coyote hunting light is capable of broadcasting a flood to illuminate an entire field while also providing a long range spot beam for locating coyotes in the distance. The more area you can see, the better your chances at seeing more coyotes.

Outrigger Outdoors is your trusted source for coyote hunting lights. To setup your hunting rig with lights made for coyote hunting, contact us today!

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I reviewed over 30 bushcraft axes and hatchets and found that the Council Tool Woodcraft Pack Axe is the top choice.

An axe seems like a simple tool. However, to select the best bushcraft axe, there are many things to consider. We cover all of these in this extensive buying guide.

When I was a child, we used firewood for heat and cut it from our own property. I learned how to use an axe at a young age and have nearly 40 years of experience using them. During bushcraft trips and even just quick camping trips, a good bushcraft axe is essential. Around my property, I also use my bushcraft axe quite often.

I took my experience along with my team and others in the bushcraft community to put together this review. We looked at over 30 axes that met our criteria and narrowed them down to this list. I own a few of these axes for my personal use and only recommend the ones I think have good value.

Keep reading to find my tips on picking the best bushcraft axe for you!

Quick Comparison of Our Favorite Bushcraft Axes and Hatchets

The Best Bushcraft Axe

Council Tool Woodcraft Pack Axe – Best Overall

• Type: Pack/Camp Axe
• Head Weight: 2 lb
• Handle Length: 19”

The Council Tool Woodcraft Pack Axe is our choice for the best bushcraft axe. It is part of Council Tool’s Woodcraft line of axes designed specifically for Bushcraft. This is a true multipurpose axe that is made in the USA.

Council Tool has made axes and other similar tools in southeast North Carolina since 1886. All of their axes are drop forged by hand, using similar methods that are used by the European manufacturers.

The head is made from 5160 high carbon steel and is guaranteed for life. This steel is perfect for a bushcraft axe due to its toughness. While it will dull quicker than other steels, it is easy to sharpen and can handle tough hardwoods and cold conditions without chipping.

Both the bit and the poll of the head are heat treated, allowing me to use the poll as a hammer for driving other metal objects like tent stakes. The bit comes extremely sharp right out of the box, and the flat 25-degree Scandi grind makes it easy for me to sharpen.

The handle is made from Appalachian Hickory, and the grain is aligned with the head as it should be. The handle comes lightly treated with linseed oil. This can be good or bad, depending on your personal preference. Some people like to finish and treat their own handle, while others do not. Personally, I like to treat my own.

I like that the Handle is secured to the head with a metal wedge. The handle and wedge are cut off smooth above the head, a surprising attention to detail.

My axe came with a few rough spots on the handle that I took care of with some fine grit sandpaper. I then treated it with linseed oil to keep it from drying out too much. See our guide below for how often you should treat your axe handle.

I like the custom leather sheath that comes with the axe, it fits very well. It is a must-have since the edge is so sharp. The book that comes with the axe is also a nice touch. The history of the company and the old photos are interesting.

This axe feels great and swings nicely with one or two hands. The weight and balance are perfect. The affordable price along with being made in the USA, pushed it past the competition to be our top pick.

Recommended for:

The Council Tool Woodcraft Pack Axe is for someone wanting a high-quality bushcraft axe that is made in the USA. The head design, weight, and material are the best for the variety of tasks that I do at camp.

Granfors Bruks Small Forest Axe – Best Swedish Made Bushcraft Axe

• Type: Pack/Camp Axe
• Head Weight: 1.5 lb
• Handle Length: 19”

The Gransfors Bruks Small Forest Axe is thought by many to be one of the best. Gransfors Bruks makes some of the finest axes in the world and have been since at least 1902. They are handmade in Sweden by skilled craftsman. This allows them to monitor the full production process to ensure every axe has no defects. The axe head has a 20-year guarantee, so they stand behind their work.

The axe head is forged from high-carbon steel. It is then ground, hardened, and tempered by hand through the same process the company perfected years ago. It comes very sharp, much sharper than any axe I have found in a hardware store. The steel used is recycled steel, but quality control measures have been established to ensure high quality.

The handle is made from Hickory and is shaped so the grains are aligned with the head. It is attached to the head with a traditional wooden wedge. The handle is soaked with linseed oil and then treated with beeswax to protect it from dirt and water.

Grunsfors Bruks only uses steel wedges for their splitting axe handles. Steel wedges offer extra head security for axes that experience higher forces. Keep in mind that this axe is not meant for heavy duty splitting since it has a wood wedge.

This axe comes with a custom leather sheath that is vegetable tanned, a process that dates back thousands of years.

I like how the axe feels. The head weight and handle length are perfectly balanced. I also like the axe book that comes with the axe that details how to properly maintain it. Be sure to study it!

I would personally prefer that the head weighed closer to 2 lb and had a steel wedge to secure it. Also recycled steel is not the best choice in my mind. However, this axe is made for light-duty work around the campsite.

Recommended for:

The Grunsfors Bruks Small Forest Axe is for someone looking for a high-quality, ready-to-go bushcraft axe. If you want an axe that is ready for a long stay in the woods, this axe is the best choice. If you need something for heavy work, this axe may not be the best for you.

Hults Bruk Aneby Axe

• Type: Pack/Camp Axe
• Head Weight: 2 lb
• Handle Length: 20”

The Hults Bruk Aneby Axe is the perfect sized bushcraft axe. Hults Bruk has been making axes in Sweden since 1697, over 300 years. They even say there are artifacts on their manufacturing site of stone axes. Let’s just say they have some experience with axes.

The head is a Scandinavian design using Swedish steel. The steel and hardness level is balanced to result in a tough yet sharp axe. The head is a little thicker with a convex grind, so it lends itself to splitting more than cutting. The head has a finger notch for one-handed carving and a rounded poll for skinning.

The axe comes fairly sharp, but I found it really needs to be touched up with a stone to get it to the level of the other axes. The center of the bit tends to be duller than the edges.

The handle is American Hickory and is treated with linseed oil at the factory. A steel ring wedge is used to attach the handle to the head, ensuring a secure fit.

I like the leather sheath that comes with the axe and the book that details how to care for it as well.

The weight of this axe feels just right for bushcraft. The upper part of the handle is a little thicker, which makes it feel more precise for detail work.

Recommended for:

The Hults Bruk Aneby Axe is for anyone looking for the perfect sized Swedish made bushcraft axe. This axe is a handcrafted piece of art, and it is something you can hand down to younger generations.

Helko Werk Rheinland Pack Axe

• Type: Pack/Camp Axe
• Head Weight: 1.5 lb
• Handle Length: 20”

The Helko Werk Rheinland Pack Axe is made in Germany by Helko Werk. They have been making axes since 1844, so they certainly have experience.

The axe heads are hand-made through a drop forge process. The craftsman works the hot C50 steel through the forming process, controlling the temperature and time to ensure a tough axe head. The head is then tempered based on their many years of experience to achieve a perfect level of hardness.

The head is a German-wide bit, which is similar to a Scandinavian head and a Hudson Bay head, but a little bigger.

I feel that, on one hand, it makes it a good bushcraft axe since it will handle a variety of tasks, from cutting and splitting to fine carving as well. On the other hand, it does add some weight to the front of the head, so it throws the balance off some. At just 1.5 pounds, it is a little on the light side.

The handle is made from American Hickory and coated in linseed oil. It is secured with a metal wedge, so the head coming loose is not an issue. The handle does feel a little bit bigger to me than the other axes. It may be OK for someone with bigger hands but seemed a little off to me.

I like the vegetable tanned leather sheath that comes with the axe. It has an adjustable buckle strap that holds it in place well. Even if it loosens over time, you can use the next hole in the strap. I also like the fact that it comes with a bottle of protective oil for the head, something that the other axes do not come with.

Recommended for:

The Helko Werk Rheinland Pack Axe is a great-looking axe for someone looking for a high-quality axe that is right up there with Swedish manufacturers. The handle is a little on the big-side, and the overall balance is not as good as some of the others. The larger head is nice though for a variety of tasks.

Snow & Nealley Hudson Bay Axe – Best Budget Bushcraft Axe

• Type: Pack/Camp Axe
• Head Weight: 1.75 lb
• Handle Length: 24”

The Snow & Nealley Hudson Bay axe is made by the Amish in Maine. The Amish are known for their quality craftmanship, and they have been making axes since 1864.

The head is a traditional Hudson Bay style head made from 1080 steel, which I like for cold weather Bushcraft work. At a little less than 2 pounds, it is still heavy enough to do some light splitting without weighing my pack down.

The head is hand-tempered and ground, but it does not come with a final edge on it. I found that it took quite a bit of hand work to get a good edge on it. The Hardness is on the lower end of most axes, so it is durable yet easy to sharpen.

Since this is a traditional Hudson Bay head, it could loosen over time since the length of the eye is short. This is not a defect in manufacturing but rather just a result of the design.

I like to soak the head in linseed oil when I feel it getting loose. This helps to keep the handle from shrinking in the head. In an emergency in the woods, I have also soaked it in water, but only as a last resort. This makes it loosen even more when it dries.

The handle is American Hickory and is 24” long. This is a little longer than a typical camp axe, and it allows me to get a little more power into cutting wood. The balance is a little farther down the handle, which also lends itself to cutting.

I did not like that the head and handle were coating a lacquer/clear coat finish. I prefer to finish my handle and oil my axe heads. I found that it did come off during use, so eventually, I have to either treat the areas where it came off or remove it from the entire axe.

The clear coat is good for someone that wants a low-maintenance axe, just throw it in your truck and don’t worry about it.

This axe is the most affordable on our list, so it is a big plus. It is half the cost of some others, so it is significant. It also comes with a leather sheath, so there are no worries about them leaving this key item out to get the price down.

Recommended for:

The Snow & Nealley Hudson Bay axe is for someone looking for a low-cost bushcraft axe. The longer handle makes it feel more like a felling axe without the heavy weight. The lacquer finish is a personal preference. Just keep in mind that you will need to put the final edge on this axe.

The Best Bushcraft Hatchet

Council Tool Hudson Bay Belt Hatchet – Best Overall Bushcraft Hatchet

• Type: Belt Hatchet
• Head Weight: 1.25 lb
• Handle Length: 14”

The Council Tool Hudson Bay Belt Hatchet is a great choice for bushcraft. It is made by the same company as our top pick for axes and has many of the same qualities.

The head is made from 5160 steel, the best choice for a bushcraft axe. It is a Hudson Bay style head, which is great for not only processing wood but also for carving and skinning. The larger curved toe of the head lends itself to more detail work.

Both the bit and poll are hardened, so I can use the poll to hammer tent stakes. The head is guaranteed for life.

The handle is made from Grade A Appalachian Hickory. It has been lightly treated with linseed oil but still should be treated regularly to maintain it. The length is perfect for a hatchet and is balanced with the head.

Hudson Bay axes are known for the head to loosen from the handle over time since the eye length is short. Council Tool has solved this issue by redesigning the eye with ribs to create more contact area with the handle. This makes the head more secure on the handle a solves the loosening condition that used to be common. A metal wedge is also used to secure it.

A very nice leather sheath is included with this hatchet, which makes it easy to carry on my belt or pack.

Recommended for:

The Council Tool Hudson Bay Belt Hatchet is our top pick for the best bushcraft hatchet. It is for anyone looking for a smaller hatchet with all of the qualities of a camp axe. It is also more affordable than its European counterparts.

Gransfors Bruks Wildlife Hatchet

• Type: Belt Hatchet
• Head Weight: 1 lb
• Handle Length: 13.5”

The Gransfors Bruks Wildlife Hatchet is a smaller version of its big brother, the small forest axe.

This hatchet is made of the same materials and craftsmanship as the small forest axe but is a hatchet length and weight for use with one hand.

It comes with a vegetable-tanned leather sheath custom-made for the hatchet.

The steel on this hatchet can be a little on the hard side, so it may not be the best for hardwood in the wintertime. Hard blows can cause the edge to chip, and the harder steel makes it harder to sharpen.

Since this is a lighter hatchet, it should only be used for light-duty work around the campsite. It is not the best for splitting large pieces of firewood.

This hatchet felt a little small to me. But if you are looking for a lightweight hatchet to keep on your belt, this is a good choice.

Recommended for:

The Gransfors Bruks Wildlife Hatchet is for someone that wants a premium handmade hatchet from a company with a great reputation. It is small and lightweight, perfect for hanging on my belt.

Hults Bruk Almike Hatchet

• Type: Hatchet
• Head Weight: 1 lb
• Handle Length: 16”

The Hults Bruk Almike hatchet is hand forged in Sweden, so the quality is top-notch.

The head on this hatchet is a little lighter than most, so I found it is perfect when I need to save save weight in my pack. It is made from Swedish steel and holds an edge well. I like my bits super sharp (a sharp axe is a safe axe), so I had to put in a little stonework after I received it.

The handle is made from American Hickory and is treated in linseed oil. I treated mine when I received it and then I reapply regularly (see our guide below). The handle is secured by a metal wedge, which I like.

This axe feels great, and the lighter head with a longer handle allows me to swing it with less effort than the other hatchets. The undercut near the head makes it easy to control for detail work.

The leather sheath is custom-made and covers the entire head. I like the leather pull cord that holds the sheath in place, but over time it can tend to get loose. When I hang it on my belt, I am sure that the sheath is snug.

Recommended for:

The Hults Bruk Almike hatchet is great for anyone looking for a high-quality, Swedish-made hatchet that is lightweight for their belt or packs. This one is less than 2 pounds overall, so great for anyone looking to save weight where they can.

Helko Werk Rheinland Hatchet

• Type: Hatchet
• Head Weight: 1.25 lb
• Handle Length: 14”

The Helko Werk Rheinland Hatchet is a smaller version of Helko Werk’s Pack Axe. It is made from the same quality materials and hand-made by craftsmen in Wuppertal, Germany. They also have their own North American distribution center, so getting them is easy, and customer service is US based.

Like the Pack Axe, the head has a wide German style bit. This is mostly a personal preference, but for a hatchet, it lends itself more to carving and skinning and less to splitting. If you plan to have an axe and a hatchet, this would be a great option.

The large bit can have some inconsistencies since it is hand sharpened. I noticed that the center was not as sharp as the edges out of the box, but easily took care of it with a stone.

The handle is American Hickory and secured with a metal wedge. It is lightly finished with linseed oil, which does need to be reapplied a few more times.

I like the head weight of this hatchet, and the overall feel is good. I also like the knob at the end of the handle. For light work, it swings well one-handed.

The leather sheath is nice, and they have a leather handle collar also available. This helps to protect the handle from misplaced strikes and is a great option.

Recommended for:

The Helko Werk Rheinland Hatchet is great for someone looking for a quality hatchet with a broad head for carving, skinning, and general light woodwork. It goes great with a pack-axe combo.

Snow & Neally Outdoorsmans Belt Axe

• Type: Hatchet
• Head Weight: 1.25 lb
• Handle Length: 15”

The Snow & Neally Outdoorsmans Belt Axe is made in Maine by the Amish, just like the Hudson Bay axe above.

This hatchet has a forged head made from 1080 steel. Snow & Neally outsources the forging process and brings the heads in-house to hand temper and grind them. In the early 2000s, they were sourcing heads from China but have since changed back to a US supplier.

The handles are made in Tennessee from Appalachian Hickory and finished by hand in Maine. There has been concern from some customers on the grain of the handle properly aligning with the axe head.

I found that Snow & Nealley is planning to move handle production in house to better control this issue. In the meantime, they are monitoring the fitment closely to make sure the handles have been made correctly.

The weight of this axe and the handle are balanced well for one-handed use. I found that it works well for splitting kindling.

This hatchet comes with a lacquer/clear coat coating like the Hudson Bay Axe. As I mentioned, this is a personal preference, if you like it or not. We also found we needed to put the final edge on the axe and could choose if we wanted a flat scandi grind or more of a convex grind.

A custom leather sheath that is handmade in Maine is included also. The quality of the sheath is outstanding.

Recommended for:

The Snow & Neally Outdoorsmans Belt Axe is for someone looking for an American-made Bushcraft Hatchet that is lower cost. Since the forged head is finished to a lower hardness, it is great for very cold weather and is easy to sharpen to your preference.

Prandi German Style Hatchet – Best Budget Bushcraft Hatchet

• Type: Hatchet
• Head Weight: 1.35 lb
• Handle Length: 14.25”

The Prandi German Style Hatchet is made by Prandi in their facility in Northern Italy. They have been making over 150 models of axes and hatchets there since 1969. In 2004 they achieved ISO certification, which means they have documented their entire process to ensure the same results with every axe.

The head on this hatchet is forged from C45 steel – then hardened and polished by hand. The head design is a traditional German hatchet, so it has a wider curved blade. This makes this hatchet great for light splitting and cutting but also for carving and skinning.

The Handle is made from American Hickory and is secured to the head with a metal ring wedge. Some have found that the head becomes loose after heavy use or throwing but is easily reset by driving the wedge further into the handle slightly.

Note that the price of this hatchet is great, less than half the price of some of the others on our list. However, it will require some maintenance and some initial sharpening to get it bushcraft pack-ready.

A leather sheath is included with this hatchet. It is an Ok sheath, but not one of the best.

The balance and weight of this hatchet are good. I think a slightly longer handle would make it even better for delimbing and other light work. It is a good length for carving, though.

Recommended for:

The Prandi German Style Hatchet is for someone looking for a budget Bushcraft Hatchet that has a quality forged head and Hickory handle. This hatchet tends to be better for carving but also works well for light cutting and splitting around the campsite. It would make a nice combo with a camp axe.

Bushcraft Axe Buying Guide

There are many different types of axes on the market today. You can walk into any hardware store and find a few different shapes and sizes of axes. Often, I find that none of these are the best axes for bushcraft specifically.

A Bushcraft axe is somewhat of a personal decision depending on the area you plan to camp, what you plan to do at camp, and how much weight you want to carry. It may be that you need two axes, or possibly none at all.

One thing is for sure though. Whenever I am on a long trip out in the woods, I find that I really need an axe. Just take a look at the winners of Alone, they all selected an axe as one of their 10 items. It is an essential bushcraft and survival tool.

What Makes the Best Bushcraft Axe?

I have found that the Best Bushcraft axe mostly depends on the type of work I am planning to do, what I want to carry, what is legal where I am camping, and my personal preferences.

In my experience a pack style or boy’s axe that has a two-pound head and about a 20” handle is the best choice. This is the best size for most work that I need to accomplish on a bushcraft or camping trip. This is also a good size to just keep around my home for utility work when I don’t need a big axe.

When I plan to camp where cutting down trees is not allowed, a smaller bushcraft type hatchet is sometimes better. It is lighter to carry and allows me to process smaller pieces of wood easier.

Over time, as I gained experience with my bushcraft skills, I found that I needed both a larger pack axe and a hatchet. I have talked to some people that camp when they are hunting and like the utility that a pack axe and tomahawk offers.

Using this guide as a basis, helping you pick what is best for you is our goal.

The Bushcraft Axe Head

The head is the working end of the axe, and there are many different configurations on the market. Some are good for more general bushcraft work, while others are dedicated.

Material

The head of a bushcraft axe should be made from some type of Carbon steel. Carbon steel will hold an edge while still being tough enough to withstand impacts. 5160 high-carbon steel is one of the best choices because of its durability.

Cheap axes are made from low carbon recycled cold or hot rolled steel and can have pits and voids internally. They will not hold an edge and can break with heavy impacts.

The hardness of the steel is also important, and many manufacturers consider it part of their trade secret. There is a delicate balance between too hard and too soft. A soft bit will be tougher but lose its edge quickly, while a harder bit will be more likely to crack and chip.

I have found when using my axe in sub-freezing temperatures, a lower hardness is better. The higher the hardness, the more brittle the steel becomes at low temperatures. Overall, I look for a hardness between 52 and 56 HRC.

Weight

A heavier axe head will generate more force when it strikes the wood. It also takes less inertia to get it moving. In general, I find need more room to use a heavier axe. However, a heavier axe head means a heavier axe to carry.

For felling trees over about 6” in diameter, a 3-pound axe head is a good size. For general bushcraft work where I am not processing large trees, a 2-pound axe head like on a boy’s axe is my top choice. For smaller hatchets, around 1.5 pounds or so is a good weight.

Size and Shape

There are many different sizes and shapes of axe heads. Most were designed years ago and named for the place they were first used or the type of head. The major difference between them is polled single bit and double bit.

In my experience, polled single-bit heads are the best for bushcraft. They have a cutting edge on one side and a pole or flat face on the other. Often the poll is also hardened and can be used as a hammer for driving tent stakes or wedges.

For general bushcraft work, I find that a Hudson Bay or Scandinavian-style head works well since it is a multi-purpose shape and can do both cutting and splitting.

Edge Type or Grind

There are a few different grinds that you will see on axes. For bushcraft axes, there are really two that should be considered.

A Convex edge is more of a round profile from the tip of the bit back to the bevel. In general, this type of edge is the strongest. For any structural shape, a curve is better than a flat since it distributes the forces. A corner is where forces concentrate and can cause failure.

A Convex edge is better at splitting wood and not so much for cutting wood. I find that it may not penetrate damp or frozen wood and will take more energy to use. Also, a convex edge is harder to sharpen since it is a gradually curved surface.

A flat or Scandi edge basically forms a triangle at the point. This edge is better at cutting but is not quite as durable as a convex edge. It is a good multipurpose grind for both cutting and splitting and finer work such as making stakes or cutting notches. I find that it is easier to sharpen since I have a flat, fixed angle to grind.

The Bushcraft Axe Handle

The handle of a bushcraft axe is just as important as the head. The handle should be strong, comfortable, and made for the main tasks that the axe will be used for.

Material

When I walk into my local hardware store, I see axes with wood, metal, and fiberglass handles.

Metal handles are certainly durable, but I find they transmit too much shock into my hands and arms.

Fiberglass handles absorb shock a little better but are not any more durable than wood and cannot be replaced.

Wood handles are the best choice for a bushcraft axe handle. They absorb shock well and can be replaced easily. I can make a replacement in the woods if I had to. Hardwoods like Hickory and Ash are the best.

When selecting my bushcraft axe, I make sure the grain of the wood in the handle is perpendicular to the axe head. Wood is the strongest when loads are perpendicular to the grain. An easy way to remember this is to think of how a tree grows. The grains are going straight up, and this is what keeps trees from easily falling.

Shape and Length

In general, the heavier the axe head, the longer the handle should be. A handle around 18” to 20” is best for a bushcraft axe. This length is long enough to do some heavier work with two hands but short enough for finer detail with one hand as well.

If I know that I don’t need to fell any trees (in some areas, it is not allowed), then I find a shorter hatchet length handle of around 12” to 15” is better. It takes up less room and is lighter in my pack.

The shape of the handle can either be straight or curved with a knob at the end. I find that a straight handle gives me a little better control for detail work, while a curved handle gives me more cutting power. For larger axes and multipurpose bushcraft axes, a curved handle with a knob at the end is best.

Alignment of the Handle to the Head

Bushcraft axe handles that are curved should be aligned with the head of the axe. This allows me to accurately strike with the bit hitting the wood perpendicular and not glancing off. This is very important for both safety and the effort required to process wood.

I make sure the knob on the lower end of the handle curves out parallel to the head. I can check this by laying the axe on a flat surface. I found that after having experience using an axe, it was easy to tell when I picked up any axe.

This is checked on higher quality axes since they are hand crafted. On mass-produced axes, the handle may be pressed into the head by a machine, which could result in an incorrect alignment. With my experience as an engineer in the manufacturing business for 30 years, believe me, you don’t want an axe made by a machine.

The attachment of the head to the handle is also important. Metal ring or spike wedges are more secure than just wood wedges.

Balance

The balance of a finished axe is important for safety and how much effort I must expend while using it. The overall center of gravity should be a few inches from the head on the handle. This allows me to both swing it efficiently and hold it near the head for detail work.

Lower-quality axes made from inferior materials I find are not be balanced and are awkward to handle. I can pick up a bushcraft axe and immediately know if they are well-balanced or not.

Cover or Sheath

The best bushcraft axes will come with a leather cover for the head. This is very important for both storage and safety. The edge of the axe should be maintained and kept sharp. The sharper, the better. It is easy to damage a sharp edge when it comes into contact with other metal objects, especially at odd angles.

Of course, any sharp edge can cut you if you contact it accidentally. I always keep my axe covered when I am not using it. It both protects me and my axe and is a necessary accessory.

Quality

Like most things, you get what you pay for. Most of the axes you find in hardware stores are made overseas in a factory from cheap materials. While these are OK for the homeowner who needs to cut an occasional tree limb, they are not what you want to be counting on deep in the woods on a bushcraft trip. Even worse, they can come apart and injure you or someone nearby.

The absolute best axes are hand forged in Sweden. These are the standard for axes, and they have been made there for hundreds of years. Drop-forged heads in the US and Germany are good also and can serve you well. Avoid any axe made in China.

Bushcraft Axe Accessories

Here are some accessories that I have and recommend.

• File – for taking care of any large nicks to the bit.
• Sharpening Puck – to sharpen your axe periodically.
• Wedges – to use when you are splitting larger lengths of wood.
• Linseed oil – used for treating the handle. Treat a new handle every day for a week, every week for a month, and every month for a year. Then touchup depending on use.

How to Sharpen your Bushcraft Axe

This video from Council Tool shows some methods to keep your axe in top shape.

Bushcraft Axe Safety

Here is a great video by Ray Mears on Selecting a Bushcraft Axe and Bushcraft Axe Safety.

Choose your Bushcraft Axe

Now that you understand what to look for, which will you choose? Our top pick, the Council Tool Woodcraft Pack Axe, is the best all-around bushcraft axe. However, you may prefer a bushcraft hatchet or want both for your next trek in the woods. It all depends on where you will be camping and what type of tasks you like to accomplish with your axe.

Now that you have selected an axe to process some firewood, check out our guides on bushcraft shelters and wool blankets to keep you warm at night. Our Bushcraft Guides and Gear Reviews also has a ton of great info to help you on your next tramp in the woods!

Underwater cameras have been used in commercial fishing for decades, primarily as a means of providing visual confirmation for sonar data or environmental observations. However, these commercial units were large, heavy, expensive, and very limited in their capabilities. Since most open water, especially ocean water, is opaque due to suspended particles and living organisms, the ability of cameras to provide useful information is limited. Underwater cameras were used by the commercial fishing industry to confirm the presence of underwater obstacles that would wreck ships or foul nets.

The advent of small, inexpensive digital cameras in the late 90s made it possible for sport fishermen to begin purchasing and using such cameras. Smaller and with simpler options than those on the large commercial units, these underwater cameras have evolved to be inexpensive, easy to deploy, and capable of functioning without being continuously connected to a boat’s power system or on-shore power source.

Underwater Cameras for Ice Fishing

While they have become popular with lake and littoral fishermen who want to observe underwater hazards and fish populations to better understand their favorite fishing spot, underwater cameras have proven to be the most useful to ice fishermen. Since ice fishermen must put time and effort into each hole they drill and each line they drop, knowing exactly what is below before they drop their lines is crucial. The use of underwater cameras is especially useful in that the cameras are designed with the ability to fit into holes much smaller than is required for fishing. This means that small “test holes” can be drilled to see if an area is worth fishing before fishermen drop their lines. Ice fishermen can also see much further underwater than those who are fishing in active waters, since the lack of wave action and cold water combine to make the water extremely clear, enabling cameras with lights to show off a very large area and even highlight fish as they wait out the winter.

Underwater cameras are becoming a necessary piece of equipment for any serious ice fisherman, especially those who want to optimize their catch. Such cameras can also prevent a fisherman from spending hours out on the ice dropping lines where there are no fish, as well as alert them to the presence of obstacles and hazards that would snag and ruin their lines. They are easy to carry and can be set up in seconds, enabling fishermen to quickly drill a test hole, take a look around, and then either expand or abandon the hole based on what he sees.

What’s Important in an Underwater Camera

This doesn’t mean that all underwater cameras are made equal, nor that fishermen can rely on getting a good one without learning anything about them. Many units are too cheap or too simple to be useful or are ill suited to the extreme weather conditions inherent in ice fishing. So what should you look for? The first thing would be insulation of some sort for the unit itself and especially the battery. LiPo batteries that get too cold can have water condense inside of them, causing them to short out and catch fire, so it’s important to keep them reasonably warm. Fortunately, they produce their own heat when running, so as long as the camera has insulation around the battery, it will function properly at cold temperatures.

Second, the line and camera must be insulated with cold-tolerant materials which will not become brittle when exposed to below freezing temperatures. Natural rubber needs to be thus avoided, and all of the waterproofing on the unit needs to be made of silicone or other similar synthetic materials. Third, the camera needs to have a large camera aperture and large pixel resolution. Be aware too that water largely blocks infrared light, and so infra-red cameras won’t be able to see as far as those which focus on visible light, especially in the blue end of the spectrum. Lastly, the camera needs to have an IP68 rating. This means that the camera has been developed specifically to be immersed in the water below one meter (a little more than a yard) and will not fail if thus immersed.

Which Underwater Camera to Choose

Fortunately, there are several affordable cameras on the market which meet all of these requirements.

1. Marcum VS485C

The Marcum VS485C is a top-of-the-line unit specifically intended for ice fishing, as is indicated by its insulated carrying bag and handle. Even the sun shield is optimized for dealing with the glare that comes off of white snow, which is an excellent feature that helps the 7″ screen to be very visible even on cloudless winter days. The system uses large, easy-to-press buttons instead of a touch screen, and has been engineered with winter gloves in mind. The 800×480 resolution picture is adequate for the task at hand, and the screen is made by Sony, and thus subject to Sony’s stringent quality standards. The camera is also produced by Sony and has the necessary IP68 rating.

In addition to a wide-spectrum light, which has sufficient power to cut through all but the cloudiest lakes, the Marcum VS485C has multiple fin stabilizers to prevent both horizontal and vertical movement. Since most units only have one vertical fin to prevent spinning, instead relying on tension from the camera line to prevent vertical motion, the Marcum VS485C offers a much more stable picture than other units. The 50-foot cable is specifically engineered to be cold-water resistant and can transmit in both color and black-and-white. It’s this last feature that is of most use to ice fishermen since, in the low light of frozen lakes, the increased contrast of black-and-white transmissions can make clear what would otherwise be difficult to distinguish. Additionally, it has “Darkwater” LED lighting options, in addition to the broad-spectrum option, which provides better illumination in deep water. This is achieved by broadcasting more light in the blue spectrum, then interpreting it in black-and-white, to produce as high a contrast image as possible.

2. Vexilar FS800 Fish Scout

The Vexilar FS800 Fish Scout is a high-end unit specifically engineered for cold weather, although it is also intended to be smaller, lighter and more portable than other units. Like most high-end units it is built around Sony technology, with both the screen and camera being Sony commercial units. It can function at up to -22F, meaning that it should be more than adequate for most ice-fishing situations, although it may be necessary to operate it within a shelter on the coldest days. The screen displays in 480 x 234 pixels, which is adequate for the 7″ screen, although some fishermen may find it to be a bit low to capture some details if the light is good enough to illuminate them. The installed light on the camera has a broad spectrum beam, suitable for cutting through the murkiest water. The camera has only one stabilization fin, but the wide, flat design is intended to keep it from tilting or twisting horizontally and has ballast to help it remain properly aligned.

The 50-foot cable is more than adequate for most lakes, since depth below 50 feet is usually too opaque, even with artificial light, to be seen through. The a-SI TFT active matrix display is bright and accurate, although with only 420 lines of resolution some details may be obscured. Still, in the low-light environment inherent in ice fishing, much of the detail will be lost simply by not having enough light, even with artificial lights mounted on the unit. The Sony Super HAD CCD can see in light as dim as .01 Lux, enabling it to function even in very dark waters. Additionally, with a battery that can function for up to nine hours on a charge, the Vexilar FS800 Fish Scout is ideal for ice fishermen who want to wander far from shore or shelter in search of good fishing spots, since it will remain warm, functioning, and charged the entire time. It also has large buttons, ideal for operating when wearing gloves.

3. Aqua-Vu AV715c

The Aqua-Vu AV715c is primarily focused for use in warm water. However, it is capable of functioning in ice fishing conditions, especially when used in a shelter. Due to having less insulation than other units, it is necessary to keep it insulated or at least powered on during cold weather operation, however, the camera can handle up to -22F, as can the cable, thus eliminating any worries about it being damaged by cold weather conditions. The onboard battery comes with battery management software designed to extend life as long as possible, enabling it to function for up to 12 hours under ideal conditions. The entire unit is waterproof and designed to withstand submersion, and in addition to its carrying case, it can fit perfectly into a standard five-gallon bucket, making it easy to pack and carry. The unit also has its own handle, and the cable winds around the base of the unit, helping to keep it tidy and prevent it from being damaged.

The Aqua-Vu AV715c has a standard RCA out. Therefore, if you have a TV in your shelter, you can display the image on a screen bigger and brighter than the provided 7″ screen, although it is more than adequate for most situations. The camera is capable of detecting light in a broad spectrum and has low-light sensing technology, as well as infrared technology, however, it is primarily intended for situations with some natural light. The stabilization fin doubles as a means of hanging the camera by different angles thanks to wire clips built into its sides. The system uses buttons rather than a touch screen, making it easy to operate when wearing gloves.

4. Wosports Underwater Fishing Camera

The Wosports Underwater Fishing Camera is intended to be an all-purpose, entry-level model intended for use by those who want something that will be simple and get the job done while remaining as affordable as possible. As such, its components and insulation are not as robust as other models, but they are more than adequate for most ice-fishing situations. The camera has full IP68 waterproofing. However, the display and battery are only waterproof when the box is sealed and closed, meaning it’s a good idea to keep this unit away from the hole when in use. Nonetheless, with 50 feet of cable, this should not be a problem. The 7″ screen is very clear, displaying in a full 1000 lines, and has low-power usage, enabling the camera to run for up to eight hours on a charge. The push-button operation is possible with gloves, but small buttons mean it may be easier inside the shelter without gloves.

The camera provided is adequate for most lighting situations, especially with 12 LED lights included, but it lacks stabilization and fishermen will need to be dependent on tension from the camera wire to produce a steady image. Additionally, the camera has only one mounting point for the wire, on the rear, forcing some quick fishermen’s knots with the wire to hang it in a horizontal position. Interestingly, the unit also contains an SD Card Slot for recording directly on the device, enabling fishermen to easily record what they see for later viewing or uploading online. The camera has a slightly bowed 92-degree viewing angle, enabling fishermen to see more at the cost of having the image slightly distorted.