This fall, we as soon as once more celebrated what is taken into account a nationwide vacation right here in Michigan: the opening day of rifle deer season. Yearly on November fifteenth, the “orange military” heads out into the woods, signifying the tip of archery season and the start of the normal “deer camp.” We are not any completely different than most and luxuriate in a really snug wall-tent camp within the Michigan north woods. Time-honored traditions are carried out yr after yr, and November fifteenth will all the time be the holy grail for these of us who grew up in Michigan chasing whitetails.
This yr, we had been greeted with heat temperatures, a full moon—most likely the most important I’ve ever seen—and a few lingering rut exercise. All of this made for among the most difficult looking situations I’ve ever encountered in Michigan. There was loads of chasing taking place, nevertheless it was all occurring at night time beneath the protection of the total moon, with completely zero daytime motion.
Historically, Michigan could be very a lot a “sit and wait” state, whether or not you’re in a tree stand or one of many many custom-made, snug capturing homes which have been in the identical spot for many years and all the time appear to provide a buck. This yr, nonetheless, we needed to get inventive and adapt to the situations we had been dealt. That’s the place a software just like the Burris Eliminator 6 turns out to be useful.
Should you’re not accustomed to the Eliminator line of scopes, at the start, you ought to be! However for the sake of time, I’ll provide the 30,000-foot view: The Eliminator scopes are geared up with built-in rangefinding know-how. With the push of a button, you get bullet drop info at varied yardages for nearly each caliber and ammunition mixture. That’s the simplified model; the quantity of know-how and functionality packed into the newest model—the Eliminator 6—is unbelievable. I might go on for hours about all of it, however I wish to stick with the scope’s sensible utility.
Should you’re already accustomed to—or are simply now researching—this scope, you could have initially thought, “Oh, that looks as if an out-West, long-range kind of scope.” You’d be appropriate that it’s nice for long-range functions, however don’t pigeonhole the Eliminator by pondering it’s just for long-range capturing.
In Michigan, we now have what we name the “rifle line.” Under this line, in additional densely populated areas, you’re restricted to shotguns, muzzleloaders, or, extra just lately, straight-wall handgun cartridges which have an general case size of lower than 1.8 inches. This led to the rise in recognition of rounds just like the 350 Legend, 360 Buckhammer, 400 Legend, and my private favourite, the 450 Bushmaster. These straight-wall cartridges include some fairly aggressive ballistic curves, that are very completely different from what proficient shooters may be used to. Take the 450 Bushmaster, for instance: it packs a imply punch and could be very succesful out to a number of hundred yards, however the drop on the finish of its ballistic curve may be dramatic. That is the place the Eliminator 6 steps in and turns into a really sensible software for a cartridge that nobody would think about a long-range caliber. With a easy push of a button, the Eliminator 6 tells you your holdover at any yardage. Certainly one of its finest options is a “Shoot” or “No Shoot” indicator. The scope determines in case you have sufficient vitality downrange at longer distances and immediately tells you whether or not taking that shot is moral. For instance, whereas I’m personally snug capturing at 400 yards, I might by no means take that shot at an animal with a 450 Bushmaster. The scope reinforces this resolution by indicating that it’s not an moral shot.
Again to sensible utility within the discipline: Due to all of the curveballs we confronted this opening day in Michigan, we needed to get inventive. The lengthy days of sitting comfortably in a heated blind had been over, and we needed to get cellular. Our greatest tactic was to still-hunt for the higher a part of the day, slowly working our approach via the whitetail woods. That is the place the Eliminator 6 shines—particularly when paired with a 450 Bushmaster. We might be protecting dense, thick swamps and bedding areas the place photographs could be up shut and private. However we might even be protecting very massive clearcuts, energy strains, and ridge tops the place you may see for a number of hundred yards. Regardless of how good you’re at still-hunting, when you see a deer, it’s probably going to be on excessive alert.
When sitting stationary in a blind, you probably have the gap to each seen tree memorized. You have got loads of time to vary varied factors when you’re sitting there all day. However when still-hunting, you by no means know when, the place, or how far-off you’ll see a deer. With the power to boost your rifle, discover the deer within the scope, and hit the vary button, you’ve immediately calculated a ton of variables. Prior to now, making an attempt to do that mentally would have probably given the deer time to spook. Now, you may focus extra on the deer and the shot itself, quite than factoring in a bunch of exterior variables.
In abstract, the Burris Eliminator is actually a do-all scope. Don’t consider it as only a long-range software for hunters out West. I can guarantee you it’s additionally a really useful gizmo within the deep, thick cedar swamps of Michigan. I extremely suggest checking it out for your self—you’ll shortly see that there are many sensible functions for such a complicated piece of know-how. For extra info on the Burris Eliminator 6, head on over to www.burrisoptics.com.
