# We are getting pretty good at this



## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

Up to this point, I've been using 11 mm steel for hunting. That being said, I tend to be more accurate with 9.5 mm. Therefore, I thought I would give the smaller ammo a trie today. The one and only shot we got, at about 12 yards, was executed perfectly, hitting the cottontail just in the back of the skull. It immediately drop dead. The second photo is in-situ (as found) and you can see the steel ball laying in the corner of the frame. This has convinced me to at least try a few more outings with the smaller steel and see how it goes.

Thanks for looking


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## e~shot (Jun 3, 2010)

Good shooting buddy!


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## NaturalFork (Jan 21, 2010)

Very nice!


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## StretchandEat (Nov 11, 2015)

Nice shot.. does your son go hunting with you everytime?


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

I'm a stay at home dad these days so, at the moment anyhow, yes. When I can get away for any length of time, I usually do a backpacking trip.

Michael


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## grappo73 (Dec 15, 2015)

Good shooter!!!!


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## fsa46 (Jul 8, 2012)

It doesn't take a lot to kill a rabbit so you should be OK. Good eating right there too. Nice shooting.


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## Keith.B.Nimble (Jul 15, 2014)

Do you have a favorite rabbit recipe? If so what is it?

Keith


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## rockslinger (Nov 16, 2010)

Nice shot Michael!


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## Tag (Jun 11, 2014)

Nice shooting!!!!! Looks like you have the best hunting partner one could ever ask for


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## oldmiser (Jan 22, 2014)

Nice shooting my friend.....All I can say back in the days 1950 era many old time shooters used 1/4" steel balls or rocks

Thanks for sharing....Your son will always have the momeries of going with dad rabbit hunting...

OM


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

Keith.B.Nimble said:


> Do you have a favorite rabbit recipe? If so what is it?
> 
> Keith


Not yet, when I was younger, back in Missouri, we pretty much just fryer them. Now that I'm older I take cooking much more seriously. I'm going to try braising the few I have in the freezer and see how that turns out.


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

Good shooting! Accuracy is about the most important consideration. Personally, I prefer heavier ammo. But if you can't hit your target consistently, then heavier ammo is a waste.

Cheers .... Charles


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

Michael Cravens said:


> Not yet, when I was younger, back in Missouri, we pretty much just fryer them. Now that I'm older I take cooking much more seriously. I'm going to try braising the few I have in the freezer and see how that turns out.


I've seen a few smoked rabbits that look pretty tasty. If you have a smoker or charcoal grill (everyone should), I'd love to see a few over some lump and wood.










All evidence has been buried. All tapes have been erased.


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

Charles said:


> Good shooting! Accuracy is about the most important consideration. Personally, I prefer heavier ammo. But if you can't hit your target consistently, then heavier ammo is a waste.
> 
> Cheers .... Charles


Thank you for the comment, Charles. I have not swore off heavy ammo yet, just experimenting. What do you use?


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

brucered said:


> Michael Cravens said:
> 
> 
> > Not yet, when I was younger, back in Missouri, we pretty much just fryer them. Now that I'm older I take cooking much more seriously. I'm going to try braising the few I have in the freezer and see how that turns out.
> ...


I smoked/grilled this year's turkey on the Webber with mesquite. It turned out great, and was easy to do. I will certainly be trying some rabbits this way as well.


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## Viper010 (Apr 21, 2012)

Michael Cravens said:


> brucered said:
> 
> 
> > Michael Cravens said:
> ...


Once you've mastered this, please be so kind as to share a tutorial. I also own a 19" diameter round Weber charcoal grill/ smoker but I've yet to master the slow cooking/ smoking process. Somehow with me the fire always gets too hot.

Great shooting, and much respect for teaching junior about nature and natural foraging the way you do! 
Keep up the good work!


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## Viper010 (Apr 21, 2012)

Oh and Brucered... Please stop polluting the ground with evidence and stop deleting tapes I myself and others like me might still be able to learn from????


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

Viper010, count on it. For the turkey, I simply use bricks to create two walls within the Weber. Then, I build a campfire and got some mesquite coals going and simply filled up the outsides of the walls with the coals. The turkey went in the center and was cooked slowly with smoke and indirect heat. It should be real easy with rabbits.


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## Phoul Mouth (Jan 6, 2015)

Viper010 said:


> Michael Cravens said:
> 
> 
> > brucered said:
> ...


There should be like an air shutter on the grill towards the bottom, the more open it is the more air you let in the hotter the fire gets. Experiment with closing it a little. Less air, less fire, less heat. It's not as easy as it sounds, only started smoking this past year myself and I am still having issues.


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## brucered (Dec 30, 2015)

I've been smoking meat for about 5y now, most on a Ceramic. I started out on a Weber kettle and know it can be done. I'll be learning how to use a Horizontal stick burner this year.

Use only natural Lump. Buy some firebricks or a charcoal divider. Make sure the coals are well past the fire stage and just smoldering. Water pan over coals for moisture. Food on cold side of grates. Make sure the heat stays between 225-275. Don't trust your built in thermometer dial, buy a digital.

The nice thing is, rabbit is so small. Whether you are Smoking one or 10, it would all take the same amount of time. Man, this is making me want to go hunting and I never have before.

This is a whole other thread or discussion and I'm sure many of you already know how heated (no pun intended) that BBQ and Smoking discussions can get.

A good rule of thumb is....if you're lookin', you ain't cookin'

If sure tastes good though

All evidence has been buried. All tapes have been erased.


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## Viper010 (Apr 21, 2012)

Lol my trouble is, too much air and the food burns, too little air and the fire stops burning.... That sweet spot I'm looking for, a pin head must be quite large in comparison... So frustrating... BBQ isn't nearly as big here as it is in the States and the natural lump is usually of abominable quality. Half of it fist sized or larger, the other half between gravel and sand particle size. Very frustrating.

Right now I'm on the lookout for a heavy gauge steel oil drum that I can convert to a decent smoker of my own design with the fire chamber outside of the meat compartment.

Loving the Weber kettle as a regular BBQ, though...

I'll be sure to keep you gents posted if this project ever does come off the ground.

Thanks for the advice and sorry for the thread hijack.


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## Chuck Daehler (Mar 17, 2015)

Dang that smoked rabbit sounds tasty! Nice shot and a hearty salute for your huntin' partner. If all sons had dads like you the world would be much different (for the better).

Mom used to dip the rabbit sections in melted butter then roll them in a mix of flour, salt and pepper (roll in is called "dredging in" in cook speak) and fry 'em up with bacon but with the fry pan lid on so the rabbit wouldn't dry out and keep moist. There are quite a number of good rabbit recipes online I noticed. She fried squirrel sections the same way.

Smoking meat is pretty easy. True smoking isn't cooking, it's a cool smoke. I cure a ham once or twice a year but this applies to cheese, fish, fowl or red meats too.

Get a large cardboard box like a washing machine or stove/oven comes in. Cut the open side's flaps off entirely so you have a five sided box. Set the open side on the ground or on planks of wood, something fairly level and out of moisture...a concrete slab is fine. Now, cut a small door into the side of the box near the ground, about 6 inches off the ground...the door should be about 5 or 6 inches square...cutting only three sides using the uncut side as a door hinge.

Cut a small hole for a broom handle or piece of rebar or whatever so the staff goes clear though the box about 6 inches from the top. You can put several staffs in the box or as many as you want really. That's what you hang your meats and cheese from.

Place an ordinary electric single burner under the box and put pieces of your favorite smoke wood on the hot burner. The wood shouldn't catch fire, only smoke...so adjust the heat accordingly. I use it full blast...but that's just my Hamilton Beach single burner electric.

This is a pretty high capacity smoker actually and I've done as many as three hams and a gob of cheese hung with burlap cord (jute) off the staffs.

Every now and then when the wood chars completely and won't smoke any more add another piece of wood through the door you cut near the bottom. It takes about 20 minutes for a limb section about 3 inches in diameter and a half inch thick to smoke down to ash. I pick a day when I'll be around not doing much to tend the smoker every 20 minutes or so. Smoke half lb. hunks of cheese for 3 hours or so, a salt cured ham will take 8 hours (then hung for several months in a cool dry place) and I suspect a rabbit carcass would take about 3 hours of smoking. You might want to dip the rabbit carcass (skiint and cleaned of course) in a salt solution first or smear a little pepper on it too...then hang it from a staff and smoke it.

Just an expedient smoker idea I've used for about 30 years or so.


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

That's one economical smoker, Chuck. I'll be trying it for sure. Thanks for the information!


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

Michael Cravens said:


> Charles said:
> 
> 
> > Good shooting! Accuracy is about the most important consideration. Personally, I prefer heavier ammo. But if you can't hit your target consistently, then heavier ammo is a waste.
> ...


I like cast lead cylinders ... 3/8 diameter by 1/2 long. I also like .44 lead ball.

http://slingshotforum.com/topic/13778-cast-hunting-ammo-with-simple-wooden-mold/?hl=wooden

Cheers .... Charles


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## Michael Cravens (Oct 25, 2015)

Thanks Charles!

Excellent tutorial as well! If you could afford me just one more question, what kind of bands are you using to sling those heavy cylinders?


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## Grandpa Pete (May 2, 2013)

Love seeing a youngster with a slingshot in his hand.........


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