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Defining Modern Hunting

For Modern Hunting, the heart of our message must be
conservation—the first love of hunters, and expressed in the
Fair Chase ethic.
By Simon Roosevelt, B&C Regular Member

When you are there, hunting, having prepared and traveled, and now standing silent in the
sounds of the place, you are part of a tradition. And you are in some trouble. The trouble is often
said to be that you are among the last of a tradition. The number of hunters is declining, and
public opposition to hunting seems to be rising.

But the heart of the trouble is not in popularity. It is in wasting our strength as members of one of
the greatest continuing movements in American history, which is conservation. Though we are
few compared to players in other outdoor activities called sports, we are the foundation of the
American experience of engaging with nature by our knowing it, caring for it and advancing it.
But this is getting harder to see even among ourselves; harder still to explain to non-hunters.

Modern hunting was created by the conservation movement

You cannot really say that you are living out an ancient ritual of survival, but you can say that
you are part of a 20th-century sustainability movement.

By the turn of the 20th century, hunting in America was destroying wildlife. Colonists had
rejected the European privilege that reserved wild game to nobility. Hunting was open to all. The
few restrictions on hunting in colonial and post-revolutionary times had not been intended for
conservation and had fallen away. Markets developed for wild meat, hides, and feathers and
were supplied by taking wildlife practically, efficiently and without restraint.

Leading naturalists, foresters, geologists and other specialists of the time—hunters all—joined in
forming the Boone and Crockett Club in 1887 to activate the nation’s first program for wildlife
laws, public lands, and professional, scientific management. They began with restrictions on
killing, and by promoting the hunter’s role in driving a movement. They reasoned that laws and
agencies were necessary but not enough. There had to also be a constituency who knew wildlife
deeper than sentiment, down to the ecological workings of reproduction and survival. And they
needed a passionate base to pay for the work with time and money. Boone and Crockett Club
members agreed that an ethical code was needed to represent this spirit and drive.

Hunting
The past decade has brought forth a lot of changes when it comes to deer hunting guns. New
calibers, new looks, and new technologies have created a space in the gun market that allows
hunters to pick something that fits their individual wants and needs. If you’re after a classic-
looking deer rifle in a popular caliber, there are loads of options.

If you’re after a fully customizable rifle built on a chassis in a former wildcat caliber
configuration, there are options out there for you, too. In addition, even slug hunters have been
granted access to incredibly accurate and comfortable guns designed to shoot at distance. Here
are a few great options that have been introduced over the past couple of seasons that will help
you decide which deer gun you need to be carrying in 2022.

Guns
None of us want a life with only one gun. But the idea of having one gun that you can turn to—
no matter the need—has been and remains appealing. It was that exact proposition that inspired
Gunsite Academy founder Jeff Cooper’s concept of a general-purpose rifle known as the Scout
Rifle. There can be lots of answers to the question of what the single best hunting, survival, and
self-defense firearm might be. To some extent, the answer depends on your specific needs,
geographic location, and what exactly you might be trying to survive, hunt, or protect yourself
from. Here are 10 options priced from less than $500 and up to $2,000. At least one of them
should answer that question for you no matter your circumstance.
1. Mossberg 500 Field/Security – 12 gauge

The Mossberg 500 Field/Security. Mossberg

The shotgun is the most versatile firearm; with the right ammunition it can handle almost
anything. With the trusted Mossberg 500 you can not only swap munitions at will, you can
change barrels too. For small game and birds, the Field/Security model comes with a 28-inch
barrel that accepts interchangeable chokes. There’s also a pistol grip and an 18.5-inch cylinder
bore barrel for buckshot and slugs. This gun’s weakness, however, is reach, but for an additional
$214 you can get a fully rifled slug barrel with a cantilever scope mount. No, it won’t take you to
300 yards, but attach a scope and you’re lethal well past 100. $477.00; Mossberg.com

2. Remington 870 Express Synthetic Field & Home Combo –

12 gauge

T
he Remington 870 Express Synthetic Field & Home Combo Remington

Another versatile and storied shotgun that can be used for hunting, survival, and self-defense is
the Remington 870. The Express Synthetic Field & Home version retails for $578, has a rugged
synthetic stock, and comes with a 26-inch Remchoke compatible barrel and an 18.5-inch
cylinder bore barrel that can sling slugs and buck. With those barrels, you’re good for everything
from grouse to grizzly. If more reach is desired, a rifled slug barrel can be purchased for an
additional $220. Remington.com
3. Sig Sauer M400 Tread – .223 Remington/5.56 NATO

T
he Sig Sauer M400 Tread Sig Sauer

There’s no shortage of AR15s chambered for the .223 Remington/5.56 NATO to choose from.
But if you’re operating in the northwest, it might not be enough gun for the largest game or for
fighting it out with a Kodiak bruin. However, across most of America it’ll do just about anything
you need to do, which is why so many of them have sold and why it’s known as America’s Rifle.
The Sig Sauer M400 Tread is rock-solid reliable, comes with a threaded muzzle, and has a full
family of Tread accessories available for it. It also has ambidextrous controls. $949;
sigsauer.com

4. Marlin 336 Dark – .30-30 Winchester

 Th
e Marlin 336 Dark Marlin Firearms

Overlooked, unappreciated, and misunderstood, there’s a trio of lever-guns that are damn near
do-it-all capable. The .30-30 lever-action is the most prolific, and Americans have relied on
a .30-30 carbine for more than a century. It’s capable for all the big game in North America,
handy in a fight, and in a survival situation you should be able to find ammunition in a lot of
places. Marlin’s new 336 Dark might be the ultimate do-anything rendition of this American
classic. It’s equipped with an XS Lever Rail with an integral ghost ring sight, and you have the
option of mounting a traditional scope, a scout scope, or a red dot. And get this: The muzzle is
threaded so not only can you go dark, you can go quite as well. $949; marlinfirearms.com

5. Marlin 1894 CST 357 – 38 Special/.357 Magnum

The Marlin 1894 CST 357 Marlin Firearms

The needs of a hunter, or one attempting to survive or protect themselves, will vary greatly
depending on location and circumstance. For many, however, a quick-handling lever gun
chambered for the 38 Special/.357 Magnum can be versatile. It also potentially allows your rifle
and handgun to share ammunition, which could be critical in a survival situation. Marlin’s 1894
CST features an 8-shot magazine, 16.5-inch barrel with a threaded muzzle, big-loop lever, and
XS ghost ring sights. The stainless steel and painted hardwood stock make it well suited to harsh
conditions, and it would be a great one-gun choice for those who live in the eastern mountains or
southern United States. $1,223; marlinfirearms.com

Accessories
Gramps killed more deer than you’ll ever see without a bipod or hearing protection. You don’t
need anything besides an accurate rifle and iron sights to take down America’s favorite big game
animal.

The accessories on this list might not be strictly necessary, but they sure are useful—and they’re
worth considering as we get ready for the hunting season.
Bipod

The history of bipods is difficult to track down,

likely because the concept is so intuitive. It probably took Chinese soldiers all of five minutes to
realize their hand cannons were more accurate when steadied on two sticks, and the technology
progressed from there.

These days, deer hunters enjoy a host of options that improve on the two-stick technology. You
can find bipods for standing, sitting, and prone positions at a variety of price points. Swagger
bipods bend and sway for almost unlimited flexibility in the field, and KDC bipods are designed
to be the lightest on the market.

Sling

Guns aren’t heavy until you’ve been carrying one all day without a sling.
Slings are most useful if you’re covering lots of ground, but they can come in handy even on the
walk to the tree stand. A sling keeps your hands free to use a flashlight, tie your boots, or quietly
push past a branch.

If you think you’ll need to take a standing shot without shooting sticks, a sling can also help pull
the stock into your shoulder and steady your aim. Known as the “hasty sling” technique, the
shooter wraps his or her non-dominant arm in the sling and creates a tension that steadies the
rifle. Texas Parks & Wildlife has published a pretty good tutorial, which you can check out here.

Magnification Throw Lever

We’ve all been there. A deer walks out at 45

yards when you look down and realize the Hubble Telescope on your rifle is set at 18x. The thin
layer of moisture on the scope’s magnification ring makes it impossible to turn with gloves, and
you have a minor heart attack trying to adjust it down to 3x as you watch the deer move out of
your shooting lane.

Life is too short to spend it panicking about scope adjustments. That’s why I recommend a
magnification throw lever. Made by a variety of companies, a throw lever attaches to your
scope’s magnification ring and allows for easy adjustment even with heavy winter gloves.
Lens Caps

Lens caps keep rain and dirt off your scope’s

lenses so you can see what you’re aiming at. For further explanation, refer to the previous
sentence. Many scopes come with lens caps. If yours didn’t, you can buy them from Vortex here
(just be sure you order the correct size for your objective lens).

Hearing Protection

Hearing protection isn’t a gun

accessory, per se, but only gun hunters need it, so I’m including it on this list.

Gramps didn’t use hearing protection, but now he’s paying for it. Hearing loss ain’t no joke, and
as hearing doctor Grace Sturdivant explained recently on the MeatEater podcast, it’s been linked
to even worse diseases like Alzheimer’s.
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