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How to guesstimate score?

Gordo

Senior Member
5,515
121
Athens County
Just wondering how you guys do it?

It's pretty damn impressive how close you guys get. Anything over 130 I begin to have problems with guesstimating.

Just looking for some pointers from the experts. Ric, Ron, and boyd, seem to have it down to a science. I know there are others TOO.

Help a Gordo out!
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
Time and experience is the biggest thing IMO. Not to mention fondling as many racks as you can! I used to practice by watching the Realtree Monster Bucks videos where they would give the score after the kill. I'd pause the video, come up with a score, then see how close I was. There are also standard measurements like 16" from tip to tip of the ears on an alert, mature deer. From the eyes to the end of the nose is roughly 8", and so on. Here is a link to some tips...

http://www.boone-crockett.org/bgRec...Deer.asp?area=bgRecords&ID=05EC63E2&se=1&te=1
 

ImpalaSSpeed96

Junior Member
561
60
NJ
I think you either have to have an eye for meausuring or you don't. I use to pipe fit, so my eye is usually pretty good. Add on scoring a bunch of racks and you'll generally get no further from 10 inches out. I thought that one posted the other day was well over 180, and most of the better guys were saying 160s. Just figured I was wrong. I been a lot lately... Like anything else, experience...
 

Gordo

Senior Member
5,515
121
Athens County
I'm not to bad at getting in the ball park. Mid 140's, low 120's, etc..

I'm more wondering how they get down to the very inch, and even factor in inch deductions.

I've never tried to look at a picture and write down what I think each measurement would be and then add them all up. I guess that's a good place to start.
 

finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
31,855
260
SW Ohio
Time and experience is the biggest thing IMO. Not to mention fondling as many racks as you can! I used to practice by watching the Realtree Monster Bucks videos where they would give the score after the kill. I'd pause the video, come up with a score, then see how close I was. There are also standard measurements like 16" from tip to tip of the ears on an alert, mature deer. From the eyes to the end of the nose is roughly 8", and so on. Here is a link to some tips...

http://www.boone-crockett.org/bgRec...Deer.asp?area=bgRecords&ID=05EC63E2&se=1&te=1

What Jesse said!
 

Fullbore

Senior Member
6,439
126
South Eastern Ohio
Well, I was apparently way off on Big Dave's buck. I gave that deer 72" per side, take in account that I didn't add any abnormal point. I think there was approximately 3 abs totaling somewhere at 13". The mass was what really pushed that deer over on score. The tine length and main beams were as I had expected. The character, ( MASS ) on this deer was amazing. Some of which is unscorable, around each tine and all the way through. I would say that the main beams and mass are the hardest too estimate. What I have learned is that almost every TC pic that I see, I am usually 10" or so TOO the big. Holding the rack in my hands, I can usually get purty darn close!
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
Jesse and the gang hit the nail on the head. I use the deer's head/facial features as references... i.e. tip-to-tip ear width, length of ear, distance from eye socket to nose, etc. The thing about pictures is they can be really deceiving, based on how close or how far the object is from the camera. At first glance, it's easy to make a poor guestimate. But if you focus on the reference measurements and compare them to the tines, inside spread, etc. it makes things a lot easier. Actually holding and scoring multiple racks is priceless experience also. Like Ron said, if you handle enough of them, you can usually make a damn good guess based on "feel" alone, without even running any numbers in your head.