u/BayouBushcraft

Recently purchased a CVA Accura LRX in 45 caliber. The manual says to use Blackhorn 209 only, but given the time of year I can’t find it. I’m trying out Hogdon Triple 7 45/50 pellets as well as powder with a variflame adapter kit which allows me to use large rifle primers.

This is my first time y’all so if I say anything non-sensical, please correct and educate me.

I’ll be hunting in warm and humid Louisiana. I know humidity can be a big problem.

1. Where and when do I load and protect the rifle from ambient humidity or rain? Can I load the projectile first and cover with tape or plastic on the muzzle? — Moisture management is my main concern and question.

2. As a beginner, I started with the 45 caliber triple 7 pellets. The box says to use 40 cal sabots with these pellets but I have 45 cal Hornady Bore Drivers that seem to work well with 2, 50 grain pellets.

3. Should I switch to Hogdon Triple 7 powder at 100 grains by volume? Or should that loading be adjusted? I don’t have quick access to a chrono.

My goal right now is to be within a couple inches of accuracy at 100 yards. I know my rifle is capable of achieving much higher accuracy but I don’t really have the time or resources to achieve that right now.

Any and all tips and help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks y’all!

Anything y’all might be able to tell me about this tree would be awesome. I think it’s super cool and it’s absolutely gigantic. Impossible to take a picture of the whole thing. The branches extend out probably over 100 feet or more from the trunk.

Can anyone take a stab at how old this might be? That root on the very bottom left of the photo, that takes a 90 degree turn, that’s over 6 feet tall.

I like a little coffee in my half and half.

I think it might be an old Case knife? Wouldn’t be surprised if my grandpa got it at Sears in the 80s or something. My grandpa was born in the 20s so I can’t guess as to when he would have purchased this. He died in the late 90s.

My father passed last year. I took the knife after his passing but he carried it in his pocket every day. Even though I only ever saw him use it to cut threads off clothes or clean his fingernails LOL.

Can y’all take a guess on how young/old this might be and what brand this is?

The scales are coming off the sides so what should I do to protect the knife?

I know I don’t have anything rare or special and it will always have more value to me than to anyone else. I don’t ever plan on selling it.

What am I doing wrong here? My Shorts almost always cap around 700-1000. Occasionally I’ll have one go to 1200-1500 but that’s the most ever.

I’m solo camping here on a Wildlife Management Area under a gigantic oak tree in South Louisiana. Maybe someone more knowledgeable than me can chime in here but I would venture a guess this oak tree could be 300-400 years old, if not older. It’s weathered many a hurricane so I thought it to be strong.

We did get some good rain on the trip but it wasn’t too bad and I found it extremely relaxing to hear the rain on the fly. Even if I get dripped on occasionally. (My tent now is stormproof so that’s extra nice.)

I stayed at this campsite for the weekend while my boat was docked nearby in the river so I could go into the wildlife management area.

Fun Fact: None of the gear pictured is still in existence. The tent I donated. The awning and chair broke. The cooler broke. I guess I still have the cast iron but that’s the way it should be.

Pictured is the Ozark Trail 10 Person Dome monster of a tent. It wasn’t waterproof and only lasted a half dozen more trips before it had to go. The awning is from Academy and that lasted about 3 years before it was also destroyed.

I camped and searched the woods for quarry and never found anything. I wasn’t far from town so I cooked steaks on the campfire in my cast iron pan at night and listened to some outlaw country music while sipping a little whiskey. Don’t worry, all boom boom sticks were locked up in the car. Never mix booze and bullets.

Me and the boys on a long needed reunion. We had the pleasure of visiting the White Mountains of New Hampshire during the off-season and it was beautiful. The snow starting to set in everywhere. The quietness of the towns before the skiing starts. It was awesome.

We went on several day hikes. This was my favorite. 2.9 miles out and back to Arethusa Falls. Beautiful to see half frozen and just an amazing display of nature.

It was a shocking transition to fly from 80 F and humid in New Orleans to sub freezing temps in New Hampshire. I wasn’t sure my gear could handle it.

I wore my Timberland Mt Maddsen boots which have been waterproof for years. I found that an 80% merino sock performed better than a 40% alpaca sock. (Could be due to construction though because I really love alpaca.)

For base layers, I felt warmer in 100% polyester rather than a polyester nylon blend. I’m sure a merino base layer would get the job done but I couldn’t justify the expense when it barely gets cold around here in South Louisiana. (Except the freak “Gulf Coast Blizzard” of 2025! That was crazy!)

I went with polyester cotton pants which worked just fine. I had a merino hoodie as a mid layer and a puffy as an outer layer. I think in hindsight the fleece mid layer was better than the merino because it was thicker.

Clearly the merino beanie performed better than the polyester beanie, but both were too hot at times when hiking.

Of course I was over prepared in my day hiking pack with a first aid kit, multiple fire starters and tinder, emergency blankets, extra socks, multiple flashlights, tarp, hammock, knife, and bear spray. And I had my Zoleo active.

A privileged time of year to visit at the edge of season change.

I can appreciate being able to organize my backpack without getting mud and dirt all over my stuff. (Pictured is Mrs Buschraft’s stuff, btw)

The small Tyvek can also be used under your chair or sit pad for a clean butt and legs. Or you can put it under your hammock at night so you have a dirt-free mat to slip your shoes on when you gotta get up. (I hate getting out of the hammock to pee.)

BONUS STORY: So this very next night of this trip, we’re sound asleep in our hammocks and both of us were startled awake to a banshee sneezing and it was so loud!! Mrs Bushcraft freaked out at first, but immediately upon hearing the terrifying noise, I knew exactly what it was “it’s a deer! It’s okay!”

The deer was snort wheezing at us because she was mad we were in the backcountry campsite and she was drinking PEE! I always knew you weren’t supposed to urinate on a tree, because I was told it could hurt a deer’s tongue. Never in my life have I witnessed it. We peed on the ground out in the woods near the campsite and the deer found those spots and was licking them. For the salt of course.

I had to get out of the hammock and chase the deer off because she was being so ridiculous! Took a while for our heart rates to drop back down to normal and go back to sleep. Fun times!

This was in the Smoky Mountains btw.

For me, you can’t beat a good ‘ol pair of Crocs!

The all rubber construction is great for camping because you can rinse or hose them off if they get muddy. They dry quickly. They’re relatively lightweight and durable. And you can find them for a moderate price so if they get messed up, easily replaceable.

I also like that I can wear wool socks in winter or no socks in summer so it’s an “all-season” camp shoe. Plus, slipping these on instead of lacing shoes every time you need to leave the tent is extra convenient.

I find Crocs to be very comfortable after a long day and my dogs are barkin.

I know they may be “fashionable” these days but I’m old enough to still remember them in the movie Idiocracy and I can’t say I like how they look. But did I recently purchase another pair? Sure did. LOL.

I wore through the bottoms of the pair pictured after using them for about 6 years.

We had a terrible thunderstorm followed by a morning freeze. My $300 canopy collapsed due to the rainfall, but the Jovian performed perfectly. Literally not a single drop got inside the tent. I could feel water under the floor too. Airflow, guy outs, fly coverage, zippers, interior organization… it’s all excellent.

The tent easily fits a queen sized mattress.

For colder nights, I put a Mr Heater Buddy in the vestibule and that works better than necessary.