18 point buck

They say this might be a world record.

Stephens 18-point buck is bound for the record book

http://images.townnews.com/outdoorne...3169173394.jpgBrian Stephens’ 18-point nontypical buck likely will set a new record for a muzzleloader harvest in Ohio. Photo courtesy of Rick Busse’s Wildlife Studio

By Tony Seals
Contributing Writer

Published: Tuesday, December 29, 2009 1:28 PM CST

Clayton, Ohio - On Nov. 30, the opener of the statewide firearms season, 39 year-old Clayton, Ohio, resident Brian Stephens harvested a giant 18-point buck while hunting his 180-acre family owned farm in Highland County.

The buck, a main-frame 9-point with nine additional sticker points, will likely shatter Ohio’s current nontypical muzzleloader record after the required 60-day drying period when it can be officially scored.

Stephens, a software development manager, has hunted deer every year since he was 12.

“I have taken some nice bucks over the years with a 140-inch 12-point being the biggest, but nothing that even compares to this monster,” Stephens said.

According to Stephens, the giant buck was first spotted just after daylight following a doe through thick cover within 50 yards of his tree stand, which was tucked into the base of a thickly wooded hillside overlooking a funnel where the corner of a CRP field cut into the woods.

“The buck stayed in the area for about 20 minutes, but he never offered a clear shot. I was sick over it,” said Stephens.

The rest of his morning hunt was eventful with the sighting of seven additional bucks, ranging in size from a little forked-horn to a nice 10-pointer, which all paraded past the stand following the same doe.

“Knowing that the giant buck was in the area, I didn’t want to shoot any other buck,” Stephens said.

After a brief lunch break at about 11:30, Stephens returned to the stand to start the afternoon hunt at about 1 o’clock. After a wait of only five minutes, he spotted a large coyote sneaking past the stand. A well-placed shot from Stephens’ .50 caliber muzzleloader ended the canine’s journey.

A little over two hours later, the commotion made by a group of nine does being harassed by a small 3-point buck caught Stephens’ attention. He watched the deer for a few minutes before continuing his surveillance of the funnel area. Within seconds, Stephens spotted the huge-racked buck that had evaded him that morning following a fenceline leading toward the stand.

According to Stephens “he was 250 yards out and closing fast.”

At a distance of 85 yards, the buck entered the CRP field and offered an open, broadside shot. Stephens’ settled the crosshairs on the buck’s vitals and squeezed the trigger.

As the smoke created by his 100-grain load of Triple-Seven powder began to clear, Stephens feared that he had missed the buck of his dreams as he watched it running off.

Then, to his surprise, the buck stopped and fell over dead after running about 100 yards. The hunter decided to regain his composure a bit and waited for 30-minutes before collecting his trophy.

He could tell that the buck was big from his tree stand but was rendered almost speechless when he finally reached the buck.

“The rack was huge, bigger than anything I have ever seen,” said Stephens.

After snapping back to reality, he had to decide what to do next. Due to recent thefts on the farm, he was hesitant to leave the buck in the field for fear of it being taken. After a little contemplation, the decision was made to leave the buck and he rushed back to the farm house to get his vehicle. After retrieving the buck, he placed a tarp over it to surprise his father, along with the rest of the hunters when they returned from the evening hunt. After a short family celebration, the buck was checked in at the Rocky Fork Truck Stop in Hillsboro where a huge crowd quickly gathered to get a glimpse of the giant buck.

Unsure of how to proceed, Stephens contacted Rick Busse, a popular taxidermist and official scorer for Buckmasters in Piqua, for advice.

“Rick has helped me every step of the way, from the handling of the deer itself to dealing with the now incredible media attention, and, for this, I am grateful” said Stephens.

On the evening of Dec. 9, Busse sat down with Boone & Crockett scorer Mike Wendel to add up the inches on this enormous rack. The numbers are staggering with these highlights – the left main beam measures over 35 inches and the right is a little over 34 inches in length; the inside spread, the widest space between the beams, is well over 24 inches; and the G2s, the first tine above the brow tines, measures close to 18 inches on the left side and more than 16 inches on the right.

After crunching the numbers, the pair came up with a gross green score of 249 6⁄8 and a net non-typical green score of more than 232 inches, a seven-inch cushion over the current Buckeye State record. The buck will is also likely make the top 10 all time non typical bucks harvested with a muzzleloader, according to records kept by Longhunters, which was started by the National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association in 1988. Also worth noting is the fact that the buck weighed in at 215 pounds after being field dressed and although no one has confirmed the age, it is most likely 4½ to 5½ years old.

Busse, who is no stranger to huge antlers having mounted the famous Beatty buck (the current world record non typical buck with any weapon), along with several other Boone & Crockett trophies over the years, claims that this buck has “the longest main beams in the history of whitetails,” with the closest recorded beam length being around 33 inches.

Busse also mentioned that due to the configuration of the buck’s rack, the score does not do the buck justice, stating that “several whitetails killed in North America have scored better, but none are bigger.”

“It will leave most hunters speechless at first glance,” Busse said.

These are powerful words coming from a man who has handled some of the largest antlers on the planet. Regardless of the score, what will be soon be known as the Stephens buck is sure to become a legendary whitetail, and is yet another example of the world class deer hunting that Ohio has to offer.