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February 21, 2020
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Hello all, G’day from Australia. My first post here
. It’s deer season here in Oz and I thought you boys might be interested in the Fallow stag I took with my old Win ’95 carbine a few weeks back. This is a great rifle in to carry in the bush and the standard sights are OK to use with old eyes except in real low light conditions. The .303 chambering was popular here in Oz & NZ but I suppose it would be uncommon over there in the USA. This rifle was made in 1921 and and has been out here for most of it’s life.
I saw this stag chasing a doe early in the morning but lost him in some thick timber near the crest of a hill. I returned to the same area later the same day and sat on a well used game trail hoping he might reappear just before dark after an afternoon snooze. Everything went according to plan and the wind was in my favour as I heard a twig crack up the trail and saw a dark shape moving down the trail. At the flash of an antler I eased the hammer back to full cock and sighted on a gap between the trees. I suppose his mind was on those girls down in the valley as he sauntered down the trail and into view. He never knew what hit him!
The freezer is now well & truly filled with venison.
Pete
January 7, 2017
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Great day! I love the meat of Fallow and Axis deer; Congratulations. Are you reloading for that cartridge?
Technically, the glass is always full; half liquid, half air....
WACA #10293
March 23, 2010
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Great story.A real deer hunt.The .303 is popular in Canada as well,but not so as it was in past years.Same is true for the .30-30.
March 23, 2010
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Forgot to say congrats on your first post,Spud.Does Brad have the number of your 1895 rifle for his survey?He has a book out on the Model 1895 and if you are into them at all,you should have a copy of the book.
November 7, 2015
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Great first post and good job on the stag. An 1895 in 303 is a little hard to find around here but we manage to get by with the 30US. 😉
Mike
December 30, 2011
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Very nice Pete. Your patterning and setup reminds me of something out of the book Shots at Whitetails. What did you use for a load?
March 20, 2010
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Congrats on the fallow deer. Never tried a Fallow but Axis is indeed tasty. The last time I made sausage I used 10% Axis, 40% whitetail, and 50% pork. Came out pretty good.
1892takedown @sbcglobal.net ......NRA Endowment Life Member.....WACA Member
"God is great.....beer is good.....and people are crazy"... Billy Currington
July 17, 2012
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1892takedown said
Congrats on the fallow deer. Never tried a Fallow but Axis is indeed tasty. The last time I made sausage I used 10% Axis, 40% whitetail, and 50% pork. Came out pretty good.
Yup, 50% pork makes anything taste good 🙂
As others have mentioned, welcome to the WACA forum! Lots of kindred souls here.
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
February 21, 2020
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Thanks all for the kind comments. I really enjoy taking an old rifle out for a hunt and usually use a Highwall (.38/55 or .25/35) for Fallow but every once in a while the ’95 gets a run. Still use iron sights as that really adds to the challenge and means you have to stalk in close as possible. Attached photo is of a real nice Fallow stag I took a couple of years back with a HW in .38/55 (1901 production). 
In answer to questions regarding .303 Brit loads, I use a moderate load of Reloader 15 (don’t want to stress the old girl too much, just enough to get the job done) and Woodleigh 174 gr SP (a really great bullet that’s produced locally). I reckon Fallow are the best tasting deer we have here followed by Red. I’m heading out bush this weekend for another go and the ’95 has asked to come along again!
Pete
November 7, 2015
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Pretty sweet HW there, Pete. Don’t know anything about Fallow deer but that one looks pretty impressive! Thanks for posting another great pic.
Mike
