I have a 160 acre lease in Rusk Co. I've been watching this buck for the last couple months and he comes in every evening about half an hour before dark. I couldn't wait for this weekend to (hopefully) get a chance at him with my bow. You can imagine my disappointment when I pulled my card Monday and saw that he had broken off his split tine over the weekend.

My question is: what would you do if you had the chance to take him now?? Should I shoot him and pay for horn reconstruction? Shoot him, and leave him as is, because the rack has "character"? Let him walk, and pray that he makes it to next season?

Sitting at the computer, my thoughts are to let him walk and see what happens next year. However, I'm not sure what my thoughts would be if I saw him from the stand.

What are the chances you could find it and use gorilla glue?

IME he mostly likely won't look anything like that next year, more of a normal rack. It is your decision what to do on shooting him if you like him. As far as fixing the break some won't do it and others will. I have had a tine repaired on 3 bucks I had a TC history on that I have killed. Any others with broke tines and I had no record of, I left them as I shot them when I had them mounted. I have gotten lucky on bucks I found sheds on and found the broken tine at a protein feeder or food plot or a rub tree closest to the feeder they frequented. My guess is he got in wrapped while aggressively rubbing on a wire limb bush or tree. I would check around the feeder or the trail he comes in on if you do shoot him.

If you like him shoot him.

I shot a buck a few years ago with 3 broke/partially broke tines. I was up in the air about fixing it wife and others said leave him how he was and I went with that, no complaints.

That is a cool looking deer. If you want him take him, if you want to wait then wait, totally your choice.

Unless it gets to the end of the season and you haven’t shot anything else, I’d probably let him walk and see what happens next year.

Darn....I was hoping for another Elvira thread......

If you like him shoot him....

Another year why not.

I'd let him walk this year if he was on my lease.....

I agree, but he did say he is in Rusk...

I would have to let him go another year.

Didn't mean this to sound crappy. I grew up hunting East Tx and mostly around Rusk. It may be different now but back then if you saw a decent buck it would likely be the only one.

I would bust him... I don’t know where at in Rusk County you’re hunting.

I had a young buck about two seasons ago that had a similar rack on one side.
Last season, and the one before, he had a normal rack.
We knew he was the same buck, because he would practically eat out of your hand. He was pretty tame, and not scared of humans.
We would pull up to put corn in the feeder and he would stand off a short ways off and watch us.
As soon as we started to drive off he would walk right up to the feeder.
Every year we gave him a pass, and this year he would be a four year old.
I'm thinking the neighbor may have already gotten him near the end of last season because I haven't seen him so far this year.

With the great pictures of him , I know of a taxidermist that could probably fix it easy. He does really good work up in tolar

My guess from those pics he is old as the hills already. I doubt you lay eyes on him in the daylight unless he becomes dependent on your feeder.

I would go ahead and take him, and have the taxidermist recontruct. I agree with the others that the rack may not be as nice next year