What's your opinion on this deer's age???

I think he is at least 5 1/2 or 6 1/2 .

I would say he is definately mature...a little bit of a gut showing. Bet he will look good with an arrow hole right behind the shoulder!!

Welcome to The Forum. I go along with what TCH said. That left brow tine is interesting. Good luck with getting him.

Heck of a brow tine on that left side. He's a big mature buck, ready for the taking.

Just a guess but I'd say 4.5 or 5.5.

Shoot him!

he looks like 5 1/2 to me. But like I always say if he looks 5 it don't matter after than, Check his teeth when he is on the ground.

At the very least 5 1/2

5.5 +
Kill him because he's not getting any better and he's a main-frame 8 that has already bred does!

Did anyone else notice the 'lip-curl' in the first photo?

I noticed that too. Seems odd for a buck that is still in velvet to be lip-curling but I guess that's just another sign that it won't be long now.

MikeC

Nice deer. It appears the only way you will ever see him in daylight is on his unlucky day in the peak of the rut.

What are y'all using to age this deer?

Okay, I see the hangie-down belly, but what else?

The legs appear almost to short for the body, due to the body being so large. Younger deer will have what appears as longer legs, not stubby like this one. A full thick neck, also appears short as compared to a young buck. All this and the swaying belly are good indicators of a mature deer.

If you get to see this deer while he is in the rut, you will know. He will look like a truck. Usually, I like 7 said look at the legs first if they seem short I go to the belly if it sags then I look at the skin under the mouth (at 5 this skin is not so tight and usually hangs a little more), Also you might see a slight sway at 5 and bigger sway at 6 or older. All this really kinda relates to people in way. The older you get the more loose skin and broader you get. In the rut this deers legs should be about black from the tarsal to the hoove, at least on the inside, from scraping.

I doesn't look like lip curl to me. More like licking his nose. Also, he just looks like a very healthy 5.5. Not enough swayback to be 6.5. I think he's still in his prime. No other deer near him, might suggest he's Top Dog.

GROUND CHECK! then ask your butcher how old he is..he's older than 3.5 and only an 8...nuff said!

Take him. Won't get much better. Nice management deer.

Closer scrutiny...are those 2 different bucks???? Maybe from the same gene pool.

The 8/25 buck doesn't have the crook at the base of his left G2 like the other photos.

This is the same buck in all the pictures, the picture you are talking about is at a different angle, but if you look closely you can see the big curved browtine. Also if you look closely, you will see that this buck was either shot, or broke his right front upper leg, and the scarring/deformation is visible in nearly all the pictures. I have pictures of this deer from late July last year also, same broke leg, and the antlers were about the same. No one saw him during the season, and I had my camera out all year, and no more pictures of him until this summer. Hopefully he will stay around this year.

good buck not 5 1/2 look at his back it doesnt sag he is around 4