What not to do

[OregonJim]

Last weekend I jacked up the front bumper of my Tundra hitting a doe.
I guess I have been really lucky because I live in a really rural area and I drive a lot of miles early in the morning.
In fact my wife does too and our last animal strike was 25 years ago.
I did everything right and if I had done anything but brake we might have piled up and took several other vehicles with us.

I did everything right on Saturday but it wasn't that way on a archery elk hunt in SW Washington some 25 or so years ago.

I had hunted all day solo, with plans for meeting up with some hunting partners and camping over night.
The elk and the would be hunting partners never showed, so I began working my way back down the logging roads toward pavement. A few miles from pavement, and well after dark, I came around a curve with a high cut bank on the left and a really steep drop-off on the right.

There in the middle of the road was a herd of cows (wapiti not jerseys). After 10 hours of sideways rain and no elk I was ticked. I revved up the engine, hit the high beams, and started blowing the horn as I mock charged the lead cow.
BIG MISTAKE !!!!

 

[OregonJim]

The first few cow elk passed down each side with moderate turbulence. As the anxiety increased (both mine and the elk) they started getting pushed into the grill..... then the lights....... then one freaked and planted her front hooves right in the middle of my F150 hood.

With elk snot on the windshield and one fog light operating I limped 50 miles back to Westport.

My buddies didn't believe me until one pulled elk hair from the remaining grill and radiator.
If my insurance appraiser doesn't care for this weekends story then I can always pull out pics of my elk stampede.

 

[woodtick]

HAHA man I can't stop laughing I'd be pretty hard up to smash a cow elk with a pickup, ya need a Ranchhand grill guard!!

 

[OregonJim]

Needless to say the claim this time will be used for a new aftermarket steel bumper No more OEM crap

 

[woodtick]

[URL=http://s1337.photobucket.com/user/bigwoodtick/media/Toyota-Tundra-Bullnose-Summit-Series-22-1367942089_zps5e310d02.jpg.html][/URL]

This is what you need man, It'll de-bone and tenderize all in one step!! I love my grill guard that they make!

 

[OregonJim]

I like it..... I was thinking Buckstop but I like that look.
In fact thats my truck complete with step bars.

 

[OregonJim]

This is what you need man, It'll de-bone and tenderize all in one step!! I love my grill guard that they make!

Thanks for steering me that way it actually is coming in about $400 cheaper than the one I was planning on

 

[Musket Man]

I have built a few bumpers. My cousin built the one on 1 of my trucks (used to be his truck), Last deer I hit would have been fine if he didnt get a horn stuck in the grill and take out the grill and headlight. lol

 

[Againstthewind]

I need one of those jobbers. I think it is just a matter of time before my luck runs out and I whack one too. My '81 chevy had a solid steel front bumper someone made, that thing was bullet proof. My '06 would probably be totaled if I hit something.

 

[Musket Man]

My truck got totaled with the bumper. Didnt even scratch the bumper but smoked the frame. I cut about a foot off the frame, made a new piece to replace it, welded it on, straightened the other side and that was about 110K ago!

 

[Againstthewind]

I need to learn how to fabricate stuff. I am kindof jealous of people with those skills

 

[Musket Man]

This is the bumpers and grill I made for my 4Runner.

 

[Musket Man]

 

[ivorytip]

that last pic looks kinda scary man, that a drop off?

 

[Musket Man]

that last pic looks kinda scary man, that a drop off?

Slid off the road trying to turn around. It was pretty steep but it was actually better below it. Knew I shoulda put the chains on. If you look close you can see the winch cable across the road. Took a while but I got it winched out!

 

[gypsumreaper]

This is from Hittin a angus cow in the head at 65mph, she did a comets circled rolled do the side of the truck to denting it all the way down. I had the guy at the repair shop leave the bed damage cause I was putting a flat bed on anyways. That pos grill guard didn't stand a chance

Amazingly the hood didn't have a tweak or problem at all

Then I built this bumper I've hit some stuff with it including rear ending an f150 that stopped right on the road at 25 mph and not even tweaked


If you get meat from the store then dont criticize me for having the courage to go out and kill my own meat

 

[OregonJim]

Damn Gypsum lucky that thing didn't roll up on the hood and come through the windshield on you

 

[packmule]

Last critter I hit was a St Bernard doing about 90. That collision looked about like when Randy Johnson hit the pigeon with the ball.

 

[tdcour]

HA! Love the description... pulverized I'm guessing! I have grille guards from T3 truck equipment in Uvalde, TX and a couple of Ranch Hands. Actually took out a pheasant that started me down the grille guard path. $400 for a good grille guard is cheap insurance when it comes to protecting your truck, 1200 or so for a front end replacement... Hit a deer pulling a trailer and I couldn't even tell I had hit it when I got out of the truck. Dad has hit several deer with his truck and hasn't had any problems. I think the next one I get will be a full front end replacement from Ranch Hand. They are worth every penny in my opinion.

 

[Musket Man]

Hit a deer with the Peterbilt going 60-65 and all I saw was a vapor cloud under the grain trailer and no trace of the deer on the next load.