Turkey hunters

Decoy or no decoy?

Depends on the situation...

I like to hunt the edge of thicker cover with no decoy it keeps them looking I call softer or not at all to keep them interested and looking.

Leaving the decoys at home will force you to become a better turkey hunter

I run and gun with the boys. So far never had a Tom come to the decoy when it's set up. Typically it's been slip close and blast him. Seriously thinking about leaving the decoys at home this year. I'm not packing a gun but can't slip through the thick spring wood as quietly with backpack larg enough to two hard decoys.

No decoys for me. I try to travel as light as I can to stay away from the truck for 5-6 hours at a time. Pretty much just water, snack and TP for my extra items. If I ever decide to take the bow, ill do the blind/decoy thing. I stay mobile with the shotgun and usually am trying to pick out the best place to sit in a hurry because the bird could be on his way. Lots of walking and calling off ridges til I get an answer and sometimes it’s fast action so no time to put out a decoy.

Decoys I use to use but kind of got away from them. My issue is when the tom see's decoy it holds up and calls for the hen to come to him. No decoy they keep on coming and looking and has been a better way most times. Like Law said.

Very rarely do we use them, but if we do, it is usually a jake and hen. If it's wide open and you've got limitations on getting them close, they could help. Or they could hurt. It's a double edged sword.

If you can’t call or lack woodsmanship then a decoy is about a close to success as you can get. I’d say right near 80-90% success rate with a decoy.

So my answer is NO decoys, lol!!!

I use decoys all the time and kill turkeys all the time.will they spook birds absolutely but they will bring them in running too.i use 2 a boss tom and a hen in the breeding position iam after the boss Tom in the area iam hunting.i don't want shoot Jake's and have never had them come to this setup.those dominant Tom's can't stand it when they see another tom with that hen in my experience.situations can vary but iam in favor of using them if a tom hears a hen he expects to see a hen when he gets to your calling spot.

Decoys are not a sure bet down here.

My experience, it's not even close to 80 or 90% success rate.....more like 50-50. I've seen as many gobblers spook or not pay any attention to decoys as I have come in to them. It is a sight to see when they work and the goobler wants to whoop the decoy. Have seen that a few times.

Gobblers must be very different in other areas... assume it has a lot to do with hunting pressure I'm sure. Lightly hunted birds may decoy easier.

I've used about every kind manufactured from the foam decoys to hard shell to an inflatable gobbler. Some of the early decoys were laughable. I now have an Avian X HDR strutting gobbler and a hen. Pricey, but the realism is nice.

Still....they are not even close to ensuring a guarantee kill.....not for me anyway.

both,

When I guide and I’m not packing a gun, I’ll usually carry a decoy or two.
When I am hunting and packing I seldom carry a decoy.
I don’t come out of the woods while on an out of state hunt. Many times midday, I’ll set on a couple decoys and blind call for a few hours when turkeys aren’t talking much.
I agree with Swampwolf. Decoys are far from a slam dunk. Like calling, sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t. I’ve seen gobblers run to them, I’ve seen them run from them, and I’ve seen a heckuva high percentage totally ignore them.
They’re a tool.
They definitely work better on unpressured turkeys.

No decoys for me, just one more thing to carry. Although there's nothing cooler than when they come into a decoy. I think our last 10-12 kills between my boys, and I have been no decoy. My younger brother has killed way more turkeys than me and absolutely swears by a strutting Jake. I've seen it work and not work. Happy hunting.

decoys help in certain scenerios disadvantages to decoys are its more to carry i only use my decoys when hunting out of my blind as i usually leave them in it

I've never used a decoy.

Give me a DSD jake and hen and I can kill a turkey in any state on any land. Give me a fan along with those decoys and I’ll get a limit in a day, don’t care where or what land it is. That’s the reason I quit using decoys about 6-7 years ago…way too easy. No challenge with a decoy. Find turkeys, throw out decoys, turkeys come in, shoot turkeys. Heck, you don’t even need camo, their focus is solely on the decoys and nothing else.

Now go hunt without decoys and let me know how you do. Dedicate one season to absolutely no decoys and tell me decoys aren’t an almost guarantee success. If you’re using decoys and scaring turkeys then you’re using the wrong decoy or haven’t learned how to use them.

You can basically set up anywhere with decoys, no woodsmanship required. Open pines with broomsedge next to a burn, no problem. With decoys the gobbler sees decoys and comes in. Without decoys that gobbler will hear you, but is not coming in when he can’t see anything. No thought process needed when using decoys except where to set and how to set.

I think you have experience turkey hunting (even in multiple states)....but some of your statements are not accurate.

Almost reads like an inexperienced turkey hunter....lol

I've had more negative responses with decoys than positive.

Tell me which part? I’m open to criticism, lol. Better yet, some of y’all take the challenge of no decoys for a season, in state or out, and prove me wrong.

Decoys are a crutch, if they weren’t, every video you see wouldn’t include one. I stand by everything I posted and give me an invite with the provided decoys and I’ll prove it. I won’t shoot, but I’ll dang sure show you it works. A jake DSD over a hen on the deck will draw in every gobbler out there. Heck look at the Florida video I posted. That turkey was 200-300yds away and would NEVER have even thought about coming that way without those decoys. That was his decision to use them, not mine. If they didn’t work they wouldn’t mass produce them and about every hunter out there own about 2-5 of them. Heck someone on here has an entire flock, I’ve seen the pics, lol.

1) take a decoy to a non-quota WMA (report back on your easy success.)

2) no camo....lol.

3) wrong decoy use? No knowledge of how to use them for success? Really? Broad group your lumping a lot a turkey hunters into.

4) no woodsmanship required? Gobbler sees decoy and comes right in? Maybe on those Worth County private quail plantations they do.

5) no thought process needed to use decoys...I dont even know how to counter that...lol.

I like decoys

funky chicken....

You won't have them running off using Jake decoy as a general rule.you put a big tom decoy out there in full strut your going to have turkeys that won't come in whether they got there butt kicked or intimidated by them they do have a pecking order but there are exceptions to everything.

You do realize I got my start on Chickasawhatchee right, lol?? About as public as one can get. And that was after the quota hunts, lol.

And yeah, no camo required. Tell me how kids kill them without a blind, sitting in dad’s lap, talking and moving? That turkey is focused on the decoy.

Yeah, wrong choice of decoys. These gobbler decoys will work half the time. I stated, DSD Jake and hen. How do I know, I’ve used them all until I figured it out. If something doesn’t work, don’t use it. I’ve NEVER had a gobbler shy away from a single jake or jake/hen combo.

Again, throw a decoy out where you know some turkeys are, make something that resembles turkey sounds and wait. Yes, it even works on WMA’s…been there done that.

So tell me other than knowing which decoys to use and not to use them in thick areas, what other thought process is there. Throw out decoys, sit back and wait. Better yet spot turkeys, sneak out and set decoy, get his attention, get your gun up.

Unless you’ve done it, you don’t know. Yes, I had a DSD hen and jake. Yes I killed a pile of turkeys off them on public land. Chickasaw, Flint River, Elmodel, and one other Hannahatchee maybe? Up near Stewart Co I think. And don’t get me started about when I started fanning turkeys, lol. I’ve walked behind a fan with gun in right hand and fan in the left and had them charge in.

So tell me that’s hunting??? Nah, that’s pure shooting!

Boy you’d think they’d kill them all then……………

I use decoys and a gobble shaker every time. Wouldn't leave home without it. OMG Karen's I hope I don't get shot this year!!

Clay not sure how it is in your state, but our numbers are dwindling. So how many folks to you know that killed a bird with decoys vs without?
Swamp, same question to you?
Now take those that killed with and add them back into the population. Now do that over our entire state or country and I wonder if we’d still be in a declining population.

Here’s a 20K acre WMA totals and a serious producing turkey county in the past…



No I’m not saying the numbers are down because of decoys, but they surely don’t help matters. If they weren’t effective, no one would be using them. I know people that will straight up tell you they would quit turkey hunting if they couldn’t use a decoy. Why? Because they can’t kill one without them.

decoys are useless when you can't see very far. Last 2 birds the boys shot we walked more hands and knees and could not see them untill they were killed at about 17 and 13 yards. less than a minute apart. Decoys stayed in the back pack. This was the 3rd attempt of the day on public land that morning. first to got blow by other hunters.

Year before same thing except my youngest was small and didn't pull the trigger on the bird waiting for it to stop after his brother had smoked his under 15 yards. Naturally it didn't stop .

My youngest spot and stalked his first turkey by himself no call or decoy and killed his bird with cheap kids bow at 7 years old wearing a bright orang shirt red shorts and cheap black rual king rubber boots .

when I have had toms off in a distance they hang up or decide To stay with the hens with them and don't run over like they do on TV. Good chance I'm doing something wrong never been a big turkey hunter. Decoys seem more like a hindrance packing them around and have cost my boys birds when I try to get out 15 yard in front of us and set them up when I should have stayed put and called not realizing the bird was as close as it was.

I do both. If I am running and gunning, I go commando and leave the decoys in the truck. I save the decoys for hunting out of a blind.

WB's opinions and theories about decoy use is not what I have experienced in my 35 + years of turkey hunting. Both public (where I started) or private tracts.

I don’t know of anyone that can go to an open non-quota WMA or NF, dressed in no camo/not in a blind, set up a decoy(s), and be guaranteed a gobbler kill....without any woodsmanship knowledge. Some turkey knowledge, area knowledge, and at least a minimal plan is needed.

It also isn't even close to being a guarantee on most private tracts.

Decoy use is NOT even a blip on the radar of turkey limiting factors....come on WannaBe! Lol

Just wow.



Wow.


I don’t want to get banned so…..


I’ll just say wow.

Lol

Yup. Sounds like wanna be is living up to his/her name.

Once again… wow.

Nah. I’m good.

What do I know about hunting turkeys in multiple states. Both private and public.

Nothing, that’s what. Just because there are a pile of dead turkeys don’t mean nothing Swamp.

Dude grew up hunting some weird named area that most of us haven’t heard of. Dudes an expert.

I’m practicing for when my boys are teenagers and know everything. How am I going?

No decoy, just need one of them reaper fans. See one out in the field and walk/crawl right up to it and blast the stupid bird.

It get shot in the face doing it .

It's worth the risk. Them birds are real trophies you know.

Haha, ok if they don’t work, why use them, lol?? Seems that question is ignored throughout this entire conversation.

Delaware Rob, I’ve hunted birds all over this Country. All public land, all without even thinking of carrying a decoy, but willing to eat tag soup if necessary. So what is your argument here? You make comments but add nothing to the conversation. Do you use decoys? If so why? If you can kill a pile of dead birds, why the decoys? Guessing you must have a flock to get this upset, lol. The places mentioned, if you had reading comprehension, was WMA’s that Swamp should know of and I’m guessing use his powers to pull up my name on said WMA’s.

Not taking anything away from anyone using them, good on ya if you do. And if you can’t kill turkeys with a decoy or fan, then turkey hunting just ain’t for you.

Here ya go Swamp, Chickasaw WMA April 2016. Clearcut near Bullpen Gate. Heard turkeys the evening before in the swamp. Went next morning set up decoys in clearcut next to the swamp, made a few calls and waited. I knew if anything saw the decoys they’d come in. Bird never made a peep, but came in from who knows where and got killed. I say who knows where because he came from across the clearcut and not the swamp, lol. Do you really think calling a public land bird across a clearcut is gonna happen if he can’t see anything? Nah, you know better than that, lol.



Yeah, the ole DSD Jake and Standing Hen, except she was at the jakes feet.

Y’all decoy folks get mighty upset over things that don’t work.

But.....it's not a guarantee....as you stated.

Not even close.

Surely your not basing your dislike of decoys on that one lonely Chickasawhatchee WMA gobbler....are you?

Did you kill a gobbler every time you used those Dave Smith decoys?

My AvianX HDRs are very realistic, but I can't make a 100% kill rate claim...lol. Most times they are useless.

Some of you are awfully judgmental of the way other people kill stupid birds. LOL

Yup

I’m on my phone so can’t copy and respond to everything you stated. But, I can say, I don’t use decoys. I have a few, but almost never use them unless I’m taking a youth that needs to be in a blind because they move too much. They work some, but not the best.

I’ve killed a bird or two yes.

I don’t fan turkeys. That is dangerous and stupid. Especially on public land. Great way to get shot.

You may have hunted all over the country, but you may have missed the north east. Have you hunted the state of Delaware? Have you tried fanning/reaping in the pine barrens of New Jersey?

You’re the one saying it’s a 80-90% chance of success with a decoy, not me. That is just an outrageous statement. Considering the national average of success is 25% or so. If it was so easy with a decoy everyone would do it.

But what do I know, nothing that’s what.


I will say, when it comes to turkey hunting you can’t say always or never.


I’m glad you have a 90% success rate with your decoys, I don’t use them. But good for you, it wouldn’t be any fun if I was just killing them all the time .

as fun as this thread is youth turkey is this weekend and I need to get up early and go locate some birds if I can. Going to check out a place we deer hunt a little and see if "we" ( the boys with my hearing I likely won't hear much) can locate several toms and see if this place may be better than our usual area that's 2x further away and had so much pressure last year on youth season it looked like it was deer firearms. in the parking lots.
good night all.

Heck yeah! Good luck finding some gobblers.

Missouri’s turkey population is way down, especially in my part of the state. We used to kill 700 to 800+ birds in the spring season in my county. Struggle to kill 300 for many recent years.

I’ve done a little turkey chasing. I’ve just never seen decoys be the slam dunk guarantee that you have. I don’t see them any more effective than good calling. Reaping, fanning, whatever you want to call it is another conversation altogether imo.
Woodmanship consistently kills more turkeys than anything else.
Personally I wish more people sat in blinds with decoys. They don’t bugger near as many as they do walking around.

I use the collapsible foam decoys. A jake and hen. They weigh nothing and can just stuff in a backpack. They definitely work. They do have small metal poles that stake into the ground, but they also weigh next to nothing. Tom's come running at them!

No one is judgmental. Just seems they don’t work for some folks I guess.
Yeah, Swamp, if a gobbler saw the decoys he was a dead bird…every single time. And again, just one example in that pic. I stated all the other WMA’s I hunted back then. Used to haul those jokers out of state as well. Get on the prairies of Kansas and let a gobbler see that and they’d come running.
I only thought decoys were the ticket, until I tried fanning or reaping. It was self defense shooting, lol. You learned quick when to drop that fan and get the gun on them.
Have things changed since I quit using them? Based on every video you see on social media, I don’t think so. It used to take us longer to drive straight through to Kansas than it did to kill a 2-3 man limit out there. Maybe I’ve just been lucky, but I was lucky an awfully lot, enough to let me know that wasn’t really hunting to me.
As far as decoys I’ve had a DSD hen and Avian hen out at the same time and a hen in the group came in and destroyed the DSD and acted like the Avian wasn’t even there. The gobbler came in and attempted to mate the DSD while it was laying on its side from the hen knocking it over.
If you travel out West in the mountains and don’t set up right that gobbler will never come in. He’ll peak over that ridge and if he doesn’t see anything the next gobble will be 200yds away. Turkeys are a “sight” bird. He heard something, but if what he hears doesn’t match what he can clearly see or doesn’t see, he’s gone. I’m real picky about where I call from and possible setups before making a call…getting too old to belly crawl and become one with the earth, lol.

I just purchased this AvianX HDR hen. I compared the DS's and went with the AX HDR....more realism.

Avian X offers another (cheaper line) of decoys...not as realistic as their HDR line.




Here is the Dave Smith hen I compared...

Headed to get a head start on getting chufa dirt ready today...

I mentioned to the manager about planting Chufa before, he said he tried it and it brought in more hogs than pigs at the time. We just planted about 8-9 fields in partridge pea. More beneficial for the quail, but the turkeys and deer make good use of it as well, cover and food.

Yeah that hen does look pretty sweet. They’ve come a long ways. I started out with one of those fold up things that was a general shape of a turkey more so than actually looking like a turkey. Even that thing would bring them in. As a joke I bought my son one the other day for him to take to the PNW so he wouldn’t get skunked.

Yeah...if you have hogs around...chufas are a no-go. Also have to plant them in large enough plots that squirrels, coons, and possums can't eat em all.

Partridge peas grows on the sand ridges here...thick in a most of the areas of full sunlight. Easy to see it when those yellow blooms are covering it.

I have a love- hate relationship with them.

I try really hard not to use them. Especially in the early part of the season. I would rather kill them with the call.

They tend to feel like an anchor to me once deployed. I do sometimes carry just a fan. I’ve pulled hung up birds the last few steps with a quick flash or two of an open fan.

My old hunting mentor called them dummies. Some days if we hadn’t been successful killing them the honest way, we’d go dummy hunting.

I would certainly like to hunt where some of you do and have the success rate that you do. I am a archery hunter so it is almost impossible to kill a turkey while not in a blind. I have done it once. With a gun, sure go chase them around and move to get in front of them, no blind or decoys needed. I use decoys ranging from a full strut Jake (I agree that a Tom decoy can scare most turkeys away) to a couple hens depending on how aggressive the toms seem that year. My success rate is around 50%, filling my tag roughly every other year. I am in an area with hundreds of turkeys with 2 miles of me at any given time. I was lucky enough to fill my tag this morning and had a prefect example of this. Right off the roost, a single tom flew down towards me, covered about a 1/4 mile straight at me gobbling every time I called before veering off at 150 yards to join a larger group of turkeys. He could see my decoys the entire time and paid them no attention. Just as a I was packing up I spotted a small group of turkeys coming from the same direction. It was 3 toms and 3 hens. I called several times but they never gobbled but the dang near ran the entire way, with the toms leading, right to 15 yards from my blind. They may have came closer but that was well within my kill range. I have no doubt that if I didn't have decoys out, I would have never harvested one of those turkeys. Since the season just started, I was using 2 hen decoys.



Here is a YouTube Short showing the turkey with measurements:
[video:youtube]https://youtube.com/shorts/BPsgIPPJp38?feature=share[/video]

Schmattz

I took my 11 yo son for Ohio youth turkey. While circumnavigating a cut corn field I called. I started to walk and my son started pointing. We set up and i called in 2 jakes. He unalived a triple beard jake! Since then I've been a blind/decoy hunter. Including yesterday when 3 longbeards came in. They left their buddy 24 1/2 pound 10.5 beard Ears way to bad to run and gun. Plus you can smoke an Ashton and they can't see!