# Question for bell folk



## hehibrits (Mar 10, 2007)

How far away should you be able to hear a bell in the grouse woods? Assuming conditions are "normal", (wind less than 10mph, no crazy background noise, dog running hard) I have never thought until recently to check my Astro and see where I lose the sound. I know that bells and peoples ears have strange relationships, so I was just wondering what anybody else has found...
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## Northbound (Sep 17, 2000)

Depends on the bell. We use a North Country long range bell from Lion Country Supply. http://www.lcsupply.com/Northwoods-Long-Range-Bell/productinfo/NLRB/

The sound carries roughly 200 yards depending on conditions. Frankly it is a bit much LOL, People who hunt with us absolutely hate it. Unfortunately I can't hear beeper collars or hawk screams outside of 30 yards. The North Country bell works for me.


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## Rudi's Dad (May 4, 2004)

Some bells are good for 30-40 yds, my hearing is off so I need a lower tone bell and even then its iffy.
The issue is when the dog is on point (bell only) WHERE IS HE?


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## k9wernet (Oct 15, 2007)

OT but I stopped using a bell this year and I use my ecollar on point mode only. It's nice to have almost complete peace and quiet in the woods. I also feel like I'm hacking less and the dogs are handling better.

KW


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## 2ESRGR8 (Dec 16, 2004)

I am about as anti-bell as a guy can be, never could "tune" my ear to a bell but when I tried one I could usually pick up bits and pieces out to about 140 yards.
Don't know why but that number sticks in my head.


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## hehibrits (Mar 10, 2007)

I am normally anti-bell, but I have a dog that has a little too much leg for my normal set up so I am trying to adapt...yesterday 250 was the limit on the bell, outside 250 yards = silence...

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## N M Mechanical (Feb 7, 2008)

Northbound said:


> Depends on the bell. We use a North Country long range bell from Lion Country Supply. http://www.lcsupply.com/Northwoods-Long-Range-Bell/productinfo/NLRB/
> 
> The sound carries roughly 200 yards depending on conditions. Frankly it is a bit much LOL, People who hunt with us absolutely hate it. Unfortunately I can't hear beeper collars or hawk screams outside of 30 yards. The North Country bell works for me.


 
This is the bell that I use an my hunting partners hate it I will be getting some lower tone clankers but I will never enter the woods without a bell on the dogs because you can tell what the dogs is doing at all times my the noice the bell is making


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## FieldWalker (Oct 21, 2003)

N M Mechanical said:


> This is the bell that I use an my hunting partners hate it I will be getting some lower tone clankers but I will never enter the woods without a bell on the dogs because you can tell what the dogs is doing at all times by the noise the bell is making




I use the LCS large sheep bell (setter) and the medium swiss (Vizsla) for the same reason. How a dog is working can be heard by the cadence of the bell.


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## Bobby (Dec 21, 2002)

No easy answer. Dogs all ring bells different based on their gait. Also based on how they hang from the collar, how tight the collar is on their neck, how wide the collar is and how it interfaces with the hanger on the bell. Conditions matter too, cover up or down, raining or snowing, both soak up the sound waves, wind, and last and certainly not least, your hearing or lack of. I always thought I had poor hearing but I can hear my bells out to 250 yards on most days and one day had the bell at 450 yards. Didn't want the dog out there, but he was. The conditions that evening were just right, calm, and he was across a valley, we were both elevated on either side of the valley.

That Northwoods bell from Lion country is a real pain if your dog can't run big enough for it. If you can see your dog a good deal of time you certainly don't need that bell, unless you are deaf as a stone. I don't use it much but I have one dog that really rings the thing and runs big enough for it.

I like the Canadian Lo Tone from LC. It carries great and isn't annoying up close but a lot of dogs can't ring it well. My little bitch can really put it to it. The other dogs don't ring it well. This one has a slight design flaw, the clapper sticks now and then and it's the then that can be frustrating. Most of them used to do it, don't know if they fixed the design. The ring on the clapper that interfaces with the bell itself needs to be rounder, that's the fix. It's not easy to do.

Mike Flewelling, a Coverdog guy out East makes a mess of different bells, sizes materials etc that many of the Coverdog guys have bought and used. I do not have contact info for him. One of the supply houses used to carry his stuff.


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## 2ESRGR8 (Dec 16, 2004)

N M Mechanical said:


> This is the bell that I use an my hunting partners hate


Yeah I have heard the complaints from them(him). 




> but I will never enter the woods without a bell on the dogs because you can tell what the dogs is doing at all times my the noice the bell is making


Me too by the noise the beeper is not making, dog is running. :lol:


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## FindTheBird (Dec 18, 2004)

Bobby said:


> Mike Flewelling, a Coverdog guy out East makes a mess of different bells, sizes materials etc that many of the Coverdog guys have bought and used. I do not have contact info for him. One of the supply houses used to carry his stuff.


I've got some Flewelling bells (known by Mike's kennel name "Sunkhaze"). I think they're a good compromize betweent the LC Northwoods and the smaller bells. The collar opening is at least 1" so these bells will fit a standard 1" collar. You can get them at Dog's Unlimited.
http://www.dogsunlimited.com/i/1345/sunkhaze-custom-hunting-dog-bells.htm


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## Bobby (Dec 21, 2002)

FindTheBird said:


> I've got some Flewelling bells (known by Mike's kennel name "Sunkhaze"). I think they're a good compromize betweent the LC Northwoods and the smaller bells. The collar opening is at least 1" so these bells will fit a standard 1" collar. You can get them at Dog's Unlimited.
> http://www.dogsunlimited.com/i/1345/sunkhaze-custom-hunting-dog-bells.htm


I like that they fit the 1" collars (all my bells do) but they ring different with different width collars, collars that are tighter or looser on a dogs neck and more specifically the gait of any dog combined with all the aforementioned criteria. Anyway, it's one mans opinion.....and it's the correct opinion


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## midwestfisherman (Apr 19, 2001)

I use the Canadian Low Tone bell almost exclusively and can hear it out to about 150 yards. I own several of the Flewelling bells and use them occasionally. The best one of his fir me is the all copper bell. It has a higher ring then the Low Tone bell but carries well. I'll typically use it on my closer working dogs (75 - 100 yards). I also have the LCS large brass bell but only bring it out on extremely windy days. 

Back to the Flewelling bells. I had a brass bell that I gave away. It just didn't carry that well for me. I also have a chrome plated bell of his that carries pretty well. I'll use that as a last resort. I've found that you really need to buy a few and use them to see what works best for you.


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## midwestfisherman (Apr 19, 2001)

Bobby said:


> I like that they fit the 1" collars (all my bells do) but they ring different with different width collars, collars that are tighter or looser on a dogs neck and more specifically the gait of any dog combined with all the aforementioned criteria. Anyway, it's one mans opinion.....and it's the correct opinion


You know they say opinion are like **** holes, everyone's got one. :evilsmile


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## N M Mechanical (Feb 7, 2008)

2ESRGR8 said:


> Yeah I have heard the complaints from them(him).
> 
> 
> 
> Me too by the noise the beeper is not making, dog is running. :lol:


 
And you know a german dog only finds two birds a year and he missed both of them :help::rant::SHOCKED:


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## kellyM87 (Oct 23, 2008)

I put a bell and a gps on my dogs.... Nuff' said 

I actually am really bad at hearing the bell.... especially when there are two bells going at a field trial. I always make my dog wear bells when we go out though, even if it is just for a workout. so A) I can get used to my bell sound (Canadian Low Tone) and B) because I always put it on when the shock collar is on, that way they have that sort of association with bell and shock collar. If the bell is on, the shock collar is on :evil:

I used to put the bell collar on my dog tight, but after some experimenting, the best sound I got was a lose collar around my dogs neck.


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## k9wernet (Oct 15, 2007)

N M Mechanical said:


> I will never enter the woods without a bell on the dogs because you can tell what the dogs is doing at all times my the noice the bell is making


Out of curiosity Nick, what do you need to know other than "the dog's pointing" or "the dog's not pointing"?

When it comes to range, my dogs are pretty good at "checking in" (or "hunting through my general vicinity") once in a while. If I start to wonder where they are at, I hit the "page" button on the beeper collar. If they're too far out I whistle them in.

It might not work for every hunter or every dog, but I feel like I'm enjoying my time a lot more this season, keeping my mouth shut, and disturbing the woods less.

Not to say that bells are bad, but previous to this season, I thought I'd never hunt without one. Without it, I feel like I'm almost MORE tuned in to what the dog is doing.

Just my $.02



midwestfisherman said:


> You know they say opinion are like **** holes, everyone's got one. :evilsmile


MS seems to have more than its fair share.

KW


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## N M Mechanical (Feb 7, 2008)

k9wernet said:


> Out of curiosity Nick, what do you need to know other than "the dog's pointing" or "the dog's not pointing"?
> 
> When it comes to range, my dogs are pretty good at "checking in" (or "hunting through my general vicinity") once in a while. If I start to wonder where they are at, I hit the "page" button on the beeper collar. If they're too far out I whistle them in.
> 
> ...


 
Well by the sound of the bell you can tell if your dog is tracking or about to go on point. So by the sound of the bell I can close the distance before the dog goes on point that gives me a better chance of killing that bird I figure I have less then 90 seconds to get to the dog to "KILL" a grouse. I never wait for the beeper or astro to tell me the dog is on point


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## English Setter Gal (Sep 19, 2008)

k9wernet said:


> Out of curiosity Nick, what do you need to know other than "the dog's pointing" or "the dog's not pointing"?
> 
> When it comes to range, my dogs are pretty good at "checking in" (or "hunting through my general vicinity") once in a while. If I start to wonder where they are at, I hit the "page" button on the beeper collar. If they're too far out I whistle them in.
> 
> ...


I started doing that this season and started finding a lot more birds without the bell than with the bell. I use the Tri Tronics beeper w/hawk scream on point only. If I have an idea my dog is too far out I use the locator feature. If they haven't checked in I stop walking and within a minute or so they show up. It makes for a nice quiet (except for when the 20 ga. spits pellets) hunt - no mouth, no whistle, no bell!


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## chewy (Mar 27, 2006)

hmm does a bell cause hearing damage? I would hate to have a big ass bell hanging from my neck 


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## bluebill (Feb 12, 2005)

I enjoy the sweet sound of the bell as much as a good pipe. 
Does the bell cause any adverse effect with the birds?
Originally I thought they would be like the nuke alarm my town plays the first Saturday of the month. Serving as a advanced warning system. I can't think of any game species that comes to investigate at the sound of the truck door or a bell.

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## Bobby (Dec 21, 2002)

midwestfisherman said:


> You know they say opinion are like **** holes, everyone's got one. :evilsmile


I have a buddy that always reminds me, "Bobby, everywhere you go there's at least one ashhole."


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## Bobby (Dec 21, 2002)

k9wernet said:


> Out of curiosity Nick, what do you need to know other than "the dog's pointing" or "the dog's not pointing"?
> 
> KW





N M Mechanical said:


> Well by the sound of the bell you can tell if your dog is tracking or about to go on point. So by the sound of the bell I can close the distance before the dog goes on point that gives me a better chance of killing that bird


I agree. I do the same. Not on every point, some are just bang, dog stopped, but some are like NM M describes.



chewy said:


> hmm does a bell cause hearing damage? I would hate to have a big ass bell hanging from my neck
> [/i]


I believe it does.




I have been hunting a bit this fall with just the Garmin (that freekin' overpriced, over designed, unfriendly pos) taking off the bells and the beepers. It is a very pleasant way to go. My little girl Ruby does it best, she is almost always to the front, most times not too big and is solid on her birds. When the cover is down I can keep better track of her and when she is out of sight I have that damn Garmin thing. I think this silent way may increase chances at quality shots but I need more time to work this hypothesis.


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## midwestfisherman (Apr 19, 2001)

Bobby said:


> I have a buddy that always reminds me, "Bobby, everywhere you go there's at least one ashhole."


Ain't that the truth! :lol:


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## search48180 (Feb 11, 2012)

I don't know the brand of the bell I have. I do know the first time I put it on my dog he would keep laying down to quiet it. I wrapped some tape around the drop to quiet it down some. I can still hear it as far as I am comfortable my dog running. He doesn't seem to mind wearing it now that he associates it with getting out for a good run.


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## azwizard (Sep 11, 2011)

I use a plain ol' copper cow bell and the beeper collar on (Hawk cry), point only. I get complaints from some people about the bell but before there were ecollars all you had was a bell. 

I can hear the collar and bell at about the same distance 150-200 yards depending upon terrain etc. 

The bell tells me how my dog is running, give's me a feel good about where he is even if I can't see him. Helps me guide him into downed birds if he didn't see it go down...

Works great in really tall grass that swallows up the dog. 

When I can't hear him I start moving towards him and if he's on point I'll get the scream from the ecollar if I havent gotten to him yet but that'll get him a steady and whoa. 

I like them but I blend old school and tech and use them both to my advantage/style. 

If you don't like the bell don't use one, but if you don't like em don't ask to go hunting with me cause my dogs wearing one.


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## Mslagle1 (Jan 8, 2012)

chewy said:


> hmm does a bell cause hearing damage? I would hate to have a big ass bell hanging from my neck
> 
> 
> _OutdoorHub Mobile, the information engine of the outdoors._


I tried a big brass bell for a while as didnt care for the results. The dog didn't seem to like it and kept giving me strange looks. Didn't change the amount of birds I saw, still didn't see anything and I missed them all. The biggest adverse effect was the damn thing turned my neck green...

Maybe im not using it right??






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