# Turkey Decoys



## DAHKINGFISH (Mar 21, 2006)

Who has the best turkey decoys in the market? Are they that important in order to harvest a turkey?


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## multibeard (Mar 3, 2002)

To be honest of all the turkeys that I have called into the gun only a couple were called into a decoy. I personally have had more trouble with a decoy messing up my hunt than helping it so quit using them 99% of the time.


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## DAHKINGFISH (Mar 21, 2006)

How did your decoy mess up your hunt? Spook the turkey?


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## huntingfool43 (Mar 16, 2002)

Once the tom spots the "hen" he may hang up waiting for her to come to him. Very frustrating to have a tom 50 yards away and won't come any closer because the hen don't react the way he thinks she should. He wants her to come to him and if it don't happen he may just turn and go the other way. A down side to using decoys.


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## DAHKINGFISH (Mar 21, 2006)

Are there any moving decoys that help prevent this?


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## New Kid (Oct 24, 2005)

I like the carry lite brand for realism. But honestly I almost never use one. I guess I like the thought of them searching for the call, and I mainly hunt state forests so it's a saftey issue as well.


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## multibeard (Mar 3, 2002)

In one instance we had a hen in the UP the earned the nick name of "bitch hen". She determined where the toms went. We could never figure out which one she was so we could TAKE HER OUT in the fall season.

One morning we set a decoy 50 yards down a 2 track that she usually took her entourage. When she was right in front of us she saw the decoy but the long beards were still out of range. She started putting like crazy at the decoy. That was it for that morning as she turned and took the toms back the way she came.


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## Long Spurs (Mar 29, 2005)

Don't use them that much but when I do it's on private land. I then go to a stuffed hen, works like a charm. Great when you don't have to walk that far.


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## wackmaster (Jun 2, 2006)

multibeard said:


> To be honest of all the turkeys that I have called into the gun only a couple were called into a decoy. I personally have had more trouble with a decoy messing up my hunt than helping it so quit using them 99% of the time.


It depends hugely on how you use them...like in this instance yes but that is why you use more then just one hen you need compition, A jake. I never go in the feild without my decoys. I use to think the same way until I called one tom in from behind me and he never saw a hen anywhere so he got spooked and turned around. I have only ever used 2 though I dont think I would go with more then that. If you have a hen and a jake together alone that boss tom is gonna get pissed and he wont even think about anything but taking that hen away from the little jake. I like my carrylite foam they roll right up into my vest and roll back out to normal. Good stuff


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## DAHKINGFISH (Mar 21, 2006)

So from what I gather decoys work when you use more than one and then due to safety measures use them on private land only. Hasw anyone had a bad experince using them on Public land?


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## Long Spurs (Mar 29, 2005)

There are times to use them and times to not. I will use them on public land but not that often. Anyone who has hunted with decoys long enuff has had good and bad hunts with the use of decoys. A big plus with a decoy is that it gives a focal point for that tom when he shows up to your set up, most of the time making him feel at ease. On the other hand it may cause him to hang up out of gun or bow range. Just remember that Turkeys are all diffrent even from day to day, and that when calling up a bird you are trying to reverse nature. That is what makes it so much fun.


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## cedarlkDJ (Sep 2, 2002)

Thunderhead had a good post on this subject last year.......maybe he'll read this and archive it out for you.........I've been using Feather Flex for years and like them a lot! easy to carry! roll up nice


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## RatherBFishN (Feb 19, 2007)

Last year was my first year and first bird. I went out in Jonesville a couple times and could not get the birds to come in. This was mid to late May. My brother suggested I pick up a decoy and so I did. I set it up about 25 yrds off the tree line and sure enough those birds were all over it first thing in the morning. 20lbs 9.5 beard. Cant figure out how to post picture or I would. Good luck.


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## tjfishinboy (Oct 5, 2006)

i think the best decoys are the cheap 8 dollar ones rollled up int he bin at gander mountain. last year i had over three dozen turkeys all toms/jakes come into the deeks at dif times. i put out two hens. and thats it.


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## solasylum (Mar 29, 2000)

IMO, there are many variables to take into consideration. Time of the season, weather, pressured birds, whether you have the birds patterned, and perhaps even the time of day. You just never know. Just get in the woods and try giving yourself as many opportunities you can. You learn by your mistakes and setups and adjust accordingly. I usually take the hen and jake approach and try making that tom a little jealous. If I know which way the birds are coming I'll set myself up between the tom's desired route and my decoys. That way if the bird does happen to hang up he'll still be in range. I only hunt public land and haven't had any issues with other hunters. If i get to one of my spots and there's another vehicle parked nearby I'll generally head down the road a bit further or head to a different spot.


That's my .02 opinion that's not really worth anything.


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## plugjerker (Aug 29, 2006)

I agree solasylm,I like to use one hen deke,sometimes they will charge it from 200yds,sometimes they will just ignore it from 20yds off the roost,still had nothing negative from one hen deke.


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## Tooth517 (Mar 2, 2007)

The best decoy on the market is the one used under the right circumstances. As far as brand, I like Feather Flex. I have the flock which includes 2 hens and a jake. It has helped me bag birds. However you do not necessarily need decoys to bag birds. I have shot a few that never saw a decoy.Just remember they can draw them in or they can spook them.


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## Firefighter (Feb 14, 2007)

flambeau dekes are tops. They use a taxidermy quality head, and are by far the most realistic on the market. They are soft and can stuff right in your vest just like "feather flex" and the likes.


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## Thunderhead (Feb 2, 2002)

I use Delta and Carry Lite. I use these 2 because, in my opinion they are the most realistic on the market and are 2 diferent sizes.
I hear it all the time " The Turkey saw my dekes and took off like a shot " 

I say, " Well, take a look at your dekes. " 

If you look at a flock of birds, what do you see ?
A great big hump in their backs and a sheen from the sun.

There are very few durable lifelike dekes on the market in my opinion. The blow up ones will deflate when it cools down at night, or will fall to a hens pecker.....lol 
Saw that happen once....LMAO

The Feather Flex deke is a good deke, I used to use'em, but they lack a realistic feeding hen. A 3 position hen doesn't feed on it's nose. And, an alert sentry, which there is always at least one in a real flock, just makes a Tom nervous.

As a rule, all I run are feeding hens. Rarely will I use a Jakes or Tom deke. I figure if I was lookin for a woman, the less competition the better.

Sure, other dekes will work. But, these brands that I use are the ones that are tried and true in my book and I can honestly say that I have never had a bird spook to one of my girls.

I also run at least 2 and as many as 10 hens, depending on what time of the season it is.


I've always figured that if a Tom was lookin for some lovin, he's going to come wether a Jake was there or not.

I've had more Toms spook at a Jake than what it's worth. Maybe they've had thier butts kicked enough that they don't want another confrontation, I'm not sure.

What I am sure of is that I've never had a Tom spook to my girls............

Late season I'll scale it back to 2 , maybe 3 hens tops. Single hens are solitary when laying and setting.
2 hens are a good indication that one might still want to breed and in search of a Tom.



Sometimes:

The more the merrier. Most flocks I see in early season are big. At least 5 -7 + hens. 
Again, I look back to my younger days. The more women in a group, the better my chances of scoring. 
Tho I never did score that much.............. 

10 hens, no Toms or Jakes = no fights and easy pickins......

I always keep 1 or 2 hens staked close to the ground in a breeding position too. Nothing fancy, just 2 " or so from the ground. The rest are 7" or so up and in a natural feeding pose.


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