Well we had a greatthread about Turkeys and calling yesterday. I was hoping we could have another great one on Setup/Setup of Decoys.
How close to you setup to where they roost?
How many Decoys do you use/take with you?
What decoy do you use?
Do you have a pattern you set the decoys up in? A formula?
How close to you setup to where they roost? 150 yds at the "Hub" of our farm. We have two lanes and they meet where I setup.
How many Decoys do you use/take with you? On our farm I take 8 4 jakes 4 hens
What decoy do you use? I use Cabela's Brand
Do you have a pattern you set the decoys up in? A formula? I use TOOD, I set 6 decoys out in a Triangle pattern. Two Sets(Jake.Hen) 5 yards in front of my blind. With the Jakes facing me, and the hens facing away. I put a set staright out in front of me 20 yds away. I do this so when a turkey is in the middle of the set I know haw far he is away from me.
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"it's not that I am lazy, I just don't care"
Depends, as close as I feel I can get without alarming the birds any givin morning, be that 50 yards to 150 yrds. When they are on the roost, I WANT them to see my decoy, and fly into them.
How many Decoys do you use/take with you?
Two. "Aggresive Jake" and A hen.
What decoy do you use?
See above
Do you have a pattern you set the decoys up in?
I set the Jake behind the hen, and stake in the hen so it looks submissive. Esentially a breeding pair. Othertimes, just a the jake. I set them 5-10 yards from my blind. My goal before I shoot, get the turkey I'm going to shoot to attack my Jake decoy, it is already beat up after 3 seasons
Do you have a pattern you set the decoys up in? A formula?
How close will obviously depend on many factors and varibles that seem to change from day to day but if givin the choice it is nice to set up somewhere between 100 to 200 yards from the roost. That being said however, there are many instances where scouting has indicated to me that the birds WILL be visiting a particular foodplot or strut zone and at these locations I'll pop up the DB blind and stay there until a shooter shows up or legal shooting time ends.
The number of decoys I set out will also vary. Depending on how I'm set up and what phase of bredding the turks are into at the time. However, my favorite set up is a Pretty Boy and pretty girl as well as a couple of extra hens thrown into the mix. I want a tom to think that even if he doesn't feel like fighting, there maystill be a chance to come in and steal one of the hens away. My decoys are always set up close to my blind and never more than 15 yards or so.
Generally I like the Tom, or Jake, decoy to face the blind but again cover and conditions will dictate how I position them exactly. Most importantly, I position the male decoy exactly where I want to take my shot.
Here's our successful set-up from last weeks IL Youth Season. The 5 strutters showed up to the left of the photo and were working/strutting their way to the Pretty Boy when my Daughter smoked one!
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An "archer" tries to see how far away he can get from his target and still connect, a BOWHUNTER tries to see how CLOSE he can get to his!
How close to you setup to where they roost?depends on the foliage. I stay pretty far back until theleaves obstruct their vision. Once it thickens-up, I'll slip in tight. A lot depends on whether I know exactly where they're roosted - and how dark it is when I'm slipping in.
How many Decoys do you use/take with you? 2-4. If I plan accordingly, I take the Prettyboy/girl and my 2 foam cheapos.
What decoy do you use?Pretty boy/girl, 1 el-cheapo foam hen, and one Flambeau jake (the one with the plastic head)
Do you have a pattern you set the decoys up in? A formula? I just put them out in an area where they can be seen.
I kill lots of birds off of the dekes, but usually those same birds would be dead no matter whether I had dekes out or not. I just like to draw them to a certain point so I know the yardage and get a little bit ofa show. I like watching them interact with the decoys. It can be pretty funny sometimes.
Note: If I'm lugging in the Prettyboy, I have to stay back away from the roost areas, b/c that thing is loud to carry through the woods. Especially in the dark. A twig scrapes the plastic, and it sounds like somebody is pounding on a snare drum.
Bowhunting Turkeys Decoy Sets/Setups
