I don't know where I'm really going with this, but I'm just wondering what you guys consider a HOG gobbler. What would it take for you to kill a tom, and say "thissucker is going straight to the taxidermist!"
Is it a set of monster hooks - 1.5"+ ?
Is it a multiple-bearded bird?
Would you prefer a heavy bird, not concerned so much about spurs/beard?
Or would most like to kill a bird with a huge paintbrush beard?? We're talking about a beard that looks more like a cornbroom than a turkey beard.
Myself, I like those limbhanging spurs and those older-than-dirt toms whose skin seems to have outgrown their faces, busted up wings, tailfeathers missing, etc... You can kill a lot of turkeys before you find one that has huge, razorblade hooks. Those, IMO, are the turkeys of a lifetime.
Right now,at this point and time in my Turkey hunting career,with only 1 bird to my credit and a very long way from being a seasoned pro like others here,well,just about any legal bird will do
But to your question to what really impresses me is the weight of the bird and then the length of the beard----for some reason the spurs really dont get my blood boiling
to me a biggun is anything with a 10+ inch beard and 1+inch hooks......monster is when the beard is approaching the 12 inch mark...and the hooks are scarry lookin lol...even if i killed a monster...multiple bearded birds i dont know that id get it mounted..atleast not now....500$ is the going rate of my taxidermist...though he does the best turkeys ive ever seen...thats a financal setback for a college kid lol......but then again maybe i would...thats a once in a lifetime bird.....maybe a half mount if a full was out of the question....im just trying to break the 10inch mark....i got a 9 and a 9 and a half..3/4 and 1 inch spurs respectivly.....but i was hunting a trophy last year......i could see his beard hanging between his legs when he strutted....THICK and long......it was probably at its max legnth...im sure it hit the ground when he ate...never got a crack at him though......maybe this year
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>>----Give 'em the shaft!--->
I like the beards and spurs and weight, BUT, what makes a true "once-in-a-lifetime" Gobbler to me is one that I have hunted for more than one or two seasons. A tom that is just so hard to kill that he makes you doubt even coming back to the woods the next morning, but at the same time he keeps you awake at night looking for the dawn to get another chance at him. Even if he has no spurs and no beard he's still one tuff bird! My Dad, brother, cousin, uncle and I have a bird that has survived at least 4 seasons now. He stays in the swampsby our farm in Florida. His name is "Danny Devito", cause of his resemblence to the movie star. He lets us get a look every now and then, but never a shot! We've had him surrounded before, and shot a BIG Tom, but it wasn't Danny. He just slips away every time! That's a true trophy in my eyes.
Hunt one oldbird over a few seasons, and see if he is not the MASTER OF DISASTER!
for me to send one off to the taxidermist...my idea of a 'hog' longbeard would have to be all of the above...after all...with long beards and spurs comes age...he's been a smart old bird for a long time...probably knows the exact time i step into the woods..lol..and like JW said in another post, the weight increases with age...if ya want something for looks?....big tail fan...all the gobbler head colors...and bright red legs with the darker spurs...woooohooooo!!...now that's picture purfect!!...
10.5" beard or more, 1 3/8's spurs, weight isn't a factor, a real aggressive dominant gobbler may weigh only 18 pounds late in the season. The only "boss gobbler" I ever killed that weighed over 21 pounds during late season had his leg sliced open from thigh to the top of the leg scales from fighting, he was real skittish and gobbled very little.
RR
What makes a "big" turkey to you guys?
