I refuse to use decoys. Here's the reason. Where I hunt and have the most success are the tops of very steep ridges. The bird's gonna HAVE to top the hill to find his sweet thing, and if I'm sittin in the very middle of a small high point surrounded almost completely by ridges, he won't have time to run when he reaches the summit.......if I know which way to face.As soon as he tops the ridge I'm waiting to bust him.Lots of times I can see them coming down other ridges into a hollow beside me and I can tell where he's gonna come up by which direction he was heading going down that opposite ridge. If I know he's comin up the ridge I'm sittin on, I usually know exactly which direction to face and when he pops up he's dead. BUT sometimes he surprises me and sneaks in quietly and busts me, it happens. Another reason I dont use them is b/c I think a lot of turkeys keep a close track on the other birds in the flock and know each other's daily habits, so maybe they know what area all the birds are in andtheir habits, and they know the decoy is probably a rat.......that's just a theory of mine, may be a crock of crap but it sounds good to me. Turkeys arent dumb, they know a rat when they see one (or hear one). All these things are just theories I guess, it has a lot to do with the land, pressure, the hunter, set-up, etc. None of these things are guarantees. I will not kill a bird every time I go in the woods, nobody will. But these are the things I think about when I'm hunting that have helped bring me success. Bottomline, I'm doin just fine withoutdecoys so I aint using em. But it has a LOT to do with the terrain I hunt. I think the ridges give mesomewhat of an advantage.....kinda like that game you used to play in the arcade where you smacked the alligator whenhe popped his head out . In more flat open areas it seems likedecoys would work great b/c of the long range visibility. I dont know much about hunting turks in other parts of the country, so I cant say I wouldnt use them if I hunted in other places. Now that I'm done with my novel I'm goin to bed . Good luck to all this season!