Once you've setup on a Gobbler and have him coming to that great calling your doing,How do you prepare your self for a shot? I tend to be always One step in front of a bird with the point of aim, like if I know how he is working and what route is is coming into my setup,I like to have the gun sitting pointing and waiting for him to work to the point of aim. I have seen other hunters get caught up in the display and enterance of the bird and get caught with the gun behind the bird, then have a hard time to get back onto him with out him seeing your movement. Do you keep that step in front of him as he is coming in ?...BT

I like them with Long Sharp Spurs....

i keep telling myself that is not a bear <img src=icon_smile_tongue.gif border=0 align=middle>

Good ? Boss. I seem to have a problem with that. Seems like the bird always comes in silent and i alway have my gun a little off when he comes in. I kinda try and guess were he might come in and have my gun in that direction. Sometimes i get lucky and the bird is gobbling alot and it's not to hard to figure out were to aim.

I hate when they gobble right before you see them and they are like 20 yards to the right of were you expected them to come in...

Ken, I have the same problems as well....silent gobblers. Since I use three decoys, I keep my gun pointing at the jake deek. Where ever the gobbler shows, he'll go towards the jake first. This always allows me to make an adjustment with my gun to make the shot!! <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

&quot;Spring Season....the Best&quot;!!!

Great Question BT!We talk much about alot things that are impotant to the outcome of a hunt and in my opinion this is the one that proves most critical!Its a frusterating experience to work hard on a gobbler finally managing to get him in gun range to find yourself in a situation where you have made a bad judgement where to set-up and the bird being in gun range, yet you being out of position either cant see him or cant move your gun without being seen.Or very simply he see's you move your gun to take a shot and the next thing you see is nothing but tail feathers.<img src=icon_smile_sad.gif border=0 align=middle>I've been there and learned the hard way.One of the toughest things to prepare my clients to understand is that they must be ready to take the shot when the opportunity presents itself with little or no movement!
Heres a couple of things I try to avoid in setting up for a shot.
1.dont put yourself in a situation where you cant move your gun left to right!Obviously sometimes we cant help it,but you can get yourself so hid that it is more a hindrance than a help!Trust your camo!A tree right in front of you can stop you from being able to move your gun left to right!
2.Avoid calling to that gobbler if he's in gun range already unless your about to drop the hammer on him!Calling this close just gives your position away and now he's staring at you eyeball to eyeball and greatly limits your ability to move your gun without his pericopic vision picking you up!
Here are some things I think will help!
1.Set-up with your off shoulder facing where you think the bird will approach!This will enable you to move 180degrees much easier than if you were to face him dead on!
2.Have your gun already up before he gets there!Obviously I dont mean cheek on stock but your gun on your knee in the direction he's approaching greatly reduces movement when it comes time to shoulder your gun!Having your gun draped across your lap or laying on the ground by your side while your working a bird will come back to bite you in the behind I garruntee it!
3.Anticipate his approach,when that bird goes silent and you know he was coming &quot;'get ready&quot;listen for footsteps and drumming!Look for that tailfan or that whitecap on a gobblers head in lowlight conditions that whitecap can stickout like a sore thumb!Alot of times on silent gobblers I have either picked out footsteps or heard strutting and was ready when they appeared!Using your ears knowing what to listen for can keep you from being caught with your pants down!<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>
4.Finally limit your movement!Add all these things up and thats exactly what this all is meant to do when that bird enters gun range!Knowing when and when not to move is so important,using his tail fan,or waiting for him to go behind a tree or stump,anything that blocks his view from you should all be anticipated and taken advantage of if need be!Trying to make a big swing on a bird or shifting when he's in plain sight will most likely end up in a spooked bird or a shot that should'nt be taken!Practice patience and as BT said look ahead of the bird and utilize the woods to your advantage in moving your gun or shifting into a better position!
Theres more that goes into set-up than just being able to get in a good postion to get that gobbler to come in,you have to be able to shoot without being seen in it too!!Great post BT!!Hope this helps all!Bob

Monarch isn't a butterfly it's the King of the Spring!

Edited by - bobgobble2 on 01/12/2003 08:13:58

You guys are making it sound like you can't even blink without him seeing it. I can attest that you CAN move on a bird-- but the movement has to be IMPERCETABLY SLOW!! On two different kills and many other occaisions, I have had to move <u>a long way</u> and have gotten away with it. Once I had a whole flock of hens swarm all around me, comming on the run, when I changed from yelping at a hung-up tom to a feeding purr. One hen was no more than 15 feet from me when the tom showed. I had to put down my slate and reach for my shotgun, then shoulder it and fire. Not one of those birds knew I was there until I pulled the trigger. I got caught flatfooted that morning, but I simply moved VERY slow and took my time. I figured that if I got the shot, great, but if I ran out of time... well that's better than spooking him. Another morning, I had a 2-year-old to fly into a tree about 30 feet behind me while calling. I was trying to locate a bird to set up on when he came flapping in. I did the same thing-- moved VERY slow to pocket my box and raised my shotgun.

Now, I'm not saying that these aren't some of the sharpest eyes around, but they can be fooled. You just have to move about as fast as the shadows move across the forest floor and be very careful how you move your head.

Now, having said all that, I will agree that it is best to be waiting for him than chasing him. Bobgobble2 describes the perfect setup and when everything else falls into place, its pure poetry. But just because he circles or comes in from your right or something, don't give up. And don't lose patience.

Ya'll don't forget to have fun out there! And Huntma, watch out for them bears!

The first thing I try to do is get my breath and control my breathing. Seriously, except on those occasions where the bird showed up so fast that I didn't have time to react, I start to shake, my heart pounds and I can't get my breath so the first thing I have to do is calm down and make sure I a in the right state of mind for the shot. Given that little issue, Bobgobble2 pretty much has the rest of it down. The only thing I would add is that you must be prepared to react to what the bird does. No matter how much I plan and think I have it figured out, 50% of the time the bird comes in from somewhere I didn't expect (maybe my hearing is not that good) and I have to be ready to re-adjust.

just like bowhuntin pick a spot and concentrate on nothing else!! The shakes seem to be less this way and if ya aim small you'll miss small!!!!

I have it up in the direction I expect to see the bird. I always hunt the same farm, so I have a pretty good idea how things usually work out.