Like everything they have a time and place. Knowing when and where only comes from experience of actually being out there hunting turkeys. You will beno better or worse a hunter by using them or not. Get a couple, then the "where and when" decision is all yours! I've cussed my decoys and also thanked God I put them out. Hunt enough and I'm sure you'll do the same.

I always carry at least one hen decoy, sometimes two. Don't use the jakes too much. As for how effective they are i think it depends, i have had turkeys coming hard and upon seeing the decoys get kinda spooked by them, other times i have had turkeys that didn't seem that interested in my calling and upon seeing the dekes came charging in, but that's just turkey hunting. You never know what they are going to like or dislike from day to day so i like to have as many tools as possible when i go hunting and a decoy can be a very effective tool to have.

What I found to work the best with decoys...movement, and I don't mean them swinging around in a circle in the wind. I madea spring loaded stake where I can tilt the decoy down like it's feeding. In fact, I have two like this now. Some monfilament line and an old Zebco reel, and you're set. Run the string down to the bottom of the stake, so it doesn't pull the decoy over. Real confidence builder.

I even tripped a jake last year with the monofilament just to see the reaction. He just stood up and kept on going.