GFY_Camp

So how much is it how your decoy looks rather than where they are placed and how you call?

Looking at picking up this bad boy (two matching hens as well) and just love the price ($9.99).

http://www.fleetfarm.com/catalog/pro...ern-jake-decoy



I held them in my hand and they really don't feel any worse or better than the more expensive decoys. Thoughts?

hunt12ga

I have some old beat-up foam decoys that are held together with black safety pins, monofilament fishing line and super glue. The paint is coming off, and my jake's beard is taped on. I've had gobblers strut within feet of them for several minutes before taking a dirt nap.

That being said, they have been replaced since then. Not because they no longer work, just because I'm a sucker for new and neat. I think those decoys will do fine.

rw

jepcho

I like those decoys. I've got a couple. Nice and cheap and still fairly realistic. I don't think you can go wrong with one.

Bigtimer

GFY, I wouldn't hesitate to you that decoy. Below is a photo of myself with my first longbeard and a my homemade decoy. It's on old foam decoy head and a dried fan mounted on a piece of re-bar. He came spittin and drummin around this decoy and never fiqured out the deal.



My point is that I don't think that it takes a lot to fool these birds with a decoy.

Wingbone

I've got an old foam hen decoy that I found blowing around in the woods several years ago. I gave it a sex-change operation. I took some black spray paint to darken it and I used tennis shoe paint to color the head and neck red and white. It fools them every time. Turkeys respond to colors, shapes and sizes aren't as critical. I think it'll work great. For that price you can buy a spare.

gun870guy

Your deeks are not an attractant. Birds do run to them but puttin all of your reliance on the deeks is limiting your potential to kill birds.

I shot 3 birds last year, no deeks used.

The deeks are supposed to take the attention away from the caller, not serve as a focal point for your hunt. I have had situations with weary birds that came in looking for the caller and lock up cause they couldn't see one, but most of the time, they come running regardless.

There are alot of guys that swear you need all this expensive crap to shoot turkeys. You can use foam deeks, like Knight and Hale did in the years leading up to the turkey hunting explosion, or you can use a mounted hen. Both work effectively.

Mr. Longbeard

please dont tell me that chair in the back ground is were you were sitting when you shot that field bird???