What's a "good" bird
 

So what am I looking for in a "good" Turkey? Honestly, I'll probably take the first legal bird I see, but what's a good turkey? I hear people talk about Toms and Jakes, what's the difference? I'm new to this turkey thing, so make it simple for me. Include pictures if you've got them. I got my first turkey two years ago, and I was told it was a good bird, It was certainly good enough for me. It had a 9" beard, how long can beards get? I don't remember about the spurs, but I have a picture of them posted here. But show me some birds and explain what I should be looking for.
Thanks everyone,
Here's some pictures of my first Turkey.









-Jake

That's a great bird you have right there. 2 year old. Congrats!!

Jakes are first year toms. Jakes will have a shorter beard, bumps for spurs, and the primary tail feathers will be longer than adjacent feathers

I'm no expert, but your bird looks like a 2 yr old to me. The spurs look like they are about 1".

A Jake is a 1 yr old bird, they have beards that may be hard to see, or up to 3-4 inches or so. Their spurs are generally .5" or less around here. A Jake's fan will be longer in the center, with the outer tail feathers about 1 - 1.5" shorter than the center.

A 3 yr old bird will have spurs around 1.25" or so. Beards can vary, but a 3 yr old will generally have a thicker beard.

A lot of times you'll see 2 toms come in. One will be looking for the hen and the other will be strutting. The strutter is the dominant bird, but not always the bigger of the two.

IMO, any bird 2 yrs and older is a "good turkey". I don't shoot Jakes any more, but I did shoot a few when I was starting out.

My first Turkey years ago was a Jake, but only shoot Toms now, but the whole experience of Turkey hunting is what turns me on. A good bird varies widely in personal choice, and the particular species. An Eastern, especially around my area are very large birds by weight, but seldom do you get a good set of sharp hooks. They have a tendency to round them off from digging in rocky areas. If you want an awesome set of hooks the Osceolas in Florida are the way to go. Because of the lack of rocky ground, them birds have daggers for hooks, but they run on the small side on weight. The bird you shot looks like a 2 year old, but could be 3. Nice Tom, and I'd take him and be happy.

Is there a such of a thing as a bad turkey, uh no. Any bird that works or is taken by a hunter, and its what the hunter wants is a good bird. Most people believe the older the bird the better, its what ever your happy with. Good Luck this spring.

I'll take the bird you shot every spring if givin the chance!!!

that's a nice bird! good take brother.

UncleNorby covered the age and size pretty well! I think any bird you call and shoot yourself is a good one. I've been lucky enough to take some very large birds, but I've been just as proud of a smaller Toms. Its sometimes is just the hunt that makes them good birds! How much they gobble, if you've been on him several times and finally sealed the deal, or finding a strut zone and waiting out one of those ole tight lipped toms usually makes the bird for me!

Are the beards something that they grow throughout their entire life? You say they can vary alot... I guess I'm asking does a bird keep its beard it's whole life or do they grow in and out? Like a deer would lose its rack. I really am new at this haha..
Thanks for the input so far everyone.
-Jake

Any bird scoring over 70 points using the NWTF scoring method is a great bird!

But any bird that I have had the pleasure to call in has been a trophy in my book.....

JW

Great turkey! Any turkey that you harvest and are happy with is a good bird

There always growing "the same beard" Spurs are just a better indicator of age because they are more consistent between age and length. Beards can be broke or worn a little from turkey life or get beard rot, or worse....you can aim a little low and lose half of it! Oops! Haha!!

Just a couple of things. A three year old bird may not even have inch long spurs. I know spurs are an indicator of age, but it's not a guarantee. I've killed 3 yr. olds with inch long spurs or less. I've also killed a couple of jakes with a full fan. They were definately jakes. Both had about 3 inch beards with nubs for spurs and weighed around 14 pounds. As for what is a good bird, that would be any bird you call in. I'll take a 2yr. old just as quick as I will an older bird and be perfectly happy. Most of the birds I take on my property are 3 yr. olds, but if a 2 yr. old comes by, he is not getting a pass. Jakes will get a pass from me.

I only shoot Toms.

..........but once you put one in the frig, go after long beards from then on - IMO

Great question. This will be my first year hunting turkeys so thanks everyone for the advice and shared knowledge!

While I surely am no turkey expert that is for sure. I concider any turkey shot that is legal is surely a good turkey. I shot my first two turkeys this past spring and the fall before that my first turkey every and with my bow.. That one was a hen as the law here only allows you to shoot a fall turkey if you do not fill your first turkey tag..( spring/fall tag ) The fall bird can be any sex while the spring bird must be a bearded bird. I have seen numerous jakes with out any beards showing at all. Sometimes I will see four or five of these strutting with hens at once but no beards. I have also seen one last spring with his tail feathers all busted up and with three hens.. So I am not 100% sure on the rule of the bigger toms for as far as what exactly is going on that way.. I shot a decent tom last spring all by itself? That was my first spring bird and saw a couple of more decent toms all by themselves as well? So I am not sure if it was because the toms have already bred with the hens and was looking for more hens or what was going on.

My second bird was shot during our last week of the season. A bearded jake. Which I am guessing was at least a 2 year old as it had 1/2 inch spurs and my tom was prolly a 3 year old with 1 inch spurs. I am not sure though. I also think what they are eating will make up for some of the size different. Here in my area there really is not a lot of farms so they tend to eat from the fields and nuts in the fall from the woods.. During the winter months I am guessing mostly buds from the trees. So a big bird in this area is bound to be some what smaller than down state where there is more farmland. So I think that the size is can vary based on this factor as well.. But again any bird taken legally is a good bird no matter where you are hunting..

here is some good info



JW

Thanks For the info JW

Interesting info..according to that, I've kiiled a bunch of birds that I had thought were 2 yr. olds that are 3 and older.

Gman

Phil, a jake is always a 1 year old gobbler. They usually have beards from 1 inch to 5 inches. I killed one that had a 6 inch beard. That is unusually long for a jake. Their spurs are normally under 1/2 an inch, usually just nubs. A 2 year old bird is probably going to have 3/4 inch spurs with a beard anywhere from 6 to 10 inches.

Beard length isn't always a good indicator. In the Black Hills they drag 'em on the rocks so much you rarely see one over 7-9".