all turkeys sound different some jakes cannot gobble very well and some can gobble great not areal great way for identication middle tail feathers are loger when in strut short stubby 3inch beard and when you shoot him he will have just nubs on his legs where his spurs should be

thanks for all the help guys I think I can tell now but if I shoot a jake instead its no big deal we can shoot anything with a beard here and I am not exactly out for a trophy more for just the fun and the experience, but it would be nice to get a big tom my first year.

Just setup on any gobbling bird. If he comes in and he is a Jake let him go or take him its your choice, but he may also be a nice big tom. I just hate for you to leave a setup to locate another bird just because he "sounds like a jake". I had 2 Jakes come into my decoy setup 2 years ago . Next thing I knew a bird gobbled 75 yards away. He did'nt sound any different than the Jakes. Well I hammered him with some cutting and yelps. He came right in! Guess what he was a 28 pound 4 year old Missouri Gobbler! He knew where those jakes were and when he heard the hen calls from their location he was coming over to whip those youngsters. Shot him at 15 yards while he was fighting with one of the Jakes!

I wouldn't just go by the sound. I killed a wily old bird last year that had 1 5/8" spur on one leg, and a broken spur (3/4) on the other. He was a smart and fat old beast with a big old paintbrush. His gobble sounded like a toilet flushing.

I've heard jakes that sound like Supertom.

Generally speaking, however, a jake will sound raspy and choppy. As noted earlier, a jake's tailfeather tips are longer, and not in a uniform half-circle when strutting. The middle feathers will be about 1-3" longer. Another sign is beard/spur length. A jake will have a short beard and stubby spurs.

There are exceptions here, too, as sometimes birds will lose their beards and start anew. Those will be mature gobblers with maybe a 2" beard.

You usually can tell, based on the totality of the facts. Jakes will also weigh less, generally.

If you see a strutter and his beard is in the grass, he has a big, pretty, round fan and a flock of hens around - it's no jake.

When I see a gobbler, I say "Jake?". If he doesn't respond I say "Tom?". Usually by the second question I get an answer.

it flies,

it flies,

The fan is the first thing I look for and is a dead give away. The size of the bird can be a clue, as can the beard. These are not always solid distinguishers like the full fan, but can help. I've heard both Toms and Jakes that sound alike, so going by sound IMO would be the worst method of comparison. Make 'em strut and check for a full symetrical tail fan. BOOM!

i look for size and beard